So here is the next chapter. I think you're going to like it... it's got pretty much everything in it. Oh and to the guest reviewer who asked me to confirm that I got their review... I didn't get it - JOKING! :-)
Now for the young ones among you, this film has an iconic scene in it (John Cusack and a ghetto blaster anyone?). Much as I would like to replicate that scene... it ain't happening... I went a bit more literal. Enjoy!
Chapter 36: Say Anything.
Lauren got out of bed the following morning with a smile on her face. For the second time in three days she had got up before the rest of the family. She went downstairs and quickly made a couple of coffees, carrying the mugs back upstairs and opening the door to Joey's room. Joey was still asleep so she put the coffees down and slid into the bed beside him, loving how his arms moved around her even though he was asleep. His chest was bare so Lauren kissed it softly. She moved her kisses higher, up his neck and then along his jaw to his mouth.
"Morning baby." He whispered just before her lips met his.
"Hi." She smiled at him. "I brought you a coffee."
"Have I told you how much I love you...?"
"Not today." She said with a smile. She sat up and reached for the mugs, passing one to him and drinking from the other.
"I really do, baby... and it's not just because you make good coffee."
She stared at him, biting her lip gently, smirking slightly when she saw his eyes stare at her mouth, "I thought maybe we should tell our friends today." She said softly.
Joey lifted his eyes to hers, "Are you sure you're ready for that?"
"I am, Joe. I want them to know. Alice and Abs are on our side... we should be okay." She glanced down at her lap.
"Should be?" he asked. "What are you worried about... or should I say who?"
"You know who..." she whispered.
"Lucy." He said and she nodded. "I'll be there for you. We can get through this together, baby."
"I know." She said, smiling at him softly.
*JL*JL*
Lauren had contacted Whitney and between them they'd organised for everyone to gather at the house she shared with Tyler. Whit was going to contact the others and arrange it all for about an hour's time.
"You ready, baby?" Joey asked when he walked into her room as she was finishing getting ready.
"Think so..." she said, looking at her reflection in the mirror.
Joey walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You look perfect, baby." He told her, kissing her cheek tenderly as he held her eyes in the mirror. "Alice has gone over already so she'll be there when we get there."
"Abs is coming over with us. Jay, Dexter and Lola are meeting us there along with all the others."
"So everyone's going to be there?" he asked.
"Yes."
Joey could tell she was nervous. "We don't have to do this today, Lauren." He said.
"I know." She turned to face him, winding her arms around his neck, "It's time. I don't want to hide this anymore."
He smiled at her, "Maybe we can look at that form later today..."
"That would be really good actually. I looked at it the other night and there are some sections where I've got to write about myself... I'm going to need some help."
"I'll be right next to you. Every step of the way."
Lauren knew he wasn't just talking about the form she needed to fill in. She took a deep breath and grabbed his hand tightly. "Let's go then." They walked out of the house with Abi and over to number 23. Lauren rang the doorbell and Whit opened the door, "Hello, Mrs. Moon." Lauren said brightly, hiding the nerves that were threatening to show.
Whitney giggled, "Still getting used to that."
"Is everyone here?" Lauren asked as Whit held the door open for her. Abi and Joey walked into the house behind her.
"Just waiting for Lucy and Tamwar. She's got to wait for Marie to turn up so she might be a bit late." Everyone stood slightly awkwardly around the room, breaking up into their pairs automatically. "So what's this about, babe?" Whitney asked, staring at her friend. She was still concerned about her after she'd left so suddenly at the wedding reception.
Lauren took a deep breath, "I thought it was time I introduced you to my boyfriend..." she said quietly, glancing up at Whitney before lowering her eyes again. She exhaled slowly and lifted her head to look at all her friends, finding some inner confidence, knowing Joey was beside her. Silently she reached for Joey's hand and entwined their fingers. Silence filled the room. "Say something... anything..." she whispered.
"What the fuck?"
Lauren turned her head towards the entrance of the room and saw Lucy and Tamwar standing in the doorway. Lucy was staring at Joey and Lauren's hands. "I guess I don't have to do this twice now..." she whispered, more to herself than anyone else.
