Chapter 30

Sam frowned as she slowly made her way through the darkened living room and toward the dining room. It seemed as though the house was completely deserted. She discovered a tiny source of light from the kitchen, but discovered it was the small nightlight that she usually kept on in there during the evening. She entered the room and flipped the switch for the overhead light. The kitchen was spotless, the same as it had been when she’d left it earlier.

She headed for the stove with the intention of making herself a cup of tea. Just before the water was brought to a boil, she stuck her head out the door and called out, “Daniel, I’m making some tea. Do you want any?”

She was greeted with silence once again. Where the hell is he, she began to think, frustrated. Once the water had come to a boil, she poured it in a mug and dipped an Orange Pekoe tea bag inside. Waiting for it to cool, she took a seat at the small table. She was about to take her first sip when she nearly dropped the mug and her eyes widened.

Sitting in the middle of the table was a gold, rectangular-shaped box adorned with a black satin ribbon and the words “Ghiardelli Fine Chocolates.” Sam’s eyebrows drew together and she wondered why she had missed seeing it when she first entered the kitchen. She noticed a small, folded tag on top and opened it up. It read, “To: Samantha; From: Your Best Friend.”

She regarded the message curiously for a moment before she realized that she and Daniel had always thought of each other as best friends. A wide smile formed on her face and she chuckled fondly. So, Daniel had bought her a box of chocolates – a fairly expensive box of chocolates at that. She thought it was sweet, but not very necessary. They were getting married and his gift of love for her was the only gift she expected.

She finished her cup of tea and was about to exit the room when she noticed a pair of mugs that featured ball and chain designs. She looked at them oddly, wondering why he would have bought something like this. She didn’t think that type of humor appealed to him. She shrugged, thinking that maybe it was a gift.

As she crossed the threshold of the kitchen and stepped into the hallway, she began wondering again where Daniel was. She thought he could be in the shower, but there was no sound of water running. She still didn’t think he would be in bed already, unless he had had a long day and was absolutely exhausted. She gingerly crept toward her bedroom, half expecting to find him collapsed on top of the bed.

She flipped the light switch and sighed upon discovering that she was wrong. What she didn’t expect to find however was a small, felt-covered box sitting next to a small card on the bed. She curiously opened up the card and swallowed hard as she read its neatly printed contents:

“The design is an ancient Celtic symbol of love. I saw these and thought they would be perfect for you. I hope you love them as much as I love you.”

Without hesitation, Sam opened the small box to reveal a pair of dainty earrings that featured a Celtic knot design and were inlaid with small diamonds. Her jaw dropped when she first laid eyes upon them, thinking they were perhaps the most beautiful pieces of jewelry she’d ever seen. She carefully removed them from the box and headed over to the mirror. She held them against her ear lobes and her reflection confirmed that they were absolutely gorgeous and that she loved them.

She secured them back in the box, flipped off the light switch, and headed back down the hallway. There was still no sign of Daniel anywhere, although Sam thought she heard a faint rustling noise coming from her home office as she padded further down the hall. She quickly looked back and realized that the office door was shut. She was debating whether to go back there and see what was going on when she decided that she’d better get some more light in the place, especially in the living room.

She switched on a lamp on one of her end tables and was about to head back out of the room when something else caught her eye. Her eyes widened and she drew in a quick breath as she noticed a somewhat large, crystal vase with a dozen long-stemmed roses sitting on her coffee table. She edged closer to them, knelt down, and found that there were more than a dozen roses in the vase. There were twelve red roses and two white roses, adding up to fourteen.

Sam took a deep breath and breathed in their sweet perfume. She blinked a few tears when she noticed yet another card sitting next to the vase. Inside was the familiar handwriting, only this time it simply said, “I’m sorry.”

Sam’s brow furrowed in confusion. He was sorry? Sorry for having lavished so many gifts upon her or sorry for a completely different reason, one that was not made apparent to her? She glanced back down at the flowers and muttered in disbelief, “Fourteen roses?”

“Fourteen roses for the first fourteen days we were apart,” said a quiet voice directly behind her. Sam turned and found Daniel standing at the edge of the room, watching her with affection and something that slightly resembled guilt in his eyes. She rose to her feet and made her way up to him.

“The chocolates are for the fifteenth day and the earrings were for the sixteenth day,” he continued as he looked into her eyes. A shy smile made its way onto his face. “By the way, I hope you liked them.”

Sam’s confused expression melted and was briefly replaced by a bright smile. “I love them, Daniel,” she stated softly. “But, why? Why did you do this?”

Daniel briefly looked away and stuffed his hands into his pockets, apparently not prepared to offer her an explanation. “Steven and some of my friends from Anthropology threw a bachelor party for me. Steven asked me how things went on that expedition with my students. It reminded me again of how long I was gone and how much I missed you. It also reminded me of that little fight we had when I got back and how wrong I was. I am so sorry, Sam. I’m sorry you had to do all this alone,” he said, referring to the wedding plans she’d made while he was away.

