Author Note: Rapidly advancing plot and smut upcoming in the next few chapters…this is a pre-warning…..

Chapter 24 – What Kind of Tini Did I Drink?

Jackie had the world's worst hangover. She managed to crawl from the bathroom and back into the bedroom before collapsing on the floor. Why did she drink that third whatever-tini drink? Maybe it was when Joe pulled off the leather apron and dropped it in her lap! Brooke was looking for places to put her dollar bills and Rhonda was dancing with Steve.

"Oh, my aching head." She muttered. This was definitely going to be up Miss Vicki's alley – she'd need to call her and arrange a meeting and still find a location for the dancing / shower. The telephone rang and it sounded like bells in a fire station.

She covered her head with a pillow and let the machine pick up the call. "Jackie, I'm dying - Michael is pissed because I can't even…." The sound of Brooke vomiting filled the speaker and then got disconnected.

There was a knock on her door. "Go away." She managed to squeak out. The rapping continued. She swallowed and hollered as loud as she could. "Fez, use your freaking key!" She put the pillow back on her face.

"Hey beautiful, Fez let me borrow your key. Hope you don't mind." Jackie was a sight lying on the floor between her bedroom and living room covered only by a pillow. "Eric, go home." She waved a limp hand in the general direction she thought he was.

"Not feeling too good are you?" he asked pleasantly. Jackie groaned and tried to throw her pillow at him. "No and I don't need you to remind me! Go home and let me die in agony!"

Eric chuckled and stepped into her bathroom looking for some aspirin and got a glass of water from the kitchen. He knelt on the carpet and took the pillow from her face. "I promise not to say anything about the makeup all over your face…."

"What?!" she shrieked so loudly she hurt her own ears. "Ohhhh…"

"I see you haven't changed your clothes either." He teased.

"Look Forman, if you came here to insult me – the door is over there – somewhere."

Eric laughed, "Okay Miss Snarky, sit up." He helped her to a sitting position and waited until her head stopped spinning. She took the aspirin from his hand and threw it in her mouth and greedily drank the water. She closed her eyes and thought she was going to hurl again.

"I don't feel so good." She complained without much vigor. Eric slid an arm under her knees and one around her back and carried her to the bed. The sheets felt nice. "Ah…much cooler."

"I'll be back in a few hours with some soup. You need to eat something."

"No food!" she begged then agreed, "Just…some crackers."

He laughed quietly and closed the bedroom door behind her.

*

"It's my first combination party and Olivia Steele kind of trapped me into it." She dragged her fingers through her tousled hair. "Miss Vicki wants a male stripper or two and I recruited Brooke and Rhonda to go with me to the show."

Eric smiled, "So I'm guessing all of you girls had too many drinks?"

Jackie's face was still a little green but she did eat some crackers. 'Yeah, Brooke left me a vomit message. I don't know how Rhonda's doing but she was up on the stage dancing with one of the guys. Please don't tell Fez, he'll freak out"

Eric smiled, "I won't tell Fez, but he knows something is going on. Jackie, do you remember anything about coming home last night?"

She bit her lip. "I remember tripping up the stairs and the key wouldn't work in my door. Hey, what were you doing in my apartment?"

He laughed. "You woke me up trying to break into my apartment."

Jackie was aghast. "I did not."

Eric smirked, "Check out the hickey you left for me." He pulled his collar to the side and her green shade of color turned pink. "Oh my god, what else did I do?"

"Nothing to worry about, we got you home and now you know better than to drink at a strip club."

She closed her eyes and rested her head against the couch cushion. "I think I'll stay with beer." Eric nudged her shoulder with his. "I think that's a good plan."

"Thanks for stopping by Eric. I probably would have laid there in my drool if you hadn't come along."

"No problem, I'll catch up with you later okay?"

*

"Thanks for calling the Happy Days Hotel, Eric Forman speaking."

"Hey, it's me, are you busy?

