Jim sat at his desk and rubbed his hands over his face. He hadn't had much sleep the previous night, his mind overcrowded with images of Pam in photos that left little to the imagination, disturbingly mixed with the resulting expressions on the faces of men who were looking at said photos.

To be honest, he felt a little ill. When the magazine offer was revealed yesterday, he had automatically assumed that there as no way Pam would be interested. The fact that she didn't reject the idea out of hand took him completely by surprise, and when they looked through the paper work Pam came home with - the release forms, the contract specifications, the 'Tips for a Great Photo Shoot' - he could tell that she really was weighing the possibility.

What was worse than the fear she would really go through with it was that he felt incredibly guilty about not wanting her to do it. One of the things he always felt confident about was his ability to be the kind of boyfriend Pam deserved. He swore he would always be there to support her, to encourage her to do anything she wanted to do. It never occurred to him that maybe one day she'd be interested in something like this.

He wasn't being prudish. Nudity wasn't something that offended him, especially not hers. So it wasn't as if he was morally opposed to her posing in Playboy. It was a selfish reason, pure and simple. He didn't want to share her with anyone, even if sharing translated into simply her image. In his mind there was already one man too many who had seen her naked. That was his reward, not anyone else's. He knew it was a Neanderthal reaction, but he just couldn't shake it. Which is why every time Pam turned to him for his opinion he found himself clamming up and brushing her off with the most inoffensive of answers. He didn't think he had the right to tell her not to do it, but it was the one thing he wanted most to say.

Jim was distracted from his misery by the arrival of Jan. Dressed in clingy knit capris and a t-shirt that probably fit before her enhancements, he heard Jan tell Pam she just got out of a yoga class and was hoping to talk to Michael. He wondered if Jan knew about the magazine offer, or more to the point, if she was going to be included. From Michael's reaction yesterday, he had a feeling Jan wasn't even aware of the news. When Jan disappeared into Michael's office, he walked up to Pam's desk.

“So did she say anything?”

Pam looked up from her solitaire game. “About what?”

Jim rolled his eyes comically. “About what?” He mocked. “About the nuclear weapons ban with North Korea. Does she know about the Playboy offer?”

“Oh!” Pam brought her hands to her mouth. “I hadn't even thought about that!”

“She is a cast member in the current show.”

“Did you just make air quotes around 'cast member'?” She grinned, mimicking his hand movement.

“Maybe.”

“You're such a dork,” she teased, “And no, she didn't say anything. But they didn't say anything about her yesterday, either. So who knows?”

“Think she'd agree to it?”

Pam smirked. “Is that a serious question? The woman has a great deal to share with the world these days.”

“True,” Jim said. “I can't imagine Michael will be pleased, though.”

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“Oh my God,” Kelly gushed. “I was on the phone all night with my girlfriends telling them the unbelievably awesome news about being in Playboy. Nobody could believe that I would really do that, but why wouldn't I? I'm mean, how cool is that? I could tell they were all totally jealous, but who could blame them?”

“I haven't told my parents, but they don't read Playboy anyway, so who cares, right? It's not like they'd ever find out. And besides, the photos I'll be in are going to look so good. I'm definitely not going to let them photograph me looking slutty or anything. It's going to be so classy and sophisticated. I hope we get to choose our own outfits, because I found the most adorable pink baby doll on the Victoria's Secret website. I really love how good I look in pink. I look really, really good in white too, but I think pink is better choice. But maybe they have the outfit in white. I should see if I can get both, just to be sure.”

“I wouldn't it put it past Ryan to have instigated this whole idea just so he could see me naked again. Or nearly naked, anyway. He knows what he's missing.”

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Jim was in the kitchen, pouring his third cup of coffee of the day, when Toby stepped in from the annex.

“Hey, Jim,” he greeted.

“Hey Toby,” Jim nodded, stirring his coffee.

Toby leaned back against the wall and stared at Jim for a moment. When Jim looked up and caught him staring, Toby cleared his throat. “So what do you make of yesterday's announcement?”

Jim couldn't help rolling his eyes a little. “Interesting.”

“Yeah,” Toby mused. “I have had to listen to Kelly calling up everyone she's ever met to talk about it.”

“That's got to be fun.”

“I'm thinking about investing in a pair of those noise protectors the guys out on the airline runways use. You know the ones I mean?”

Jim nodded and took a small sip of his hot coffee. “That might not be a bad idea. If you think they'll work.”

“If I could just tone it down to muffled roar I think it would be good enough.” They both laughed amicably, and stood in silence for another moment. Jim picked his mug back up off the counter and turned to the door.

“Hey, I was wondering,” Jim said slowly. “Are all the Dunder Mifflin women currently on the episodes that are airing going to be featured in Playboy?”

“That was my understanding. I mean, at least they would all get the offer.”

“Even Jan?”

“Ha,” Toby mused. “I hadn't thought about that. I suppose so.”

“You don't know?”

“Well, I didn't see a folder with her name on it in the stack Samantha gave us.” Toby shook his head. “But, as I recall they had been in Michael's hands before I got to them.”

“She's in his office right now, if you want to ask.”

