The Things We Do For Love
By Shiaw Mei Mei
He delighted in the weight of her head on his chest. Her arm rested gently on his waist. She had one leg thrown over his, her knee rested on the mattress between his thighs with her foot hooked over his calf just below his knee. The only light was from the full moon that shone through the windows below the loft bedroom. The dim illumination silhouetted her tousled hair. He listened to her breath, steady and even. His heart was full. She was here with him. She loved him.
Jack thought back on the long day behind them. Sam had told him of Angra Mainyu’s cruel treatment and terrifying threats. Emotionally drained after reliving it for the report for Dr. Williams, Sam was exhausted. She had barely made it through dinner awake. He had insisted that she go to bed.
Earlier, they had walked around the lake and discussed their future. They agreed that the best course of action was for Jack to request that he step down as second in command of the SGC. He would retain control of SG1 and Sam would move to a different team. This would satisfy the requirements of military protocol and regulations. He didn’t like the idea of Sam on another team but he couldn’t think of a better idea. He refused to give her up now. She was his life.
Jack’s thoughts drifted back over the last eight years. He remembered the thoughts of suicide that had engulfed him after the death of his son, Charlie. It was hard to believe that he was the same person that considered eating a bullet from his own gun, the same gun that had taken Charlie, and eventually Sara, from him. His wife couldn’t stay with him after Charlie’s death. The
Then Captain Samantha Carter entered the briefing room at the SGC. She was so young, so beautiful and intelligent. At first he wasn’t sure about the gung-ho young captain. He had a distrust of the scientific types. And she was definitely the scientific type, a genius scientific type. But she was a good soldier too. Jack tried to control his feelings for her but they grew so slowly he was almost unaware of them until, trapped on separate sides of a force shield, he realized that he would rather die than lose her.
Jack never intended to let her know. He hadn’t believed that she would ever return those feelings. There was a large gap in their ages and they couldn’t be more different. Then the unfortunate incident with the Za’tarc testing happened. He had to admit those feelings and to his surprise, she confessed similar emotions. It didn’t make a difference though. The military regulations were quite specific. They didn’t discuss it. Neither of them felt they could quit the fight against the Goa’uld. They would just have to wait. Jack thought the waiting would never end but now it had.
Sam stirred slightly in her sleep. Her breathing increased minutely. Her hand clenched at his t-shirt. Jack placed his hand on hers and squeezed gently. The arm around her shoulders tightened on her slightly. He knew the nightmares that plagued her since their rescue. He hoped his touch would reassure her even in her sleep. Her breath softened, even again. Her hand relaxed. Jack smiled softly as his lips caressed the top of her head. He wanted always to be there for Sam, to calm her nightmares.
They had two more days at the cabin. Both of them had finished their reports that day. Jack looked forward to the next two days with Sam without thinking about work. He looked forward to spending the rest of his life with her. He hadn’t brought up marriage though. They had known each other for seven years but it seemed to be rushing things to talk about it now. First, Jack needed to talk to General Hammond.
Sam moved in her sleep, her thigh now strategically placed over his hips. ‘Hmmm, this could get uncomfortable,’ he thought as his body reacted to the pressure from her leg. Jack couldn’t decide whether to move her leg or try to move himself. His discomfort was ‘growing’. Since last night, when his body finally had permission to react to hers, he found himself reacting a lot.
He smiled at the memory of their lovemaking last night. He hadn’t expected to find such passion in Sam. She was such a scientist! Jack was almost afraid that she would be too analytical about sex. He was pleased that she had proved that theory wrong! Thoughts of last night and this morning made things that much more uncomfortable. He was so lost in the situation and his thoughts that he didn’t notice that Sam was awake until her hand ran underneath his t-shirt and up to his chest.
“Wha’cha thinking about?” she murmured sleepily. He could hear the humor in her voice. She had already guessed from the obvious clue that poked at her leg.
“Hmmm, nothing,” he laughed. “Why?”
“Just curious,” she said. “I guess I’ll just go back to sleep then.” She rolled over with her back toward him. He could hear her quiet laughter.
