"Okay, where's the baby?" Jen asked as soon as Pacey let her through the front door the next day. "I managed to restrain myself yesterday, but no more."

Jack rolled his eyes and followed her inside. "Ignore her."

Pacey nodded, "I plan on it." He walked into the living room where Joey was showing Hope to Jen.

Jack smiled over at him, "So how does fatherhood feel?"

Pacey smiled, "Good. Makes me feel all adult like."

"I donno if I could do it." Jack sighed, "Too much pressure."

Pacey shook his head, "If I can do it...you can do it."

"Maybe if I left it up to Landon..."

"You're getting a death look from Joey," Pacey whispered. Jack looked at Joey and found that he was telling the truth. "Joey, how are you?"

"I'm great Jack, thanks." She smiled sweetly, "Come meet Hope Dillan Witter."

Pacey stood behind the couch as Jack went over and knelt in front of Joey, "She's tiny."

Pacey rolled his eyes, "She's a baby, not a Great Dane."

"You wanna hold her?" Joey offered.

Jack nodded, "I would love to." Joey set Hope in his arms after he got more comfortable in the floor. "She's beautiful Joey."

"You'll need to thank her parents for that," she said wryly. "But I completely agree. We were just getting ready to give her a bath."

Jen looked over at Pacey, "You're helping?"

Pacey nodded, "I contribute!"

Jack and Jen both looked at Joey, "Does he?" Jen finished, "And more than just the sexual way."

Joey blushed and stuck her tongue out at Jen. "Of course he helps. He even gave her the first bottle."

Jen smiled, "Wow...I'm impressed."

"Why?"

She shrugged, "I just figured he'd be like 'oh...a baby...take it away'."

Pacey tilted his head at her, "Have I ever done that?"

"When Marissa had a dirty diaper, you did. I believe your exact words were...'take her, take her, take her'."

"You have a point," Joey tilted her head to the side. "He hasn't changed her diaper yet."

"I see how it is," Jack smirked up at his friend.

Pacey shook his head, "I haven't done it on purpose with Hope. It's just hard to get her away from Joey for five minutes."

"Excuses, excuses," Joey teased.

Pacey rolled his eyes, "Why is it everytime all of us get together, I get picked on?"

"Awww, come here." Joey patted the seat beside her. "I'll make it better."

Pacey sat beside her and Jen whispered softly to Jack, "What can she do to make that better in front of us and Hope?"

Joey rolled her eyes, hearing Jen's comment, and gave Pacey a long, hard kiss. Smiling to herself, she whispered something into his ear, then turned to Jen, "That's how."

Pacey kissed the tip of Joey's nose, then looked back at their friends. Jack stared down at the baby as Jen lightly rubbed the top of Hope's head. "Don't get too attatched...she stays here," Pacey said with a smile as his hand rested on Joey's knee.

Jack smirked, "I don't want to keep her..."

"I was talking to Jen."

Jen looked up at him, "I'll do my best, Pacey."

"You do have one of your own, after all," Joey smiled softly. "Speaking of, where is she?"

Jen smiled, "It's Daddy and daughter bonding time."

"How'd you convince Mike to do that?" Joey asked, threading her fingers through Pacey's as she kept one eye on Hope.

"It wasn't hard. He actually took her to see his mother, and that woman hates me...so I chose to come over here."

"That explains it." Joey sighed and glanced over to Pacey, "We really should take Hope to meet our families sometime soon."

"Let's keep her away from my family, please."

"You know as well as I do, if we don't let them meet her, they'll just come here. And then we'll never get rid of them."

"Good point. Let's just go to Capeside one day. Stop by and let her meet my family first...and then go to a normal house and meet Bessie."

"And the Leerys. I still feel horrible about not inviting Gale to the wedding."

"I wonder if she even know you two got hitched," Jack asked.

Pacey shrugged, "I didn't tell her, did you tell her?"

"No...but Bessie must have. Right?"

"Well, if Gale doesn't know...then Dawson doesn't know." Jen pointed out, watching her two friends closely.

Pacey looked at Joey, "You told Dawson, right?"

"So," Joey stood up abruptly, "You guys want anything to drink? Juice? Dr. Pepper? Water? I could use some water."

Pacey's eyes widened and followed Joey into the kitchen, "You didn't tell Dawson?"

"Uh oh," Jack and Jen exchanged a look as the two disappeared from view.

Joey busied herself filling a glass of water, "Well...was I supposed to?"

Pacey sighed, "I kind of assumed you would. I mean it is Dawson, after all."

"He's been really busy with his movie and all," she continued to face the window, taking a long drink of her water. "I didn't see a point in giving him something to worry about."

Pacey leaned against the counter, "You're afraid to tell him, aren't you?"

"No, of course not."

"Then call him and tell him."

"I'm just supposed to call him and say, 'Oh, hey, Dawson. I forgot to mention the last twenty times we talked, I'm Mrs. Pacey Witter.'" She shook her head, "That'd go over well."

"You've had the chance before. Why didn't you just tell him? It's not like it would have changed anything. We would still be right here, but not having this conversation."

"I told you, I didn't want to worry him." She drank the rest of her water and then filled the glass again.

"Why would it worry him, Joey? Huh? Explain it to me. I get the feeling that I'm missing something. What aren't you telling me?"

