CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Thankfully, Danny didn't have a nightmare. Daniel had some good news for him when he woke up. Both Tommy and Captain Hardwick were going to be all right. Danny wanted to visit the boy in the hospital, and Daniel promised that they'd go there later, although he wasn't certain that the hospital would allow Danny into Tommy's room.
Danny got more than one hug when they got to the SGC. Everyone knew about the accident and were thankful that the little boy they all cared about was okay.
"How are you feeling today?" Janet asked him when they arrived at the infirmary.
"My arm hurt a lot. Daniel gave me some pain pills, and it feels better now."
Janet had him take off his shirt, and she examined the bruise. "Yes, that's quite a whopper you've got there. I'm afraid it's going to keep hurting for a while, but you were very lucky it wasn't worse." She looked at his cheek. "And you could easily have broken your cheekbone." She looked back and forth between the boy and Daniel. "So, anything else I should know about? Other aches or pains? Any other symptoms, like dizziness or nausea?"
They both shook their heads.
"That's good." Janet smiled down at Danny. "I'd say that you don't need my services anymore then, young man, although I'll want to check that arm again in a few days to see how it's doing."
"Danny, could you stay here a moment?" Daniel asked. Upon receiving a nod from the boy, he walked out of the room with Janet.
"So, how are you doing?" she asked.
"To be honest, still a little shaky. I think that was one of the worst moments I've ever gone through, and that's saying a lot considering the stuff that's happened in my life."
"Trust me, Daniel, I do understand. I'll never forget how scared I was when Cassie got sick, and I almost lost her because of Nirrti's experiments. Nothing is more terrifying to a parent than to almost lose their child."
"I wanted to tell you that I think we need to reschedule that appointment with Doctor Woods. I don't think Danny would be up to it, and I knowI wouldn't."
Janet nodded. "Yes, that's what I figured. I've already called her and told her what happened. She'll wait to hear back from us on what day would be good to reschedule it to. I'm thinking that a week would be good. That'll give Danny plenty of time to get over any nightmares he's having as a result of this."
"Actually, he didn't have a nightmare."
Janet looked at him closely. "But you did?"
"Oh, yeah."
Janet touched his arm. "If you'd like to talk about it, my door is always open."
"Thanks. Jack and I have already talked. He . . . knows how I feel."
Janet's expression saddened. "Yes, he does."
Daniel took Danny to see General Hammond. The man hugged the boy for a long while.
"I am so very glad that you're all right, Danny," he said, his voice soft and low. "We all love you very much."
"I love you, too, Grandpa George."
The general kissed the boy's brow, then looked up at Daniel. "How are you doing, Daniel?"
"All right, sir, very thankful that it wasn't worse. I was glad to hear that Captain Hardwick and his son are going to be okay."
"Yes, the captain was quite lucky. He has you to thank for his life. The doctors say that, if he'd been without help for much longer, he'd have bled to death internally." Hammond looked at Danny. "I do believe that Sergeant Harriman would like to see you, Danny, as would a couple other people in the control room. You should go down there and say hi."
Danny went off to the control room, and Hammond turned his attention back to Daniel. "I didn't know how much he knew about what happened last night. Major Carter told me about it, that you knew something was wrong and were able to go right to Danny."
"Yeah. I can't really explain it. Up till now, I've just picked up little flashes of his thoughts. That one time, I saw things through his eyes for a split second. But this time was different, maybe because it was so intense. Not only did I see what he saw for an instant, I also actually felt his fear. As for being able to find him, it's hard to describe. I just somehow knew which way to go. Sir, I'd rather this not become known to a lot of people. I don't know if it would attract attention we'd rather not have, but I think it would be better to keep it a secret."
"Say no more, Daniel. There is no reason for me to report this to anyone. It has nothing to do with the Stargate Program."
"Thank you, sir."
