Daniel pulled his Chrysler convertible into an isolated parking spot, as far away from the brightly lit dance club as he could manage. He killed the engine and sat for a long moment, eyes glazed, not really seeing the bright neon sign above the door, hearing the loud buzz of conversation, or the deep insistent bass beat of dance music.

This had to be a mistake. A huge one, at that.

He sat still, wondering what in hell had possessed him to come there, to Denver's premier gay nightclub, of all places? Technically speaking, he was bisexual. He found women attractive enough, but his preference had always been for men. However, his only gay experiences had been limited to a few encounters in college. Even then, he'd never progressed to what he thought of as the fancy stuff.

As he clutched his steering wheel, he stared down at his white knuckles and shaking fingers. Had it really come to this? Was he really so desperate for human contact that he'd go looking for a quick, anonymous fuck in some motel room? He took another hesitant glance across the parking lot, giving himself a stern talking-to. He didn't need to do this. Didn't want to do it. There had to be another way. Casual sex just was not his scene.

He was reaching for the ignition key when two men emerged from the club, their movement catching his eye. As he watched, they leaned against a wall to kiss. Their bodies pressed against each other as they ate each other alive. At some length, they moved off again, arm in arm.

Frustration surged within him once again. He let his head drop to the steering wheel, choking off a groan. That was why he'd come there, wasn't it? To get laid? That was what he'd told himself he needed, a brief and meaningless encounter to make him feel alive again.

Daniel sighed and lifted his head slowly, turning to look at the door to the club once more.

He'd thought about trying to date some 'nice' girl, but his options were a little limited. The only two women he knew well enough to date were Sam and Janet, both of whom he loved dearly, but saw more as close family members than potential girlfriend fodder.

Widening the search criteria to include Sam and Janet's colleagues, he'd admitted that he'd never found soldier girls very appealing, and as for Janet's nursing staff... well, the thought of dating someone who already had intimate knowledge of his body, both inside and out, was more than a little off-putting. The only female civilian scientists on the payroll were already spoken for, and the ladies on the commissary staff were all old enough to be his mother.

So, SGC personnel were out, which left trying to find a girlfriend off base, in which case, he would have to keep what he did for a living a secret. He wasn't sure he could actually do that, even if he wanted to go that route.

Besides, he didn't have much spare time, and his friendship with Jack O'Neill took up what little time he did have. They'd watch whatever game was showing on TV, take in the latest IMAX movie up at the new Cinemark Theater, or spend quiet evenings in, eating pizza and drinking beer. He valued the time they spent with each other as friends, knowing on some level that Jack was as lonely as he was.

But there came a time when all a man really wanted was sex.

It'd been four years since Sha'uri had been taken; four long years, trying to pretend that his body's needs were unimportant. When there'd been a chance of getting her back, it'd been easier to cope, but now that she was finally at peace, he couldn't do it any longer. He couldn't pretend that he didn't ache to be held again, to feel warm breath caress his cheek, or to hear his name whispered in a moment of passion.

He wasn't naïve enough to think that he'd find any of that in this club. But he was lonely. And the need to connect on a physical level with someone again was a constant, aching pain that radiated out from some hollow place inside him.

Very briefly, he'd even thought about going to an escort service, but quickly dismissed the idea. No matter how bad it got, he would never be THAT desperate for companionship. He would never use a woman for sex like that. At least here, they knew the score. Everyone was looking for the same thing. For a few hours, he hoped he could assuage the terrible loneliness in his heart. For a few hours, maybe he'd be able to forget who and what he was, and just 'feel' again.

His friendship with Jack had helped ease the loneliness in the past. He was quite possibly the best friend Daniel had ever had, but friendship could only carry him so far. It wasn't enough. Not nearly enough.

Taking another steadying breath, he decided he was done talking to himself, so he stepped out of the car. Maybe coming there hadn't been the best idea he'd ever had, but he was so sick and tired of being responsible and sensible. Tonight he just wanted to get a little drunk and quite possibly fucked. He'd worry about any consequences later.