Eric's voice dropped an octave as he stepped around his desk to shut the door. "Hey, I'm never to busy to talk to you. What's going on?"

"Well, it's partly business and a little personal. Have you had lunch yet?"

Eric looked at the clock on the wall. He had actually worked through his lunch again. "Do you want to meet here?"

"Perfect, I'll be there in about 20 minutes!"

"Bye Jackie!" he said, but she had already hung up.

*

Jackie was waiting in the lobby when she saw a familiar black haired girl walk by pushing a cart. "Annie? Is that you?" The girl looked back and a big smile formed on her face. "Miss Jackie! I've missed you! Where have you been?"

Jackie hugged her old friend. "George has been an ass so I changed my parties to different hotels. What brings you here?"

"Oh, I'm the Housekeeping Manager! The pay is better and I don't have to work double shifts anymore. But Miss Jackie, I miss your parties."

Jackie smiled. "Well, I've had a couple here but I'm sure you'll see me around. How's the baby?"

"Jessie is getting so big; she's started to walk already. My mother is staying with us so this job is such a blessing!" Annie pulled a picture out of her wallet. "This is Jessie's abuelita - her grandmother." Little Jessie was a darling girl and looked a lot like Annie.

"Annie, you should be so proud!"

There was a cough behind them. Both women turned around to find Eric standing there. "Oh, Mr. Forman, I was just talking to an old friend."

Eric just realized that Jackie and Annie knew each other. Uh-oh! "That's okay Annie; Jackie is my old friend who was supposed to meet me in the restaurant! Can you see what kind of problem Dan is having with the curtains in 307?"

Jackie hugged her friend goodbye. In a low voice she said, "So my friend was your date?"

Eric smiled. "Say anything and I may have to muzzle you."

She giggled as Eric opened the restaurant door for her.

*

"I talked to Brooke; they want to get married in November." Jackie said as she looked at the lunch menu. Eric sat back and waited until she finished. "I called Bob to get Donna's number and well, Donna refuses to come back to Wisconsin."

Eric figured as much. "I got a hold of Hyde. He said pretty much the same thing. He'll go anywhere but here. "

Jackie pulled an envelope out of her day planner. "I have an idea I need your opinion about." Eric raised his brow. "Yes my dear?"

She pushed the envelope towards him. "This was a thank you gift from Olivia Steele." Eric opened the flap to find a note and some tickets. "Is this what I think it is?"

Jackie smiled. "Yes, I called her. They own some timeshares in Orlando because Spencer Steele has an oil derrick off the gulf shore coast and I can use it anytime I want. Eric, what if we bring the party to Florida."

"What?"

"Brooke told me that Michael wants his friend's all together for one last celebration – I can use the Steele private jet to fly everyone to Orlando, we can stay at the timeshare and do the Disneyworld thing and let Michael visit with Donna and Hyde while the rest of us go have fun."

Eric had to think about this. "Jackie, you're saying we have access to a jet, a timeshare and Disneyworld?"

"Well, yes, is that so unusual?"

Eric blinked. "Well, yeah it is."

She smiled. "Well, when you have a job like mine, it's kind of ordinary. But what do you think of my idea?"

"I really love it, but what about the wedding itself?"

"It'll still happen, we'll just have video tapes made from Hyde and Donna that will be played at the reception. C'mon Eric, this is my best idea yet."

"Actually…I think its pure genius." He admitted. How she was going to accomplish this he had no clue but knew Jackie Burkhart could make it happen. He looked at her smiling face. "Is it going to be difficult for you to see Hyde again?" He needed to know.

"Is it going to be uncomfortable to you to see Donna again?" she countered.

"Not if I know you're waiting for me."

"And you'll catch me if I fall…"

Eric grinned, "We sound like a country song."

Jackie giggled. "Back to business Mr. Forman – I have a bridal/baby shower for 40 women. Do you have a room that is how should I say this, away from the public, because there are going to be male exotic dancers?"

