This beginning of this chapter was actually supposed to be for the last chapter but I thought hey, why not add another chapter? I've been working really hard to get this chapter out A.S.A.P. as a treat because I know it took me like a month to add the last chapter. Might have some drama, of course, but no breakups in this chapter I promise. I noticed that no one picked up on my line from the last chapter about a summer incident with Dawson. I suppose you all think it was what he did at the beginning of summer. Just remember, neither of them knew what Dawson did. To the story. Happy Holidays!

The goose bumps had begun to rise.

The butterflies started to flutter.

A smile wouldn't leave.

These feeling had become a daily thing for Joey Potter. It was nice to have something that was constant. She laid on her stomach and tried to read her book. As always, Pacey distracted her, but in the best way possible.

"I need to read," she said with a smile.

Pacey, who was trailing kisses down her back, said, "Go ahead."

Joey felt sparks with every kiss. "Pacey!"

He ignored her and kept kissing, now up to her upper back.

Joey turned her body half way around, causing him to stop, so she could look at him. "Pacey, I can't read with you doing that."

Pacey sighed. "Aw, c'mon Jo. I have five minutes before I leave for work."

She smirked and laid her head against the bed. "I guess five minutes won't hurt," Joey said before bringing him down for a kiss.

This was great! Pacey was finally happy again and he could stay like this forever. Too bad the phone started to ring.

Joey reached over and grabbed her phone, all the while staying in the same position. "Hello?" she said into the phone.

"Hey Jo, its Bessie."

Joey's eyes got wide and she tried to push Pacey off her…unsuccessfully. He only ended up trailing kisses down her neck.

"H…Hi Bess. What's up?" she said with a crackle in her voice.

"Are you okay?"

Pacey ran his index finger in a zigzag down to her stomach. The heat rose as he moved along.

"Bess," Joey squeaked. "I have to call you back." She quickly hung up the phone. Joey rolled away from Pacey and got off the bed.

Pacey sat on his knees and lifted an eyebrow at her.

"Is there a problem?" he asked.

Joey smirked and put her hands on her hips. "Yes. Pace, you haven't gone home in two days. You go to work and then come back here until work the next day. All we've done all week is make- out…"

"You make it sound like you don't like it," Pacey said grabbing her by the waist and pulled her towards him on the bed.

Joey instantly put her fingers in his ungroomed hair. "No, I like this. Doing anything with you is nice."

"Then we shouldn't stop," Pacey said before leaning in for a kiss.

Joey pushed him back a bit before he could kiss her. "Pace, you only have a few minutes and…we need to talk."

Pacey brought his legs from underneath him so he could fit in a more comfortable position. "I thought it would be a while before I heard those words."

Joey sat down next to him. "It's not like that. This doesn't have to do anything with you and me, just you and Bessie."

Pacey lifted an eyebrow. "Bessie? Your sister Bessie?"

Joey nodded. "Christmas is next week and I promised her I would come home that weekend. I want you to come with me."

Pacey chuckled a bit. "Me? Go to Capeside? That's funny, Jo."

Joey gave him a hard look. "What's so funny about it?"

"I haven't been in Capeside since…you know…and I haven't spoken to my family just as long. I could be dead and buried for all they care. Not to mention Bessie. I'm sure she would kill me if she saw me."

"You're probably right. Bessie will kill you, and your family wouldn't care if you came home but I do, Pace. I want to spend Christmas with the two most important things in my life: my family and you."

Pacey didn't really hear what she said but smiled wide. "So I'm important to you, huh?"

Joey rolled her eyes playfully. "You really are so daft. Of course you're important to me. You have always been important to me and you always will be. That's why I want to spend Christmas with you."

His grin grew bigger. This girl, no, this woman, was amazing. How did he get so lucky to have her twice? Pacey pulled her onto his lap. "Joey, do you know how much you mean to me and how much I need you?"

Joey did a sweet side smirk. "You can remind me."

"You mean the world to me. There is not a minute that goes by when I'm not thinking of you. If you weren't around I would have probably gotten lung cancer a long time ago. You are the one thing that makes everything better."

Joey kissed him softly. "This is the Pacey Witter I remember," she said before kissing him again.

That was where the conversation ended.

XXX

It was a long ride to Capeside. Roads were blocked, cars crashed, and snow fell. It was turning out to be a white Christmas. The two didn't talk very much on the three hour drive back home.

Pacey was nervous. He was about to go back to a place that reminded him of pains. Every time he even neared Capeside, Pacey was thrown back in time to his high school years. He instantly became outcast again. He was Pacey Witter: black sheep of the family, straight C student, dork beyond reason, and Dawson Leery's number two. That was the role he hated the most. Pacey could never amount to anything close to the golden child. He lost everything to him; toys, money, girls…he had lost Joey to him only a few months ago. That bastard. Dawson knew how Pacey felt about Joey and yet he went after her. He needs to be smacked. It didn't matter though, Pacey had Joey all to himself this time and Dawson wasn't in the picture…for now.