Daniel and Danny's next stop was Sam's lab. The astrophysicist gave Danny a big hug, asking how he was. Figuring that Jack and Teal'c would like to see the boy, Daniel called the Jaffa's room. Teal'c said that he'd come immediately. Daniel then called Jack's office. Not finding him there, the archeologist had him paged over the P.A.
Teal'c did not hesitate to embrace Danny when he arrived. He had been filled in on everything by Sam and Jack. The colonel got there a few minutes later, and, like everyone else, hugged the boy. His eyes met Daniel's, silently asking how the younger man was doing. Daniel gave him a slight nod to let him know that he was all right.
"Danny, I've had the appointment with the psychologist rescheduled," Daniel said. "I figured that you wouldn't be up to doing that now. We'll be doing it next weekend instead, if that works out for the doctor."
"I think that's a good idea," Sam said.
Jack nodded. "I agree. And, since this means that we all have this weekend free, I'd say that a team dinner would be a great idea." He looked down at Danny, ruffling his hair. "We've got a lot to celebrate." The truth was that he felt a need to see Danny playing and laughing, being alive. This incident had disturbed Jack way more deeply than he'd let on even to Daniel. When he arrived at the scene of the crash and saw the car, it had almost been like those moments after he and Sara heard the gunshot, and he was running up the stairs to the bedroom, filled with that horrible, sick, all-consuming terror. When he got to the car and looked into Daniel's eyes, he saw the same black fear. Now, he wanted what he couldn't have with Charlie, the joy of seeing Danny alive and relatively well.
Daniel took Danny to see Tommy that afternoon. Fortunately, Danny was allowed to visit him. The injured boy's mother was with him.
"It's good to see that you're all right, Danny," she said with a warm smile. "I heard that you were just bruised up a bit." The woman looked up at Daniel.
"Hi, I'm Daniel Jackson."
She stood up. "Yes, I can clearly see the resemblance between you and your son." She held out her hand. "Jan Hardwick."
Daniel shook her hand. "It's nice to meet you."
Danny went over to the bed. Tommy appeared to be asleep. There was a bandage on his forehead and a lot of bruising on the left side of his face. His left arm was in a cast.
"Is he okay?" Danny asked worriedly, alarmed by the way his friend looked.
"Yes, honey, he'll be fine," Jan assured him. "It will just take a while for him to heal. He sleeps a lot right now. The doctors believe that he'll be ready to go home tomorrow, but I'm afraid that he's not going to be up to playing for a while yet."
"How is your husband?" Daniel asked.
"He's going to be all right." Jan met Daniel's eyes. "The doctors say that, if he hadn't been found when he was, he may not have made it. I don't know how it is that you found them or why you were even looking, and I'm guessing that, if I asked, you wouldn't tell me, but, whatever the reason, I want to thank you. You saved my husband's life."
Daniel dipped his head slightly in answer to her thanks. He looked down at Danny, running fingers through the boy's hair. "I'm just glad that I did find them."
The team dinner on Saturday ended up starting at three o'clock. Not surprisingly, the main pastime was playing with Danny. Because of his bruised shoulder, rough playing was out of the question, so it was all quieter stuff, mostly games. Jack taught Danny how to play poker. The boy then turned right around and beat him in their first game together . . . with a wee bit of help from Sam. Jack grumbled good-naturedly about beginner's luck. Danny had been delighted to see the Hounds and Jackals game that Teal'c brought over. He and Daniel played against the Jaffa and beat him soundly. All five of them got together for a rather boisterous game of Monopoly.
Though it was a beautiful evening, they decided against a barbeque and ate what Danny had told them he wanted for dinner: fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, and peas with pearl onions. For dessert was chocolate cake and the leftover apple pie.
During the course of the meal, Danny found out the full story of Daniel sensing the accident and somehow knowing where to go. The boy thought the whole thing was very cool.
They were now outside, enjoying the night air. Daniel, Sam and Danny were lying on the grass, the boy between the two adults. They were playing a game that Daniel's mother had created, where they'd make up their own constellations and named them.
