CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
The next day, SG-1 and Danny headed off to Denver, where, among other things, they went to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Everyone had a good time, including Jack, who didn't even once make noises about having to suffer through a lot of science and archeological stuff. Though not as exciting as the previous day, that Monday was full of great times for the child and four adults, and they all knew that they'd cherish the memories they took to bed with them.
Danny accompanied Daniel to work the next morning. While the archeologist worked in his office, the boy spent his time either on the computer or reading. The day went by pretty peacefully until, around two o'clock, Danny suddenly asked a question for which Daniel was unprepared.
"Why don't you want anyone to know that you love Sam romantically?"
Daniel sat frozen in his chair for several seconds before answering. "Uh . . . well, there's more than one reason, but the biggest one is that if people here at the SGC knew, it could cause problems."
"So, it's only people here that you don't want to know?"
"Mainly, but also anyone who's in the military."
"So, if another lady gave me her phone number to give to you because she likes you, I could tell her that you already like Sam that way?"
Daniel smiled. "Yes, that would be fine, Danny."
"It wouldn't be breaking my promise?"
"Ah, well, how about if that promise is only for people here at the SGC and other people in the military? I'm not going to worry if you mention it in public and some stranger overhears."
Danny smiled. "Okay. I won't tell anybody here or in the military."
Roberto D'Antoni reached for the ringing telephone. "Roberto's."
"Hello? Is this the romantic restaurant?"
Surprised, Roberto didn't answer for a moment, never having received a call from a child before. "Si. This restaurant is very romantic."
"Is that 'si' in Spanish or 'si' in Italian?"
Even more surprised, Roberto replied that it was Italian.
"Oh. I don't know very much Italian yet."
Roberto smiled, wondering who this child could be. "I am certain you will learn, my young friend. What may I ask are you calling for?"
"First, I need to know if you're in the military."
Completely baffled by the question, Roberto answered that he wasn't.
"Okay, then it's all right to tell you. I'm Danny, and I want my . . . my dad and Sam to go on a romantic dinner because it would make my dad really happy if they could be together, but I don't know how to make them go on a romantic dinner, so I was hoping you could help me."
A big smile began growing on Roberto's face. So, he had a little matchmaker on the phone. How delightful. He gestured to Angelica, one of their hostesses, beckoning her over. The woman put her ear up to the phone.
"So, young Danny, your father is in love with this Sam but fears to do anything about it?"
"Uh huh. He says that they should be just friends, but there aren't any rules that say they have to be just friends. And I know that Sam really likes my dad, too. She said she did. I want them to go on a romantic dinner so that they stop being just friends."
Roberto and Angelica exchanged a glance, smiling.
"Well, my young friend," the man said. "It appears that we may need to make this a surprise romantic dinner."
"A surprise?"
"Yes. Then they must be tricked into going on it."
"How would we trick them?"
Roberto and Angelica had a quick conversation.
"Listen carefully, Danny," Roberto said into the receiver. "I must ask you some questions, and then I will tell you what you must do."
Danny quickly hung up the phone as Daniel came into the house. He'd been waiting since yesterday for an opportunity to call the restaurant without Daniel being around. After getting home from the SGC today, the archeologist had realized that they needed bread and milk and asked Danny if it would be okay for him to stay at home while Daniel made a quick run to the store. The boy had immediately said yes, knowing this would be his chance to make the call.
Danny hoped that he'd be able to remember all the things Roberto had told him. They had to be really careful, otherwise Daniel or Sam would figure out what was going on and put a stop to it.
The plan would go into action tomorrow. The following day was the Fourth of July, which Roberto said was good because it meant that both Daniel and Sam didn't have to work that day, meaning that they could stay up really late tomorrow night. The restauranteur had told Danny that there was an important requirement for the plan to be a success, and it would be up to Danny to find a way to do it. That would be Step One in the plan, and Danny had come up with what he thought was the perfect thing.
That first step took place the next morning not long after they arrived at the SGC.
"If Uncle Jack says it's okay, can I sleep at his house tonight?" Danny asked Daniel.