Pacey might have been nervous but it was Joey who was wrecked. She feared going back to Capeside. Once Bessie would find out that Pacey was staying for Christmas as Joey's boyfriend, she would flip. Ever since Pacey left Joey out of the blue, Bessie had to watch her sister cry herself to sleep. Bessie detested Pacey for the things he did to her sister. Bessie wasn't the biggest thing on Joey's mind. Her thoughts were mostly focused on Dawson. He would probably be home for Christmas as well. Joey made sure that she stayed clear from anything to do with the Leery's. She had nothing against Gale and Mitch; she just didn't want to face Dawson ever again. Joey didn't even want to think about him after what he did to her at the end of summer. She still felt stupid. If only she would have let him kiss her, none of that would have happened. Since Bessie insisted, Joey put a restraining order against him. She figured that she would try and live on with her shattered life in Boston and he would move on with his in Los Angeles, never having to see him or be affected by him again…that's not the case.

Finally, they had reached the B&B. Pacey parked the car in front of the house and stared.

"Sweetie, are you okay?" Joey asked placing her hand on his.

Pacey was pulled out of his own little world and looked at her. "Yeah, just a lot of memories. Anyway, are you sure you want me to leave you here by yourself?"

Joey nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure. I need to face Bessie and her condescending remarks by myself. You go and have fun by your family's house."

"Seeing them is as much fun as driving a rusty nail into your foot before steeping on salt."

"Always so mellow dramatic. I'm sure everything will be fine. I, on the other hand, will be lectured, shunned and probably even shown graphs about my destructive behavior. It's going be pretty hard to keep the place copasetic for your arrival. Wish me luck." And with that, Joey was out the door and heading into the B&B.

XXX

Joey came into the B&B and greeted everyone before going to take a shower. She spent a long time in there, trying to figure out how to break the news to Bessie. Everyone was in their pajamas already because only Christmas day is celebrated within the small group of families. By the time Joey finally had the nerve to talk to Bessie, it was already nine o'clock. Joey walked into the living room and sighed when she saw Bessie was sitting on the couch next to Bodie.

"Bess?" Joey called softly.

Bessie turned her head to her sister and smiled. "Yeah?" she said.

"Could I…could I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure."

"…alone…"

Bessie got up from her seat and followed Joey into the other room. "What's up?" she said softly.

Joey began to fiddle with her hands. "Bessie, I've been seeing someone lately."

Bessie smiled wide. She was happy for her sister. Joey deserved to be happy after what happened with Pacey. "That's great, Jo!"

"He needs somewhere to stay this weekend and I told him he could stay here."

"That's fine. I can't wait to meet him."

"You already know him."

Bessie lifted an eyebrow. "Really? Is he that Frank guy you introduced me to when I went up there?"

Joey paused and took in a long deep breath. "…it's Pacey…"

Bessie's mouth dropped. She couldn't believe it. Her sister…she couldn't even fathom the possibility. "WHAT!" Bessie screamed.

Joey bit her lip. This was what she was afraid of. "Bess, calm down…"

"DON'T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN! What are you thinking?"

"You don't understand…"

"What I understand is that you are dating this boy who crushed you and…"

"I know what he did, Bessie."

"Does he know what he did to you? Have you told him that you cried so many nights? Did you tell him about…"

"No, I haven't told him. He's sorry and we've moved past the summer."

"I'm guessing you haven't told him about how Dawson almost killed you either."

"Why would I!" Joey said a bit louder. "What Dawson did has nothing to do with Pacey."

"It does, Joey. Dawson could have killed you too."

"But he didn't! I'm still here, Bessie and I'm okay. I have one scar and that's it."

Bessie rubbed her head. "Why would you do this, Joey?" she began in a normal tone but got louder with every word. "What could possibly possess you…"

"I love him!" Joey yelled, cutting off Bessie.

Bessie was once again dumbfounded. "What?"

Joey wiped at the few loose tears and stared Bessie down. "I love Pacey. I have never stopped loving him. Even when I wanted to kill him I still loved him. If you saw how he is with me, Bessie, we wouldn't be fighting about him. Pacey cares for me so much."

"So much that he left you heart broken?"

Joey took a deep breath and calmed down. "He made a mistake, Bessie…"

"…Jo…" Bessie tried to cut in but Joey put up a finger and Bessie got quiet.

