center
font size="6"New Life/font/br
font size="5"Part 6~Cowboy Take Me Away/font
/center
phr
pAuthor's Note: Thanks to Bijal and Mel for reading over this for me. I appreciate it guys!!!!!!!!!
phr
center/i
I said I wanna touch the earth/br
I wanna break it with my hands/br
I wanna grow something wild and unruly/br
/br
I wanna sleep on the hard ground/br
In the comfort of your arms/br
On a pillow of bluebonnets/br
In a blanket made of stars/br
/br
Oh it sounds good to me I said/br
/br
Cowboy take me away/br
Fly this girl as high as you can/br
Into the wild blue/br
Set me free oh I pray/br
Closer to heaven above and closer to you/br
closer to you/br
/br
I wanna walk not run/br
I wanna skin and not fall/br
I wanna look at the horizon/br
And not see a building standing tall/br
/br
I wanna be the only one/br
For miles and miles/br
Except maybe for you/br
And your simple smile/br
/br
Oh it sounds good to me/br
Yeah it sounds good to me/br
/br
Oh it sounds good to me I said/br
/br
Cowboy take me away/br
Fly this girl as high as you can/br
Into the wild blue/br
Set me free oh I pray/br
Closer to heaven above and closer to you/br
closer to you/br
/br
I said I wanna touch the earth/br
I wanna break it in my hands/br
I wanna grow something/br
wild and unruly/br
Oh it sounds so good to me/br
/br
Cowboy take me away/br
Fly this girl as high as you can/br
Into the wild blue/br
Set me free oh I pray/br
Closer to heaven above and closer to you/br
closer to you/br
~Cowboy Take Me Away/br
~Dixie Chicks
/center/i
phr
pJoey awoke the next morning to the sound of the doorbell ringing. She threw
the covers off her body, looking at the clock. She rubbed her eyes then walked
down the stairs. She saw through the glass door that it was Pacey, Sam, and Noah.
She pulled the scrunchi out of her hair, the opened the door.

pNoah hugged his mother's legs then ran for the stairs. Pacey was swinging
Sam her hands, causing the child to shriek with laughter. Pacey looked up at Joey
and for the first time noticed what she was wearing. The gray tank top she was
wearing clung to her upper body like a glove to a hand. The flannel boxers she
was wearing exposed her long tan legs.

p"You're early."

p"No...you just slept in."

p"And I would have slept longer."

pPacey smiled. Sam stared up at Joey and Pacey, noticing the strange look that
Joey was giving her father.

p"Hey Miss Joey."

p"And hello Miss Sam."

p"Me and Noah woke up Daddy this morning."

pJoey smiled, "And how did you do that?"

pPacey looks down at his child and replies, "By playing trampoline with my
stomach."

p"Ouch."

p"No kidding ouch. So, we decided to come wake you up as well, in a less
painful way of course."

p"Miss Joey, are you going to get dressed and come swimming with us?"

p"Yeah. Give me a few minutes. Make yourselves at home."

pPacey plopped on her couch. "Don't mind if I do." Joey walked up the stairs.
Sam climbed onto her father's lap, looking down at his smiling face. She smiled.

p"Are you happy, Daddy?"

p"Yeah, baby."

p"Miss Joey's happy too."

p"How do you know?"

p"She told me so."

p"When?"

p"Last night when we were in the car."

p"Oh she did, did she?"

p"Yep. And...she's been looking at you funny?"

p"Funny? How funny?"

pSam just smiled down at her father. She giggled as he started tickling her.
Noah ran down the stairs. He saw Pacey tickling her and ran and jumped on
Pacey's back. Pacey brought him around in front, and tickled him with the other
hand.

pJoey came down the stairs, hearing the children's shrieks of laughter. She
walked to stand behind the couch and leaned against it with her hands.

p"Children..."

pPacey looked up, and stopped tickling the two kids. Joey's red bikini top
revealed more skin than it covered. Her hair was piled on top of her head with a
clip, her waist covered with a red wrap with a gold etched pattern.

pJoey noticed Pacey's expression and tried to conceal her blush. It had the right
effect, making him speechless, a rarity in Pacey Witter. The two children perched
on their knees and looked at Pacey and Joey. They looked at one another, then
back to their parents.

