When this one started, I really didn't know what I wanted it to be. I knew Pacey was hiding something but he didn't want to let me know what it was. Eventually it came out (and a big hee to the secret's name, given the finale), but I don't know. :shrug: The final scene seems off, like it belongs to another fic, but I really wanted a scene of Pacey renovating a house and fucking in it. Hee. I was watching Mystic Pizza late one night. Heh. I guess it shows.

"You're just tempting fate, you know that, right?"

Pacey glanced up through the rain at Jen. "You're getting all wet."

"Yeah, like I was going to wear this dress again." She glanced down at the salmon colored taffeta. "Her taste in men isn't bad, but Andie's got no fashion sense at all." She sat beside him on the sand, her nose wrinkling as the wet clumps shifted beneath her. "You okay?"

"Just waiting for lightning to strike."

"Would that solve anything?"

"Nope. But it'd give me something else to think about for a few seconds, don't you think?" He grinned and gave her a wink. "Nice wedding, huh?"

"As far as weddings go." Jen shrugged. "I'm not a big fan of the pomp and circumstance. When and if I ever do this, I'm hopping a plane to Vegas and having Elvis do the honors."

"You're my kind of woman, Lindley." He put his arm around her and kissed the top of her head, tasting rain and hairspray. "Is that what brings you out here?"

"I just needed some air. I saw a Pacey shaped lump on the shore and thought I'd investigate." She picked up some sand, watching it fall from her fingers. "That and I couldn't bear to hear any more of Dawson's speech."

"I don't know which is worse," Pacey agreed. "Dawson talking or Oliver interrupting him every few seconds to interject his opinion."

"Oliver." Jen stated then shook her head. "Nope. Dawson. Or just…Dawson and Oliver." She laughed and dropped her head back, closing her eyes as the raindrops washed over her face. "We're such an incestuous group."

"That we are."

"Dawson's dated me and Joey and Audrey. You've dated Andie and Joey and Audrey. I've dated Dawson and almost had sex with Jack and you. Joey almost slept with Jack. I had sex with Charlie, Joey had sex with Charlie. I screwed around with Oliver and now Andie's marrying him."

"Yeah. I'm sure there needs to be a twelve-step group for this." He reached down and unlaced his shoes, slipping them off and stuffing his black socks into them. He dug his toes in the sand and lay back. "But not so much anymore, huh? You and what's his name…"

"Evan."

"Yeah. Where is he again?"

"In New Orleans, covering the Mardi Gras murder."

"Right. You're with him. And I see no other connection to our group. You broke free."

"Not so free." She glanced back at the building behind them. "I'm here, aren't I?"

"The bonds of friendship aren't as sticky as the bonds of first love and true love." He folded his arms behind his head. "Those are tougher to break."

"Was it hard? Seeing her get married?"

"Nah." He sighed softly. "Don't get me wrong, I love Andie. I'll always love her, but we haven't been a real part of each other's lives in a long time. We'd grown up and moved on before she went to Europe. To be honest, before the whole thing with Joey ever happened."

"Mmm." Jen sat up, turning her head to look at him. "What about Joey?"

"No Joey." He turned his head to meet her eyes, smiling through the misting rain. "Not for a long time." Jen nodded and moved over, laying on the sand next to him. Pacey lifted his head and freed one of his arms, letting her rest her head on it as she moved closer. "Did you really fuck Oliver?"

"Yup." She tilted her head back to look at him. "Did you really fuck Danny?"

"No," he shook his head. "But I did give him the best blow job of his life."

Jen gave a little happy shriek and slapped his chest lightly. "Please tell me you're not kidding."

"I'm not kidding." Pacey shrugged, the movement bringing her closer. "It was late, we were drunk, we were alone in his apartment." He shrugged again. "I had a boycrush. Or so Audrey said."

"Yeah, Audrey wasn't the only one who noticed." Jen laughed and rose up on one elbow, looking down at him, her eyes alight with laughter. "I wish I'd been around to see experimenting Pacey."

"I still experiment." He grinned, raising his hand to brush sand from her cheek, tracing the path of a raindrop. "There's too much fun to be had not to."

"What haven't you done?"

He licked his lips, tasting the salty air coming off the water. His hand wove into her hair, wrapping around the back of her head and pulling her down to him. "You."

Jen's soft gasp was lost in the kiss, his tongue taking advantage of her parted lips to slip into her mouth. She struggled against him, pushing him away and sitting back on the sand, her hand pressed to her mouth. "What the fuck are you doing?"

Pacey fell back against the sand, shaking his head as she got to her feet. "Nothing. I'm not doing anything." He closed his eyes and sighed. "Just waiting for lightning to strike."

"Pacey?"

He looked up as the door swung shut behind him, the heavy metal blocking out the sound of the storm raging outside. He'd stayed on the beach until the drops fell too thickly to see the waves crashing against the sand. He wiped water and hair away from his face, leaning back against the door. "Don't worry. I got the hint."

