PART 16
Sam woke to the smell of coffee and bacon. Hugging her pillow to her, she couldn�t quite figure out where she was, but then she opened her eyes and saw the picture next to the bed. She wasn�t at the hospital any more, with hospital food and regular visits in the night from the nurse. She was at Jack�s place. She could relax.
She remembered Jack sitting on the edge of her bed. He had been blissfully unaware of his near-nakedness. She smiled at their conversation and then remembered the kiss on her forehead before he�d turned out the light. He�d kissed her! Granted, it had been a chaste peck on her forehead, but he�d kissed her!
Then, the memories of the previous night�s dreams came back. Dreams that had been all too real. Shoving away the giddy feeling she�d felt growing in her stomach.
In an attempt to escape the haunting nightmares, Sam threw a sweatshirt over her tank top. Following her nose, she headed toward the wonderful smells emanating from Jack�s kitchen. She heard him humming tunelessly as pans banged the stove and then she heard the distinct clink of plates and silverware being set on a table.
She walked into the room and stopped just inside the doorway. She wasn�t quite sure which was stranger - the gentle domesticity of Jack humming tunelessly, frying eggs and setting filled orange juice glasses with pretty little flowers on them on the table or finding Jack, barefoot and dressed in a dark blue t-shirt and khaki shorts, both covered by a frilly apron that read, �Kiss me, I�m Irish and I�m the cook!�
Sam couldn�t stop the giggle that bubbled up from inside. At her giggle, Jack turned to face her with a million watt smile, his beautiful brown eyes full of warmth only for her. She felt the giggle die and something else catch in her throat.
�Good morning, sleepyhead,� he said, �I thought you�d never wake up! You timed it just right, as usual, though. Breakfast is just about ready.�
Jack turned back to the eggs and bacon. She looked so adorably lost in her oversized Air Force Academy sweatshirt and her navy shorts with her blonde hair tumbled around her face. He didn�t know whether to hug her or feed her. He decided feeding would probably be safer for his sanity.
�I thought you had to see General Hammond this morning,� she said warily.
�Already done,� he said casually, �talked to the General bright and early three and a half hours ago!�
Sam glanced at the clock. It was already 11:30 am!
�I can�t believe I slept so long! You should�ve woken me!� she exclaimed.
�To do what?� he asked gently, �You were sleeping soundly for the first time in what? weeks? Who can blame you? No one sleeps in hospital beds, and you had to do it for what? Four weeks? You�re a better man than I am!�
She grinned at him before he sobered.
�Besides, after those two nightmares, I wasn�t going to wake you unless it was absolutely necessary. You were under orders to sleep, eat and heal. You were just following orders. And now, you�re going to follow another order and eat some breakfast.�
He put some bacon on each plate, flipped each egg once and slid two onto her plate.
�Now sit,� he ordered, �Eat.�
She did as told and tucked in. He let her eat in silence, surreptitiously watching her as he fried up a couple more eggs. Plating up his two eggs, he sat and dug in. Until he did so, he hadn�t realized exactly how hungry he was. They finished their breakfast in the relative silence of forks clinking against quickly emptying plates and quiet murmurs of appreciation for the good food. When she�d finished, Sam sat back and smiled in contentment as Jack finished the last of his bacon.
�That was really good, sir!� she grinned, �The best meal I�ve had in a long time.�
He frowned slightly before saying, �Well, hospital food generally does suck. I�m glad you enjoyed it. You need to eat more before Dr. Frasier will okay you for duty again . . . Now,� he said as he stood and began gathering the dishes, �shall I tell you what Hammond�s assignment is while I clean up?�
�Please!� she said eagerly, grabbing her own dishes,� Is it exciting?�
Jack grabbed her dishes from her.
�You just sit. I�ll do this,� he said firmly.
�But, sir!�
�No! No, �but sirs!� do you hear me? You are under orders to rest. If you want to help out a bit tomorrow, I�ll let you. But today you do nothing,� he growled.
�Okay,� she grumbled.
�Now, as for the assignment,� I think it�s pretty cool. It doesn�t involve lying to my team. And,� he paused for effect as he turned toward the sink, �it involves my whole team.�
He checked over his shoulder to see he�d gotten her full attention. He took his time concentrating on rinsing dishes and getting them in the dishwasher. He grinned to himself as he began to see and hear the telltale signs of her impatient fidgeting. He could hear her tapping her nail on the orange juice glass, a sure sign that she was ready to implode.
�Sir?� she said finally, �The mission?�
He grinned fully as he turned back to face her.
�Oh, that . . . yes,� he said as casually as he could, �Well, General Hammond is under the impression that SG-1 needs a vacation. One with no rocks, no artifacts, no experiments, no paperwork, and my favorite, no Goa�uld. Anyway, he suggested that the team take a vacation on P4B-998.