A/N: Good news! Poe finally admits his feelings! Too bad it's not to Rey...

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One last black-tie gala, this one for the local symphony, before Organa Enterprises became his officially. One last event where he had to pretend his marriage was amazing and wonderful and happy. Or it should have been the last one. Just yesterday, he had been informed that the PR side of OE had decided to have a formal party the night before the transfer, to celebrate Poe becoming the new permanent head of OE, and to celebrate his and Rey's first anniversary. The thought made him cringe.

Rey had bowed out of tonight's event. She told him to tell the others she wasn't feeling well. As had been the case for the last several weeks, ever since his father had caught them making out in his bed, she had been subdued and withdrawn. Gone were her huge smiles, her bright eyes, her laughter. No more sarcastic comments that complimented his own. No more gentle shoves against his shoulder when he said something he shouldn't have.

They rarely ate together anymore, and when they did there was no conversation and she never made eye contact. She didn't seem mad at him or uncomfortable around him; she just seemed sad.

He wanted to push and ask her why, but in his heart he knew. She was mourning their friendship, the friendship he had destroyed by giving in to his repressed sexual urges. He hadn't been able to stop. When he woke that morning with her warm body pressed against his, her arm wrapped around his bare torso, her breath moist on his chest… it was like something from his fantasies. Rey, in his bed, finally. He could have sworn the look she gave him had been full of desire, need, and she had very much given him permission to kiss her, to touch her. He had been in heaven for those few minutes, until his father had burst the bubble.

She might have let him make love to her. She might have even enjoyed it. But then what? He could already envision her look of regret as she told him she didn't want things to continue. That it had been a mistake. That she didn't love him that way. Keeping his distance, following her lead, was the only way he felt they could salvage their friendship. Maybe when this charade was over, they could go back to the way things had been. If they had had sex, he knew that would be an impossibility.

So, he attended this last soiree by himself, letting people know that Rey had had a bout of food poisoning, but was fine now, just not feeling up to socializing, yet. Some of the women raised their eyebrows at him in an 'oh really?' kind of way, and he quickly realized they suspected that 'food poisoning' meant 'morning sickness.' He should have said she had a cold. Too late now.

He became bored quickly, uninterested in any of the conversation and missing more than he wanted to admit his partner in crime. Having her on his arm, dressed in something fabulous, her smile brighter than anything else in the room, always gave him confidence. With a heavy heart, he knew he was just going to have to get used to going it alone.

Eventually, he wandered outside to the long front porch of the old music hall the party was being held in. It was late spring, his favorite time of the year. Almost summer warm, but with everything green and blooming. The crickets were singing their little hearts out and the smells of the growing things filled the night air. He closed his eyes and breathed deep.

"I'm surprised to see your arm ornament missing this evening," said a voice behind him.

He groaned internally, but glanced over his shoulder anyway, acknowledging Zorii as she came up next to him. He felt more than a little anger at her sarcastic comment. Rey was so much more than arm candy. "She's not feeling well," he mumbled. "I wanted to stay with her, but she wouldn't let me." He glanced up at the stars. "I'm thinking of heading out soon. It's just not fun without her." Though the first part of his statement was a lie, the last part was not.

"You don't have to go so soon," Zorii said softly, moving closer to him, running her hand along the sleeve of his jacket. "I hope things are okay with you two," she continued with feigned concern. "I've heard rumors."

Poe finally looked at her, his brows furrowed. "Rumors?" Despite their tension at home, he and Rey had made no missteps while out and about; they had become very good actors. Hell, they had their own fathers fooled! There should be no rumors.

Zorii shrugged. "Just whispers." She gave him a side-long look. "About Ben making plans."

"Plans?"

"Plans that include Rey," Zorii tilted her head at him. "Apparently, he met her for lunch last week. They talked for a long while, heads together, as if conspiring."

Poe stared at her for a moment. A part of him started feeling anxious. Was Rey already making plans for her future, for when she wasn't his wife anymore? Was she going to go back to Ben?

His brain caught up and he took a deep breath. It didn't matter if she was going back to Ben after this was over, he thought. She wouldn't do anything to threaten his chance to get control of CE permanently. He trusted her to follow through with their plan. His heart ached with the thought that she might return to Ben Solo, but he would not interfere.

He gave Zorii a small smile. "Rey and Ben are still close friends, Zorii," he said, his voice soft but firm. "But that's all they are."

She pursed her lips and shrugged. "Well, if you trust her…"

"I do."