"You have remembered the two of you are related, right?" Lucy spluttered.
"Oh my god, I knew we were forgetting something, Joe." Lauren gasped in mock shock, lifting her free hand to her chest. He smiled at her gently and she smirked, hearing Fats and Tyler both chuckle. It was good to break some of the tension that had formed since she'd taken Joey's hand.
"It's disgusting..." Lucy said fiercely.
Lauren froze. This was it. This was the moment she'd been dreading. This was when her friends rejected her. Joey saw the abject fear on her face and pulled her into a hug, kissing her forehead softly, without even thinking about it. His natural instincts to want to protect her and comfort her overrode everything else.
"No one's forcing you to stay, Lucy." Whitney said softly, her eyes locked on Lauren and Joey. Lauren turned her head slightly to look at her and Whitney smiled at her.
"You can't agree with this?" Lucy cried out.
"I don't know what your problem with me is, Lucy... but it's really getting on my nerves. If there's something you want to say, just say it." Lauren said firmly, pulling from Joey's arms and turning to face her apparent former friend.
"I don't know what you mean..." Lucy said innocently.
"You've been off with me for months. Ever since we had that fight in the cafe because I wouldn't tell you who it was I was seeing..."
"Well I can understand your reluctance to tell us now..." Lucy said, looking at the pair of them with disdain.
"Lucy..." Tamwar said, his hand touching her arm as he tried to placate her.
Lucy shook his hand off. "No, this is wrong... on so many levels. This shouldn't have happened."
"Lucy, Lauren and Joey are our friends... you can't say things like that..." Poppy said.
"I've said and done nothing to be ashamed of..." she said, turning her eyes back to Lauren, "Unlike you." She said, folding her arms and scowling at Lauren.
"I'm not ashamed of our relationship..." Lauren told her calmly.
"You've been seeing him how long? And you're only telling us about it now?"
"Obviously it was complicated..." Lauren said.
"Because you're cousins..." Lucy said.
"Because I was falling in love with him and I wasn't sure he felt the same way." Lauren said.
"I think we should go..." Tamwar said to Lucy, knowing his girlfriend was only going to make herself even more unpopular unless he got her out of the house in the next few minutes.
"It's not us that should be going. We've done nothing wrong, Tam." Lucy said stubbornly.
"Sorry, Tam..." Tyler said as he walked towards the doorway of the room, "But I think it's best if you both went..." he added, ushering the other couple out of the room and towards the front door, ignoring Lucy's protests.
As soon as the front door closed behind Lucy and Tamwar, all the strength Lauren possessed vanished and she slumped backwards against Joey. He picked her up and sat on the couch with her on his lap in almost a direct repeat of the previous night, brushing his hand up and down her back as she began to cry quietly, the strain of the last couple of days threatening to break her. Abi walked over to the couch and sat beside the couple, taking Lauren's hand in hers and squeezing it in support as Alice turned to their friends and tried to give them some privacy.
"We don't all think like Lucy, babe," Whitney said once Lauren had calmed slightly. "You remember what I said to you the other day, just before I got married?" Lauren nodded against Joey's shoulder. "I haven't changed my opinion because I know who you're dating." Whit said, moving quietly towards her friend. "If Joey makes you happy then that's good enough for me, babe." She said gently.
Lauren turned her head, "Really?" she croaked. Whitney nodded. "He does make me happy, Whit, even if I'm crying now."
"I know he does, babe... because you've been so much happier recently. And happiness looks good on you, babe." Whitney said gently.
"Thanks Mrs. Moon." Lauren said quietly with a soft smile.
"So how long have you been together?" Tyler asked.
Lauren giggled, "That's a complicated question really..." she said, glancing at Joey and smiling at him.
*JL*JL*
"I don't know what to write." Lauren said later that evening as she sat at the table with Joey, the form before her.
"What's the question?"
"What inspires me...?" Lauren said, chewing the end of her pen.