"Um, sure, I don't see why not. You know that the party is at his place tomorrow, right?"
"Uh huh. I can help him get all the stuff ready."
Daniel smiled. "I'm sure he'd really appreciate that."
Jack was delighted to have Danny spend the night. He suggested that he could take Danny home with him after work, which would save Daniel the effort of driving the boy over there later. Danny already had a change of clothes at Jack's place, the clothing Jack had packed for him when he was going to spend the night there after Daniel had his accident.
Danny was cheering on the inside. It had worked! Roberto had explained that the only way for Daniel and Sam to go on their surprise dinner was if somebody else was watching Danny for the evening. The boy had decided that asking if he could stay at Jack's would work perfectly.
A little while later, Danny asked Daniel his second question, the next step in the plan. "Can I play with my toys in our room?"
"Sure, that would be fine."
Daniel grabbed the box of toys and games that he'd brought with them, and the two went to their quarters.
"So, you'll be okay here by yourself?" Daniel asked.
"Uh huh."
"If you need anything, you know how to call me. The number to my office is right there by the phone, along with Jack's, Sam's and Teal'c's."
"Okay."
Shortly after Daniel left, Danny did make a phone call, but it wasn't to Daniel's office. The boy had learned how to make calls outside the base, and he now made use of that knowledge, dialing the code to get an outside line, then the number he'd written on a piece of paper.
"Roberto? This is Danny," the child said to the person who answered the phone.
"Hello, Danny. So, is our plan working?"
"Uh huh. I'm going to be staying with Uncle Jack tonight."
"Excellent! Then we will get busy on our part of the plan right away. You just need to make sure that your father and Sam are going home right after work and are not going to be working late."
"I will."
After hanging up with Roberto, Danny called Sam's lab to see about the first half of Step Two.
"Hi, Danny," the astrophysicist greeted. "What are you doing right now?"
"I'm playing in the VIP room. I'm going to be spending the night at Jack's so that I can help him with all the party stuff tomorrow."
"Well, that's really nice of you, Danny."
"Are you going to work late tonight?"
"Uh, I'm not really sure. I hadn't planned on it. Why?"
"I was wondering if I could call you at home tonight from Jack's, maybe before dinner."
"Sure, that would be really nice. I'll talk to you then."
"Okay. Bye." Danny hung up with a smile. Step Two was to make sure that both Daniel and Sam did not work late tonight so they'd be at home for Step Three in the plan. He'd just made sure that Sam wouldn't work late. All he had to do now was make sure that Daniel did the same.
Their plan was working.
Daniel left the SGC with a smile. Danny had been pretty excited about spending the night at Jack's and helping with the preparations for the party in the morning. The boy had insisted that Daniel not work late, saying that it was a holiday tomorrow, so Daniel shouldn't work late tonight.
Daniel was surprised to see a live plant sitting on his doorstep when he got home. The plant was from a local florist and had a note with it.
Daniel, I would like to talk with you about us. Could you meet me for dinner at Roberto's tonight at eight? I have a reservation in our names.
Sam
Daniel stared at the note, his pulse quickening. Sam was asking him out to dinner to talk about them?
'Calm down, Daniel. She probably just thinks that we need to get things worked out now that I've decided to stay on the team.' But she was asking him to dinner. Why not talk here or at her place? And why not just call him instead of asking him this way?
Daniel refused to hope that this was Sam's way of asking him out on a date. They'd already agreed that it would be best just to stay friends. Yes, Roberto's was a restaurant that could be called romantic, but business people also entertained clients there. It was one of the better restaurants in town.
Wondering how he should dress, Daniel went in the house, suddenly very nervous about what tonight would bring.
Sam had been home for only a couple of minutes when there was a knock on her door. She opened it to find a woman with a fresh flower arrangement on the other side.
"Samantha Carter?"
"Yes."
The woman handed her the flowers. "These are for you."
"They are? Who are they from?"
"I don't know, ma'am. There is a card with the flowers."
Thanking the women, Sam took the flowers into the kitchen, where she set them on the counter. She opened the card.