"It was a mistake and he is sorry. Pacey is a good man and he treats me well. You are eventually going to have to see it. I don't care what you think or say Bessie because Pacey is going to stay here with me this weekend and he is going to celebrate Christmas with us tomorrow and, Bessie, you ARE going to be nice to him. You don't have to talk to him or anything but don't you dare be rude to him. Got it?"

Bessie was fuming. "I should slap you right now."

"Go ahead. As long as you understand."

Bessie gave her sister a dirty look but what could she say? Joey was a stubborn girl and Bessie was just as forward with her father when she first started dating Bodie. "He goes straight upstairs and into your room."

Joey smirked a bit and said, "Okay. Thank you." Joey went and waited by the front door for him.

XXX

While this was all happening, Pacey was having a 'great' time by his family's house. He arrived at the house ten minutes after dropping off Joey, but he didn't go inside for another twenty. Pacey didn't want to face them. It was been seven months since he had been in Capeside and even longer since he last talked to his parents. More over, it was well over a year since he stepped into that small brown house. Pacey, after trying desperately to not become the useless idiot he felt he was in high school, stepped out of his car with the present he bought for his parents. As his long finger pushed in the gray doorbell, Pacey seriously considered spending Christmas Eve in his car with the left-over bad of M&Ms. A small stream of light illuminated his face as the door slowly opened. Too late now.

Pacey's father, better known as Sheriff John Witter around the town, looked at his youngest son with a scowl, something Pacey had become accustomed to. John looked over his son who was wearing dark blue jeans, what appeared to be a white t-shirt under his brown winter coat, his three year old black shoes, and an orange baseball cap on top of his uncut hair. It would seem that, after not seeing your child for months, you would gleefully greet that said child. This wasn't the case for Sheriff John Witter.

John opened the door all the way and moved out of the doorway. "Get in, you're letting the heat go out," John said before walking back to his recliner.

Pacey walked in and closed the door. "Nice to see you too," he said under his breath.

He looked around the house. This was just like every Christmas. The little kids were running around, John was watching sports in his recliner; his siblings were all scrunched into the living room, and his Mother in the kitchen. Pacey made his way to the kitchen and put down his gift on the counter. He smiled at his mother; maybe she would be more welcoming.

"Hi Mom," Pacey said sincerely.

Mrs. Witter turned to her son and smiled. "Pacey…" she began, "…can you tell everyone dinner is done?"

Pacey sighed. No such luck. "Alright," he said before telling everyone about dinner.

He walked back into the kitchen and handed his mother the box. "Merry Christmas."

Mrs. Witter opened the gift and held up the coffee maker. "Thank you," she said before looking to her husband. "John, Pacey gave us a coffee maker!"

John didn't take his eyes off of the TV. "Is there a receipt?"

"Yes," Pacey responded.

"Good. We can take it back," John said with a smirk.

Nothing ever changes.

Dinner was lacking in conversation, as to be expected. Still, Pacey thought that his family would be curious about his long absence. Eventually, that conversation came up, but it took an unexpected turn.

"So, Pacey, where have you been living?" his mother asked over dinner.

Pacey smiled. "I've been living in Boston for about five months now."

"Boston. Good cops there," John put in. "What do you do all day?"

"I work."

"Where?"

"At a restaurant called Civilization. I'm a chef."

John outward snorted with his laugh. Doug rolled his eyes at his father. "Pacey, where do you live?" Doug asked.

Pacey put his eyes to his brother. "I live in an apartment. It's near Civilization and Worthington."

Doug lifted an eyebrow. "Worthington? Doesn't Joey go there?"

"Are you still with Jodie?" Mrs. Witter put in.

"He left her," Doug responded for his brother.

Mrs. Witter sighed. "O, she was a nice girl. Are you dating a new girl?"

Pacey gave a weird look to his brother before looking to his mother. "I dated this Audrey girl for month but I ended things with her."

"Typical," Doug huffed.

Pacey glared at Doug. "What is that supposed to mean?"

Doug rolled his eyes and looked away.

Pacey tried to continue with the conversation. "As I was saying Mom, I was dating Audrey but I'm back with Joey."

"Are you serious?" Doug said loudly.

Pacey, once again, focused on his brother. "What is your problem?"

Doug glared back. "My PROBLEM is that you are intentionally hurting this girl. You keep doing this to Joey. Why couldn't you have just left her alone after what you did in June?"

Pacey was fuming. "That's not fair Doug! You have no idea what happened back then so don't even start."

"No, what's not fair is that you left without telling her!"

The boys were now standing on each side of the table, in their faces. "She was with Dawson that day, Doug! She wanted him."

"You don't know shit, Pacey! Joey went to the docks. She waited for your sorry ass that never showed up. She was there for a while before I found her."

"What are you talking about?" Pacey said lowering his voice.

