Chapter 3:
It was still dark when Joey woke up and memories returned to him slowly - the night before, Rachel, kissing Rachel. But when he reached out across the bed looking for her, his hands only touched empty sheets. "Fuck," he groaned. His voice was graveled with sleep, or the lack of it, and he closed his eyes once more. His brain felt foggy, too tired, too slow, and he tried to sort through his memories. Maybe it really had been just a dream. He'd had ones before that felt almost real. But no, it had happened. She'd just left. Changed her mind, had second thoughts, realized he was a huge mistake, and took off.
That was always a risk, but it still hurt and he tried to shove those thoughts aside so he could go back to sleep. Joey squeezed his eyes tight and rolled over, pausing when the sound of his door closing made him jump. He opened his eyes, blinking. Focusing in the dark room took a moment, but when he could see, he saw her silhouette.
"Oh, sorry honey," Rachel whispered. She moved on quiet feet back toward the bed. "I was trying not to wake you. It's really early." She slipped back into bed and he turned to face her.
Their touch found one another instinctually. His hand came up to brush mussed hair from her face. Hers rested on his hip. "You're still here." He said slowly. Joey needed about a gallon of coffee if his brain was going to work right now.
"You asked me to stay," she reminded him, pressing a kiss to his bare shoulder.
"But I woke up and you were… I wasn't sure."
Rachel wriggled even closer. "I'm sorry honey, the baby was doing a riverdance on my bladder. I just went to the bathroom and then came back." Her fingers played over his skin again, lightly caressing him. "Didn't mean to scare you."
"You're here," he said again, smiling a sleepy smile.
"I'm here," Rachel agreed.
"It wasn't a dream?"
"No honey," Rachel tilted her head, playfully bumping their noses. "Not a dream."
Pulling her closer, Joey held Rachel as he felt the truth of those words wash over him in a wave of relaxation. "Can we sleep a little longer?" he asked.
"Please god, yes," she sighed snuggling close. Soon they were both fast asleep.
The sun peeked through the drapes by the time they woke again, and though they each made a quick visit to the restroom, neither of them much felt like getting out of the cozy bubble they'd made for themselves. Joey brushed his teeth and ordered some food, and as soon as it arrived he locked and bolted the door behind him. The last thing they needed was Chandler or Ross barging in and surprising them.
At the very least Joey wasn't sure they'd even have answers to all the questions their friends would have, and for now, he didn't want to think about it. He just wanted to be with Rachel. So he took the food into his bedroom and began unboxing it for her.
"Lox bagel," he said, setting a box down. "Oatmeal. Fruit. Bacon." He handed her more. "Bacon," he said again. "And bacon."
"Three bacons?" Rachel laughed. "Why?"
"Because I want two and you're going to try to take some of mine and Joey doesn't share food." He grinned, handing the last bacon to her. "Don't pretend you're not on a bacon kick either. I know you fried up and ate a whole pound of it two days ago."
She looked at him with shock before lowering her voice to a whisper. "How did you know?" She asked.
He just smirked. "I have my ways."
Breakfast unpacked, Joey got back into bed. It was amazing how easy it was, sitting in bed with Rachel, both of them half naked, just chatting and eating like it was the most natural thing in the world. It had been just like this when she'd lived here, too.
Well, not just like this - there'd been more clothing.
Finally, food gone and both sated, they leaned back against the headboard. Silence stretched until Joey let out a long sigh.
"Yeah," Rachel agreed. "We should probably talk about last night, huh?"
"I uh… I don't even know what to say about last night, Rache," Joey admitted quietly. "What was that? Was it just hormones or like, the thrill of getting away with hiding it?"
Rachel shook her head. "Not that. I don't know what it was, but it wasn't that," she said. More silence. She worried her lower lip between her teeth, clearly deep in thought and it was very distracting. Joey wanted to kiss that lip, wanted to take the stress and worry away. He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that when Rachel spoke again it took him a moment to process the words he heard. "I think you should kiss me again."
He started, wide eyes moving up from her lips to meet her gaze. "You do?"
"Yeah," she said. "Yeah, I think in the cold light of day, no date buzz, relaxed and rested and full is the right time." She nodded once, decision made. "You should kiss me."