Mind made up, he strode through the parking lot with a determined set to his shoulders. The music grew louder as he approached. The smell of beer and cigarette smoke wafted in currents though the thickness of the night air. People laughed, voices raised in merriment and joy, surrounding him, and suddenly he felt out of place... alien … alone.

The door swung open as one of the patrons left, and Daniel's eyes scanned the crush of gyrating bodies within. As the door began to swing closed, he took a deep breath and strode forward, determined not to wimp out. He didn't even notice that the man who'd come out of the club was still standing there staring at him, until he found his way blocked by an out flung arm. Surprised, and a little annoyed, he looked up into glittering brown eyes.

"Ja…?" His voice caught on the word, cracked, rose an octave. "Jack!"

The last person he would ever have expected to see coming out of a gay club stared back at him, the neon blue of the club's sign making his silver hair glow like a halo. A thousand thoughts seemed to flow behind those brown eyes, expressions fleetingly manifested, wars fought and lost in a heartbeat.

Finally Jack took a step closer, bringing them almost toe-to-toe. "If you were thinking about goin' in there," Jack gestured over his shoulder with one thumb, "I have to tell you, it's packed tonight. Not usually this busy on a Thursday."

That was it? Easy as that? No hastily formed excuses, no embarrassment? Not even a 'this isn't what it seems' speech?

Daniel stood absolutely motionless, head whirling and heart hammering. Jack… his friend, Jack… his buddy… his best pal, had just walked out of a gay club. Daniel's mouth fell open, and he found himself gaping like a fish. Jack wasn't even trying to pretend he'd gone there by accident. Daniel's worldview tilted alarmingly, and he wasn't at all surprised when he found a pair of strong arms holding him up.

"You okay, buddy?" Jack asked, the concern in his voice making Daniel's knees go even weaker.

He shook his head, groping for the nearest wall, leaning against it, while his brain desperately tried to play catch up.

Jack + gay club = Jack is gay.

Gay!!!? Nope, does not compute!

The wall refused to support him, and he gave in to momentum, sliding down onto his ass on the top step of the club's entryway. His head cradled in his hands, he started to laugh manically.

Jack knelt on the stairs beside him and laid a hand on his shoulder. "Had a skin full already, have ya?" he asked with a grin, squeezing the knotted muscle under his fingers.

Daniel wanted Jack to stop touching him, it was making rational thought almost impossible. He tried to shrug the hand away while rubbing his temples in an attempt to stave off an impending headache. "I'm perfectly sober, thank you!" he exclaimed. "But more than a little confused."

Jack refused to move his hand from its perch. "If you say so, Daniel. But you just slid down a wall, so I'm having a hard time buying that." He put a hand under Daniel's elbow and hauled him upright.

Daniel had to grab a handful of Jack's leather coat to steady himself. Jack leaned close and made a big show of smelling his breath. His brows furrowed when he found it to be clear of alcohol fumes. Jack's face became a mask, carved out of stone. He looked down at his feet, took a deep breath, and met his friend's eyes again. "Got your car?"

Dropping his hold on Jack's clothing, Daniel cocked his head towards the parking lot beside the club. "Over there, why?"

"I came by cab." Jack nodded curtly and steered Daniel in that direction, obviously marshalling his thoughts. It gave Daniel an extra few moments to get a grip on his own stampeding imagination. Right now, he was past shock and denial, fast approaching anger and embarrassment. How could he have been so clueless? There had to be some other logical explanation. His brain was still going full tilt. This was huge. Jack was gay. Jack was gay? Fucking enormously huge and scary and … and just huge.

As they reached the car, Daniel fumbled in his pocket for his keys, managing to drop them in his nervousness. "Fuck," he muttered to himself. Jack bent to pick up the keys at the same time as Daniel, and their heads butted. Jack swore under his breath as he rubbed his forehead, squinting at Daniel who was doing the same. Under different circumstances, they would have laughed, but both seemed to know that this was a turning point for them, a landmark in their friendship, a fork in the rocky road of life.

Finally Daniel got the car open and climbed in, aware that Jack was still standing outside, watching him warily. He took a grip on the steering wheel and tried to steady himself.

"Get in, Jack," he ordered.