Doug didn't lower his. "She was a mess, Pacey. Joey wouldn't let anyone get near her and was murmuring about how you didn't love her. She was balling her eyes out while you were sailing! You broke her heart and you're going to do it again."

Pacey sat back down in his chair and his eyes glossed over. What did he do?

XXX

Her eyes lit up and a big smile came to her face. Pacey was back. Joey quickly opened the door before he knocked on it. Pacey's eyes lit up and a big grin came to his face. She was always so beautiful. Before he could get a word in, Joey grabbed his arm and dragged him into her room.

Joey quickly closed the door behind her and smiled at him. "Hey," she whispered before kissing him. Pacey kissed her back and held her close. This didn't last long because Joey began to take off his coat. Pacey followed suit and took off her robe, so she was only in her cami and PJ pants. His shirt came next, leaving only his wife beater on. Pacey stuck his index and middle fingers between her body and her waistband, his gesture to tell her that those were next to come off. It was that small tug that brought Joey into reality and pulled her away from him. Pacey looked at her, still drunk from the kiss.

"I'm sorry," she whispered and lowered her head.

"For what?" he whispered getting close to her.

Joey sat on the bed and looked up to him. "It doesn't feel right."

Pacey smiled at her. "Don't be sorry. I know we haven't…been together for a while."

"It's not just that. This would be the first time since we've gotten back together. I don't want it to be where my family is right down the hall and we have to be quick and quiet so they won't notice. I want it to be just you and me, Pace. No interruptions."

Pacey sat down next to her. "I want you to feel ready when we finally take that step, even if that means I have to wait longer. You mean more to me than sex."

Joey smiled and laid down, taking Pacey with her. She rested in his arms. "Will some cuddling suffice for now?"

Pacey kissed her and rubbed her gently. "More than you know."

XXX

The Christmas party was better than ever. It was held at Jen's house again. Every one was there. Grams, Jack, Jen, Jen's new boyfriend Charlie, the families, Pacey, Joey, and even Andie was there. There was everyone, except for Dawson. Pacey was the only one who didn't know why the blonde was absent, not that he cared though.

Joey was having a ball until she got the very lustrous job of taking out the trash. She made her way down the drive way when a lump was caught in her throat.

"What are you doing here?"

Dawson fixed his eyes on her. He looked crazier than she remembered. The cold stare made her shiver. "It's Christmas, Jo. I came to see my family."

"You know you aren't supposed to be near me, Dawson."

Dawson smirked his evil smirk. "I didn't know you would be outside right now."

Joey took in a breath and began to walk back to the house. Dawson followed her. "Go away," she said through her teeth.

"How have you been?" he asked ignored her comment.

Joey stopped and glared at him, still fearing what he was capable off. "My life is none of your fucking business. If you don't leave now, I'm going to call Doug."

Dawson gave her an angry look before walking back to his house. That was the last straw. She went too far and needed to be taught a lesson.

Meanwhile, Pacey was taken into an empty room by Bessie. He knew he was going to get it now.

"Bess…" he began.

Bessie put up her hand. "Save it, Pacey, I really don't care. I don't understand why you didn't leave her alone…"

"…she means the world to me," Pacey quickly added.

Bessie rolled her eyes. "Like I haven't heard that before."

"It's true."

"I don't care!" Bessie growled. "As much as I HATE the fact that Joey is back with you, I can't stop her." Bessie stuck her finger in Pacey's face. "You listen to me, Witter, if you EVER hurt my sister like that again; I swear to god that I will make the rest of your life a living nightmare. I know people whose specialty is cutting off precious parts. Do you understand me?"

Pacey was a little scared of her right then. "I get it," he said softly.

Bessie smiled. "Good. Don't you dare tell Joey about this. Now go back out there and watch the kids open their gifts."

Pacey walked back into the living room and sat back in his chair. Joey, who had just come back inside, sat back on his lap and smiled at him.

"Where were you?" Joey asked Pacey.

Pacey looked at Bessie who was glaring at him. "Just went to the bathroom," he replied. "You look a little pale. Did you see the ghost of Christmas past?"

Joey chuckled a bit. "Um, I took out the trash and it's a bit cold outside."

Pacey wrapped his arms around her waist and they watched the kids for a while. After a good half hour, Pacey became bored and started to kiss her neck.

Joey smiled at the sensations. "That tickles," she said softly.

Pacey rested his head in the crook of her neck. "I'll stop."

Joey ran a hand in his hair. "You make me happy," she said out of no where.

Pacey smiled. "Joey?"

Joey turned her head so they were facing each other, mere inches apart. "Yeah?"

Pacey smiled. "I love you."

Joey smiled back and said before biting her lip, "I love you too."

Slowly, they came together for a kiss. It was a short and sweet kiss, but changed everything.