“It’s okay,” she sniffled as he pulled her into his arms and held her. “My words and actions didn’t exactly get me off the hook either.” The memory of her going behind his back to speak with his parents briefly flashed inside her, but she quickly let go of it. She looked up into his eyes and brushed a strand of hair out of his face. “I feel as if I don’t deserve all these wonderful gifts, but it’s still really sweet of you – giving me gifts to represent the sixteen days we were apart.”

Daniel gave her a sweet smile before his eyes widened in realization. “Actually, it was seventeen days, so there’s one more. I’ll be right back,” he said as he made his way toward the front door and outside.

Sam grinned and shook her head once he was out of the house. She couldn’t believe he had done this. Was he really feeling so guilty over leaving her that he had to shower her with gifts? Admittedly, he did seem very remorseful over their argument, but she thought he had already atoned for that. In the end, she decided that he was just a very sweet man who loved her a great deal and didn’t mind showing that love through gifts.

“Okay, girl, here we are,” Daniel’s voice coaxed softly outside her door. Sam fixed the door with an odd look and lifted an eyebrow. Who was he talking to? Was it another woman? Sam silently berated herself for such a silly thought and shook her head.

The door opened slowly and Daniel entered, carrying a bundle of something in his arms. As he pushed the door shut behind him with his foot and made his way closer to Sam, she realized that he was carrying a puppy. Her eyes widened and a surprised expression spread across her face.

A faint blush colored Daniel’s cheeks and he was smiling shyly. In his arms was a female beagle puppy with the cutest face she’d ever seen. “I remembered, back when we first met, how you said that you’re a dog person,” he said.

She laughed softly at his comment for a moment. Yes, he was incredibly thoughtful. They took a seat on the couch and he handed the puppy to her. It whimpered softly as Sam scooped it up in her arms. Sam looked down at the puppy and beamed. “She’s adorable,” she said proudly. As if in approval, the young canine licked her sloppily on the cheek, prompting laughter from Sam.

Daniel chuckled affectionately as he watched Sam bond with the adorable dog. “She’s a hound, too, so she may prove valuable to us on excavations,” he said jokingly.

Sam grinned at him and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. “You are quite a man, Daniel Jackson,” she said coyly.

“And you are quite a woman, Samantha Carter Jackson,” he returned.

Sam let a quiet girlish giggle escape her throat in reaction to his reply. It became louder as the puppy licked her on the cheek once again and then leaned forward to lick Daniel on the face as well, knocking his glasses crooked upon his face.

“I think she likes us,” he said as he repositioned his glasses and brushed his hair out of his face. “Your neighbor, Mrs. Dibley, took her until you came back home, in case you’re wondering. She’s a real dog person too and she said she would take care of her for us while we’re on our honeymoon.”

Sam smiled and nodded as thoughts of her and Daniel on their honeymoon began to distract her. She still had no idea where they were going and Daniel didn’t seem very intent on telling her. She was pulled away from her thoughts by Daniel’s voice once again.

“So, what should we name her?” he asked.

Sam furrowed her brow as she thought for a moment before a name suddenly popped into her head. “Diana,” she exclaimed.

“Diana?” Daniel repeated curiously.

Sam nodded. “Yeah. Isn’t that a Roman goddess?”

Daniel’s eyes gleamed in understanding. “Yes, she was the Roman goddess of fertility, hunting, and the moon.” He paused and a small smile graced his lips. “Actually, it’s very appropriate.” He looked down at the puppy and his smile widened. “Diana,” he addressed her.

He was met with another sloppy kiss on the cheek. “Yeah, she likes it,” he grinned as he turned to Sam. Sam shook her head and snickered.

Daniel stopped to wipe his sweaty palms on the legs of his tuxedo before resuming his nervous pacing of the living room floor. The last few days before the wedding had come and gone much too quickly. In that time, Daniel had confirmed the reservations for the honeymoon and there had been a rehearsal for the wedding down at the chapel. Jacob had arrived the day before the rehearsal, causing Sam to hurry in order to straighten up the guest room for him.

Daniel couldn’t believe how nervous he was. The rehearsal had taken place yesterday and everything had gone practically without a hitch. Why, then, did he have a reason to be so nervous? Everything had seemed rushed that morning – breakfast, the quick visit to the barbershop, donning his tux, and making sure everything was in place. Steven and Robert had shown up shortly after that, as they were going to be in the wedding party. Now they were waiting for Jacob to return from an impromptu meeting he had at Peterson Air Force Base, as well as the limousine to take them to the chapel.

“You’re going to wear a hole in the floor,” Steven observed.

Daniel stopped long enough to give him a rueful look. “I can’t help it,” he said quietly. “I’m so nervous, Steven. I can’t remember the last time I was this nervous.”