Wordless, Jack went around and climbed in the passenger side. As the door slammed shut and silence descended on them, Daniel found he couldn't meet Jack's eyes. He remembered an incident a long time ago when a friend at school had cut her shoulder length blonde hair into a military buzz cut and dyed it black. Daniel had felt like he was looking at a stranger. A stranger with his friend's eyes.

This had the same feeling of awkwardness and uncertainty. This was still Jack, but now everything about him was the same, only different. How could Daniel have not known about this?

"Daniel, I should have told you about…." Jack waved his hand in an all-encompassing gesture, grasping for the right words, "about…all this!" It was apparently the best Jack could come up with to excuse all but turning Daniel's world upside down. Daniel stared sightlessly through the windshield, chewing on his bottom lip. He had no idea what he was supposed to say. This was just too weird.

Jack sucked in a huge breath. "Look, call it a survival instinct. You've been around enough to know how it is. You keep this sort of thing quiet in a military base, if you don't want to end up in a bloody puddle on the locker-room floor…"

Jack had spoken to the windshield, so Daniel snuck a quick glance at his profile. He seemed tense, wound up tight. Daniel knew this confession had to be costing him a lot, despite how cool he'd been playing it earlier. Jack wasn't accustomed to talking about these things, that much was patently obvious. Daniel kept his mouth firmly shut. He understood the need to be discrete, but they were friends. Bottom line, he summarily decided, was that Jack simply didn't trust him.

"It's not that I don't trust you, Daniel, 'cause I do," Jack assured him vehemently, seeming to read his mind. "I trust you with my life, and always have. You do know that, right?"

"Do I?" That was the burning question, all right. Did Jack trust him? Daniel shifted in his seat, pivoting around so he could look directly at his friend. Even ten minutes before, he'd have had no doubt about the answer.

He watched Jack swallow, his Adam's apple bob nervously. "I thought we were friends. I thought we…" Daniel shook his head sadly, turning to face the windshield again. He was silent for a couple of moments, thinking, and then murmured, "I guess I've been pretty naive, Jack. See, I thought we had no secrets."

Jack hung his head, nodding slowly in agreement. Watching him once more, sensing Jack's regret, Daniel felt trapped in the tight confines of the car. He wanted to get out, to pace. He wanted to shout at Jack, tell him that this sucked. All this time, all these years, he'd been Jack's very best friend, but he'd had no idea, not one inkling, that the big bad colonel liked... liked men!

With a frustrated growl, Daniel put his seatbelt on and started the engine, putting the car into reverse. He couldn't talk about this right now. "Where do you want to go, Jack? I'll drop you off."

Jack gave him a long look and then reached for his seatbelt. "I was gonna call a cab and go home, actually, " he confessed. He folded his hands carefully in his lap.

Daniel pulled out of the parking lot, taking the turn out of the lot a little too sharply, which threw Jack sideways against him. "It's only eleven thirty!" Daniel sneered, hating the bitchiness in his own voice, but not able to help it. This was beyond huge. This was cosmic! "What happened in there? Didn't you see anyone you liked?"

Glancing sideways, he noted that Jack didn't smile. In fact Jack's brows drew together in a deep frown as he examined his folded hands closely. "Nope. Not tonight. Actually, I haven't for a very long time."

Daniel heard the bleakness in Jack's voice, but the traffic was a little busier out on the main road, and he actually was glad he had to concentrate on his driving. He'd left the top down, relishing the feel of the wind on his face, whipping the collar of his shirt against his neck. Somehow it grounded him. It stopped him from thinking and just let him feel the elemental force of it on his flesh.

The journey back to Colorado Springs took almost an hour and was concluded in silence, with Jack staring out of the side window, and Daniel's knuckles white on the steering wheel. By the time the Chrysler rolled into Jack's driveway behind his truck, Daniel's lips were one tight, angry line. He put the car in park but deliberately didn't shut off the engine, telling Jack without words that he had no intention of coming in.

"This works both ways, you know," Jack stated softly, finally turning to look at Daniel.

Daniel sighed. He was too angry to speak and so let his raised eyebrows ask the question.

Jack's hand rested on the door handle. "It seems to me you weren't exactly honest with me, either."