Sam, I would like to talk with you about us. Could you meet me for dinner at Roberto's tonight at eight? I have a reservation in our names.
Daniel
Sam blinked a couple of times. Daniel was asking her to dinner to talk about them? Oh, boy.
'Get a grip, Sam. This is probably just to discuss how we're going to handle this thing between us, especially now that he's not leaving the team.'
It was really sweet of him to invite her to dinner, though. And the flowers were beautiful. How she wished that he was actually asking her out on a date. But, of course, that wasn't going to happen. They'd already decided it would be a bad idea. This was probably just his way of telling her that he was okay with them just staying friends and that he valued her friendship.
What on Earth was she going to wear? It wasn't a date, so sexy was out, but she wanted to look good. Roberto's was a really nice restaurant, one of the best in town.
Sam glanced at her watch. It was almost six, so Danny should be calling soon.
A few minutes later, he did.
"Hey, Danny. So, are you and Colonel O'Neill having fun?"
"Uh huh. We're having Chinese for dinner. Jack said I could have as many egg rolls and fortune cookies as I wanted."
"Cool. I love egg rolls and fortune cookies."
"Me too."
Danny chatted about some of the things he and Jack had planned for tomorrow's party.
"Are you going to have dinner by yourself?" the boy asked after a few minutes.
"Uh, no, actually, I'm going to have dinner with . . . with a friend." Sam decided that she'd better not say who that friend was. She didn't want the boy asking any uncomfortable questions, especially while he was there at Jack's. "In fact, I need to go see about getting ready, so I'll have to say goodbye."
"Okay. Bye, Sam."
"Bye bye."
After taking a shower, then shaving her legs, Sam spent the next forty minutes trying to figure out what she was going to wear. Nothing in her closet really satisfied her, but there was no time to go buy something new, so she'd have to make do with what she had. Finally, she settled on the traditional little black dress. Perhaps it was a wee bit too short for the occasion, but at least it wasn't too clingy or low cut. No cleavage for this dinner, as much as she might have enjoyed seeing Daniel's eyes drift to her chest.
The memory of Daniel's mouth on her breast made her go hot. Okay, that is not the kind of thoughts she should be having right now.
Seeing how late it was, Sam got to work on her hair and makeup, trying to look nice but not too made up.
Before she knew it, it was time to leave. As she stepped into the restaurant a while later, she looked around. She had never been there before, but had always been curious about it. The atmosphere was very nice, the lights low, but not so low that you'd have difficulty reading the menu. Soft Italian music was playing in the background.
Sam stepped up to where a man stood with a reservation book.
"I have a reservation under the names Jackson and Carter."
The man looked at the book. "Yes, table for two. The other member of your party is already here."
Sam was led to a table tucked away in a corner. Upon seeing her, Daniel stood up. He was dressed in a dark gray suit with a pristine white shirt underneath, open at the collar. He looked fantastic.
"Wow, Sam. You look beautiful," he said, which made her blush.
"Thank you."
Once Sam was seated, the hostess gave them menus and asked if they'd like a drink. Daniel ordered some wine.
By silent agreement, they engaged only in small talk until after they'd placed their orders. Daniel was the first to broach the subject of why they were there.
"Um . . . I guess we should talk about why we're here," he said.
"I guess so. I have to say that you surprised me, though."
"I did? How?"
"Well, this." Sam waved her hand about. "This is really nice. We could have just talked at your place or mine. I think it's sweet that you invited me to a nice dinner instead. Oh, and the flowers were beautiful. Thank you."
Daniel frowned in bafflement. "Sam, what are you talking about? I didn't invite you out. I got an invitation from you. And I didn't send you any flowers."
Sam just stared at him. "You . . . you didn't?"
"No. Are you saying that you got an invitation that was addressed from me?"
"Yes. It said that you wanted to talk to me about us."
"Uhhh . . . did you happen to bring the note with you?"
"No, I didn't."
"Did it by chance say anything like, 'I would like to talk with you about us. Could you meet me for dinner at Roberto's tonight at eight? I have a reservation in our names.'?"
