NOTES: Lizzy's POV— slightly longer chapter, pretty fun 😄 More Joey interactions! :) He's a sweet character to write. I think the next one will be focused a bit more on The emails, and from Darcy's POV.

Please leave a comment if you like something! They always make my day 💘~Vinny

"Oh! Finally!"

"What is it?" Joey asked, leaning over curiously as Lizzy pulled out her phone.

"An email I was waiting for," she explained. "Can't believe I didn't check my phone before."

"Oh, cool. Who's it from?"

"The best man at my sister's upcoming wedding," Lizzy grinned. "I've never met the guy before, but hey— we're apparently planning a party together!"

"Wait— which sister?" Joey's eyes got big. "Don't tell me Lydia's married already."

She laughed. "No, no. It's Jane. Met some guy at her new job in New York. Liked him enough to get hitched, apparently! Must be nice."

"You don't…" He coughed lightly— that was probably why his face went red. "You don't have someone.. like that, uh, now, do you?"

Almost immediately, Lizzy's smile dimmed a shade or two. "I…," she stopped, and swallowed. "No. I don't have anyone like that.. now."

Joey nodded, and licked his lips. "Uhm, yeah. I- I'm single too. Sucks, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," she sighed. Reluctantly, she put down her coffee cup. "Well, I guess I better get to work. See ya around, Joey."

"See ya," he said, with an odd half-smile. His hazel eyes watched her leave. He took another sip of coffee, and thought about how it had never tasted so good before.

Lizzy on the other hand, was hard at work already. Truth be told, she had forgotten about the Best Man's email— she had other messages to worry about. Namely, the law firm's regular attorneys and clients. Samantha had left her a note with all the big names in the local area, and told her to flag any emails with them in it and update next month's schedule. For the next four hours, Lizzy had her hands quite full. Then just before lunchtime, she remembered there was one more email she had to look at.

Excitedly, she clicked into her personal inbox (LizardQueen1 mail. org), and found the Best Man's response.

'Dear "Maid of Honor,"

Good morning. Or, I suppose it is afternoon for you—

(How the hell did he know she was reading it late? Freaky.)

— Regardless, I hope this message finds you in good health. I was not aware of any responsibilities on my part in relation to Charles Bingley's wedding. I am also very busy, and run my own company; it would be best if you or another of the sisters handles the party-planning (I'm sure you would enjoy it more than I).

Best wishes with the wedding.'

Lizzy frowned down at her screen. Was he… insinuating that his time was more important than hers?! Well, he might be true in that account, she had no idea— BUT NEITHER DID HE. She could be a member of Congress for all he knew!

Ugh. Obviously Jane had gotten her wires crossed about this guy; Lizzy didn't think he suited her at all.

Still, she sighed, cracking her knuckles, They had to work together on this at least. Lizzy grinned to herself. And she sure as hell wasn't letting him get off easy.

Her response (only slightly passive-aggressive) was as follows.

'Dear so-called "Best Man,"

It is afternoon for me. I am indeed in good health. I was not, however, aware that the Best Man had any responsibilities OTHER than the bachelor party and the best man speech. The ones for the Maid of Honor are similar. We both have our own lives and jobs; I do not dispute this. But it is our duty to plan Jane and Bingley's party. I need your input for that, if you wouldn't mind :)

We were thinking about holding it at the jazz-themed restaurant "Rosie's" in the Hertfordshire area. What are your thoughts? Have you planned out a guest list?

If so, I would much appreciate it if you sent it. But I wouldn't want to take time away from your (I am sure) very busy work life. So— please. Take your time.

MOST Sincerely,

Maid of Honor'

Okay. That was a little more than a LITTLE passive-aggressive. But hey— sue her. Lizzy was tired and frustrated at this guy. What harm could one email do?

She hit send.

To her surprise, within five minutes, the reply came."Busy," my ass, Lizzy thought to herself.

The email read (she pictured him talking in a very pretentious voice, possibly with judgemental sniffs punctuating every other word) as is follows.

Maid of Honor,

I must assure you, I have no preferences whatsoever on the party. I am very occupied with my work, and have no love for planning these kinds of things. You have my permission to hold the party wherever you like, and invite whomever you choose.