Jen sighed and glanced over her shoulder toward the ballroom. "Where are you going?"

"Up to my room. So good night, Lindley." He turned and started walking, his bare feet leaving wet footprints behind on the concrete steps. "I'll see you at the post-coital breakfast."

"Pacey." She grabbed his arm, stopping him. "About what happened…"

He shrugged off her grip. "Forget it."

She grabbed his arm again, forcing him to turn and look at her. "About what happened…"

"I told you to forget it, Jen."

"I want you to fuck me." She pressed him to the wall, her small, compact body against his, her dress clinging to her curves. Her hand found his cock through the thin material of his pants, stroking it. "Right here." She slid the zipper down, her hand snaking inside. "Right now."

"Jen…" He grabbed her arms and moved her away from him. "It was a mistake. Just too much booze and too much thinking." He released her, still keeping his hands between them. "You're dating someone, remember? Living with him?"

"Why do you care?"

"Because too many of the important things in my life have been ruined by this. By sex and need and desperation." He shook his head. "Good night."

"No." She grabbed his jacket, feeling the water run out between her fingers. "You don't get to do that." She pushed him back against the wall and slid her hand back down to his open fly. Her fingers wrapped around his cock, stroking it. "You don't get to kiss me and make me feel like this and then just walk away."

"Jen…" He caught his breath as she circled the head, her fingers brushing the ridge lightly.

"Shut up, Pacey." She sank down to her knees, her dress making a soft wet sound on the ground as she licked the head of his cock then slid it in her mouth. Pacey groaned deeply, the sound reverberating in the stairwell. Her hand rested around the base, moving along the length of it in unison with her mouth.

"Jen." He reached down for her, pulling her to her feet. He tasted the musty smell of the rented tux on her lips as he kissed her, her tongue finding his this time, pushing into his mouth. His hands grabbed at her floor-length dress, pulling up the material, fighting the weight of the drenched fabric.

Jen reached behind her, sliding the zipper down. Stepping away from him, she let it fall to the floor, stepping out of it and into him. He didn't have time to groan before her mouth was on his again, his hands touching pale flesh and see-through lace.

Lifting her, he pressed her to the opposite wall of the stairwell, resting her ass against the handrail as he looked down at her. Her bustier was a shimmering, pale pink tapering down to the matching thong she wore. Her garter belt was slightly darker, holding up the silky white stockings.

He slid between her thighs, his fingers tearing at the thin material of her panties, feeling the wetness on his fingers before moving them to his cock, grabbing it lightly and pressing it against her. "Is this what you want?"

"Yes." She nodded as she pressed her mouth to the warm skin just above his collar. "Yes."

Pacey thrust forward, filling her. Her legs wrapped around his, slipping against the wet fabric. The back of her high heels dug into his ass as she thrust forward, meeting his every stroke with her own. One hand wrapped around her back as he brought the other up to tease her nipple through her lingerie. "Like that?"

"Yes." She sucked on his earlobe, her breath hot against his cold skin. "Tell me."

"About what?" He panted.

"Danny." Pacey groaned and thrust harder, pinning her against the wall with a series of quick thrusts. "You and Danny."

He buried his face against her neck, sucking at her pulse, his breath heavy and noisy in her ear. "Civilization."

"Yes," she was breathless. Hot against his cold skin, cold fabric, cold concrete.

"Late night. Cleaning. I was doing the dishes." She moaned as he slipped his fingers under her bustier, pinching her nipple lightly. "He grabs the sprayer for something and then I'm drenched. Hot fucking water and I'm pissed and so I took a swing at him. He grabbed my hand and the next thing I know I'm on my knees."

"Yes," she moaned, clutching at his shoulders as he slowed his thrusts slightly.

"I looked up at him and he was staring down at me and the next thing I knew, I had him pinned to the counter and I was sucking his cock. Hard and thick in my mouth, in my throat. I was grabbing his ass, thrusting him deeper into me." His hips sped up, rocking forward rapidly, his mouth on her skin. "His hands were in my hair, pulling it, hard and quick jerks until he cried out and came."

Jen moaned quietly, her hand going to the back of his neck and pulling him closer. His tongue moved over her flesh, tasting her, his breath hot as it moved over her. "Pacey," she panted, sweat trickling down her skin and mixing with the water that dripped from his tux. "Oh…God."

"Are you going to come for me, Jen?"

Her fingers found his hair, curling into the short strands as she moaned, her back arching, shoulders scraping against the concrete wall. His breath caught in a strangled cry as her body closed around him, the thick rush of her orgasm crashing over his cock. He continued thrusting, his eyes closed as he inhaled her, taking her in with all his senses as he pushed forward, coming deep inside her.