“Oh, no, you don’t!” Jack growled at her as he pulled her back toward him. “You may have started this in your sleep, but you did start it! I plan on finishing it!”
Last night had been about raw built up passion. They had denied themselves each other for so long. Finally allowed to, their lovemaking had been almost desperate. Jack intended to take things slow this time.
Sam rolled over, her body half on his. His lips cut short her laugh. Jack’s mouth moved softly over hers, nibbling and tasting her lips. Sam’s mouth opened to allow him access. She sucked softly on his tongue before caressing it with her own. Their kiss deepened slowly as she brought her hands up to hold his face gently.
Jack’s hands wandered slowly down her back. He stopped at her hips. She lay at an angle, her torso on his, but the bottom half of her body was slightly to the side of his. He pulled gently on her hips. She followed his lead and moved her body to straddle his hips.
Sam’s lips never left his. The heat of his mouth took her breath away. She savored his slow kiss, the deep exploration of each other’s mouth. She felt his hardness between her thighs. Her hands moved from his face to his neck, then slipped around behind his head. Sam could feel the heat of his body beneath her. His long fingers danced against her skin beneath her shirt. His touch inflamed her senses and sent shivers through her body. She groaned into his mouth as she rocked her groin against his.
As she sat up slightly to catch her breath, he quickly pulled her shirt over her head, leaving her in only her panties. His hands returned swiftly as her shirt flew over the railing of the loft. Sam arched back as she felt his hands cup her breasts. Jack rose up from the bed to tease them with his tongue. “Oh, yes,” she moaned softly. Her hands slipped behind his head to pull him closer.
Jack couldn’t smile, his mouth otherwise occupied, but he realized after last night on the porch that Sam’s breasts were extremely sensitive. He used this bit of intel to his advantage. While she was distracted, he maneuvered her over onto her back on the bed, his body wedged between her thighs.
Sam moaned loudly as Jack continued to tease her breasts. “Oh, God,” she sobbed as she wrapped her legs around his body and ground her sex into him. She was delirious with joy at the feel of his body, his hands, his mouth! He took his time with his exquisite tormenting. Sam could feel her climax rising as she frantically pushed herself against him. Jack’s mouth continued to tease her as his body responded to her frenzied grind against him.
“Jack,” Sam cried out at her body’s release. Her movement erratic as pleasure surged through her. Jack planted light kisses on her chest and throat as he moved up to her mouth again. Sam continued to push against him as the torrent of joy increased with his lips on her mouth. He softly toyed with her mouth as her climax subsided.
“Hmmm,” she sighed, content in his arms. Their mouths lingered slowly on each other’s as they tasted and explored. Sam’s hands slid under his shirt and caressed his muscled back. He lifted up slightly and his shirt joined hers on the level below. The sensation of his bare chest against her breasts elicited a soft whimper. Her fingers teased the elastic edge of the shorts he wore to bed before they wandered down to caress his bottom.
As she felt his body tense against hers, Sam caught him off guard, shifted quickly, and rolled him over. She straddled his hips as she brought her mouth back down to his. Jack growled low in his throat as she pressed her mound against his erection. He lifted his face toward her as she slowly removed her mouth from his lips. He felt bereft at the loss of her lips but his grief was short lived as her mouth traveled down the side of his neck to his throat.
Sam savored the taste of him as she kissed his throat gently; her tongue tasted each spot she kissed. Her hands were not idle as they caressed, first, his shoulders, then his arms. She could feel the tension in his muscles as her touch aroused him further. Her breath was hot against his chest as she continued exploring his body.
Sam wanted to know every part of him. Jack sighed heavily at the delicate touch of her lips. The fingers of one of his hands intertwined in her soft hair; the other gently massaged her shoulder. She advanced on his nipples, her soft tongue experiencing the flavor of him. He groaned loudly as her hands moved from his arms to his chest, her fingers ran tenderly through his chest hair.