p"Can we go swimming now?" Noah asked impatiently.

pJoey tore her eyes away from Pacey's and looked down at her child. She
smiled. "Yeah."

p"Pacey...are you going to teach me how to swim today?"

pPacey looked down at Noah, "Yeah."

p"Wait, you're going to teach my son how to swim?"

p"You think I can't do it?"

p"Should I be afraid?"

p"No. I taught Sam to swim in one day."

p"Well aren't you just father of the year?"

p"Are you trying to tick me off?"

p"Yeah. Is it working?"

p"Yes."

p"Good. Okay, Noah and Sam, you guys head to the backyard, but don't get in
the pool. Do you hear me?"

p"Yes ma'am."

pJoey walked into the kitchen after them, Pacey falling behind to watch Joey
walk. He watched how her whole body moved as she walked, every fluid
movement causing an ache in his body. He tried to control his hormones,
reminding himself that he was no longer a hormonal seventeen year old. He was a
grown man that should be able to keep his body in check at the sight of a goddess
in human form.

pJoey turned into the laundry room off the side of the kitchen. She took four
towels and her bag of sun lotion outside with her. Pacey watched as Noah sat on
the steps of the pool and talked with Sam.

p"I have a little rule," he said, "no dumping water on me. Got it?"

p"Yes, Daddy."

p"What about on Mommy?"

p"Not on me either, Noah."

p"But Mommy..."

p"No buts...if I want to get wet, I'll get in the pool."

p"Okay. Hey, Pacey. Come teach me how to swim, please."

pPacey turned to look at Joey, who was spreading out her towel in her chair.
She removed the wrap from around her waist, Pacey tried in vain to keep his body
from responding. Joey sat in the chair, stretching out her long legs.

p"Are you going to lay there while I teach your son how to swim?"

p"Planned on it."

p"Lazy."

p"You betcha."

pPacey went to the other side of the pool. He got a good distance away from
the edge, then ran and jumped in, pulling one leg up to his chest and leaning back
towards Joey. The impact sent water over the side of the pool and all over Joey.

pWhen Pacey came up, he saw the drenched Joey Potter standing next to her
chair, hands on hips, and a scowl on her face.

p"Grow up, Pacey."

p"I did."

p"Then act your age."

p"You gonna make me, Potter?"

pJoey dropped the sun glasses in her hand and dove into the pool. Joey came
up and pushed Pacey's head under. Not willing to let her win, he reached for her
legs and pulled them towards him, bring her under water with him. Sam and Noah
looked at each other, both laughing.

p"I think my dad likes your mom."

p"I think my mom likes your dad."

pPacey and Joey came back up, both laughing and taking deep breaths of air.
Joey splashed water at him.

p"I'm in the pool. Happy now?"

p"Delighted. Now you can help me teach iyour/i son how to swim."

pJoey swam over to the two children. She sat on the steps with them, Sam
climbed into her lap.

p"Samantha, sweetie, Joey can't help me with you sitting on her."

p"I know. She's sitting with me," Sam said with a smile.

p"Okay, Noah, looks like your mom is going to do inothing/i in the way of
helping me. So it looks like it's going to take a man to teach you how to swim."

p"Okay!"

pPacey lifted Noah with one hand, holding him with one hand under his
stomach, the other holding one of his arms. Pacey set Noah on the side of the
pool, and began going over technique with him. Joey watched as every move of
Pacey's arms sent his muscles rippling. His stomach was tight, everything well
toned.

p"Miss Joey?"

p"Yeah, sweetie?"

p"Do you have any floats?"

p"Yeah. I have a few. But they aren't blown up. We could probably talk your
dad into it since he's full of hot air anyway."

p"I heard that Josephine," Pacey said, splashing water in her direction.

p"Come on, well get them."

pJoey and Sam climbed out of the pool, walking the cobblestone path to a small
shed next to her house. Joey opened the door and pulled the chain on the light.
She opened a cupboard and pulled out two deflated floats. Joey turned the light
off, and she and Sam left the shed.

pJoey looked at the pool and saw Noah swimming towards Pacey. She stood
and watched as Pacey coaxed him, and Noah never gave up until he finally
grabbed hold of Pacey's arm. Pacey picked him up, smiling at the little boy.

p"You did it little man!"