Jen glanced at the doorway, watching Andie and Dawson dance through the small window. "Are you going back?"

"In there?" He laughed. "Soaking wet and smelling like sex?" He shook his head. "No. I'm going back to my room." He caught her chin and lifted it, licking her lips by way of a kiss. "I'll see you at breakfast."

"I can't go back like this." She gestured to her dress, ruined from her time in the rain, a wrinkled mass pooled at her feet as she stepped into it. It clung to her as she pulled it back on, turning so his large fingers could pull up her zipper. "I need to change."

His breath was hot on the back of her neck. "You want to ride up with me?"

"Sure." She turned and let him lead her down the hallway that ran alongside the stairs to the back elevator. He pressed the button for their floor, watching her as she stared at him. "What happened after he came?"

"I gagged." Pacey laughed. "Which really ruined the mood."

"I can imagine."

"Nothing happened after that. Well, he sold his share of the restaurant with everyone else and moved. That happened."

"He didn't return the favor?"

Pacey glanced at the glowing orange buttons, changing as they ascended. "That night I think he would have. I followed him to his office and stood outside the door for an hour. He was just standing beside his desk, waiting for me to knock."

"You didn't?"

"I was frozen. Scared." He shrugged. "After an hour, he went to his desk and sat down, looked straight out at me and shut off the lamp. I turned around and ran my ass back home." The elevator dinged and stopped, the doors opening. "Our floor."

She stopped at her door, handing him the key so he could slip it into the lock for her. "You're going to go to bed?"

"Yeah." He kissed her forehead gently. "Night, Lindley."

She watched him walk down the hall before slipping into her room. "Night."

Jen stepped out of the shower and reached over to open the bathroom door, sucking in the rush of cool air. Steam spiraled through the room, slowly slipping out the door as she wrapped a towel around her hair.

She leaned in toward the mirror, surveying herself critically. Her skin was still good, still a creamy rose color, not too many wrinkles around her eyes. A laugh line or two, but those she could live with. Smiling, she stuck her tongue out at her reflection and grabbed the other towel, wrapping it around her body and heading out into the main room.

"Do you always sing in the shower?"

She jumped at the deep voice, the sound rumbling in the dark room. "Jesus Christ, Pacey."

"You didn't take your key back."

"And that made you think I wanted you to come in while I was showering and then scare the shit out of me?"

"No. It made me think I should return your key before you went back down to the wedding and ended up locked out at four in the morning."

"Thank you." She walked over and turned on the bedside lamp, sucking in another deep breath as the glow fell over his naked body. "What's this all about, Pacey?"

"Standing up, fucking in the hallway, waiting for someone to come in." He watched her eyes, her body shift, her breathing change as he felt his cock harden. "That's good sex, Jen."

"Yeah. That still doesn't explain…"

"But slow. Torturously," he sat up, his feet on either side of her as she took an involuntary step toward the bed. "Agonizingly slow, sweet, long, drawn-out sex is so much better." He stood up, his fingers playing with the knot in her towel, undoing it and letting the fabric fall to the floor. His breath was hot, stirring the tendrils that escaped from the towel wrapped turban-style on her head. "Don't you think?"

"What if I said I didn't want to have sex with you?"

The backs of his fingers brushed over her erect nipples. "I'd say you're a liar."

"You get an erection when you're looking at a girlie magazine, Pacey. Doesn't mean you want to fuck every girl in it."

"Actually, it pretty much does." He chuckled, the sound reverberating along her spine. "Just think about that nice, warm bed, Jen. Tangled up in the sheets, writhing around, our limbs entangled." His breath brushed over her fluttering eyelashes, her cheek steaming with color as he kissed her softly. "Me inside you. You above me. You under me. Licking and kissing. Sucking." She could feel his smile. "Mmm. Come on, Jen. Don't you want me to touch you?"

"You're trying to seduce me," she admonished softly, her lips parting as his tongue brushed over them lightly.

"Am I succeeding?"

She nodded, her mouth opening under his. "Yes."

Pacey growled softly and wrapped his arms around her, lifting her up to his mouth. One of her legs wrapped around both of his and they fell back onto the bed, her towel falling out of its arrangement and shrouding both of them in thin darkness. "Do you trust me, Lindley?"

She pulled back slightly, her eyes narrowing. "Trust you?"

He rolled them over, trapping her beneath him. Reaching back, he grabbed her wrist from where it rested on his shoulder and lifted it toward the headboard. She was about to speak when she felt the silk rope slip around her wrist. "Pacey?"

"Do you trust me?" He took her other wrist in hand and repeated the gesture, groaning softly as her body arched slightly, her breasts brushing his chest, her hips thrusting upward toward his cock.

"I was just wondering if you carry this stuff with you everywhere you go."