“Oh, God, Sam,” he breathed. Jack’s desire to take tonight slow wavered. His control seemed to take flight. He needed her desperately.
She sensed his need, his desperation. Sam’s hands moved to the waist of his shorts and they quickly joined the rest of their clothes below. Jack’s hands tugged frantically at her panties, the thin material ripped easily and it, too, found flight.
He moved as if to roll her over but she resisted his efforts. Sam rubbed her wet core against his erection. Jack was delirious with desire. He needed her. Once again, he tried to roll her onto her back but this time she pinned his wrists together above his head. She continued to stroke him with her body.
“God, Sam, please,” he gasped. He was frantic. His body writhed against hers. Sam held him tight. He could have easily overpowered her if he had been in his right mind. She smiled softly in the gentle light that signaled sunrise.
Holding down his wrists with one hand, Sam used the other to guide him to her entrance. Slowly, she eased herself down on him. He tried to push up to meet her but she moved away. She wouldn’t allow him to rush her. Finally, Jack stopped trying. He panted with desire as she tortured him but such tantalizing torture!
Her descent finally complete, she released his wrists. Her hands used his chest for support as her body rose and fell; her strong thighs controlled the movement. Jack reached for her hands, held them tightly to his chest as she made love to him.
Sam watched him in the dim light, his eyes closed, his mouth open, his breath ragged as her body moved slowly on him. His breath increased its tempo and his hands tightened on hers. She knew he was close to release, she could feel him swell within her. Sam increased her pace gradually. Jack’s body reacted by thrusting against her. His hands moved to her hips.
Their cries of joy filled the air as they reached the summit of their passion together. Sam’s muscles contracted around him as he flooded her depths. She fell forward on his chest; his arms wrapped around her and held her tight. He lifted his head to kiss her forehead. She raised her face to his and her lips found his. She ignored the moisture that shone in his eyes. She could feel the wetness in her own.
---------
It was late as Jack’s truck entered
Sam grabbed her duffle out of the truck and threw it in her car. “I guess I’ll see you in the morning,” she said softly as he pulled her close. She sighed into his shoulder.
“You could stay here, you know,” he whispered in her ear. “You don’t have to go home.” His lips caressed her neck.
“I don’t know, it feels strange now that we’re back in the Springs. I guess it’s because we are technically breaking the regs.”
Jack laughed before he lightly kissed her lips. “Well, technically, we’ve been breaking them all week! But in reality, we’re on TDY to Major Williams, remember. Right now, I am not your C.O.”
Sam laughed; her smile outshone the streetlight behind her. “You do have a point!”
“Good,” Jack said as he pulled her duffle out of her car and he walked her toward the house with his arm around her shoulder. He opened the door and set her duffle down inside the door. “Make yourself at home while I get my things out of the truck.”
Sam hit the hall light switch, picked up her duffle and headed to Jack’s bedroom. She had only been in here once before. The time the Asgard, Loki, had cloned Jack, the team had come here to search for clues. She tried not to look too hard at his bed that time. Now, she threw her duffle on the bed and searched for her toiletries and sleepwear. ‘Not that my clothes will last long with him around,’ she thought to herself.
The last few days with Jack had been wonderful. They hadn’t spent all their time in bed but definitely a good portion of it! They had talked and laughed together as real couples do. Sam was still in a daze. So much had happened in the last few weeks.
She heard Jack coming down the hall and turned to greet him. “I want to get a quick shower before bed. Wanna join me?” She wiggled her eyebrows at him.
“Hmm, that’s a good idea,” he laughed as he tugged her into a hug. Jack brushed his lips against her neck. “A nice, relaxing shower, just the ticket!”
-------------
Sam woke early out of habit. The sun had yet to make an appearance. They were still technically on leave. Jack had set the alarm for 0700. He was anxious to see General Hammond as soon as possible. They had agreed that he would talk to the General first. Sam was not as anxious to get to base as he was. She knew that she would have to see Major Williams.