p"YAY! Can I do it again?"

p"Yeah. Swim back to the wall."

pNoah did just that, kicking his feet and moving his tiny arms and made it back
to the wall. He smiled up at his mother who was looking down at him. She then
looked at Pacey, pride beaming off his face.

p"Looks like I didn't give you enough credit Mr. Witter."

p"Looks like, Ms. Potter."

pJoey tossed a large silver float out to Pacey, "Put all that hot air to good use."

pPacey opened the cord and began blowing into it. The float began to fill with
air, as Joey began blowing up the other one. Joey stopped after a while, having
lost the feeling in her lips. Pacey put the plug into the float and pushed it over to
the side of the pool.

pHe smiled at Joey, "Want some help with that?"

p"Yeah. I've lost all feeling in my lips and my head hurts."

p"If I had a head like that, it would hurt too."

pJoey kicked water at him, "Jerk."

p"Fine, then you blow it up."

p"Okay, not a jerk, a mild...annoyance."

p"Really?"

p"Okay, a pretty decent guy."

p"Decent? I'm only decent?"

p"A great friend, and don't push it. I have several adjectives I could call you
that aren't anywhere near that nice."

p"Okay, Jo," takes the float from her and begins blowing air into it.

pThe cordless phone begins ringing and Joey rises from where she's sitting on
the side of the pool. Pacey watches her as she walks away from him, loving the
designer of that bathing suit.

p"Hello?"

p"Hey Jo."

p"Hey Jen!"

p"You are chipper. What's the occasion?"

p"No occasion."

p"Oh yeah? Just happy?"

p"Yeah."

p"HA! LOOK AT THAT JOSEPHINE POTTER!" Pacey screamed at her as he
pushed the float towards Noah and Sam.

pJoey scowled at him, "Who was that?" Jen asked, already knowing the answer.

p"Pacey's being a smart ass."

p"Isn't he always," she asked laughing.

pJoey sat on her chair, reclining back. Pacey climbed out of the pool and took
the phone from her.

p"Hello?" Pacey said.

p"Excuse you!"

p"Hush, Jo."

p"Hey Pacey!"

p"JENNY! How the hell are you doing?"

p"I'm great. How are you?"

p"You know me....Surviving."

p"So I've heard. I also heard that you have a daughter."

p"Yeah. Shocked?"

p"Yeah."

p"You're friend is getting on my last nerve."

p"What is she doing?" Jen asked, trying not to laugh.

p"Giving me a look to kill."

p"She's known for those, Pace."

p"I know. I used to get one on a daily basis."

p"I remember," she said laughing.

p"Jo tells me you're going to come visit us in a week."

p"Yeah. And I'll let you meet my husband, Nick."

p"And what is this baby business?"

p"Damn...Joey can't keep her mouth shut."

p"You act surprised."

p"I guess I shouldn't be."

p"So...would you like to finish your conversation with the blabber mouth?"

p"I am not a blabber mouth," Joey said, clearly pouting.

p"Yeah, see you in a week, Pace."

p"You bet."

pPacey handed the phone back to Joey and joined the kids in the pool. He put
both of them on the float and leaned on it. Joey watched them talking.

p"Jo...you there?"

p"Yeah, Jen. I'm here."

p"Okay...so...after you woke me up last night at 1:45 in the morning to tell me
that you may possibly be falling in love with Pacey...have you decided anymore
that you may have?"

p"Jen...I can hardly be around him..."

p"Without wanting to touch him or kiss him...I know...I've heard this all
before..."

p"I don't know...I guess...I don't know what I'm feeling."

p"Well, I'll be there in a week...and I will try my hardest to help you figure it
out. But I think there is something you need to realize."

p"What's that?"

p"He lost his wife...so even if you realize that you've fallen in love with
him...that may not be the case where he's concerned."

p"I know," she answered sadly. Joey sighed as she watched Pacey smile down
at the two children, who were laying on the float while Pacey pushed it. "I'll talk
to you later. I'm going to spend some time with Noah..."

p"And Pacey and Sam."

p"Yeah. Talk to you later."

pJoey hung up the phone. She sat it on the table next to her chair. iWhat the
hell am I thinking? There is no way I can take the place of his wife. They had a
child with one another...he's not ready to get over that. Joey...get over it...I can't
put myself through this/i. Watching Pacey with her child, being so caring, so
fatherly sent a gently ache through her heart. iWhy is it I always want what I
can never have/i?