Jack watched the three of them. He smiled when he saw Daniel and Sam share a kiss over Danny's head. They looked like a family. Judging by how Sam had been dressed the day of the accident, Jack figured out that she and Daniel had been on a date, taking advantage of the fact that Danny was going to be spending the night with the Hardwicks. He didn't know how far their relationship had progressed, though they seemed to be completely at ease with public displays of affection, something that some couples never felt. He had no doubt that they really would be a family one of these days.
It was past Danny's bedtime before everyone decided it was time to call it a night. The boy was put to bed, though he really didn't want to go, having had too much fun that day.
"Are you sure you don't want some help with those dishes?" Jack asked, looking at the pile in the sink.
"No, I'm just going to rinse them off and leave them for tomorrow," Daniel replied. "Thanks for today, guys. After what happened, Danny and I really needed to have some fun."
"We were happy to give it to you," Jack responded. He looked at his watch. "Well, I guess we should get going. Gotta get Teal'c back to the base so that he can get his beauty sleep. You heading off, too, Carter?"
"Yeah, in a few minutes, sir."
"Well, good night, then, you two. We'll see you on Monday."
The colonel and the Jaffa left. Daniel headed into the kitchen and tossed the empty beer bottles on the counter into the recycling bin.
"How are you doing, Daniel?" Sam asked, joining him. "We haven't really had a chance to talk since the accident. I know how scared you were."
"I'm all right. It really shook me, though. It made me really see how I could suddenly lose him. If that car had slid the opposite way, and it had been the passenger side that hit the trees, it could be Danny lying in the hospital . . . or worse. Being a parent can be great, but it can also be terrifying and heartbreaking. I really understand now what it was like for Jack when he lost Charlie. In those minutes when I was going down to the car, I kept seeing Danny dead in my mind, and . . . and it was one of the worst feelings I've ever had. I don't ever want to go through anything like that again."
Sam rubbed his back. "I know. It was a pretty horrible moment for me, too. I felt so helpless. There wasn't anything I could do except call 911 and the colonel, then wait for help. Come on. Let's go back outside."
They went back out into the backyard and sat on the grass, looking up at the stars. Daniel chuckled as he thought of their earlier game.
"I remember some of the crazy names Mom and I gave our made-up constellations. That was a fun time. I realized a while ago that, since they died, I've seldom had fun. Oh, I've had good times, times when I laughed. That was particularly true during the year I was on Abydos. But having real fun, just letting loose and . . . well, playing was something I didn't have in my life, not until Danny. Less than two months, and I have laughed and smiled more in this time than I have in . . . in I don't know how long. A very long time."
"I'm glad," Sam said. "It makes me happy to see you smile and laugh. There were so many times that I wanted to see you smile, to see joy in your eyes. It hurt almost never seeing it that last year or so before you ascended."
Daniel looked at her. "That was a bad time in my life, but it's in the past. For the first time in a very long time, I feel like I could not ask for anything more that what I have now." He cupped her cheek, his eyes filled with love. "And you are one of the biggest reasons for that."
Daniel lowered his lips to Sam's in a soft, sweet kiss. They drew apart a few inches, eyes searching, then their mouths came together again. Daniel's arms wrapped around Sam's waist, drawing her close. Lips parted, letting tongues inside. They took complete possession of each other's mouths, staking their claim in an ever-deepening search.
Go to PG-13 rated version. R-rated version below.
Their hunger for each other took over, immersing them in fire. The kiss became ravenous, hands caressing, touching, grasping. Daniel lowered Sam to the ground, his body coming to rest partially on top of her. His glasses began sliding, and he ripped them off, not caring where they ended up. As his knee slid between Sam's thighs, he cupped her bottom and pulled their hips together. Sam rocked upward against him, driving a groan from his throat. His other hand covered her breast, squeezing gently, and it was Sam who now groaned.
The cool night air touched Sam's skin as Daniel's fingers released the buttons of her blouse. And then his mouth was there, back to the place he'd tasted before. This time, Sam did not stop him as he lowered her bra. A tongue slipped beneath it, sliding wetly over her nipple.