"That's exactly what it said."
"Sam, that's what the note I got said. My note came with a potted planet. Yours came with flowers?"
Sam nodded. "Daniel, what's going on here? Who did this?"
Daniel suddenly groaned, his head falling into his hands. "Oh, no."
"What? What is it?"
"I kind of talked with Danny about my feelings for you. The issue of whether or not it would be against the rules for us to date came up. Danny got it into his head to find out from Jack if it would be."
Sam's eyes widened. "He told the colonel about this?" Oh, this was not good.
"No, he didn't. I'd made him promise that he wouldn't say anything about it. But he did ask some questions that, if Jack thought about it long enough, might be enough for him to figure out what Danny was really asking."
Now, it was Sam's turn to lower her head into her hands. "Oh, no. Are you saying that the colonel did this?"
"It's the only explanation I have. And you have to admit that it's just the kind of sneaky thing he'd do."
"Oh, Daniel. What are we going to do now?"
"I don't know." Daniel's thoughts focused in one facet of this. "But I think we need to consider what this means."
"What are you talking about?"
"Sam, if Jack arranged all this, I don't think his intention was for us to discuss how we're not going to do anything about these feelings we have for each other."
Sam realized he was right. "Are you saying that he's. . . ."
"Telling us in his own way that he's all right with us getting involved."
Sam realized that he was right. "Holy Hannah."
"Yep, I'd say that covers it."
They both fell silent. It was a full minute before Daniel spoke.
"Sam, we've talked about all the reasons why we shouldn't date, the problems it could cause at work, how, if things didn't work out between us, it could hurt our friendship. Maybe . . . maybe we should talk about the reasons why we should try dating."
Sam thought about it. "I guess, as scientists, we should approach this from both sides."
Daniel nodded. He started playing with his napkin, not daring to meet her eyes. "I'd say that the biggest reason for me would be that I . . . that I really want to." When Sam didn't reply, he got up the courage to look at her. She was staring at her glass of water.
"That would be my biggest reason, too," she admitted.
"If we could make it work, I think that it could be something really good."
Sam met his gaze. "So do I."
Just then, the waiter came with the food. They ate in silence for a while.
"I guess we could go on a date, a real date, and just see what happens," Sam reasoned.
"Yes. If we decide afterwards that it wouldn't be a good thing to continue, no harm done."
"Right. It'll be sort of an experiment."
"Exactly," Daniel agreed.
"No expectations or commitments, just a date."
"Right."
"Okay. Um . . . when?"
"Saturday night?" Daniel suggested. "I'm sure I could find someone to babysit Danny."
"All right. Saturday would be good."
Feeling both excited and nervous about the upcoming date, Daniel and Sam resumed eating. Once they were finished, the archeologist asked for the check. A short while later, a man clearly of Italian heritage came up to them.
"Hello, I am Roberto. Did you enjoy your dinner?"
"Yes, it was very good," Daniel replied. "Thank you."
"Good. I am pleased." The Italian smiled. "Your dinner tonight is on the house."
Daniel and Sam looked at him in surprise.
"Um . . . thank you," Daniel responded, "but I have to ask why."
The man's smile grew. "By now, you must know that your presence here was the result of a bit of trickery."
"You know?" Sam asked in surprise.
"Indeed I do. In fact, I must confess that I and members of my staff participated in it."
Daniel was surprised. "What? I don't understand. We thought that a friend of ours did this."
Now, the smile was an outright grin. "Ah, but you are wrong. It was, in fact, your son who dreamed this up, Signore."
"Danny?!" Daniel and Sam exclaimed simultaneously.
"Si. He called and asked for help in arranging a romantic dinner for the two of you."
Stunned, Daniel didn't know what to say. Danny had done this? Holy cow!
"I must tell you that my staff and I greatly enjoyed our part in this. What a delightful child your son is. May I ask his age?"
"He's eight . . . apparently going on thirty."
Roberto chuckled. "This will surely be something for my memoirs."