Daniel opened his mouth, ready to snap off an angry retort, only to realize that it was true. He'd hidden his sexuality from his friends just as completely as Jack had. His anger began to dissipate, leaving an odd, aching sadness in its wake.

Then something else occurred to him. In his shock and confusion, he hadn't noticed at first, but now that he was calming down, he remembered clearly. Jack hadn't been the slightest bit surprised to see him standing outside that club. "But you already knew about me, didn't you?" he asked flatly.

Jack lowered his gaze, fixing his eyes on the top button of Daniel's shirt. He nodded, not trying to deny it. "Look, I'm not proud of it, but... I'm your CO. I have access to your personnel file. Remember all those embarrassing questions they asked you, back when you applied for your security clearance?"

"My sexual orientation is no one's fucking business but my own!" Daniel spluttered before he realized the implications of Jack's statement. "Oh!" he whispered. "That long?"

Jack gave him one last lingering look before undoing his seatbelt and sliding out of the car. He slammed the door and leaned in the open window. "I should have told you I knew. I'm sorry. But believe it or not, I was trying to mind my own business." When Daniel didn't answer, he tapped a finger on the windowsill and started to straighten up. "Call me later, okay? Once you've had a chance to… you know, think it all to death."

Daniel watched silently as his friend hurried away, knowing that they'd both have to put in some work if this was to be fixed, but not really sure yet how it was going to change things, or even if it would.

Daniel rolled onto his side and squinted at the digital display on his alarm clock. 4:12. Exactly seven minutes since the last time he'd checked. He'd been tossing and turning for hours, wrestling with the night's startling revelations until his brain hurt. He still had no answers to the myriad of questions whirling around inside his head.

But one thing had begun to coalesce. Nothing needed to change.

Jack was still Daniel's best friend, and it was important to him to preserve that. The parameters of that friendship had been laid down over the years, based on shared joy and pain, as well as mutual understanding and respect.

He'd never really been sexually aware of Jack. In the first moments of their acquaintance, Daniel had looked, admired, and then dismissed any possibility of reciprocal interest from the cold-eyed, suicidal, rampantly heterosexual Air Force colonel. In all the years he'd known the man, there'd never been any reason to re-evaluate that assessment. Daniel had managed to survive in a homophobic, predominantly male environment by sticking to a simple self-imposed mandate: straight men were off limits, and military straight men were just downright dangerous.

That wasn't to say that Daniel didn't appreciate Jack's impressive physical assets. Daniel wasn't blind, after all. He'd noticed how Jack's lean muscles rippled under tanned skin when he worked out in the gym. He'd noticed how the sunlight of an alien world turned the strands of Jack's silver hair to mercury. Whenever they'd showered together, he'd marvelled at how comfortable his friend was inside his own skin, always wishing he could be as uninhibited about his own body. He'd looked, thoroughly and often, but what he'd always seen was just Jack, just his friend, his best friend.

Throwing back the tangle of sweat-dampened sheets, Daniel staggered to the bathroom and turned on the shower. There was little point trying to get to sleep now. He needed to force his mind back into focus.

After a quick in-and-out shower, he powered up his PC, got on the internet, and lost himself in research.

Later that morning, as he fought to stay awake during Sam's briefing, Daniel regretted his sleepless night. He had all the information about P4X-923 in the file before him, so he wasn't too worried about missing anything really important. He was more concerned about how rude he'd look if he started snoring. That was the sort of thing Jack might do.

Speaking of whom…

Jack didn't look like he'd gotten much sleep, either. He sat across the briefing room table, slumped in his seat, eyes downcast, lashes sweeping the dark circles under his eyes. Occasionally he glanced up, right at Daniel, who quickly looked away, not yet ready to look into the eyes of the stranger wearing his friend's face.

Finally, the meeting was over. The General dismissed the team, allowing them some time to prepare for the upcoming mission.

Sam gathered up her notes and walked over to stand behind Daniel, laying one hand on his shoulder. "Daniel, you feeling okay? If you're not up to helping with the translations…"

"I'm fine," he said a little too quickly as he roused himself and got to his feet. "I had a touch of insomnia last night, that's all. I'll be fine after I eat something." He cast another quick look at Jack, who was still slumped in his seat. The colonel didn't look up from his studious appraisal of his water glass.