"Think it'll be less intense today, huh?" Joey asked. He wasn't sure he liked the idea of that, but he guessed Rachel was right - it was better to know.
"Dunno." She admitted. Rachel moved in the bed, shifting to kneel beside him. This angle placed her slightly above him, and he smiled up at her. "Actually," she said. "I think it's my turn." Her hand wrapped around the back of his neck and Joey couldn't breathe as Rachel closed the gap between them.
There was nothing timid about the kiss this time. Fire kindled as soon as lips touched and Rachel moaned softly into his mouth, using her hand to pull him closer. If anything, this was more intense than last night. The spread of heat moved too fast to follow and without conscious thought, Joey was lifting Rachel, inviting her from his side to his lap.
She straddled him eagerly, deepening the kiss until neither of them could breathe. They parted only enough to steal quick gasps of air before crashing back together, lips and bodies moving in unison. Joey rolled his hips upward as Rachel pressed down against him, his hands slid under the tee shirt to find soft, bare skin, her fingers grabbed his hair and clung desperately.
They rocked together, grinding like teenagers, running on primal instinct and pure desire and only the thinnest layers of fabric kept her from sinking onto him, kept him from sinking into her. He wanted to be surrounded by her entirely, wanted to smell and taste every inch of her and when her hand slid down between them, Joey nearly cried out in surprise and encouragement. Even through his pajamas her touch drove him wild. His hands moved from her back to her hips, one grabbing her wrist and moving her hand gently away.
"If you keep that up," Joey panted, pressing kisses along her neck and collarbone where the shirt had slipped to reveal skin. "I'm gonna be a big disappointment." He nibbled softly at the curve of her jaw and smirked when her breath caught. He let his hand fall between them, resting at the top of her thigh. "I want to touch you," he whispered, and felt her shudder as his breath ghosted over her ear. "Can I touch you?"
Rachel nodded, but he didn't move until she managed to voice a breathy, "yes." Joey slipped his hand to cup her vulva. The fabric of the panties was thin and wet through. His heart - and cock - jumped at the discovery. It was difficult to keep it to the barest of touches and when Rachel bent over, pressing her forehead to his, moaning and rocking her hips against his hand he knew neither of them were going to be able to take this slowly.
"Fuck," he moaned, applying more pressure and moving his palm in slow circles. He didn't want to rush this, he wanted to make Rachel feel good. Wanted to know he was the one doing it. "You're so wet," he said, voice rough with arousal. "Right through your panties, right through my pants." Although, to be fair, more than a little bit of precum was contributing to that wetness. And he knew from reading her books that the pregnancy contributed to hers, but none of that made it any less hot.
He pulled back to look at her and she let her head fall back, body moving in time with his fingers. In his wildest dreams he couldn't have imagined what she looked like now. Letting go, losing herself to pleasure, and trusting him to care for her. More than anything else, that drove his desire - knowing the woman in his arms trusted him.
Rachel whimpered, squirming in his lap, trying to find purchase, to change the angle and pressure to something more, and fuck, if he didn't want to give it to her.
He pulled away briefly, to adjust the angle of his hand, and Rachel made a little whimpering sound of protest. Her eyes stayed closed, but her face screwed up in frustration. He pressed kisses to her neck and shifted so he could move his hand more effectively. Not that he wasn't happy to be the support against which Rachel made herself cum, but he wanted to give her more. "Is this okay?" he asked, tugging on her panties. She nodded again, eyes still closed and as much as he wanted this, that wasn't enough.
"Look at me," he pleaded. Rachel straightened and looked down. Her pupils were blown wide with lust and for a few beats he just looked at her. Waited for some semblance of awareness to return to her eyes. Then he asked again. "Is it okay if I remove these?"
"Yes," Rachel said, shifting to help him pull them off and settling on his lap again. "Everything is okay." She ducked her head and languished in another lingering kiss before taking his hand and guiding it back between her legs. "Touch me, Joey."