"Was it you who ordered the things from the florist?" Sam asked.
"Yes. The woman who delivered your flowers was a member of my staff. She sat outside your house and waited for you to come home."
"How did you know where I live?"
"Uh, Danny got the address from me," Daniel replied. "He said that he wanted to send you a letter."
Roberto smiled again. "Such a clever child."
"Yeah, even more so than I thought," Daniel murmured. "I should pay you for the flowers and the plant at least."
The restauranteur waved his hand. "There is no need. We receive a discount from the florist, so it did not cost much. As I have said, we all found this most enjoyable. I have only one request from you."
"What's that?"
"That you bring young Danny here someday so that we may meet him."
"Uh, sure, I can do that."
"Wonderful. We will look forward to it." He smiled more softly. "And if you should choose to dine out together again, we would be most pleased if you would pick our restaurant."
Seeing the blush that colored the faces of both of them, he smiled and wished them a good evening.
Daniel and Sam sat unmoving at the table.
"I can't believe he did this," Daniel finally muttered.
"Neither can I." Sam laughed. "It's really pretty funny, actually."
Daniel smiled. "Yes, it is. Here's the two of us, talking about all the reasons why we shouldn't date, making each other miserable in the process, and an eight-year-old cuts through all the crap and makes us start looking at why we should take a chance and go for it." He thought about that. "Actually, it's making me feel kind of foolish."
"Me too."
As they walked out of the restaurant a few minutes later, Sam realized something. "Daniel, when we decided to go ahead and try this, we thought that the colonel knew about our feelings. But he doesn't."
"You're right, he probably doesn't." They'd been heading for the valet parking attendant, but Daniel decided that they needed to talk some more first. "Let's go for a walk."
The two friends headed across the parking lot, then down the sidewalk.
"Sam, what do you think Jack's reaction would be to us dating?"
"Oh, I really don't know, Daniel." Sam wondered if she dared mention that, at one time, she and the colonel had feelings for each other that were a lot more than friendship. As it turned out, there was no need to do so.
"I, uh . . . I know that you guys had feelings for each other at one time."
"You do? How did you know?"
"Little things I saw every now and then. I know that you were jealous when Jack kissed Laira. I saw the look on your face. And for a while after you went through the Zatarc tests, you were tense around each other. I asked Jack what happened, and he said it was nothing. He's usually a good liar, but not that time. I happened to mention it to Teal'c, and he said that it was a personal matter between you and Jack. By then, I was pretty sure about you guys, and what Teal'c said made me guess that what happened with the test had something to do with your feelings for each other."
Sam nodded. "We had no choice but to bring it out in the open and confront it. We never spoke about it again, but it's always been there in the background." Sam looked at him. "Ironically, it was this thing with you that really made me start to question my feelings for Jack. I finally realized that I'd been holding onto those feelings for all the wrong reasons."
"What do you mean?"
"How do I say this without making myself sound pathetic?" Sam murmured to herself.
Daniel gazed at her profile. "Sam, no matter what you say, I would never think that you're pathetic."
Sam gave him a smile. "I know you wouldn't." She was quiet a moment, thinking out her words as they kept walking. "Jack was kind of like a safety net for me. I've had my heart broken a lot of times when it came to men I cared about. I got to the point where I was afraid to feel that way about a man again in case I lost him, too, in one way or another. And that's where Jack came in. Even if I loved him, I couldn't have him."
"Because of regulations."
"Yeah. But if I had feelings for him, then I wouldn't get involved with someone else."
"And risk getting your heart broken again."
Sam nodded. "I used my feelings for Jack to protect myself from love."
"Did you . . . love him?" Daniel asked hesitantly, hoping the answer was no.
"At one time, I thought I did. But, no, I don't think I ever did. I was definitely attracted to him, but I think that it was no more than an infatuation, one that would have faded a long time ago if I hadn't held onto it so tightly."
"And Jack? How do you think he still feels?"
"All I know is that he hasn't given any sign that he still feels that way about me in a very long time."
Daniel returned to his original question. "So, we're back to the question of how he'd feel about us dating."