"Why is this such a big deal to you, Pacey?" She finally turned around, leaning her back against the counter.

"Why didn't you tell him, Joey?"

"I knew he'd...I didn't want...He was..." She shook her head, "Why do you even care?"

"Because I have a strange sense of the past repeating itself."

She stiffened slightly, "This is nothing like the past. You don't love me and this is a marriage of convienience. Nothing more."

Pacey nodded, "Okay, whatever you say," he walked out of the kitchen and out of the house, leaving both Jack and Jen to look after him.

Joey remained in the kitchen until she could get herself under control. Taking a deep breath, she returned to the living room, where Jen had commendeered Hope from Jack, "Hey guys," she bent over and brushed her fingers over Hope's brow, smiling down as her daughter looked up at her.

Jen smiled sadly, "You okay?"

"Oh, yeah," she waved a hand and sat back down on the couch. "I'm fine."

Jack looked down at his hands, "We can go if you want. We didn't mean to start a fight."

"Don't be silly," Joey tried to make light of the situation. "Pacey and I always fight."

Jen shook her head, "This is a lot bigger than you want to make it out to be. You guys fight about Dawson and it ends your relationship."

"What?" Joey rolled her eyes, folding her arms protectively around herself. "Pacey and I don't have a relationship. This is all an act Jen, we're friends with benefits until it's time to divorce. That's all."

Jack sighed, "Then why do you fight at all? I mean, why fight about anything if this isn't a relationship." Jack remembered Pacey's words the night they were at the bar and knew that wherever he was, he was reliving the past in his head. "I'm gonna go find Pacey. Maybe he didn't leave the house."

Joey sighed, and hooked her hair behind her ear. "That's probably a good idea." Her eyes drifted to Jen, "Could I have her now?"

Jen nodded and handed Hope to Joey. Jack walked outside and Jen shook her head, "You are in denial."

"What?" Joey cuddled the baby to herself, murmuring soothing words and stroking her skin.

"You're kidding yourself. You can't have sex without emotions. Take it from someone who has tried. You can't do it. And the history you and Pacey have, it's virtually impossible to distance yourself from him. Don't do this to yourself or to him, Joey. Don't deny that there is more between you two than sex. Because when he leaves, it will kill you."

"I'll be fine, Jen. It's what I want."

Jen shook her head, "No. What you want is to not get hurt again. I know Samuel was a bastard and did a really shitty thing to you, but Pacey is different. I think he's proved that in every way possible." Jen's voice softened, "I just don't want you or Pacey hurting when this is over, but you will be."

"We both agreed that this was going to end, Jen. And yeah, there'll probably be a little seperation anxiety, but," she tried to shrug nonchalantly, "We'll get over it. It's not like we're never going to see one another again."

"You planning to change towns?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"He'll be here all the time. Because you see that baby in your arms? He considers her his. He loves that baby more than anything. You can see it in his eyes. He'll be here all the time just to be around her. Are you going to tell me that it won't be a little more than seperation anxiety?"

Joey gazed down at Hope, feeling tears sting her eyes at how lucky she was to have her, "He loves her. I wont keep him from seeing her...ever. Hope is just as much his daughter as mine. I didn't plan it that way, but..."

"Maybe you should just throw all your plans out the window and see what happens. Because everything you've planned, you've done the opposite. Pacey was going to see other women, but he only sees you. He was going to sleep in the other room, but now he sleeps in your bed. You weren't going to have sex, and...last I heard you two were like rabbits."

"I don't want a man in my life. Why can't you understand that?"

"I could understand it if you meant it. You like him being here. Admit it."

"Sure I do. He's one of my best friends." She focused her eyes on Hope, watching the little girl wave her hand in the air.

"You know what I mean."

"Yes, I know what you mean."

"I'm just afraid that when this is all over, you'll be left alone and wondering what could have happened if you had opened your heart to the possibility of falling in love with him all over again."

Joey shook her head, "I wont be alone. I'll have Hope. And she's all I ever wanted, Jen." She smiled softly down at the baby, "There is no possibility of falling in love with Pacey."

Jen shook her head, "It's like talking to a brick wall." She sighed, "Joey...I know you love Hope and that she is everything you've always wanted...but the love you have for a child and the love you have for a man are two different things. I love Marissa, but I wouldn't want to picture my life without Mike. He's the one I go to sleep with at night. He's the one I wake up to in the morning. He's the one who holds my hair back when I'm sick. You'll always love your child, but they grow up and leave home. And at the end of the day, you're going to wish you had someone there with you. And it might be too late when you realize that the person you want with you is Pacey." Jen sighed again, "That's all I'm saying. Take my advice or don't. I just don't want you to say that you miss him or you love him when he leaves."

Joey pursed her lips, "Then I wont."

Jen nodded, "Whatever you say, Joey."

"You think I'm being stubborn, Jen. And really, I understand that you're trying to look out for me, for both of us, but I don't need it. He and I both knew what we were getting into, and this is how we want it. I don't have any right to change that."

Jen sighed and shook her head, "It's your life. Do what you want."

Joey sighed, looking from Hope to Jen, "Why can't you just support me?"

"I support you. I'll keep my mouth closed."

"Thank you," Joey stood up, the baby still in her arms. "I was going to give her a bath, do you wanna show me how it's done?"

Jen smiled and stood also, "I'd love to."