"Only to special occasions." He slid down her body, his breath a whisper over the tangle of hair at the apex of her thighs. "And this," he grabbed one of her ankles and looped the rope over it, tightening it just enough to put pressure on her skin. "Is definitely a special occasion."

"You think?" She moved slightly, feeling the silken rope pull gently at her skin. He grabbed her other ankle, raising her foot and planting a soft kiss on the arch before moving it over to the last lasso. "What's next?"

He smiled slowly, sexily as he knelt between her spread legs, his fingers glancing over the inside of her thighs. A shiver ran through her as he leaned over her body, his chest against her, his face above her. "Do you trust me?"

"That question's making me the tiniest bit nervous."

He reached above her head and then sat back slightly, stretching the thin, black cloth between both hands. He laid it gently over her eyes, guiding it behind her head as she lifted it off the pillow. "It should."

Laura: I just need to figure out what else he can tease her with. I figured mini-alcohol bottles, ice, M&Ms he's melted in his mouth and shared with her.
Laura: Or her nipples at least.
Booturtle: 'cause they melt in your mouth not in your hands.
Laura: STreaks of chocolate all over her pale skin that he would lick off with shots of liquor he'd drink off her body.

Jen moaned wordlessly, her body weak and limp from exhaustion despite the fact that her muscles were coiled and tense, straining against the ties that still held her to the bed. Pacey pulled away from her slowly, his satisfied grin painted with her orgasm. "Had enough?"

"No, God, no." She shook her head wildly, her hair clinging damply to her skin. "Fuck me. I need you to fuck me."

"I've been fucking you," he drawled slowly, his fingers raking lightly over the inside of her thigh. He smiled as her body jerked, a small tremulous orgasm spilling down the soft, pink skin.

"I want your cock." She was gasping, her body straining toward him. "I want you inside me."

"You always talk like that?" He untied one ankle, massaging the skin before setting her leg down on the bed. "Such a dirty little mouth?"

"Pacey, please. Fuck me. I want to come all around you." She was fighting the ties that held her, her body thrusting. "Please?"

He untied her other ankle and repeated the soothing gestures, smiling as she planted both of her feet on the mattress and arched her back, offering herself up to him. He reached out, trailing one finger over her clit. Jen gasped and arched higher as he traced the path of liquid with his fingertip. "You beg so sweetly."

"Please," she panted, her whole body shaking with need. "I…in my suitcase. I need…"

Pacey raised an eyebrow and moved over to the suitcase open on the small rack. He rifled through silky lingerie until he found a small burgundy bag. Unzipping it, he smiled hungrily and carried it back over to the bed with him. Pulling the slim vibrator out, he turned it on and ran it over her stomach. "Is this what you want? What you need?"

"Need you," she pleaded, her body drenched with sweat. "Please…" She fought at the restraints, the silk cord cutting into her skin. "Yes, please?"

Pacey set the vibrator aside on the bed and moved to the head of the bed, untying her wrists. She curled in on herself as he released her, shivering with reaction. He leaned over her to untie her other arm, his body warm against his. She grabbed at him instinctively until he caught her wrists, holding her hands away from him. "You're not being a very good girl, Jen. Naughty words, naughty toys." He bent down, his breath hot against her ear. "I think someone might need to be punished."

"Oh…" she groaned and arched again, wanting to feel for him, follow his voice. Pacey released her and moved back to the foot of the bed, grabbing her legs and pulling her closer to him.

"Turn over."

She did as he said, not thinking as her hips rested against the edge of the mattress, the tips of her toes touching the floor. He ran his hands over the curve of her ass, kneading the flesh as she mewled softly, her body grinding down against the mattress.

"So naughty," he whispered, slapping her softly on the firm skin. "Aren't you?"

"Yes," she nodded wildly, her hands wrapped around her head, keeping the blindfold securely in place. "Oh God, yes."

Keeping on hand on her ass, he reached into the small bag and pulled out a small tube. He caught the lid between his teeth, unscrewing it, then turned it over, squeezing the contents onto her skin.

Jen gasped at the sudden coolness, the sound melting into a moan as he began rubbing it into her skin, pushing it between the two globes of flesh.

"Does it feel good?"

"Yes," she assured him breathlessly, spreading her legs wider as his fingers slipped lower. "So good."

"How good?" He asked, setting the lubricant on the bedspread as he reached for the vibrator, pressing the tip of it to the tight muscle of her ass. "Tell me how good it feels." Jen's body tensed, her muscles growing taut as he used his free hand to guide his cock to her wet opening. "Tell me how good, Jen."

"So…" She cried out softly he thrust forward, penetrating her slowly. Her whole body shook and he felt the flood of arousal surround him, the subtle vibration sliding through her skin and stroking his cock as he slowly began thrusting, sliding through her wetness.

His hands held her ass, still massaging the skin lightly as he continued to rock his hips, rolling into her again and again. She whimpered, tears of pleasure staining the blindfold as she buried her face in the bed, her whole body overloaded with sensation.