"What have you got so far?" Joey asked. Lauren turned the pad she was writing her first draft on towards him and he saw a blank page, "Ah... um, well can you maybe try and relate it to your art. Write about how you get inspiration for the drawings you do." He leant forward and kissed her, Lauren quickly responding to his kiss, distracting her from her task for several seconds but inspiring something within her as she turned back to the pad once they pulled apart and she began to write.
An hour later Lauren had completed a majority of the form; there were a couple more essay questions she had to answer so she was going to think about them in the morning. "I'm going to bed..." she said softly to Joey. "See you upstairs?" She whispered, kissing him quickly and getting a quick nod from him.
*JL*JL*
Joey walked into Oscar's room about twenty minutes later and smiled when he saw Lauren curled up in his bed. He rapidly removed his clothes, climbing into the bed and moaning softly when he realised Lauren was also naked.
"Joe..." she breathed, moving back towards his hot body. His manly pride increased hearing her say his name when he moved next to her. She wriggled further back and Joey had to stifle another moan as a certain part of his anatomy became very aware of who was lying in front of him.
"Baby..." he said softly, wrapping an arm around her waist, his fingers brushing over the soft skin of her stomach. He felt the moment she woke and kissed the side of her head tenderly, his mouth near her ear. "We're breaking one of their rules..." he whispered.
"Didn't want to sleep on my own," she murmured. Her hips shifted and this time there was no stopping the moan that fell from Joey's lips, however much he tried.
"Baby please... you're killing me here." He gasped, trying to catch his breath.
Lauren reached behind her and took his substantial length in her hand, "You could always put us both out of our misery..." she said as her hand moved slowly on him.
"And break another rule?" he said softly, resting his forehead on her shoulder as he tried to control his reaction to what her hand was doing.
"Be a shame to break the habit of a lifetime, Joe..."
"You're going to have to be very quiet, baby..." he said and her hand stilled on him, offering him momentary relief. He pulled away from her again, "I'll just get a..."
"Don't, Joe..." She said, her hand reaching for his arm and stopping him from moving away from her.
Joey paused, staring at the back of her head, "Are you sure?"
"Yes. If it happens, it happens, Joe." She turned her head slightly and looked him in the eye, "I like the feel of just you in me..." she whispered.
He kissed her softly, his fingers moving lower and brushing over her clit, making her gasp allowing his tongue to slip inside her mouth. He spoke when he pulled his mouth from hers. "I can tell you want this, baby..." he murmured, his fingers stroking her.
"Don't tease me, Joe..." she moaned. "Please..."
He smiled and pulled his fingers from her, taking himself in hand and easing into her, her body squeezing him instantly. Lauren's head fell back against his shoulder and she pushed her hips back against him, forcing him into her faster than he'd intended, "Baby..." he breathed, his hands brushing up her body and cupping her breasts.
"Need you..." she gasped as his thumbs brushed over each peak.
"You've got me, baby... Nowhere else I'd rather be." He breathed in her ear. "I'm doing exactly what I want to do... with the girl I love."
His hips moved faster and she moaned again, her hand reaching for his arm and clutching it tightly. "Joe..." she whimpered as he managed to hit that sacred spot.
"Relax baby... Let me do this for you..." His arm moved to around her waist and he slowed but deepened his strokes in and out of her body. She was tightening around him and he knew it wouldn't be long before she came... taking him with her hopefully. He felt Lauren try to relax her body, her breathing deepening and slowing as she tried to hold her orgasm back. He brushed his hand up her body and turned her face so he could kiss her deeply, lightly grazing his fingers over her cheek. She moaned into his mouth as she came and it only took a few seconds for his own peak to hit.
TBC
A/N: Yes, I know I haven't specified what the rules were... let's just leave it as everything Joey and Lauren are likely to want to do with each other/to each other is banned and I'm sure you'll work out what was on the list. Fortunately Joey and Lauren are not very good to sticking to the rules or the next few chapters would be such a let down.
COMING SOON... TO A FAN FIC SITE NEAR YOU... JUST GO WITH IT...
FOUR MORE TO GO!