“At your doctoral defense?” Steven offered.

Daniel stared at him blankly. “Which one?”

“Take your pick,” Steven chuckled.

Daniel gave him a crooked, sardonic grin. “This has all been like a big whirlwind,” he admitted as his smile faded.

“You’re not having second thoughts, are you?” Steven blurted out.

Daniel fixed him with an incredulous expression. “No, of course not!” he said, almost taken aback. “I know I haven’t known Sam very long, relatively speaking, but I know this is right. We both know this is right. We have no need to give it a second thought.”

Steven nodded and smiled faintly. His smile turned into a grin as he suddenly looked Daniel over. “You call that a haircut?”

At this, Daniel looked up at him curiously. “What?”

“Please don’t tell me you call that a haircut,” Steven continued with a hint of teasing in his voice.

Daniel rolled his eyes briefly in frustration. “I only asked for a trim.”

Steven’s eyebrows went up. “Trim what, a nanometer off the top and a micrometer off the sides and back? You look exactly the same!”

Daniel merely shrugged.

“You’re never going to shed that long hair, are you?” Steven said, amused.

The question earned a scowl from Daniel. “Speak for yourself,” he said as he nodded at Steven, gesturing subtly at his somewhat long – though not as long as Daniel’s – hair.

“First of all, my hair isn’t anywhere near as long as yours, and second of all, it’s wavy so a little length is okay,” Steven said in a mock defensive tone.

Daniel sighed, frustrated. “Look, I like it. Sam likes it. Good enough?” he asked curtly.

Steven looked at him for a moment before he shrugged, resigned, and uttered a low chuckle. “Whatever.”

Before any more could be said, there was an urgent knock at the door. Daniel stopped dead in his tracks and felt his nervousness growing. He slowly made his way up to the door and sighed in relief when he found Jacob Carter standing on the other side. He was dressed in his uniform and was wearing an apologetic expression.

“It’s about time you got here, Jacob,” Daniel exclaimed, instantly regretting his snappy tone.

“I’m so sorry, Daniel,” the older man replied. “The meeting went a few minutes overtime and I ran into some traffic on the way back here.”

“Traffic? On a Sunday?” Daniel asked in disbelief.

Jacob shook his head wearily. “I know. I couldn’t understand it myself. What can I say … I’m sorry.”

Daniel instantly felt ashamed of the way he was talking and he sighed heavily. “I’m sorry, Jacob. I didn’t mean to get angry or anything. This whole thing just has me very nervous.” He stepped aside to allow Jacob entrance and then shut the door behind him.

Jacob looked at the young, shaggy-haired man and chuckled sympathetically. “It’s okay, Danny. I know exactly what you’re going through and I don’t blame you at all.”

Daniel’s pensive expression melted into a slight smile. “Thanks,” he said quietly.

Jacob smiled back and patted him on the arm. Suddenly, the sound of the doorbell pierced the room and caused Daniel to slightly jump.

“Are you okay?” Jacob asked with a sympathetic chuckle.

Daniel’s cheeks flushed and he nodded, embarrassed.

“Our ride’s here!” Robert declared in his fairly nasal tone as he pulled the door open and witnessed the black Lincoln Town Car parked in front of the curb behind Daniel’s car.

Daniel sighed and smiled nervously as he led the way outside Sam’s house.

They were about three blocks from Sam’s house when Jacob noticed that Daniel had quit glancing out the window and was now leaning back with his eyes shut, taking slow, deep breaths. He reached out to the young man seated across from him and touched his arm gently. “Daniel?”

Daniel’s eyes suddenly flew open and he noticed Jacob staring at him, his brow furrowed in confusion and concern reflected in his eyes. Daniel looked at him curiously.

“Are you all right?” Jacob asked.

Daniel studied his face for a moment and then nodded. “I guess,” he said softly.

Jacob regarded him sympathetically. “Look, I know you can’t help being nervous,” he said softly. “But, don’t let it eat you up inside. I was the same way when I married Sam’s mother.” A wistful look appeared in his eyes and they appeared to glisten with unshed tears. “You worry about what could possibly go wrong, you worry that things might be happening too fast, and you worry about whether your bride might actually be having second thoughts. It’s perfectly normal. Just think about how things will be when it’s all over. You and Sam will be all alone and spending your first moments together as a married couple. You won’t have to worry about ever going through anything like this again.” He smiled fondly at the brown-haired, bespectacled younger man.

Daniel felt his anxiety ebbing away for just a moment and a grateful smile spread across his face. “Thank you,” he said.

Jacob nodded and his smile grew wider as the simple words Daniel spoke seemed to say much more. They finally reached the small, white, Victorian-style building that was the chapel and parked behind another black Town Car. Daniel realized that Sam and her group must have arrived already. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out as he exited the limo. “Here we go,” he said quietly to himself as he headed for the door of the chapel.