Sincerely,

Best Man

PS. A jazz-themed restaurant seems a little mundane for the wedding though. Have you tried booking the banquet hall on fourth street?'

Oh. Oh, this bastard.

Before Lizzy was able to slam her fingers furiously against the keyboard, slamming out a email so powerful that this bitch-boy's entire bloodline would suffer from in generations to come, she was interrupted by a friendly:

"Hi, Lizzy! Uh.. are you.. uhm, okay?"

She looked up into Joey's concerned face. She smiled, though it took some effort.

"...yeah," Lizzy said, stretching her arms above her head. "Just…" She jabbed a finger at the screen. "Whoever the Best Man is— he's an ASS. Like, UGH! Makes me so mad."

"I can tell," Joey chuckled. He raised his eyebrows above the glasses frame, and his smile twitched to life. "Wanna.. tell me about it? Over.. lunch, maybe?"

"Sure, why not," she shrugged easily. "It'll be nice to catch up. Just let me grab my purse and we can hit the deli or something."

As she rustled around her desk, searching for her purse (seemingly lost among the unfiled files), Samantha came from around the corner, with Blodnie at her side.

"Hey, Lizzy, Phillips!" She said, smilingly. "Y'all off to lunch?"

"Yeah," Joey answered for them. He had a goofy smile firmly in place, and his eyes kept wandering back to Lizzy. "We're going to go to.. uh, the deli. Right?"

"Yup!" Lizzy answered poking her head above the desk for a second.

She ducked back down before she saw Blondie and his fiancé share a look.

"Um..," Samantha said, "Do you two.. know each other?"

"Oh yeah! I used to babysit Joey here, way back in the day!" Lizzy laughed, popping up to sling her arm over his shoulders. She looked up at him, her eyebrows crinkled in a grin. "You're a lot taller than you were back then. Did you hit a growth spurt or just steroids?"

"No, I'm just…" Joey swallowed, and his hazel eyes darted around. He couldn't keep the smile off his face. "Well, I'm just mature for my age, I guess."

"Uh huh," Blondie chimed in. His arms were crossed. Lizzy couldn't understand why he looked like a caricature of a stormcloud. "Well, sport, maybe you could help Lizzy out with her files here? I know you have a long lunch break, and she's still settling in."

"Oh. Of course." Joey ducked his head, and his shoulders hunched, and he suddenly looked a lot more like the teenager he was as he sidestepped the adults.

"I'll, uh, catch up with you later then," he said to Lizzy.

"Sure thing!" She smiled, though she felt a bit confused why Blondie had said that. "Later."

Awkwardly, Lizzy stepped from foot to foot for a moment. Something about the atmosphere in the room had changed, but.. she couldn't put her finger on it.

After a second, she said her goodbyes, and set off to the deli alone.

And after Blondie had pulled another wild goose chase from his ass to occupy Joey Phillips, an interesting conversation took place in the lobby.

"So…"

"So…?"

"Joey has a crush on her."

"Yeah, I noticed." There was a light dainty sigh. "Do you think she knows?"

"Are you kidding?" A man snorted. "She's dense as a rock when it comes to flirting. Not sure how she and Darcy managed it."

"Speaking of him," the higher voice asked, hesitantly, "Do you think.. we should do something.. about Lizzy and Joey?"

The sound of a shrug, fabric crinkling under the shoulder blades. "Maybe? I mean, I'm pretty sure she doesn't think of Joey that way— plus he's 17. He's not really in her ball park."

"She's 23," the man's finacé reasoned, "That's only a 6 year age difference. It was the same for her and Darcy."

"There's a big difference between 23 and 29, versus 23 and 17. And beyond that, I'd guess she sees him as a little brother— at most."

"Hmm. Probably."

"Soo…?"

"So?"

"Should we do something?"

"Nah. It'll all sort itself out. She's still recovering from the breakup."

There was a brief pause. Then a smothered, volcanic laugh broke the silence. "Wow. I guess…" There was a giggle. "Imagine Darcy's face if he saw them together."

This earned a laugh from her fiancé. "God. You're right. He'd go bonkers."

Here there was another, longer pause.

"So if things get worse, we're telling him?"

"Oh hell yeah, we're telling him."