A/N: I've been watching Friends on Netflix, and well...this happened. It's kind of silly, but I had fun with it. Hopefully someone else will enjoy it too.
Set post-series. Ross and Rachel are married.
Disclaimer: I do not own Friends or its characters, and I make no profit.
TOW Ross and Rachel's Anniversary
Ross sat alone at the bar, unable to believe that this was happening again.
He'd had such high hopes for this evening. He'd arranged for his parents to take Emma overnight. He'd planned a romantic dinner at the renowned restaurant of a luxury hotel and booked them overnight accommodations in one of the high-end suites. He and Rachel would celebrate their first wedding anniversary in grand style.
But first anniversaries apparently had some sort of curse where Ross and Rachel were concerned. Because Rachel had once again had to work late, and Ross found himself sitting in this stupid bar waiting for her to join him. He scowled at his drink then knocked it back in one gulp.
"Whoa, easy there," a sultry feminine voice said to his left. He turned toward the sound in time to see her slide onto the stool next to him. Before he could say a word she asked sympathetically, "Date stood you up?"
He gave a little shrug. "Yeah, she had to work."
"That's too bad. Why don't I keep you company until she gets here? I'll even buy you a drink."
"Okay." He tittered a bit, embarrassed.
She gave him a slow smile, and he thought it might just be the sexiest thing he'd ever seen. The bartender came over immediately. She ordered a glass of wine for herself and refill of Ross's whiskey.
The bartender delivered the drinks, and she leaned casually back against the bar, crossing one leg over the other. Ross's trousers began to feel uncomfortably snug. "So is this a first date, this woman who didn't show?"
"Nah, she's my wife. It's our anniversary."
"Ooh, that is cold. She couldn't get out of work even for that?"
He shrugged again. "I think a crisis came up. Couldn't be helped, you know?"
"Mm, maybe. She's kind of dumb though, leaving a good-looking guy like you sitting here all by yourself. And you look so sad—I bet half the women in here would be happy to comfort you."
"Yeah, well, lucky you got here first, huh?"
She shot him that sexy smile again and leaned toward him. "Lucky for me, certainly. Maybe lucky for you too."
His breath caught in his throat. Damn, she was beautiful. And she smelled amazing. He sipped his drink. "I'm, ah, I'm Ross. Uhhh, what's your name?"
Her gaze flickered for a moment, then she smiled again. "Karen." She stroked his arm. "Pleasure to meet you, Ross."
Okay, they really needed to turn up the air conditioning in this place. Or was it turn down the air conditioning? Damned if he could remember. He just knew he was about to spontaneously combust. "Is it hot in here?" His words came out strangled.
Her voice dropped to a low, throaty murmur, and she leaned close enough that he could feel her breath on his cheek. "I think it's just you."
Screw drinks. Screw dinner. Screw everything. "Listen, I've got a suite booked. Care to, uh, care to join me?"
She chuckled and leaned back. "My, my, aren't we forward. What about your missing wife?" She trailed a finger down his arm again.
"Well, she's, uh, apparently she's still missing."
"Apparently so." She slid off the stool and stepped between his legs. He nearly stopped breathing entirely as her lips barely brushed his, then blazed a path along his jaw. She reached his ear and spoke. "Lead the way."
He almost fell off the stool in his haste. He led her by the hand out of the bar and through the lobby to the elevators. As soon as the doors to the elevator closed, his hands were in her hair and his lips were on hers.
He felt her hands moving down his chest, pulling his shirt from his pants. He massaged the back of her head with one hand while the other slid down her back, pulling her closer.
The elevator dinged to announce their arrival at the proper floor. They broke their kiss long enough to suck in heated breaths then stumbled down the hallway still kissing and pulling at clothes.
Ross barely managed to unlock the door. They practically fell into the room. He kicked the door shut behind him. He kissed her again, lifting her off the floor so he could carry her to the bed. She obligingly wrapped her legs around his waist and ground into him. He groaned. Holy hell, the woman was going to kill him.
But man, what a way to go.
Later—a long time later—they lay on the bed together, both completely spent. Ross drew lazy circles on her back and kissed her shoulder. "So was this your plan all along? Pretend to have to work so you could come here playing the role of the other woman?"
She laughed softly. "No, but when the opportunity presented itself I wasn't going to resist."
"Mm, I'm glad you didn't. That was sexy as hell."
She grinned at him, eyes dancing. "So you'd like to hook up with 'Karen' again sometime?"
"Honey, 'Karen' is welcome to show up whenever she likes. She definitely did it for me."
"I noticed," Rachel teased, giving him a quick peck on the lips. Well, she probably intended for it to be a quick peck. Ross captured her lips and deepened the kiss. Maybe he wasn't sated yet after all.
"Happy anniversary," they said together.