His fingers dug into her ass as she constricted around him the smoothed out, stroking her before he raised one hand, slapping her gently, quickly. Jen jerked and groaned, the action forcing her sensitive nipples against the bedspread, the soft quilt rough against her tender skin. Pacey growled low and repeated the gesture, feeling his own muscles tighten with the threat of orgasm.

"You like my cock inside you?" The words were a thick rumble from deep inside his chest. "You like two cocks inside you, Jen? Fucking you? Is that what you'd be doing right now if you were alone? Fucking yourself with your fingers with the vibrator in your ass?"

"No," she shook her head, surprised she could form words.

"No? You just like it when you've got another cock inside you? Thrusting in and out, sliding through your come again and again until you can't take it anymore?" He bit off the last word, giving in to the rush of his climax, burying it inside her. Jen moaned around him, her muscles tightening around him until he groaned thickly and shuddered his release, collapsing around her.

Jen's body shook underneath his, the vibrator still moving inside her. He eased away then removed it, setting it aside as he helped her turn onto her back. Lying on the mattress next to her, he untied the blindfold, kissing her eyes as he uncovered them.

"You okay?"

"Other than the fact that I'm not going to be able to walk for a week, much less down to breakfast tomorrow?" She gave him a weak grin, unable to manage anything more enthusiastic. "Yeah."

He nodded and got up, moving around the bed and gathering the silk ties, piling them on the chair beside the door before starting to slip into his clothes. He pulled her key from his pocket and set it on the table. "Be careful who you give your keys to in the future."

"Right," she nodded, her eyes half closed as exhaustion threatened. "Because I'd never want that to happen again."

Pacey chuckled as he gathered his things, making sure the door closed securely behind him.

Jen groaned under her breath as the elevator jerked slightly, the soft dinging signifying that they'd reached the ground floor. She steeled herself, straightening despite the twinges of pain in her muscles.

"Jen!"

She stopped, turning her head to smile as Dawson, Andie and Oliver caught up to her. "Where'd you disappear to last night?"

She shrugged, smiling as Dawson casually slipped his arm around her shoulders. "Well, I went out to catch some fresh hair and got caught in the rainstorm. Then I went up to shower and ended up falling asleep."

"I see," Andie grinned as they neared the banquet room. "And did a call from a certain reporter down in New Orleans have anything to do with why you couldn't get out of bed?"

Jen blushed and shrugged again, not answering. Andie giggled and reached over, squeezing her hand before following Oliver into the room. Jen let Dawson go first, glancing back over her shoulder, looking for Pacey.

"Hey." His voice took her by surprise, coming from beside her as the door swung shut. She glanced over at him, her eyes caught by the presents on the table behind him. There was a large box, wrapped in delicate silver paper, the bows made of white silk rope tied in authentic sailing knots. He grinned at her expression, stepping closer to her. "You like my gift? I wrapped it myself."

"It's very nice." She managed to meet his eyes, swimming in the liquid blue. "What'd you get them?"

"What'd you get them?"

"Wineglasses and twelve bottles of champagne." She fell in step with him as they headed to the table. "Your turn."

"A subscription to Penthouse Letters and membership in the dildo of the month club."

"That's not very original, Pace. I heard that's what you got Dawson for his birthday last year."

He laughed, the sound drawing the attention of everyone gathered around the table. He patted the top of her head as they reached her seat, his other hand swatting her gently on the ass as he slid into the seat next to her, smiling as she bit back a soft cry.

"Okay," Oliver stood up and clinked his glass with his spoon. "I want to thank all of you guys for coming to our wedding. I also want to thank Dawson for being a forgiving kind of guy and not blaming me for the fact that the first real Hollywood movie he worked on tanked so badly the Army was actually looking at it for reinforcements." He ignored Dawson's look. "And I also want to thank him for having the foresight to keep my number so that when he actually needed a hit movie, he knew who to come to to get it written."

"Yeah, you're welcome." Dawson smirked.

"And thanks to Dawson as well for messing up yet another relationship with a beautiful woman and introducing me to Andie."

"Oliver, honey? I've never had a relationship with Dawson."

"Huh. See, he told me he screwed you while Pacey and Saint Joey were off on the boat of love." He grinned as both Dawson and Andie blushed, taking in Pacey's raised eyebrow. "So, you guys might want to meet up later and get your stories straight." He leaned down and gave her a quick kiss. "Now then, on to the important stuff. We want to thank you guys for coming and being part of all these festivities. Breakfast lasts until about noon, then you guys are on your own until dinner tonight. At that point, we're going to leave you all to your messy lives while we fly off to some deserted island and make mad, passionate love. Now, for all you lovely ladies who never had or," he looked directly at Jen, "turned down the opportunity to be with me in a Biblical sense, Andie has assured me she's taking notes for the tell-all Hollywood book, so don't fear too much about what you're missing."