Sam stretched carefully, not wanting to disturb Jack. They had gotten in so late last night and then got distracted in the shower. She contained her laughter at the memory of them running out of hot water at a critical moment. It was a rather rude interruption!
She could feel Jack’s even breath on her neck. Snuggled up to her back with one arm over her waist, he made Sam feel so safe. The warmth of his body kept her nightmares at bay. If all went well with General Hammond, she would never have to worry about her nightmares again.
Sam was trying to keep still but she was restless. She wanted to look at her report again before printing it. Did Jack even have a printer here? Probably not, she would have to go home to print it. She felt Jack stir against her back.
“You’re thinking too much again, aren’t you,” he murmured sleepily.
“You know me too well,” she laughed. She twisted her head slightly to kiss his cheek. “Go back to sleep, you still have an hour before the alarm goes off.”
He grabbed her arm as she started to get out of bed. “Where ya goin’?” Jack pulled her toward him and kissed her lightly.
“Coffee, I need coffee,” she laughed. “You should know that by now! Besides, I want to look over my report again before I have to see Major Williams this morning.”
“You know you don’t have to see him today. Today still falls within the week that he gave us.”
“I know, but I want it over with. Or started, or whatever.” She knew that turning in her report was not the end. It was only the beginning. She hadn’t been able to get all of her experiences during their imprisonment by Angra Mainyu on paper. It was too painful to try to put into words that way. She kissed his nose before she made her escape.
“Go back to sleep. You look like you could use the beauty sleep!” She laughed as she made it to the bathroom door ahead of the pillow he threw at her.
Sam washed up and slipped quietly through the bedroom. Jack was already asleep again. She knew the trip home yesterday had been tiring. He refused to let her take a turn at driving. He drove the whole 12-hour trip in one day. Sam had napped several times during the day so she wasn’t near as tired as he was.
Besides, she had work to do. Sam set up her laptop while the coffee brewed. Armed with a cup of coffee, she sat in front of the computer screen and stared at it before she screwed up enough courage to open the file. She’d rather face a herd of
-------------
Jack woke to the smell of coffee just before his alarm went off. He punched the annoying thing to keep it from ringing. It was very quiet in the house. He wondered if Sam had left. Jack had planned to get up earlier when she told him what she going to do but he dozed off before she came out of the bathroom. He was worried about her. He knew how much she dreaded seeing Joe Williams again.
Joe seemed to be an all right guy. He was very down to earth and didn’t put on the all-knowing airs that Jack had experienced with other shrinks. Jack was confident that Joe could help Sam but he knew how hard it would be for her. Jack’s heart ached at the thought of what Sam would be going through but he planned to be there for her, no matter what.
Jack wasn’t looking forward to his meeting with
He followed his nose to the coffee pot but paused in the doorway to the kitchen. Sam was sitting there staring at the screen of her computer. He couldn’t tell if she were reading something or just thinking. “Hey, babe,’ he said quietly.
She jumped at the sound of his voice. “Oh, Jack, you scared the living daylights outta me!”
He walked up behind her. “Didn’t mean to,” he said as he kissed the top of her head. “You did look a little lost in thought, though.”
“Yeah,” she replied flatly.
“Wanna talk?”
“No, not right now. I think I will get enough talking in today.”
“Okay, want some breakfast? If there is anything to eat around here?” Jack snooped around in the refrigerator. It didn’t look good. They didn’t feel like stopping last night for any groceries and they had been gone a week.
“Already looked, doesn’t look like there is anything remotely resembling breakfast around here.”
“Hmm, guess we’ll just have to grab something on base.” He grabbed a cup from the cupboard and poured himself some coffee. He leaned against the counter behind her. “What time were you planning on going in?”
“I don’t know. Soon, I guess. No sense in procrastinating. It won’t get any better if I wait. Do you have a printer here? I want to print out my report.”
“Sorry, can’t help you there. I was planning on printing mine at the office.”
She didn’t want to think about the office. ‘Maybe I will just run home and print it there.’ Sam reached absentmindedly for her empty coffee cup. She didn’t realize that it was empty until it reached her lips. She stared at the bottom of the cup as if it was the most fascinating thing in the world until she felt Jack nudge her shoulder.
