Author's Note: Thank you so much for all of your amazing reviews! This chapter titles comes from "All My Life" by the Foo Fighters.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

The next night, Rachel was in the kitchen washing dishes with Carole while Finn was out back with Burt. Carole noticed how every now and then, Rachel would look out the window and her eyes would immediately find Finn's form, and then she would smile.

They would be leaving early the next day, and Rachel was sad to go. She and Finn had spent a wonderful weekend with his parents. He had also shown her around town, and they had just been able act normally. They didn't have to worry about anyone finding out about their relationship, so Finn and Rachel were able to be a couple in the open.

"I really don't think you have anything to worry about," Carole suddenly said.

Rachel pulled herself from her musings and turned to Carole. "What?"

The older woman smiled. "I think that everyone will be okay with you and Finn being in a relationship. I understand why you're choosing to wait until after the wedding to tell everyone. But I don't think that there will be a negative reaction."

Rachel nodded her head and let out a sigh. "I didn't mean for this to blow up the way that it did. We just wanted to keep it quiet, and then the lies got bigger and bigger, and…" She sighed again and bit her lip. "We dug ourselves into a whole. This is my fault."

Carole stepped forward and hugged Rachel tightly. "Finn doesn't think that at all. He only wants you to be happy, Rachel. He wants to make sure you have everything that you want, because that's just the kind of man that my son is."

Rachel hugged her in return and breathed deeply as she tried to calm herself down. It was then that the back door opened and Burt and Finn entered the kitchen. When they saw Carole and Rachel, they both stopped and stared at the two women with worry on their faces.

"Rach," Finn said as he stepped towards her. He reached out and put a hand on her back, sliding it up and down in a comforting motion. "Are you okay? Is everything alright?"

Rachel hugged Carole for another moment before she pulled away and turned to face Finn. She gave him a smile and nodded her head. "Everything is alright," she said quietly. "Carole and I were just talking."

Finn's brow furrowed and he cupped her face with one hand, stroking her cheek with his thumb. He could easily tell that she had been upset, and it worried him to see her like this. "Talking about what?"

"Nothing, Finny," Carole said. "It was just a girl talk. It's not something that you need to worry about, okay?"

Finn looked down at Rachel for confirmation. When she nodded her head, he kissed her forehead and took her hand, squeezing it gently. Rachel closed her eyes at Finn's comforting actions, and a small smiled played on her lips. Carole shared a look with Burt, because they just looked so cute together.

Rachel went upstairs to make sure that all of their things were packed. Finn could feel his mother's eyes on him, and he turned to face her with an eyebrow raised.

"Mom?" he asked as he watched her curiously.

"It's nothing, Finny," Carole said. And to his surprise, she actually sniffled. "I'm just… you look so happy with Rachel. And I'm so glad that you found her, sweetie."

"Mom… Are you crying?"

"No!" Carole exclaimed. But then she wiped at her eyes, and Finn could only smile and shake his head. "She's just so sweet and I always knew that you liked her and I'm so glad that the two of you are finally together."

"Carole, leave the poor boy alone," Burt said with a chuckle. "They're leaving to go back to the city in half an hour. I doubt either of them want to see you crying."

"Oh hush, Burt," Carole said as she sniffled again. "I'm the mother. I know what I'm talking about." She reached forward and hugged Finn, and he laughed as he hugged her in return.

"I know you talked to Rachel, Mom," Finn said quietly. "She's been so worried about everything lately, and I know that you've helped her. Thank you."

Carole smiled as Rachel came down the stairs. The conversation ended quickly and they all went into the kitchen for a last cup of coffee before Finn and Rachel had to go back to New York.

Rachel was so thankful that the apartment was empty as she entered it with Finn. He insisted on carrying her bags, and she wasn't complaining. She was tired and all she wanted was a nap after their plane ride. And Rachel wouldn't be opposed to napping with Finn, either.

"Thank God it's quiet in here," Rachel mumbled as she lay down on the couch. "I just want to take a nap."

Finn set Rachel's bags down and came to stand next to the couch. She reached a hand up and he took it, stroking his thumb over her knuckles. "Do you want me to go, baby?" he asked. He leaned over to kiss her forehead, and Rachel tugged on his hand until he got the hint and climbed onto the couch with her.

"Of course not," Rachel said. She snuggled into his side and closed her eyes, one hand gripping his shirt. Finn's presence calmed her immediately, and she just loved being around him. Whether they were out and having a good time or just sitting quietly, being with Finn just made Rachel happy. "You should stay here and nap with me."

Finn wasn't going to argue with her. If she didn't care that Santana and Kurt could walk in at any time, he certainly wasn't going to question it. He pulled her closer and lifted her chin so that he could kiss her. He felt her smile against his lips before she deepened the kiss, reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck.

Finn slid his hands under her shirt, unable to keep himself from touching her soft skin. Rachel moaned in response, arching under him and pulling him closer at the same time. Her plans for a nap were quickly forgotten as Finn's touch excited her. They were so caught up in each other that neither heard the front door open.

Finn moved his lips from Rachel's and pressed them to her neck as she locked her fingers in his hair. She tilted her head back, letting out another moan of appreciation and bucked her hips into his, rubbing against him.

"I seriously hope that you two aren't about to fuck on that couch."

Finn was so surprised at the sudden voice that he fell off of Rachel, landing on the floor with a thud. He let out a groan of pain when his head hit the leg of the coffee table, and Rachel scrambled from the couch to kneel beside him.

"Oh my God, Finn! Are you okay?" she asked as she helped him sit up. She put one hand on his cheek and gently probed the back of his head with her other hand, feeling for the bump that was now forming.