"Oh. Well, if you're sure?" she replied dubiously.

Daniel nodded, casting Sam a reassuring look as he hurried out of the room. "Give me about an hour, Sam, and then bring the notes to my office."

"What's with Daniel, sir?" Sam asked, making a production out of shuffling her paperwork.

Jack dropped his pencil onto the file in front of him and gave her a withering look. "How the hell would I know, Carter?"

"Because," she smiled sweetly, "when he's that upset, you're usually the cause."

Teal'c got up from his seat and began to help Sam gather up the files. "Did you and Danieljackson have a falling out, O'Neill?"

"Kinda," Jack admitted, squirming in his seat like a naughty five-year-old boy.

When the colonel was not forthcoming with any more details, Sam shook her head sadly. "Maybe you should go talk to him. Get things straight between you."

She frowned in confusion when Jack spluttered and coughed, but he regained control of himself quickly. "I will, Carter, I promise. Just not right away. He needs time to wake up first."

Daniel took the elevator up to the commissary, leaning against the wall, fists thrust deeply into his pockets. He didn't really feel like eating, but he didn't want to risk being caught out in the lie about needing to eat, either. He'd get some coffee, sit in a corner, and read over his briefing notes. Maybe think some more about the 'Jack' situation.

If he knew Jack, which he apparently did not, but that was fodder for a discussion for another day…. If he knew Jack, the man would be biding his time, letting Daniel work it through, and when enough time had elapsed, Jack would come to him and insist on talking. It wasn't something either of them did particularly well, but even Jack seemed to know that some things needed to be said.

Daniel joined the line of personnel waiting to be served, idly sliding his empty tray back and forth. He felt a little calmer now; a little less spooked by the idea that Jack was… might be… was possibly… a little bit gay. Could someone be a little bit gay?

Probably 'bi' would be a better word. After all, he'd not only been married, but he'd been a father, too. It was going to take some mental readjustment on Daniel's part, but he was sure he could do that. He was having more trouble with the sense of betrayal he still felt. How could Jack have not told him, especially since he supposedly had known about Daniel's own bisexuality for years?

It took a moment for him to realize that he was being watched. He glanced over his shoulder, frowning with concentration as he tried to recall the name of the man in the white lab coat, who was now frankly staring at him.

Nathan… something.

"Nathan Leonard," the man said as he came over and stuck out a hand. Trying to be civil, Daniel shook it, still trying to place the tall, dark haired man. "I work with Major Carter in the physics lab," Leonard supplied helpfully. Daniel's eyes widened as he correctly read the warm appraisal in the tall man's gaze, and it finally clicked. Daniel remembered where he'd last seen him, at the physics department's Christmas party.

The guy had said something faintly off-color, even suggestive, to Daniel. At the time, Daniel had figured that Leonard was drunk, but now he realized that the man's previous 'offer' had been quite deliberate. He felt color rising in his cheeks as he tugged his hand free from Leonard's grip and stuffed it into his pocket. "Oh, I remember. How've you been?" he asked stupidly, feeling completely tongue-tied.

Now that he was finally buying a clue, he allowed himself to see the man with different eyes. He towered over Daniel. He had to be at least six foot six, with dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a very nice smile. With a sweep of his eyes, Daniel took in the thirty-something fit body, perfect teeth, broad shoulders, and long, long legs. And he even had time to catch the scent of a nice aftershave, not too strong or overpowering.

Daniel blushed even more furiously when Nathan leaned close and murmured, "Like what you see, Doctor Jackson?" Even his breath smelled good.

He'd been giving the guy the once-over, no use denying it. Taking a gulp of air to steady himself, Daniel made a decision. "Um, yeah. I do. You?"

The guy gave him a 100-gigawatt smile by way of confirmation and nodded in the direction of the front of the line, drawing Daniel's attention to the fact that while they'd been talking, the line had moved forward, and they'd reached the cash register.

The girl behind the counter cleared her throat and scowled at Daniel, nodding towards his empty tray. "Not hungry today?" she asked sarcastically.