“Wha’,” she started to speak until she saw the coffee pot in his hand. Sam held out her cup for him to refill. “Thanks.” She watched him replace the pot on the burner. It seemed so natural, waking up with him, mundane morning things…him refilling her coffee, talking about the day ahead of them.
When Jack turned back to face her, Sam had a strange look on her face. “Wha’cha thinkin’?”
She laughed slightly. “How normal this feels.”
“What?”
“You and me.”
“Oh, that,” he smiled at her. “I guess it was just meant to be.”
She laughed as she shut down her computer. “Oh, my, would Jack O’Neill be getting philosophical on me?”
Jack set down his coffee and pulled her up from the chair. “Only about you…” He gazed into her beautiful blue eyes. He could see happiness mingled with trepidation. He knew she dreaded seeing Williams today but she was right about procrastinating. He kissed her lightly. “I guess I should get ready.”
“Yeah, me too. I need to run home and change. I can print my report there.” She didn’t make an effort to move away from him so he just held her.
---------
Major Williams was surprised to see Colonel O’Neill waiting for him in his office. “Jack, how are you?”
“Better,” Jack smiled. “Lots better.” He handed Joe the stack of paper in his hand. Jack had surprised himself when his printed report turned out to be over fifty pages long. From the look on Joe’s face, it surprised him as well.
“Looks like you’ve been busy!” Joe had expected Major Carter’s report to be long and detailed. From what he had read about Jack, he thought his report would be a few pages longer than the original version.
“Yeah, it seems that I get a little ‘chatty’ on paper.”
“Well, I will need a couple of days to read through this before I will want to talk to you about it.” Joe was dying to dive into his report but felt he shouldn’t let Jack know that. “Did Sam come with you?”
“No, she will be here later.” Jack hesitated briefly. “I wanted to talk to you about her.” He paused again.
“Okay,” Joe said as he motioned Jack to a chair. “What about?”
“Well…” Jack exhaled long. “A couple of things.” He paused again. “Guess I shoulda wrote it down,” he said sarcastically.
“Take your time; I don’t have any appointments this morning.”
“Well, as it turns out, there was more to Sam’s torture than just pain. Evidently, the Goa’uld…” Jack’s hands clenched tight on the arms of the chair. Joe could see the anger and pain in Jack’s face. He waited quietly while Jack regained control. “He sexually abused her.” Jack spit the words out quickly. “She says he didn’t rape her but that was his plan. That’s why she couldn’t go back.”
“I wondered as much. Kaveh wouldn’t say directly but it was implied.” Joe shook his head softly at the memory of his conversation with the
“Well, she wasn’t able to get it all into her report. She got so upset. She had been having nightmares and then trying to relive it during the day, well, it was too much for her. I told her that it didn’t matter. I reminded her that you had said that this was just one type of treatment. I told her that there were other ways. I just wanted to let you know that she tried to do what you wanted. I take responsibility for her not completing it.”
Joe laughed. “Jack, you were right, there are other ways. There’s no need to try to protect her from me! I will see what she managed to write and then we will take it from there. You did the right thing in telling her that.”
Jack visibly relaxed. “Well, I just didn’t want you to think that she was trying to avoid the issue. She told me a lot of it.” Jack grimaced at the memory and changed the subject. It would be up to Sam to give him the details.
“I’m glad she was able to talk to you about it. It will make it easier for her to talk to me.”
“Ah, you told us that
“Yes, he was worried that your concern for each other after what you had been through would be putting the team at risk.”
“Well, I am asking him to transfer Sam to another team anyway.”
This definitely surprised Joe. He thought that would be the last thing he would hear from Jack. “Why?”
Jack looked down at the floor. “Things kinda…developed during the week.” His head came back up to look at Joe. “I won’t go back to the way things were before. I can’t.”
Joe nodded with understanding. “Aren’t you the 2IC of SGC? How would her transfer to another team do any good?”