"Oh, God," Sam moaned.
The material was pushed the rest of the way down. Daniel opened his lips and pulled a peak into his hot mouth. Sam tilted her head back, arching up into him. Hungrily, Daniel feasted upon her, tongue, lips and teeth driving her wild. He found the front catch of the bra and bared her fully to his mouth and hands.
At last, his lips left her breasts and moved downward to the soft expanse of her stomach. A button was released, a zipper lowered, and Daniel was pushing aside the flaps of her trousers to reveal still more skin. Sam shuddered, her respiration coming in short pants. And then Daniel's hand slipped beneath her underwear to the heat inside. Sam let out a muted cry, jerking upward.
Her ability to think rapidly escaping her, Sam managed to get Daniel's shirt mostly off as his mouth returned to her breasts, his hand never leaving the place between her thighs. With fumbling fingers, she unfastened his pants. And then she was touching him, and the muted cry was Daniel's. He rose, bringing his mouth crashing down upon hers. Both of their shirts and Sam's bra were off a moment later, the grass cool against the heated skin of Sam's back, Daniel's own heat on top of her. And then came the rest of their clothes.
With a quick movement, they rolled, Sam now on top. Their kiss was hot and frenzied as Sam began rubbing herself up and down against Daniel's body, making him crazy with need. He couldn't wait a moment longer.
Bending his knees, he grabbed her hips. Sam sat up, grasping his forearms, passion-darkened eyes locked upon his. The moonlight shown down upon her nakedness, turning her skin to silver, her hair to pale gold. She was breathtakingly beautiful.
Daniel lifted her hips and buried himself deep inside her. Sam's head fell back with a soft cry, hands tightening on his forearms at the glorious feeling of his body at last being joined with hers.
Sam's cry was accompanied by a deep groan from Daniel. Lost in the feeling of being within the heat of her body, he began to move with her, every upward movement of his hips met by a downward one of hers. Their tempo gradually increased, the fire inside growing hotter by the second.
Suddenly, Daniel grabbed Sam and rolled them over, coming to rest on top of her. The chill of the grass was lost on Sam as he rocked into her powerfully again and again. Small cries escaped her lips as she rode with him upward toward the crest of their rapture. They reached the top together and fell over in a blazing conflagration of ecstasy, the breath seizing in their lungs as they tumbled out of control into the inferno.
Gasping and trembling in the aftermath, Daniel and Sam lay still in recovery. As his respiration and heart rate slowed, Daniel began placing soft kisses all over Sam's face. He gazed down into her eyes.
"Sam," he whispered huskily, lost for words to describe how he felt.
"I know," she said. "I feel the same way." In the past, Sam had heard some women talking about the feeling of utter joy and fulfillment that could come from making love, but she had never experienced it until now. She felt like crying, but held back the tears. She saw a hint of wetness in Daniel's eyes as well.
Daniel lowered his head, nuzzling her hair and placing a few kisses on her neck. He smiled against her sweat-dampened skin.
"We go on three dates, wanting this at the end of each one and coming really close one of those times," he said.
"But something always got in the way."
"And, now, here we are, after a team dinner, lying naked in the backyard."
"With the crickets and various other insects. Thankfully, no mosquitoes."
Daniel met her eyes, his smile soft and full of love. "And I can't think of a more perfect moment it could have happened."
"Me neither."
Daniel lifted himself off Sam and rolled over onto his back. She snuggled up under his chin, a hand resting on his chest. His eyes went back to the stars above, which appeared to be winking down at them. This was the single happiest moment of his entire life. He felt almost delirious with joy. He wanted to capture this moment and hold onto it forever.
A small shiver from Sam made him look down at her. He realized that, now that their bodies were cooling, the chill of the night air was a bit uncomfortable.
"Let's go inside."
After finding Daniel's glasses, they gathered their scattered clothing. They put on their underwear, but didn't bother with anything else. They both knew without asking that Sam would not be going home tonight.