"Christ, Rache." He felt the wetness of her against his fingers now, and trembled as he eased one inside her. Her pussy tightened around it as she shuddered and for a moment all he could think of was feeling that around his cock. How little it would take to pull down the front of his pants and slide inside her. "So warm," he breathed. He wrapped his other arm around her back and pulled her close to him, crooking his finger to find her g-spot. He knew he'd found it when she cried out, the rhythm of her hips increasing. Now she was riding his hand, hips rolling, desperately running down her orgasm and Joey had never been a part of anything so visceral.
He kept the pressure on her pubic bone with his palm, stroking her g-spot with his finger until he felt her start to shake. In his arms, around his finger, everything was tense and tight shuddering as Rachel teetered on the edge. "Let go, Rache," he purred into her ear. For a moment Rachel stopped breathing, still rocking hard against his hand, and then the bow-string broke. She came like a freight train, head thrown back, cries of pleasure falling from her lips with abandon. "Yes," he growled. "Yes, Rachel." Just listening and watching and feeling her rock against him had him at the edge of his control but he held it tightly, focusing on her, on what she needed. He felt humbled, getting to see her like this. So raw, so vulnerable.
Joey kept his touch consistent, easing her down from her climax. Rachel slumped against him, and he felt the soft tremors of aftershock around his finger until he slipped it free and wrapped his arms around her once more. She trembled in them and he did his best to soothe her although his cock ached with want and the inspiration for it still sat in his lap.
Finally, many minutes later, Rachel's breathing regulated and she pulled away to look down at him. "That," she sighed. "Was definitely not less intense than last time."
"Fuck no," Joey managed tightly.
She shifted slightly, then looked down at where their bodies met. "What about you?"
Blinking, Joey shrugged. "What about me?"
"Don't you want to…" she gestured to his lap and his obvious erection. "You know."
"Do I want to," Joey laughed. "Of course I want to. But…" He took a deep breath. "We really should talk."
"You're rock hard, with a half naked woman in your lap, and you want to talk?" Rachel asked incredulously. "You?"
"You're not just any woman, Rachel," he said softly. He lifted a hand and rested on it her shoulder. "We could avoid this forever if we let our bodies do the thinking and …" He swallowed.
Rachel nodded, but didn't move. Instead her hands lifted to his face, touching cheeks and smoothing wild hair. "Well, there's undeniable attraction," she said with a sly smile. "So I don't think there's anything to worry about there." Joey nodded his agreement, thumb sweeping across the soft skin at her hip. "And I haven't slept this well, haven't been so comfortable since I moved out."
"Me either," he admitted. "Been a lot of sleepless nights lately." It was nice to feel rested. Even nicer to wake up next to Rachel. Joey smiled up at her, leaning into her touch.
"And when you look at me like that, I get butterflies in my stomach," she said softly.
"Nah, that's just the baby," Joey teased. He pressed his palm to the swell of her stomach and felt the baby move a second later. "Hi," he whispered. Ducking his head to smile at her bump.
"No." Her voice sounded tight. "It's you, Joey." She placed a finger under his chin and lifted his eyes to hers. Her blue eyes shimmered with the threat of tears. "It's you." It was like she was pleading for him to understand what she was saying.
"Oh." Joey said. He took a moment of quiet as his brain caught up, and then, "Oh." He felt stupid and slow and he didn't know what to say to that, or how to respond, but she was looking at him like that. Like she really saw him. Not the ditzy womanizer, the bad actor, the group punchline, but him. But who he really was. He wasn't even sure he knew who that was, but he was sure Rachel did.
And he wanted to see himself through her eyes.
He kissed her, holding her close and indulging in it. No push to drive it to arousal, no means to an end, just a kiss that lasted until they broke for air and pressed their noses together. He smiled. She smiled.
"Are you sure?" He asked dumbly. Some part of this still felt like it was going to dissolve into nothingness in his hands.
"No," Rachel admitted. "I'm not sure at all. Not sure this will work, not sure this is the right thing to do." She paused, taking a deep breath. "But I am sure I want to try. I want to see where this goes, Joe." She kissed the corner of his mouth. Joey smiled and nuzzled his way into her hair, breathing deeply.
"Okay," he said at last. His voice sounded wobbly to his own ears, as terrified as he felt. "Then we try." Joey pulled back again, looking into Rachel's eyes. Her face lit up and his couldn't help but follow.
"We." Rachel sighed happily. "I like the sound of that."