phr

piHours later.../i

pJoey and Noah are on the couch watching iThe Wizard of Oz/i when the
telephone rings. Joey reaches over her head and takes the phone from it's cradle.

p"Hello?"

p"You didn't invite him to spend the night?" Jen asked with a smile.

p"You are so funny," Joey said sarcastically.

p"I think so."

p"So...what are you upto?"

p"Waiting for Nick to get back."

p"Where did he go?"

p"Pick up dinner. What are you doing?"

p"Watching the Wizard of Oz with Noah."

p"Good movie."

p"I think so."

p"You sound down-right depressed."

p"Probably because I am."

p"Pacey?"

p"Yeah."

pJen sighs, "I wish I could help you out, Jo..."

p"I know. No one can help me but me."

p"So how long are you going to feel depressed?"

p"Don't know...depends on a certain someone."

pNoah buried his head in his mothers chest as the witch started telling Dorothy
that she was going to get her and her little dog. Joey stroked his hair, assuring him
that everything would be okay.

p"What happened?"

p"Oh...Noah got a little scared by the witch."

p"I don't blame him. Scared the hell out of me when I was his age."

p"Me too." Joey sighed, "Do you think I'm stupid?"

pJen shook her head as she said, "No. Joey, you can't help how you feel."

p"I know. But of all the men..."

p"Why Pacey Witter?"

p"Yeah. Why now? Why is it when I have everything in my life going
perfectly that a wrench gets thrown into my path?"

p"Love just happens Jo. You can't explain it."

p"I wish I could explain this, Jen."

p"I know. But...love will take you by surprise, and sometimes you don't even
know it's happening and the next thing you know, you're head over heels in love
with this amazing man that just took you completely by surprise. And it can be a
blessing and it can also be a curse. And in your case, it looks like it's both."

pJoey's line beeped, "Jen, can you hang on a second, someone's on the other
line."

p"Sure."

pJoey clicked the phone, "Hello?"

p"Hey Jo."

pJust the sound of his voice sent her head spinning. "Hey Pace. What's up?"

p"I just unpacked a box...and I could use someone to talk to..."

p"Okay...let me let Jen go, okay Pacey?"

p"Yeah," he said sadly.

pJoey clicked the phone, "It's him."

p"I bet that just makes you all giddy, doesn't it?"

p"He's upset, Jen."

p"But just hearing his voice does it for you, doesn't it."

p"Bye Jen."

pJen smiled, "Bye Joey. And good luck."

p"Thanks."

pJoey clicked the phone back over to Pacey. She heard the shakiness of his
breathing. She knew that whatever he found had some significance of his late
wife.

p"You still there, Pacey?"

pHe clears his throat, "Yeah...yeah, I'm still here."

p"So...wanna tell me about it?"

p"I was unpacking the last of the boxes...and I found..."

p"What?"

p"I found some of her clothes. I guess the movers stuck this box in with mine
by mistake." He took a deep breath, trying to stay calm while on the phone with
her, "They...they still have her smell."

p"Pacey..." her heart was breaking in a million pieces for his pain.

p"I just want it to stop hurting, Joey."

p"I know, Pacey."

p"I don't know what to do. Putting them in the box was hard, getting rid of
them again...it'll kill me."

pShe swiped the tears from her eyes, "You have to Pacey."

p"I know..."

p"Pacey, I know you're hurting...I know you think that you will never stop
hurting...but one day, you'll wake up and realize that...you have to move on.
Standing still never did anyone any good. You think it will never stop
hurting...but I can tell you...it gets easier to deal with."

p"I don't want to deal with it, Joey. I want to be selfish right now. I want her
with me. I want to be able to hold her and tell her that I love her...but I will never
get another opportunity."

pJoey quit wiping away her tears. She let them flow freely down her face. She
looked down at her son, finding that he was asleep and not able to see her cry.

p"I just miss her so much it hurts my soul."

p"I know, Pacey. I wish I could tell you what to do...or how to feel....but I can't
tell you any of that."

p"I know, Jo." He sighs, "I just...I know that you could understand better than
anyone what it's like to lose someone you gave your heart to."