“After I leave here, I am going to ask
“And if
“I’ll quit.”
-------------
After Jack left, Joe got a fresh cup of coffee and sat down in one the comfortable chairs to look at Jack’s report. He thought about their conversation.
“Major Williams, are you outta your mind?” Any time a general starts a conversation that way, it’s not a good thing.
“Sir?” Joe looked up from the paperwork on his desk to see the very irate general enter his office unannounced.
“You sent O’Neill and Carter off by themselves to work on their reports! Do you have any idea what could happen?”
“Uh, yes, sir. They could get over their post traumatic stress.”
“Are you blind? Those two have managed to keep their relationship professional but just barely. Then this Goa’uld sends them through hell together and you send them off alone together! If I lose either one of them because of this, I am holding you responsible.”
Joe sighed and indicated a chair to General Hammond. “Sir, you might do that either way. Colonel O’Neill will probably snap back quickly but I am not so sure about Major Carter. Kaveh had indicated that there was more to her abuse than the pain stick, something that to her was so terrible it made her request death at the hands of Colonel O’Neill.”
Hammond sat in the indicated chair, the anger dissolved as he realized what Major Williams could be insinuating. “Oh, God, no…” The words came out as a whispered prayer. He closed his eyes thinking about what Sam might have gone through.
Sam was such a strong person. He had been very confused, even disappointed, by her request to die. He would have thought she could have endured the pain as well as Jack could. Now it made sense.
Joe watched the general’s anger deflate. He saw the emotions roll across his face as he reached the same conclusion that Joe had. “Anyway, she seemed to take comfort from the colonel’s presence and I knew that what I was asking her to do would be difficult. She needed him there. If anything happens along the way, well, we will have to deal with it.”
General Hammond nodded. He stood up and walked out without another word.
Now what the General feared had come to pass. Joe jumped up and picked up the phone. He should at least warn him.
-------------
Jack stood impatiently in the doorway to General Hammond’s office. He was on the phone with someone and had indicated to Jack to wait.
“Uh, huh…yeah…I understand. Thank you.”
“Good to see you, Colonel. When did you get back?”
Jack was a little unnerved. The general acted as if he had been on vacation. It caught him off guard. “Late last night, sir.”
“How’s Sam doing?”
“Eh, fine, sir.” This was somewhat weird.
“So, what can I do for you, Jack?”
Jack lowered himself into the chair. “Well, I need to discuss a few things with you before Williams makes his final report.” Jack fidgeted with the arm of the chair.
“Okay,” was the only reply.
‘Boy, this is harder than I thought it would be,’ Jack thought. ‘Just jump right in, Jack. What’s he going to do, shoot you?’
“Well, sir, General Hammond, I…”
Williams didn’t say much, just hinted that what the general had feared had happened and a very determined O’Neill was on his way to see him. He was ready for him.
“Colonel, I have a lot to do, if there is something else, please spill it.”
“Okay. Here’s the deal. I want to move Carter out of SG1. And I need to keep her out of my direct chain of command so I want you to replace me as 2IC of the SGC.” Jack spoke fast as if getting it out quickly would help.
There was no surprise on
“I see,”
“Look, sir, Reynolds is junior in grade by less than a year. That is the only reason I am 2IC in the first place. We need, I need to have Sam, uh, Major Carter out of my command and this is the only way we, I, could think of short of someone resigning.” Jack stumbled through his explanation. ‘Good going, Jack. You sound like a bumbling idiot!’ he thought wryly.
“Let’s table this discussion for now. I have some things to attend to and I would prefer a change of venue to finish this.”
“But, sir…”
“Not now, Jack.”
“Yes, sir.” Jack got up to leave but turned as he reached the door. “Sir..”
“Not now, Jack,” the general stressed.
Jack sighed as he left. The sound of “yes, sir” found it’s way back to
----------
After a long, hot shower, a fresh cup of coffee and twenty printed pages later, Sam was on her way to the mountain. She started to call Williams to tell him she was on the way but decided against it. She was secretly hoping he would be busy with someone else and couldn’t see her today.