"Oliver, honey?"

He looked down at Andie, sinking into his seat as she gestured toward it. As soon as he was seated she waved toward the buffet table. "Eat. And we'll just pretend that embarrassing moment never happened."

"You seem a little tense." Pacey's voice followed the finger he slid down her spine. "What's the matter? Did you not sleep well?"

"I tossed and turned a little," she admitted. "It was quite the exhausting evening."

"Sleeping on a hotel mattress is always a risky proposition." He planted his hand in the small of her back, the heat from his body infusing her. He bent his head slightly, dropping his voice to whisper. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"Nowhere that shows." She turned her head toward his, giving him a smile. "But I'm a little sore here and there."

"Here?" He caught her wrist, careful to shield her from the few people remaining at the tables in the room. His thumb wreaked havoc on her system as he gently rubbed it over her pulse. His other hand came up, brushing lightly over her nipple. "And there?"

"Pacey," she whispered, darting a quick look around him. "There are other people in the room."

He turned his head in time to watch the last three stragglers, all people Andie now worked with, leave the room. "No there aren't." He began unbuttoning her blouse, one hand still holding her wrist. "There's just you and me." He unhooked the front clasp of her bra and pushed the fabric away, exposing her nipple, the creamy skin surrounding it dark from his attentions the night before. "To investigate this whole here," he touched the nipple watching as it tightened. "And there."

She closed her eyes as he lowered his head, flicking his tongue over the hard skin. "Pacey…"

"Don't 'Pacey' me," he growled softly, his tongue moving up to her neck. "You were stroking my cock all through breakfast." He nipped her bottom lip and met her eyes. "So don't act surprised that we're about five seconds away from me dragging you upstairs and fucking you senseless. Again."

"I don't want to go upstairs." She grabbed his shirt with both ahnds, tugging it free of his jeans. She undid his belt and unzipped his fly, snaking her hand beneath his boxers. "I want you to fuck me senseless right here."

**

Jen sank down into the chair next to Joey's, watching as the brunette bent down and adjusted the little girl's dress, straightening the hem as best she could given the wriggling the child was doing.

"Moooooooooooooommy. I'm fine!" She pulled away from Joey and crossed her arms over her chest, her lower lip protruding in a defiant pout. "I'm fine."

Jen tried not to smile as Joey adopted nearly the same posture, although her expression was more one of cool indifference to the slightly quivering lower lip. "So I see."

The little girl's blue eyes slid to Jen. "Who're you?"

"I'm Jen. I'm a friend of your mom's from a long time ago."

"Why haven't we met?"

"I haven't seen your mom in a long time."

"I'm four."

"It's been longer than that."

"Hmm." She kept her gaze on Jen, clearly wondering if she was lying to her. "I suppose."

"Distrustful, isn't she?" Jen smiled. "She definitely takes after you."

"Don't be offended if I take that as a compliment," Joey smirked.

"But she does look an awful lot like…"

"DADDY!"

Jen's eyes moved back to the child as she ran full tilt toward the doors of the ballroom, straight into Pacey's arms. He lifted her and swung her around then pulled her tight against him in a hug.

"Pacey?" Joey asked, her smirk still firmly in place but tighter, harder. "Yeah. There's a good reason for that."

"Oh." Jen picked up her drink and took a long swallow from it, watching him over the rim of her glass. He hitched the little girl on his hip then walked over to the table, ignoring the looks he was receiving from most of the assembled guests. He hooked a chair with his foot and sat down, easily moving his daughter to his lap.

"Hey, Jo."

She nodded once in his direction and took a sip from her wine glass, immediately averting her eyes to the rest of the crowd. "Andie really did it up big."

"Too bad you missed the actual ceremony."

Jen bit her lip at the venom in the few words, sipping her drink slowly, keeping the glass in front of her face to hide her expression. "Well, we're not all swimming in dough, Pacey."

"I sent you the money for the plane tickets."

"Which I immediately put in Amy's account."

He shook his head, his mouth set in a tight line. "Jesus Christ, Jo." He refused to say more, turning his attention instead to the little girl on his lap. "Hey, pumpkin."

"Daddy!" She hugged him once more, her small arms doing their best to circle him. "We drove in the car all the way here. And there was a storm, but Mommy stopped at a hotel and we got to stay there and watch movies on the TV."

"There was a storm?"

"Don't worry, Pacey. Just a little rain. And I pulled right off the road so there'd be no chance that I might put her life at risk."

"How'd your car hold up?"

"It's fine." Joey turned toward Jen as if she'd just realized she was still there. Her smile, for the first time since Pacey'd walked in the room, was genuine. "Tell me what you've been up to."