Eric thought about the small theater near the Diamond Hall. "It might be bigger than you need, but it has a small stage and I can have tables put in or sofas. Would you like to see it?"

"Only if you're going to be my guide – then I can bring Miss Vicki Jacobs down to see it on Thursday."

"Well, follow me then."

*

Eric couldn't believe that Friday was here already. Jackie's client ended up booking the Emerald Stage Room and several suites on the 4th floor and she agreed to go to dinner with him on a real date! They had food and meals before but this was the first real date she agreed to. After the practice date he was all to ready so see what a real life date with Jackie was like. He still remembered the practice date with the dance in her apartment to the Boz Skaggs song and how much he wanted her at that moment but a cold shower brought him back to reality.

"So this is the Emerald Stage room and it's really used for groups of 100 or so, but no one is using it for a few months so…"

"So I can get it at a discount?" She smiled.

Eric pretended to decided. "Well, that depends."

She furrowed her brow, "Depends on what - the deposit? I can write you a check for that right now."

"No. A date - Go out with me on a real date. Let me pick you up take you out and bring you home."

"Oh Eric, we've done that before." She argued.

Eric was not to be defeated. "We had a practice date. You were pissed and somehow we turned it into a dinner date." Jackie remembered and didn't want to admit it yet.

"Well, if those are your terms Mr. Forman, I am agreeable, but I still want a discount!" She said determined to be the winner in this little bargain.

"Fine Miss Burkhart, I'll pick you up at six on Friday." He smiled.

"Fine. I'll be ready." She replied with a flip of her hair over her shoulder. "Don't be late!" Eric watched her walk out of the room adding a little sashay to her hips as she left.

*

"Brooke, I don't know what to wear!" Jackie said frantically. Brooke was laughing from her end of the telephone.

"Calm down. It's Eric. He won't care if you wear a flour sack. Where is he taking you?"

Jackie fell into the chair. "I forgot to ask. Can you believe it? That's the first question I always ask. Damn, I don't know!"

"Jackie, what do you want to accomplish from this date?"

"I want him to like me. I mean really like me – more than a friend – like me."

Brooke chuckled, "Honey, he already does. Why don't you just dazzle him? It's hot out there so put on that aqua sundress that matches your eyes; pick out a light sweater and wear some low pumps. You don't want to be taller than him do you?"

"Okay, I like that, my hair, God, I'm a walking disaster. I never had this problem before."

"Jackie, you never dated anyone as decent as Eric before. I can't believe you're nervous. Jackie Burkhart – the woman with nerves of steel – you're anxious about a date? I've gotta tell Michael about this!"

"Brooke – don't you dare! You'll never get details if you do!" Jackie threatened. She looked at the clock; she still had 15 minutes left. "I gotta go, I'll call you later!"

Jackie tore through her closet for the blue and green swirled sundress and threw it over her head while she stumbled into the bathroom to put her hair in a loose knot on the top of her head and secured the stray hairs with pins. She was adding the final touches of mascara to her eyelashes when there was a knock on the door.

Crap. She wasn't ready. She grabbed some of her perfume and sprayed some pulse points. Where were her shoes? She ran to the door and there stood a fresh shaven, slightly shaggy haired, stunningly handsome Eric Forman holding a bouquet of daisies. He smiled at her with a lopsided grin. "Here, just for you Missy."

She took the flowers and invited him in. "I just need to get my shoes, I'm sorry; I don't usually take this long to get ready." She apologized,

"Its okay," he smiled a smile that caused her knees to go weak. "I can wait for as long as you need." He looked around her normally tidy apartment and it looked like a tornado had blown through. Was she a bit anxious maybe? She poked her head out of the bedroom door, "I'm having a problem finding my shoes."

Eric leaned back on the sofa. "Take your time. We don't have to be there until seven."

She looked back out the door, "Wait... what - where…" She was so flustered that she started babbling and Eric thought it was the most adorable thing he had ever seen.

*