She went straight to his office and he wasn’t there. Sam let out a sigh of relief. ‘Okay, I can delay a little longer,’ she thought as she headed back for the elevator. She would go down to her office for a little while. Sam wasn’t paying attention as the elevator doors opened so she nearly ran down Major Williams.
“Oh, sorry,” she exclaimed. “I didn’t see you there.”
“No problem. Were you here to see me?” Amused by the flustered Major’s attempt to escape the floor quickly, Williams indicated she should walk with him. She hesitated slightly. He recognized it for what it was. She found his office empty and made a run for it.
Sam sighed. “Yeah, I guess I was.”
“You don’t have to talk about anything today. If that is your report in your hands, you can just give it to me. I could read it before we get started.”
“Well, I guess I need to explain a few things first.” Sam fell into step beside Joe as they headed back to his office.
“Fine, I have some free time right now. I do have an appointment in…” He glanced at his watch. “…about 45 minutes.”
“Great.” Sam was relieved to know that she had a time limit on this session.
Joe indicated a chair as they entered his office. “Want some coffee? I was just about to make a fresh pot.”
“Sure, thanks.”
Joe had his back to her while he started the coffee. “Jack was in here to see me this morning. He turned in his report. I haven’t made my way through the whole thing yet. I was rather impressed at how much he wrote.”
“Yes, well,” Sam sighed, “he did much better than I did.”
Joe turned to face her. “How so?”
“Well, I couldn’t put…everything in mine.” Sam’s eyes clouded over slightly with moisture.
“That’s okay. I’ll read it and then we can discuss what’s missing. The reports were just a starting point. I didn’t expect you to get everything into it. What you put on paper just makes it easier for me to know where to go next.”
“That’s what Jack said.”
“Well, don’t sound so surprised!” Joe laughed. “I have heard that Colonel O’Neill has occasionally been right about some things!”
Sam laughed. “That’s not what I meant!”
Joe handed her a cup of coffee and sat down opposite her. “Sam, I have had several conversations with Kaveh. He was very tight lipped about what actually happened to you but he has implied some things. I think I understand your reluctance to put on paper some of the things you went through.” Sam’s eyes clouded over again. Joe leaned forward toward her. His face showed his concern. “Listen, I know this is going to be hard to deal with but from everything I have read in your file and from what people have said about you, I know you have the strength to get through it.”
Sam nodded through her tears as they now slipped down her face. “I just don’t feel very strong right now.”
Joe moved a box of tissue to the table near her. “That’s perfectly understandable and normal but there are a lot of people that are here to help you. Now, why don’t you take advantage of your down time for the rest of today and plan on seeing me tomorrow.” Joe got up to check his schedule on the computer. “Let’s say at 0900 tomorrow.” He had a block of three hours open at that time. He didn’t plan to use it all on the first session but he liked having it there.
Sam nodded and grabbed a tissue. “Okay, I’ll be here.”
“Good!”
-------------
General Hammond’s attitude had Jack confused. He just told him that he and Sam were involved. Okay, it wasn’t in specific words, but surely,
Jack hadn’t checked his emails when he was here earlier to print his report. He decided to start through the sixty odd emails. He knew Sam would be on base soon, if she wasn’t already. He figured she would come looking for him eventually. His office would be the first place she would look.
Jack had another twenty emails to read when one popped up from General Hammond. Jack skipped ahead to see what he wanted.
From: Gen. G. Hammond To: Col. J. O’Neill Jack, Why don’t you stop by the house for dinner tonight? Around 1900. See you then. George
“George?” he said aloud. ‘Since when does he sign emails to me as George.’ Jack read the email again. “D’oh!” He smacked his forehead with the palm of his hand. ‘Change of venue!’ The general wanted to discuss this on a personal level before they got into the military aspect of it.
“You know, if you keep hitting yourself like that, you could cause brain damage,” Daniel’s voice came from the doorway.
