Chapter 8
"We gotta stop meeting like this" Joey said inbetween kisses.
"I'd rather we didn't" Pacey kissed her neck fervently.
"Yeah… but… I mean… Oh… I mean… how about we… uhm… find… some place?"
Pacey stopped.
"Find a place?"
"Yeah, somewhere we don't have to… uhm… watch the door all the time…" They had coincidentally met in the city for the third time that week and just ran off to the dresser of a clothes store.
"Ok… that sounds good…" There was something about his eyes. She couldn't tell what it was. He seemed… relieved?
"So… uhm… know any place we could use?" She smiled and kissed his ear. Pacey moaned.
"I could get a place of my own… uh…" She stopped.
"Can you afford that?"
"Yeah, I can… and if I get a job, which I will… I will afford to keep it too…"
Joey smiled happily: "That would be great!" She kissed him passionatly.
"So you… uhm… like the idea…" he lifted her shirt and caressed her skin.
"Oh… I love it…" Her hands moved to his pants.
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"Where have you been, missy?" Jen was waiting for her in her office.
"I… uhm… I just visited a building site… you know I don't spend that much time in my office…"
"You spend way too much time out of the office for a person who's supposed to have an office job" Jen shook her head in dismay. "I called you twice yesterday and you weren't here and you didn't return my calls either"
"I'll remember to tell Nancy to remember the calls I get next time" Joey smirked. "What's burning?"
"What's burning? Me and Jack are discussing dates…"
"I take it you agreed on one?"
"Yep. We both decided the sooner the better so… uhm… we decided a month from now…"
"Wow! That soon, eh?"
"Yeah. Can't let him get away. Wanna be my maid of honour?"
"Aw, Jen, you know I do" The girls hugged.
"Good. Cause that's the only way you can make up for me not being yours."
"You would have been if I had had an address to send you the wedding invitation…"
Jen just sighed and said nothing.
"So what's keeping you so busy?"
Joey blushed: "What do you mean?"
"Well I called you at home too, a couple of times this week. You're never there. Dawson even complained to me. He never complains to me!"
"I just had a lot to work that's all" A small smile creeped on Joey's face.
"Oh my god!" Jen was struck with realization.
"What?"
"You're having an affair!"
"I… Uh… No! Of course not! What do you mean?"
"Jo, Hello! It's Jen, your best friend, I've lived with you for years! I know you like the back of my hand and I can see the signs: you're suddenly very busy, you won't even return MY calls, Dawson complains which means he's probably sex lacking and, by God, you are glowing!"
"I am not" Joey blushed even harder.
"Who is he?"
"You… you don't know him… Just some guy I met while working…"
"Another architect?"
"No… he's… he's in the construction business…"
"I see… And? Is it serious?"
"Serious?"
"Yeah, I mean, do you guys do anything except sleeping together? Has it got the potential of a real relationship or is it just some sleeping around to make up for Dawson's lack of ability in the subject?"
"Uh… we just met, really… so…. Uhm… for now it's just hard to keep our hands off each other…" Joey blushed. "No time for actual talking…"
Jen smiled: "Well well, I have to say I saw this coming…"
"You did?"
"Yeah I did… I mean, Dawson is a lousy lay by the looks of it and there's got to be some way to compensate. I mean, you're 26, for God's sake, you're only human and you do need a good lay from time to time."
"Jen…"
"Just be careful, ok? These things are not as simple as they look. I mean one minute it's just about sex, the next he wants more or you want more. And by the time you realize what's wrong Dawson might find out about it… Just make sure you know what you're after and get it… and only it…"
Joey nodded and said nothing. She just sighed and started looking at her shoelaces.
"So, do you think you could come with me dress-shopping tomorrow?"
"I'd love to…" Joey said softly.
"Good. Maybe I'll manage to get everything done in time. I gotta order the invitations too and everything."
"Do you think you can manage that and work too at the same time?"
Jen was a journalist who worked on a laptop and sent most of her articles through e-mail. She didn't need to be at the office all the time but she did have a lot of articles to write."Don't worry, Chris said he'd go easy on me this month."
"I'm happy for you Jen."
"I'm happy for me too…" Jen winked.
"Do you think it's wrong?"
"To be happy for me? I sure hope not." Jen grinned then turned serious and added: "Jo, I'm in no position to judge. You have to do what you feel is right."
"Would you ever cheat on Jack?"
"No, but Dawson isn't Jack"
"Jen.."
"Jo… I told you before and I'll tell you again. Dawson is not good enough for you. I believed it the day you two started dating and he hasn't proven me wrong yet. And you never looked as glowing as you do now, not even at the beginning when everything was supposed to be glowy… If you ask me, finding someone else is a brilliant idea for you."
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Dress browsing was a fun activity when Jen was the partner, Joey thought.
"OK, how about this one?" Jen came out of the dresser wearing a very short white dress.
"Uhm, you think they'll let you in church wearing that?"
"A girl can try…" Jen sighed and got back in.
Joey picked up yet another magazine from the stand and started browsing.
"Oh, did I tell you Pacey's staying?"
Joey bit her lower lip.
"No… Staying with you? Wasn't he doing that already?" She tried to sound natural.
"No, he's getting himself an apartment. Apparently he decided to settle down for a while. He and Jack are searching for apartments tonight."
"Can he afford an apartment?"
"Yeah, despite appearances, Pacey's doing pretty good, materially speaking. He used to be a stockbroker and made a lot of money then…"
"If he was doing so well why did he quit?"
"Uhm…" An awkward silence followed. "He had some problems… and he didn't feel like it anymore…"
Jen came out with a simple white dress: "I think this is it, Jo…"
Joey just smiled and nodded.