After using the bathroom, they removed their undergarments and slipped beneath the covers of Daniel's bed, going back into each other's arms.
"When I bought this bed, I dreamed about the night I'd share it with you," Daniel said.
"I thought about that, too, when I saw it."
Just then, Daniel thought of something. "I'm sorry, Sam. Things happened so suddenly that I didn't think to ask if you wanted to use protection."
"I don't think we need it. We both know that there's no danger of disease."
"And the other thing? I think I heard somebody say that all women on SG teams use birth control for the sake of safety, just in case something happens on a mission, so I figured that the same would be true for you."
Sam nodded. "Right now, I'm using the Ortho Evra patch. See?" She pulled down the covers and twisted around to reveal a flesh-colored patch on her left butt cheek. Daniel brushed his fingers across it. He hadn't noticed it in the heat of their lovemaking.
"I was taking Depo-Provera shots for a while, but there are serious health risks in doing that for more than two years," she explained, "and the Lunelle injections made me gain weight."
Daniel pulled her back into his arms. "There's something I should tell you. A while ago, I had myself tested. I'm not sterile, Sam. I'm okay."
Sam smiled in delight. "Daniel, that's wonderful news."
He gazed at her intently. "I want to have children with you, Sam. I want a family with you."
"I want that, too, Daniel, very much."
They came together in a kiss that soon became more. With soft whispers and muted sounds of passion, they made love a second time. Bathed within the glow that followed, they slipped joyfully into sleep.
It was about an hour before dawn when Daniel awoke. For an instant, he thought that his and Sam's lovemaking had been another dream. And then he felt her warm, naked body against his. He opened his eyes and looked at her. He was spooned behind her, one of his arms around her waist, the other draped over her ribs, a hand cupping the soft, round mound of her breast. This was, without a doubt, one of the best possible ways to wake up in the morning. Only one way could be better. He set about waking Sam up in that way.
The hand on her breast tightened, kneading it gently, as his lips descended to the nape of her neck. He brought his other hand up and took possession of both breasts, teasing her nipples into hardness. Sam moaned lowly, her eyes fluttering open as she awakened. She arched, pressing her hips backward into his. He jerked forward against her, very quickly becoming aroused.
Rising up a little, he turned Sam's head and lowered his mouth onto hers in a heated kiss. Daniel's lips returned to Sam's neck as one of his hands descended to the juncture of her thighs. Sam cried out softly, bucking against him.
Making love to her with his hand, Daniel felt Sam's passion rise. He parted her thighs with his legs. An instant later, he was inside her.
They moved together with unrestrained passion, climbing rapidly toward their peak. With a shout, they both climaxed, Daniel driving Sam over the edge before following her.
Chests heaving, they lay quietly in the afterglow.
"That's my very favorite way to wake up," Sam finally purred.
Daniel ran a hand up and down her body. "Next time, you can wake me up that way."
"Deal."
Sam turned around in Daniel's arms, and they shared a long kiss.
"Mmm. Good morning," she said.
Daniel stroked a finger across her cheek. "Good morning. I'd suggest that we stay in bed all day and see what mischief we can get into, but Danny will probably be waking up in another three hours or so."
Sam grinned. "Then I guess we'll just have to see what mischief we can get into in a couple of hours."
Daniel grinned as well. "I really like the way you think, Major Carter."
"I figured you would, Doctor Jackson."
By the time Daniel and Sam left the bed two hour later, they'd gotten to know each other's bodies in very great detail. Sam had always suspected that Daniel would be good with his hands, and she'd been proven right. He also confirmed that his oral talents weren't limited to kissing. His previous attention to her body with his mouth had already told her this, but, now, her body was singing from what that mouth had done to her. And she'd been no slouch in that department either. It hadn't been easy for Daniel to keep the volume of his cries down as Sam pleasured him almost into unconsciousness.
They showered together, managing to keep their hands to themselves – well, mostly, that is. Nobody could blame Daniel for wanting to be the one to wash certain parts of Sam's body, and there was no way that she could resist washing his back and tight derriere.