“Like I don’t already have enough problems!” Jack laughed as he looked up at Daniel as he closed the email. “How’s it going?”
“Quiet. I’ve been off world a couple of times to look at a few sites. Mostly been in my lab working on things I don’t have time for normally. Soooo, how was the trip?” Daniel was dying of curiosity. Janet wouldn’t tell him anything but he was sure she knew where they went and why. Every time he tried to ask her something, she mumbled about patient/doctor confidentiality.
“Nice. Is Teal’c around?”
‘Okay, he’s not going to tell me anything either.’ Daniel tried to hide his frustration. “Nope, went to visit Bra’tec and Rya’c.
A voice drifted in to Jack’s office from the door. “Excuse me, sir,” MSG Davis said. “General Hammond wanted me to deliver this to you personally.”
“Come in,” Jack said.
“Uh, Danny Boy, you think you could excuse me for a few minutes. This looks kind of important.” Jack suppressed a smile at Daniel’s wince. He knew he hated it when Jack used that particular nickname.
“Sure, Jack, see you at lunch?”
Jack just nodded as he opened the envelope. The top didn’t bode well.
BY ORDER OF THE
AIR FORCE INSTRUCTION 36-2909
SECRETARY OF THE AIR FORCE 1 MAY 1999
Personnel
PROFESSIONAL AND UNPROFESSIONAL
RELATIONSHIPS
But on further reading, things got really interesting.
This instruction establishes command, supervisory and personal responsibilities for maintaining professional relationships between Air Force members, between Air Force members and members of other uniformed services, between Air Force members and civilian employees of the Department of Defense, to include Air Force civilian employees, and between Air Force members and government contractor employees. Unprofessional relationships are those interpersonal relationships that erode good order, discipline, respect for authority, unit cohesion and, ultimately, mission accomplishment.
“Okay, like I didn’t know that one,” Jack said sarcastically. He scanned down the page for the next marked paragraph.
possibility that relationships that are not initially unprofessional may become so due to changed circumstances. The rules regarding personal relationships must be somewhat elastic to accommodate differing conditions and operational necessities; however, the underlying standard is that Air Force members are expected to avoid those relationships that negatively affect morale, discipline, respect for authority and unit cohesion.
“Okay, been a while since I actually read this one.”
3.3. Dating and Close Friendships. Dating, courtship, and close friendships between men and women are subject to the same policy considerations as are other relationships. Like any personal relationship, they become matters of official concern when they adversely affect morale, discipline, unit cohesion, respect for authority, or mission accomplishment.
“Well, so far, we haven’t done anything to effect those things…”
8. Actions in Response to Unprofessional Relationships. If a relationship is prohibited by this instruction or is causing (or if good professional judgment and common sense indicate that a relationship may reasonably result in) a degradation of morale, good order, discipline or unit cohesion, a commander or supervisor should take corrective action.
“Okay, so what’s he saying here? That he has to take action? Or that he feels there is no action needed?” Jack was dying to go back to
“What’s next?” Jack flipped through the pages to see if there were any other items marked. “What the…?”
8.1. Responses To Cases Involving Dating or Sexual Relationships. When unprofessional conduct includes evidence of a sexual relationship, the sexual relationship is but one factor to be considered in determining the adverse impact, if any, on the organization and, hence, an appropriate response. It is the impact or reasonably foreseeable consequences of the conduct on morale, discipline, good order, unit cohesion and mission accomplishment that determines its seriousness, not its characterization, even if the conduct could be characterized as adultery or some other potential offense. No fact, standing alone, necessarily warrants referral of charges to a court-martial.
“Well, well, well…seems George is one step ahead of us. I wonder which step he’s marchin’ to. For or against us.”
“Talking to yourself might give people the wrong idea, sir.” Sam’s voice disturbed his thoughts. He looked up to see her smiling at him. Her eyes were a little red but not bad.
“Been to see Joe?”
“Yeah, is it that easy to tell?”
“Only to me, Sam, only to me.”
“What are you reading that has you so lost in thought?”
“Well, I went to see