p"Yeah, but the person you gave yours to was taken from you...I made mine
leave."

p"For good reason too. It still pisses me off to think about what Dawson did to
you."

p"Yeah...but...I don't like to dwell on it."

p"Does it still hurt you?"

pShe thought for a minute, "Not the way it used to. I used to be bitter and
completely shut off to everyone. I vowed that I would never give my heart to
another man as long as I lived."

p"Do you think you'll ever be able to? Give your heart to anyone?"

p"Yeah, Pacey, I'm pretty sure that if it's the right guy for me, I will have no
problem falling in love with him."

p"And how will you know if you love him, Jo?"

pJoey sighed, thinking of all the things that told her that she was falling for
Pacey, "The sound of his voice will make my heart flutter, his smile will just make
me weak in the knees....looking at him could fill me with so much happiness that it
overwhelms me."

p"You speaking from experience or just from what you hope will happen?"

p"Experience."

p"That how it was with Dawson?"

p"Yeah," she lied. "What about you, Pacey? Do you think that there is any
possible way you could fall in love again? Not necessarily like you did with
Veronica, but just love someone again."

p"I don't know. When I lost her, I lost my heart with her. And...I'm not sure I
want to. What I had with Veronica was so perfect and magical...I'm not sure I
could ever find anything like that with anyone else...ever."

pJoey cried new tears. Tears of complete hopelessness. "I think...I think you
need to have a little faith Pacey. You never know what could happen."

p"Yeah." Sam was crying for Pacey, "I gotta go. Sam is crying for me."

p"Okay, I'll talk to you later."

p"Bye Jo."

p"Bye."

pJoey clicked the off button on her phone. She sat up and took Noah in her
arms. She carried him up the stairs and laid him in his bed. She kissed his
forehead as she tucked him in and walked into her room.

pShe walked over to the large dresser and mirror. She looked at her reflection
and felt utterly defeated. She bowed her head as she rested her palms against the
dresser. She then looked up into the mirror, "I'm competing with his wife's ghost."
She brought her hands to her face as she slumped to the floor. She cried because
for the first time, she realized that she had fallen in love with a man who didn't
even think he could ever love again.

pShe didn't know how long she was on the floor, but when she stood, her knees
were weak, her hands were shaking, and her eyes were red and puffy. She walked
into her bathroom and turned on the bath water. She poured some of her bubble
bath into the water, lit several candles, turned the radio on, and climbed into the
large tub. She took a scrunchey off the counter and pulled her hair up in a loose
bun.

pShe finally began to relax, letting the song on the radio coax her into a state of
relaxation she only experienced in her tub.

picenter
I was there/br
When you shone as bright as Bethlehem from afar/br
I was there/br
When you were young and strong and perverted/br
And everything that makes a young man a star/br
Oh, you were a star/br
/i/center

pShe smiled at the symbolism in the song. She was there. She grew up with
him. She saw him go from this annoying little boy to an annoying man. Her mind
began to wander, thinking about what the future could possibly hold. She found
herself imagining a kiss. The kind of kiss that she only dreamed about. One that
set every nerve ending in her body on fire.

picenter
I was there/br
And I swear to God and on my mother's grave/br
On everything I have or ever will embrace/br
I was there/br
And I saw it with my own two eyes/br
/i/center

pHis hands were cupping her face, kissing her gently yet with enough passion to
make her want to melt in his hands. Her hair was whipping in the breeze, or
maybe it was the intensity in which he was kissing her.

pcenteri
And now it's all around me, it's all around me/br
I'm surrounded/br
And now it's all around me, it's all around me/br
You surround me like a circle/br
/center/i

pShe sighed contentedly at the thought. His hands smoothed down her back,
pulling her closer to him as her hands roamed through his hair. And everything
around the two of them disappeared...it was a vast emptiness, but they were still
kissing. She knew that if she pulled away from him it would end, and it never
should.

pShe knew that if she pulled away from his warm embrace, she would instantly
be cold. His arms providing the only warmth around him, and his lips provided
her sanctuary. She slowly opened her eyes, knowing that she was going to get
hurt. But couldn't help but wonder if, in the end, it would all be worth it if he
would just kiss her.

phr
pcenter
To Be Continued....
/center