"Um, I'm just getting coffee," he managed, his mind busy processing what had just happened. He handed over his commissary debit card and then tried to concentrate on navigating the route to the coffee carafes without tripping over his own feet, all the time aware of the brown eyes checking out his ass as he walked. Finally, he found an unoccupied table and slid gratefully into the seat.

A shadow fell over him a moment later, and he was forced to look up. Nathan put down his own tray, sliding into the other chair without asking for permission to join Daniel. "So. You busy tonight? I thought we could maybe have dinner."

Daniel licked his lips nervously. He'd given up on finding someone to date right there on the base. When he'd been mentally reviewing his options earlier, he'd never considered looking at the male civilians on base. This guy was perfect; Nathan had security clearance, was intelligent, and was fucking gorgeous. He even smelled good. What the hell was Daniel waiting for?

"Sure, that'd be nice." His words were ringing in his ears, his heart hammering against his ribs as he smiled up into the knowing brown eyes.

Nathan smiled right back as he got to his feet. "Great. Fenton's, over on Academy. I'll meet you at seven thirty. Oh, and wear something sexy, 'kay?"

Daniel's mouth gaped like a fish as Nathan walked away. He'd just made a date. With a guy. Who wanted him to dress sexy. Suddenly Daniel wasn't at all sure of himself. Dress sexy? What the fuck was that supposed to mean?

Daniel took the coffee back to his office and closed the door firmly behind him. He slumped into the armchair in one corner, opening his briefing notes, and trying to focus on the first page. He refused to start analyzing his encounter with Nathan. It was no big deal. They had a date, that was all, nothing to get uptight about. So then why was his stomach clenching in knots, why was his heart still racing, why did he feel like giggling and doing a little 'happy dance'?

He shook his head in frustration when he realized that he'd just read the same line three times. Taking a deep breath, he tried again, only to slam the folder shut the same moment a tentative knock sounded on his door. It was too early to be Sam. He hoped it wasn't Nathan. He wasn't ready to face the guy again so soon. "Come in," he called out, his nervousness evident in the crack of his voice.

He heaved a sigh of relief when it was only Jack's face peering around the door.

"Busy?" the colonel asked. He sauntered in, hands balled into the pockets of his green fatigues.

Daniel carefully laid the folder on the floor and shrugged. "Not really." He sighed, watching Jack pull out a chair, turn it around, and straddle it.

Jack crossed his arms over the back of the chair and leaned his chin on his forearms. "Sorry."

That was so typical of Jack. He'd bat those big puppy dog eyes, say sorry, and expect to be forgiven. And of course, it worked every time. "Sorry that I'm not busy? Or…"

"Or," Jack affirmed, staring at the floor. "Are we okay now?"

Were they okay?

Daniel supposed they must be. He wasn't angry anymore, and he was sure they could work it all out. He nodded, smiling a little, letting the warmth reach his eyes.

Jack's face relaxed, his answering smile lighting up his eyes. "Good," he said getting to his feet. He stopped half way towards the door and looked back over his shoulder. "So you wanna come cruising with me tonight, see if we can get lucky?"

Daniel actually laughed out loud, the thought of cruising gay bars with Jack striking him as being very funny for some reason. They could add it to the list of things they did on a Friday night. Jack looked a little nonplussed by his friend's outburst, so Daniel reined in the hilarity. "Thanks, Jack, but I already have a date."

Jack was across the room in an instant, eyebrows raised comically, eyes sparkling with interest. "No shit? Anyone I know?"

Daniel felt the blush rise again and reached for the discarded folder on the floor. "Jack, last time I heard, there were rules about asking that sort of question."

Jack's eyes went dark. "That means it's a he? Fuck! Daniel, there ARE rules…"

"Relax, he isn't military. I was just teasing. And anyway, even if he were, you're employing a double standard, aren't you?"

"Ever heard the phrase 'don't shit on your own doorstep', Daniel?"

Daniel wrinkled up his nose in disgust, and Jack gave him a lopsided grin. "I wouldn't expect you to see that, but the airman in question would have to have been insane to date another guy on base. That sort of thing always gets out."