Toby chuckled softly. “Yeah, I think that would go over really well, even if she knew. I'm going to call Samantha first. Make sure Jan's included.”

Jim nodded. “Well, good luck with that. Guess I better be getting back to work.”

“Yeah,” Toby said. He put his hand out toward Jim. “Hey, did Pam say what she's going to do about the offer?”

“I honestly don't know yet. I know she's thinking about doing it, but she's not decided anything definitely.”

“So do you mind if she does it?” Toby asked.

Jim raised an eyebrow at the question. If it was anyone other than Toby he might have given some non-committal response. But he considered Toby a friend, and figured if nothing else, he could always claim HR confidentiality. He looked down at his coffee and then back at his friend. “I hope she doesn't do it,” he said quietly.

Toby nodded. “I can understand that. Does she know how you feel?”

“Nah,” Jim shook his head slightly. “It's her decision. I want her to do what she wants.”

“You're better than I am then. If I had a girlfriend like Pam I don't think I'd be able not to ask her not to put her picture in a national men's magazine dressed in next to nothing. I'm pretty sure the pictures go on their website, too.”

“Wow, thanks,” Jim said dryly, “I hadn't even thought about that. Good to know.”

“I mean I haven't picked up one of those magazines in a while, but I think even if the women are dressed in the layouts, it's mostly in really revealing outfits. It would be quite something to see Pam doing that.”

“Thanks, Toby,” Jim cut in, tilting his head toward the door. “I really need to get back and make some phone calls.”

“Oh right, sure.” Toby flushed slightly. “And I mean it would be something to see in the fact that she doesn't seem to be the type that would do it. Not that I was implying I actually wanted to see her like that.”

“No, of course not,” Jim replied, suddenly a bit awkward at the whole exchange. “I knew what you meant.”

“Okay, good,” Toby said. “Well, let me know when Pam decides what she's going to do.”

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Andy walked into the kitchen just as Dwight closed the refrigerator. “Schrute,” Andy acknowledged.

“Bernard,” Dwight spit back.

Andy washed his mug in the sink, aware that Dwight was watching him. “So, tell me, what do you make of this whole Women of Dunder Mifflin thing?” Andy asked him. “I think it's the best idea this company has had in a long, long time.”

Dwight scoffed. “I do not see how printing the pictures of female members of the office staff in an adult magazine can possibly increase paper sales and revenues.”

“Oh, I think you're wrong there, my friend,” Andy replied, reaching for a paper towel to dry his cup. “I think you are missing the point of good business entirely.”

“I am not your friend,” Dwight corrected him. “But continue. Why would it be good for business?”

“Because the majority of people in a position to buy our product are men. And every man I know likes to take time out and smell the roses - or in this case have a look at some pretty ladies. Ladies who are wearing as little as possible. Who knows, the response might be so overwhelming we'll need to start printing annual Ladies of Dunder Mifflin calendars.”

“Unlikely,” Dwight snorted.

“Besides, who here doesn't want to see what's under those skirts out there?” Andy winked.

“That's disgusting. And inappropriate.”

“Oh, come on now,” Andy chided. “Pam has got to be hiding some primo goods under those sweaters. Kelly's already nice to look at, as long as you don't have to listen to her. Even Angela has got it going on, actually. Now there's an ice princess I'd like to see melt a bit.”

Dwight glared at him and stepped forward menacingly. “You will shut up immediately or I will be forced to pummel you.”

“Whoa, back off,” Andy replied, his hands raising defensively. “It's not like I'm saying anything bad about them. Quite the opposite, in fact. I'm just appreciating our assets.”

“Keep it to yourself, Bernard,” Dwight hissed as he walked out.

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“I talked to Samantha Weber briefly this afternoon, and it looks like yes, they did want Jan Levinson included in the Women of Dunder Mifflin article. Since there was no folder for her in the paper work I was given yesterday, this means that Michael must have it.”

“I haven't approached either Jan or Michael yet. You know this isn't going to end well.”

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Jim pushed open the break room door and walked over to Pam, who was standing next to the soda machine. “Okay, I'm here. So what's with the cryptic email you sent me?”

Pam pushed the fax sheet in her hand up to his nose. “Look. Your girlfriend just faxed me their official compensation letterr. She said they were making me a different offer to what the rest of the women in the office were getting.”

Jim took the paper out of her hand and began to read. Then he felt he really, really needed to sit down. He vaguely remembered pulling out the chair and falling into it. He read the short fax over again, confirming that he had indeed read it correctly. He handed it back to Pam without saying a word.

“Can you believe it?” Pam asked, her eyes wide. “I mean, that's a lot of money.”

“Yeah, it's a lot of money,” he agreed. “But they are asking a lot from you too, don't you think?”

Pam pulled up a chair next to him. “Oh, I'm not saying they aren't, but I mean - look at this.”

“I see it.”

“She told me on the phone that they are offering everyone else ten thousand dollars to pose, but they aren't asking for full nudity. And here they are offering me fifteen thousand just for posing, but they'll bump it up to twenty-five thousand if I'll agree to pose nude. That is unbelievable!”

“That's the word I'd use,” Jim murmured weakly.