"Yeah."
"If he was against it, that would cause a problem."
"Yes, it would."
"Soooo . . . do we tell him or. . . ?"
"We'd have to eventually, but I don't think we should yet. We should wait to see how things turn out. There may be no need to tell him."
Daniel nodded in agreement.
They stopped walking and faced each other. Sam stared at a spot below Daniel's chin.
"I have to admit that I'm kind of nervous about us doing this," she said.
"You're not the only one. It's pretty scary when you think about it. We've been just friends for so long."
"I know."
Daniel gazed at Sam. There in the moonlight, she looked more beautiful than ever. "Sam?"
She looked up at him. "Hmm?"
"I know this wasn't really a date, or at least we didn't know that it was meant to be a date, but I . . ." Daniel took a deep breath, "I really want to kiss you right now."
Sam's pulse skyrocketed, her throat going dry. She gazed into Daniel's eyes, seeing the desire there. "I want that, too," she whispered.
Daniel took a slow step toward her. Tentatively, he rested his hands on her waist. The warm touch made Sam quiver. As he drew her against him, the quiver raced through her whole body, making her shiver. One of Daniel's hands rose, the back of his fingers brushing soft as a breath across her cheek. Sam's hands slid up his chest. She could feel his heart beating, hammering out a rapid cadence beneath his skin.
Daniel's hand went up into her hair. And then he lowered his head, and their lips met.
Their first kiss had been a surprise, an unplanned exploration. Their second had been a wild fusion of passion. This was neither of those. It began slowly, softly, both of them a little afraid and hesitant, not sure how far they should go. The emotions rising inside them made the decision for them.
Daniel wrapped his arm around Sam, his other hand tangling in her hair as he dove straight into her mouth. With a sigh, Sam opened herself and let him in.
Daniel kissed Sam with single-minded purpose, possessing her mouth like no lover ever had. He poured his heart into the kiss, his passion and his love, and Sam responded in kind. They clung to each other as the kiss went on and on, tongues tasting, seeking new places to discover in an ever deepening exploration.
The need for oxygen finally made them break apart, but only for quick gasps of air before coming together again. The heat of the kiss rose, growing more desperate. Though he didn't realize it, Daniel's hand had slid downward to cup Sam's buttocks. But Sam was aware, and the touch set her on fire. The arm she'd wrapped around Daniel's waist made its own journey south to rest its hand upon that part of Daniel's anatomy that she'd wanted to touch ever since she found him asleep wearing nothing but a towel.
Daniel groaned and crushed his body against hers, their lower halves nearly fused together. He pulled his lips from hers and began kissing her face, working his way to her exposed ear, his body burning with need for her.
Sam moaned as Daniel's tongue slid across the outer shell of her ear, then delved inside. She let out a whimper, clutching at him. There was nothing she wanted more than to make love with him right then and there.
That's when it suddenly hit her where they were. Daniel came to the same realization at almost the same instant. He lifted his head and stared at her, breathing heavily.
"God," he rasped.
"I think that was more than a kiss," Sam panted.
"Ya think?" Daniel responded in a good imitation of Jack.
The couple rested their foreheads together. Daniel finally realized where his hand was and moved it back up. Sam did the same. They stood still like that for a long time, slowly cooling down.
"I'm sorry," Daniel finally said. "I wasn't planning on that happening." He smiled. "I guess I really, really wanted that kiss."
"I guess I really, really wanted it, too."
Daniel swallowed. "We should go back."
"Yes, we probably should."
They both experienced a feeling of emptiness after separating and wanted to return to each other's arms.
As they headed back toward the restaurant, Daniel reached down and took Sam's hand. Fingers entwined, they made the trip in silence. They each gave their claim tickets to the parking attendant. Sam's was the first of the two cars to arrive.
"I'll see you tomorrow," Daniel told her.
He watched her drive away, thinking about what was going to happen when they actually went on a real date – a date in which they would not be taking separate cars home.
Feeling a tingle run up and down his spine, Daniel got in his own car when it arrived and headed for home.