They were both famished and, after dressing, got busy on fixing a big breakfast. The meal was nearly ready when Danny came out to the kitchen in his pajamas. He smiled when he saw Sam.
"Did you sleep over?" he asked her.
The adults shared a look.
"Yes, Danny, I slept over," she replied, managing not to blush.
"From now on, Sam will probably be sleeping over quite a bit, Danny," Daniel said. He looked at Sam searchingly. "That is if she wants to."
Sam's smile gave the answer even before she spoke. "Oh, yes. I definitely want to." Her smile turned mischievous. "I really like sleeping over."
"Cool!" Danny said. "Will you be moving in with us?"
"Ummm, not yet, Danny."
"Will you be sleeping in the other bedroom or with Daniel in his bed? Daniel said that people who love each other romantically sleep in the same bed."
That did make the adults blush.
Daniel cleared his throat. "Uh, yes, Sam will be sleeping with me in my bed."
"Okay. I guess it's good you have a great big bed, then."
Their faces flaming, Daniel and Sam quickly turned back to the food preparation.
"How's your shoulder?" Daniel asked the boy. "Do you need a pain pill?"
"No, it's okay."
Daniel looked at him over his shoulder. "Are you sure?" Danny's hesitation gave him the answer. He got the Children's Tylenol and gave one to his clone.
"Danny, I don't want you to hide it from me when you're hurting," he said. "All right?"
"It really wasn't hurting all that much, not as much as yesterday."
"Even so, if it's hurting enough that you'd like to have a pain pill, let me know."
"Okay."
"All right, go get dressed. Breakfast will be done soon."
When Daniel returned to the stove, he noticed that Sam was smiling slightly. "What's the smile for?"
"Oh, I was just thinking about how much he's like you."
"What do you mean?"
Sam looked at him. "Shall I count the times that you've hidden how much pain you're in from Janet and everyone else?"
"That's different. I'm an adult and can take care of myself."
Saying nothing in reply to that, Sam turned back to the sausages she was cooking, a smile still on her face.
"You do realize that it's probably not going to be all that much longer before Danny's . . . educated enough to know what's going on in your bedroom when I stay here," she said. "Once he starts going to school, he'll begin learning things about that, especially if he's put in the fourth grade."
"Yes, I know, but I'd like him to hold onto his innocence for as long as possible. I can't recall how old I was when I found out about sex, a lot older than kids these days, that's for sure."
While they were eating breakfast, Daniel suddenly thought of something. He turned to his clone. "Um, Danny, remember our agreement that, if you have a really bad nightmare, you're supposed to come talk to me?"
"Yeah."
"Well, now that Sam will be sleeping over sometimes, I'd like you to knock first and wait for me to answer the door. All right?"
"Sure. Why the difference?"
Daniel scrambled for an answer. "Uh . . . that way, I can talk with you out in the living room, and Sam can sleep."
"Oh. Okay."
The adults exchanged a glance, thinking that this might get awkward sometimes.
"Oh, and one more thing," Daniel said, knowing that, if he didn't say this, Danny would innocently spill the beans that Daniel and Sam were sleeping together. "It would be best if you didn't mention to anyone that Sam is sleeping over sometimes. This is kind of a secret."
"Why is it a secret?"
"Um, that's hard to explain. It's just something that we don't want people talking about."
"Okay. I won't tell anyone."
Daniel smiled. "Thanks."
"Hey, I've got an idea," Sam said. "How about if we go to the zoo today?"
"Yeah!" Danny replied. "Can we go to the one in Denver? We've already seen the one here. The one in Denver is a lot bigger."
"Sure," Daniel replied. "I've never seen the Denver Zoo."
"I have," Sam said. "Janet and I took Cassie there years ago. It's a nice zoo. We'll need to stop by my place first, though, so that I can change."
A while later, as they all climbed into Daniel's car, the archeologist couldn't stop smiling, thinking that it already felt like he, Danny and Sam were a family.