Jack seemed to relax, his face back to its normal stony countenance. He nodded, sweeping his gaze over Daniel from top to toe. "So, you finally took the plunge. Well, good for you. Don't do anything I wouldn't do, huh?" he cast over his shoulder as he exited the office, leaving the door wide open.

Daniel grinned and in a loud voice, he fired back, "Hey! I heard there isn't ANYthing you wouldn't do, Jack!"

Silence was the only reply.

Still smiling, Daniel opened the report again, determined to at least make it through the first page.

Teal'c was just finishing his last set of reps on the free weights when the colonel entered the gym. He'd observed that O'Neill often favored an exercise regime focused on tension relief, and was not surprised to see him head straight for the punching bags. He was, however, a little taken aback by the sheer force of the blows and violence of the attack.

Wisely, he did not intrude upon his friend's work-out.

Daniel peered at his reflection in the full-length mirror inside the closet door of his bedroom. He chewed on his lower lip, examining his attire. Was this sexy? Fenton's was a casual place, so he'd opted for slim fitting beige khakis, a dark grey cashmere sweater, and a soft brown leather jacket that matched his boots. He had no idea if the overall effect was sexy. He stepped back, ran a hand through his hair, and sighed.

His stomach was lurching madly at the thought of his upcoming date, so much so that he'd actually considered cracking the seal on the bottle of pricey Glenmorangie scotch that Jack had given him for his birthday. Maybe a shot or two, just for Dutch courage. He'd thought better of it, though, knowing his tolerance for alcohol was piteous, and anyway, he had to drive. Drinking wouldn't have been the most intelligent decision he could make.

As he was about to rummage around in his closet for something else to wear, his doorbell rang. He glanced down at his watch, wondering who the hell it could be. He only had another ten minutes to spare before he had to leave.

Slamming his closet closed in irritation, he strode to the front door and peered through the peephole. There stood the last person he'd expected to see. "Jack?" he said as he threw open the door. He stared dumbly at the apparition dressed in a full-length black leather coat, casually leaning against the wall in the corridor outside.

"Last time I looked," his friend drawled, eyes roaming all over Daniel and making him squirm with embarrassment.

"Jack, I have a date," Daniel observed, looking pointedly at his watch.

Jack pushed past him into the apartment. "Relax. I just came by to make sure you had everything you need." As he spoke, he reached into the pocket of his long black coat and withdrew a small brown paper bag, thrusting it roughly into Daniel's hands as he closed the door. "You look hot, by the way," he said, winking outrageously.

Daniel's mouth fell open as he opened the bag and checked out the contents, his mind in a daze. Then it registered what Jack had said. "I do?"

Jack took a step backwards and once again swept his dark gaze over Daniel from top to toe. "Oh, yeah," he breathed with a grin. He actually smacked his lips together in appreciation.

Daniel found himself smiling, feeling a little more relaxed now about his date. After all, if Jack thought he looked hot, then his choice of an outfit must be okay, right? "So tell me. Presenting myself for inspection, Colonel, sir," he said with a grin, doing his best imitation of standing at attention, his eyes straight ahead. "Does this pass muster as sexy, sir?"

"At ease, mister." With a soft chuckle, Jack nodded and reached out to brush his fingers lightly down Daniel's arm. "Leather? I haven't seen this on you before. Yeah, very sexy. Very… tactile. Smells good, too."

Daniel's smile faltered. "Not too much, though, right? I don't wanna look...easy."

Jack leaned back against the kitchen counter and shook his head. "Nah, not too much. And easy would be silk. That screams 'fuck me' to anyone with half a brain cell. I take it you're looking for a little more than that?"

Daniel shook his head in amazement. This really was a surreal conversation to be having standing in his kitchen with Jack. He glanced down at the brown paper bag he still held, which held a box of condoms and a small bottle of lube. He held the bag up between them. "Put it this way, Jack, I hope I'll get the chance to use these some day, but not on my first date."

Jack nodded, a small smile softening his features. He pushed away from the counter, hesitating as he stepped past Daniel, en route to the front door. "Have fun," he smiled, one hand reaching out to squeeze Daniel's shoulder. "But for God's sake, be careful."

Daniel nodded, thanking all the deities he knew for a friend like Jack.