"Nothing much. Working on a magazine. Lifestyle stuff. Nothing too glamorous, but it pays the bills." She glanced at Pacey then back at Joey. "I'm engaged. Ethan. He's a reporter. Investigative and other dangerous sorts of journalism."

"You always did like dangerous men." Joey smirked. "Except, of course, for Dawson."

"I don't know. Dating Dawson had its own inherent sense of danger."

"Ah, the crazy in love best friend thing." Joey nodded. "Yeah, I got over that whole thing years ago."

"Does he know about…" Jen gestured toward the little girl on Pacey's lap.

"Nope. This is our big coming out party." Joey sneered at Pacey. "Pacey was too busy to pick Amy up for his week with her."

"I was in the wedding," he reminded her in a low voice.

"Oh yes. Well, we couldn't have you turning Oliver down. After all, you are the best of friends, aren't you?"

"You know what?" Pacey stood up, lifting Amy so that she sat on one of his shoulders. "I'm not going to do this with you. Not here, not now and certainly not in front of Amy. Spew your venom wherever you like tonight, Jo, so long as it's not in my immediate vicinity." He lowered Amy to Joey's height. "Give Momma a kiss."

"Kiss!" Amy left a wet print on Joey's cheek, giggling as Pacey lifted her again and headed toward the dance floor.

Jen sat there for a long moment before speaking, her eyes watching Joey's. They were wet with tears, bright with anger. "You want to talk about it?"

"No." She blew out a long breath and wiped her eyes, glancing away from Jen as she did so. Pacey was on the dance floor, surrounded by friends. "Yeah. Is there a bottle somewhere around here?"

"I'm sure we can find one."

"Maybe we can just go to your room and raid the minibar?"

A quick flash of heat shot through Jen and she shook her head. "The minibar here sucks. Let's just steal something big enough to get us through this from Andie and Drue's bar and go outside."

"Sounds good to me." Joey got up and followed Jen to the bar, shrugging when the blonde asked her what she wanted to drink. Grabbing a bottle of tequila, Jen led the way out to the beach, slipping her shoes off before stepping into the sand. Joey did the same, wrapping her arms around her bare shoulders as the breeze off the water hit them both.

Jen grabbed one of the hotel's lounge chairs and turned it sideways, sinking down just off the middle. Joey did the same on the opposite side of the middle cushion, waiting until Jen took the first hit off the bottle to hold out her hand. "So," Jen began quietly. "You had a baby with Pacey."

"No. Let's do away with that misconception, no pun intended, right away. Pacey got me pregnant, but that was the end of it."

"Really." Jen didn't look at Joey, but the disbelief was plain in her voice. "Huh."

"I didn't tell him. I wasn't even sure I was pregnant at first. I mean, I've always had wacky periods, so not having one didn't even faze me. And I didn't even think about it being a possibility because we'd used protection."

"Nothing's completely safe."

"Yeah, thanks for the PSA."

"Sorry."

"Anyway, by the time I found out I was pregnant, it was too late to do anything about it." Joey shrugged and took another hit from the bottle. "Not that I would have, you know? But I didn't even have the fucking option."

"And Pacey's to blame for that?"

"No," Joey snapped. "Pacey's to blame for coming back to town when I was about eight months along, stopping by unannounced and then deciding that he had to marry me. Which I wanted about as much as I wanted someone to slap me upside the head repeatedly."

"So you said no."

"I said no. And Pacey didn't like that. So we talked and argued. And we got married."

"Oh."

"Convenience only, I assure you. He lived somewhere else and neither of us had any plans to move. He sends money and he sees Amy as often as he can."

"That must be hard."

"The divorce proceedings started the day after Amy was born, since she had her father's name."

"Oh."

"Oh, don't worry," Joey smirked. "That was all my idea. I told Pacey if he wasn't going to live with me and be an actual husband to me, I didn't want anything tying him to me."

"other than Amy."

Joey shrugged. "He loves her."

The implied "And he doesn't love me" hung in the air between them. Jen stole the bottle back and took a long drink before speaking. "Why the animosity?"

"He keeps sending me money that I don't need and gets mad when I don't use it. He hates that I chose to keep Amy a secret from everyone, like I'm ashamed of her, and he's furious that I chose Andie's wedding to come clean."

"Why don't you use it?"

"I don't want him to have a hold over me."

"You borrowed the money from Dawson to go to school."

"That was different."

"Because it was Dawson?"

"Because I didn't care about Dawson. Not…not like Pacey." Joey shrugged. "And I can make my own way in the world. I put the money away for Amy, which is who it belongs to and, when the time comes, she'll be able to go and do whatever she wants."

"Unlike you?"

"Yeah." Joey's gaze was defiant.

"And the other part?"

"I'm not ashamed of Amy. She's a great kid. I just felt…stupid, I guess. For getting pregnant, for being an unwed mother, just like my sister, for all those things. And maybe…" she shrugged.