She looked startled by his resolve, then a bit disappointed. She hadn't moved away from him, however, and in fact, she had begun leaning into him. He felt the softness of her breast pressing against his arm. She was trying to seduce him, he realized. She was trying to get him to feel uncertain about Rey and then she would step in to comfort him.

"Zorii?" he asked suddenly. Curiosity competed with antipathy in his brain. "Can I try something?"

She smiled at him. "Will I like it?"

He shrugged softly. "Maybe."

She pushed into him more and he accepted the opening, leaning down to kiss her. She parted her lips immediately, moaning softly as her tongue touched his. She had been a good lover, he recalled. She was experienced and knew how to please a man, and get her own pleasure in return. But she had never been what he would call mind-blowing. He had yet to find a woman that could blow his mind.

Except that Rey had. With just a kiss.

He pulled back, and when Zorii tried to follow he stepped away completely.

He nodded and swallowed harshly. "I'm sorry, Zorii, but that just proved something I've been suspecting for a while."

Her expression going from surprised to aloof, Zorii asked, "What?"

"You do not hold a candle to my wife," he stated. "No woman does or ever will."

Zorii's expression turned irate.

"I love Rey, Zorii. With everything in me. Whatever happens in the next few weeks, that will never change." His heart squeezed at the thought of what he knew was going to happen in five weeks, but he was telling Zorii the complete truth. He took a deep breath. "Have a good night," he told her, then headed back into the building to say his farewells to the host.

An hour later, he found himself driving aimlessly through Aldera. He thought briefly about driving up to the cabin, but something else pulled at him. He headed for the southeast side of town, near the neighborhood he had grown up in. He turned down a gravel road, passed over the old wooden bridge that crossed Jakku Creek, then pulled over and parked. Grabbing a flashlight from his glove compartment, he stepped out and started hiking across the meadow. Toward the huge old cottonwood tree that sat by itself next to the creek.

He sat in the grass underneath, turning off the flashlight and letting the sounds of the night fill his senses. It had been too long since he had come here. He could still hear his mother's voice as she sang to them while they played under this tree. His memory of her voice changed, and it was Rey singing now. Lord, how long had it been since he had heard her sing? Really sing. Not just along with songs from the radio. She had a beautiful voice, his Rey. He used to hear it all the time. But not since… not since High School, he thought. That was probably the last time they had been under this tree together, too.

Adulthood sucked, he thought wryly.

He finally headed home, surprised at how late it was. It was almost one in the morning when he walked into the condo. The kitchen light had been left on, and he rounded the corner heading for his bedroom. He was pulling off his jacket and the already undone tie when he stopped short. Rey was standing in the doorway to her room, looking lost and more than a little scared. His strong, confident Rey. He hated seeing her like this.

"What's wrong?" he demanded. Surely something horrible had happened.

She seemed to collect herself. "Nothing," she told him. "That one ran long, huh?"

It took a moment for his brain to catch up. "Oh, I left the party before ten."

"Oh," she said. She blinked rapidly. "Alone?" she asked, her voice cracking.

Suddenly, he realized what she was thinking. What was making her look so devastated. "Of course, alone," he whispered. "Why would you think otherwise?"

She shrugged and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. Aurra Sing called, supposedly checking up on me."

Poe tensed. Aurra was the wife of Mace Windu, a man three decades her senior and an OE board member. She was also friends with Zorii.

"She 'casually' let me know that she had spotted you and Zorii outside together and then you both left the party shortly afterwards." She rolled her eyes. "She was just trying to get to me, wasn't she?" Her voice was more confident now, as if she was thinking things through and realizing that she didn't believe what was being insinuated.

Poe nodded, feeling relief flow through him. "Funny thing, Zorii was telling me all about you and Ben having lunch the other day."

Rey's mouth dropped open. "It was just lunch!"

Poe laughed. "I know!"

Rey smiled back. "And I know you didn't leave with Zorii." She shook her head. "They're trying to break us up before we do it ourselves, aren't they?"

Poe snorted. "We're almost there," he said softly. "Five more weeks."

"Five more weeks," Rey whispered, her face serious once more. "Goodnight, Poe." She started to step back into her room.

"Rey?" he said suddenly.

She stopped and looked at him questioningly.

"I did kiss Zorii tonight," he told her honestly. "I wanted to know what it was like. To kiss her again after kissing you."

Her eyes widened.

"She doesn't even come close to you," he said, his voice rough. "Goodnight." Teeth clenched, he headed for his room, closing the door firmly behind him.

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