"Maybe you wanted to hurt Pacey?"

"Maybe." Joey took the bottle back and took a drink. "Anyway. He and I get along when it's about Amy. But that's about it."

"Have you guys sat down and talked?"

"We talk all the time. Neither one of us listens. He's got his life, I've got mine. And, after living my life chasing things that weren't really what I wanted, I wasn't about to stay tied to a man that didn't love me."

"Pacey's always loved you."

"Yeah? Well, he may love me, but I can assure you that he doesn't like me very much." Joey took another drink and handed Jen the bottle. "Are you sleeping with him?"

"I'm engaged."

"Yeah." Joey nodded. "I'll take that as a yes."

"I'm not sleeping with Pacey."

"It's okay. I don't have any claim to him." She lifted her feet, letting sand slip between her bare toes. "Besides, maybe he just needs to get all the Capeside girls out of his system. After all, you guys never actually did the deed back when we were all friends, right?"

"Why'd you pick now? Why Andie's wedding?"

"One, the focus wouldn't be all on us. Two, everyone would be together. Three, I knew it would upset Pacey enough that he'd find a way to distract himself."

"Is that a dig at me?"

"Of course not. You just said you weren't sleeping together." Joey smirked. "Whether he believes it or not, none of this is about hurting him."

"I don't really believe you, you know."

"About hurting him? Or about everything?"

"Mostly hurting him." Jen stood up, handing the bottle back to Joey. "I think you're getting off on seeing him go through this. I think you're enjoying the fact that you're out here and he's in there and, knowing Pacey, he's taking all the blame and all the flak for the fact that you've been a selfish bitch about keeping your child from him and his friends. It must have delighted you to know that whenever Amy was around he couldn't be with his family or anyone else who might know you. You must have just loved controlling him."

"Is that what you think?"

Jen looked toward the building where Dawson was standing in the doorway watching them. "I think you learned from the best."

Roly: I kind of have issues with the idea of Dawson adopting Amy.
Roly: Big surprise, I know.
Laura: Heh.
Roly: It's hard to swallow, seeing how she's already a few years old and knows Pacey and calls him Daddy.
Laura: But, knowing Dawson...
Laura: I think Joey's just pissed and will relent.
Laura: In, you know, the future in my head.
Roly: I just don't think Pacey would relinquish his rights to her.
Roly: It's not Dawson or Joey's behavior I don't buy. It's Pacey's.
Laurat: Sadly, courtwise, Pacey wouldn't have much luck. He'd get visitation, but if Joey's pushed it, he wouldn't have much leg to stand on.
Roly: It's perfect for Dawson and Joey, actually.
Laura: A single guy, no established residence for a long period of time against a couple with a house wher ethe girl has lived most of her life? He'd lose, hands down.
Roly: But a court couldn't make him give her up for adoption.
Laura: True.
Roly: I think I'd just have it so he only gets to see her, like a month or two weeks out of the year.
Laura: It's going to come up later (after the sexin') though. Jen's going to ask him if he's really going to give up without a fight.
Roly: He could fight with that. Ooh! He and Jen could get together and get a permanent residence and Joey and Dawson'd be forced to share custody! I'd like that.
Roly: Obviously, you're fic wouldn't go that far ahead, but that's how I'll finish it in my mind.
Roly: *your
Laura: She's going to ask him and he's going to be all "I hadn't really planned on it, no." and Jen would be all "You know what would really work to your advantage would be if you were seeing someone, seriously, I mean, and could provide Amy with a home just as stable as one Joey and Dawson could."
Laura: And Pacey'd be all "Knowing Joey and DAwson,I could date Sylvia Plath and have a more stable relationship."
Roly: Hee!
Laura: And Jen would be all "Well, I'm not quite that bad..." And he'd be "What exactly are you offering here, Lindley?" And she'd be all "The reason I came here to talk to you today...the reason...fuck. That weekend was the most explosive, crazy, amazing weekend I've ever had in my life. I didn't want to be with you and I sure as hell didn't want to feel anything you made me feel. But you did. And I did. And I found out that I liked it." And Pacey'd be "That still doesn't answer my question." And Jen would be "You're making this difficult on purpose, aren't you?"
Roly: He so is.
Laura: Pacey: "Yeah, pretty much." Jen: "You want me to spell it out?" Pacey: "Yeah," grinning, "Pretty much." Jen: "I'd like this to happen on a regular basis." Pacey: "You want me to be annoying?" Jen: "Since it's part of the package, yeah. But mostly I was thinking we could do the other stuff too." Pacey: "I come with a lot of baggage. Some, like Amy, that isn't ever going to go away." Jen: "I can live with that." Pacey: "You want my body." Jen: "Amongst other things." Pacey: "I can live iwth that."
Roly: Aw.
Roly: I :luv it.

5/15/03