"I'll be fine," Finn said. He turned to look up at Santana, who was smirking at both of them. "Hi, Santana."

"Lurch," she greeted. She walked towards the freezer and got an icepack. She wrapped it in a paper towel before she joined Finn and Rachel in the living room. She handed the icepack to Rachel, and she held it to the back of Finn's head. He was surprised by Santana's actions, but she only shook her head, signaling that she would talk about it later.

"Seriously, though," Santana continued. "I'm glad that I interrupted you two. We've made it a rule that fucking on communal furniture is forbidden. I don't care what you do in your bedrooms, but you're not doing the nasty on this couch. It took Kurt forever to pick this one. I'm not about to wait for him to pick another one."

Rachel gave her best friend a curious look. "Santana, you don't sound very… surprised."

The Latina snorted. "Of course I'm not."

"Really?"

Santana rolled her eyes before she gave her friend a look that was half affectionate, half exasperated. "Berry, don't act like this is some big shock. I've known that you've had a huge crush on Finnegan since forever, remember? And when you finally started acting semi-relaxed, I knew that you were getting regularly laid. It didn't take me very long to figure out that you were getting it on with Hudson, honestly."

"Wow," Finn muttered. "Puck wasn't wrong when he said that Santana probably knew."

"You guys are shit at hiding your relationship," Santana pointed out. "I'm surprised that more people haven't figured it out. I've known for a while now. I was just waiting until one of you owned up to it. Or I caught you. Whichever happened first."

Just out of curiosity, Finn asked, "Why did you decide to wait instead of just telling us that you knew?"

Santana smirked. "It was more fun that way. Berry is a shit liar and you're almost as bad as her. Some of your excuses were pretty ridiculous."

Rachel gave her friend a mildly amused look before she said, "Well, Tina knows. So does Sam, one of Finn's co-workers. Mercedes, who's Sam's wife, knows as well. And my fathers know, and Finn's mother and stepfather know, and Puck knows…"

"Oh my God. You might as well tell everyone now, Rachel. Because from where I'm standing, the only people that don't actually know are Kurt and Quinn. And your mother and step father, but it's not like you see them every day. And I guess that the three bridesmaid hags from hell don't know either, but no one cares what they think."

"We're waiting until after the wedding to tell everyone," Rachel told Santana.

"Why?" When Rachel gave her a pointed look, she nodded her head. "Ah. I see. You're worried that Quinn is going to go all vindictive bitch on you."

"Yes," Rachel said softly. She just didn't want her relationship with her sister to fall apart. Quinn could be very territorial about certain things, even when it didn't make sense for her to be. Rachel just didn't want that to happen. Finn, who couldn't stand to see Rachel looking so upset, wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pressed a kiss to her temple. He pulled her close and rubbed her back soothingly, letting out a small sigh of relief when Rachel relaxed into him.

"Well, I won't let that happen," Santana said. "And I'm sure that the Jolly Green Giant over here won't either. Even though he probably doesn't keep a knife strapped on the inside of his bra like I do."

Finn's eyes went wide in surprise. He ignored the jab about the bra as he said, "You can't be serious."

"Of course she's not," Rachel said dismissively. "Santana is just being dramatic."

"Alright, so I actually have it strapped to my thigh." Santana's voice was deadpan, and Finn couldn't tell if she was lying or not. "But saying that it's strapped on the inside of my bra just sounds so much better." She turned back to Rachel. "Fine. I'll keep this a secret until the wedding, too. But I don't know want to hear about it when it all blows up in your face."

"It's not going to blow up," Rachel said immediately, even though she feared that that was exactly what was going to happen. "We're going to tell Quinn after the wedding and everything will be fine."

Santana stared at Rachel for a long moment before she finally nodded her head. "Whatever you say, Berry."

Rachel kissed Finn's cheek and stood up. "I'm going to take a quick shower, and then we can order something to eat. Does that sound good?"

"Sounds great, baby," Finn agreed. He watched her disappear into her bedroom before he realized that Santana had her eyes focused on him. He turned to her with an eyebrow raised. "What?"

"You love her," Santana stated.

Without any hesitation, Finn replied, "I do."

"I mean… you really love her. The forever kind of love."

Finn still didn't hesitate, because he knew that Santana was right. In reality, they had been going out for a little over two months. But that didn't change the strength of Finn's feelings. He just sort of… knew. He could feel it.

"I do," he repeated.

Santana nodded her head once. "Good. But if you do anything to hurt her—"

"I won't."

She went on as if she hadn't heard him. "—I will rip your balls off and string them up out front for all of New York to see. And I'll do it with a spoon."

Finn winced. "I won't hurt her," he repeated.

Santana stared at him for a long moment. "I know you won't," she finally said. "You're good for her, Finn. And even though you two kind of make me want to throw up with how sappy you are, I'm rooting for you guys. I always have been."

Finn grinned at her. "Thanks, Santana," he said.

She glared at him and pointed at her. "Don't you dare."

"Don't want?"

"You look like you're about to hug me. Don't you dare."

Finn only laughed. It was then that Rachel came out of the bathroom, wearing a pair of leggings and one of his sweaters. She had managed to snag it from his suitcase during their visit to Ohio. Finn smiled when he saw her in and it took her hand, tugging her into his lap. Santana made a face at them before she stood up, announcing that she was going to order the take out.

"I love you," Finn said to Rachel. He wanted to say it just because he could.

Rachel beamed at him and felt that warm feeling spread in her chest. She loved hearing him say it, and she loved saying it back. "I love you, too," she said before she leaned in to kiss him.

The next thing they knew, a spatula was being thrown at them from all the way across the kitchen. "No fucking on the couch!" Santana yelled.

Before Rachel could respond, Finn moved his lips so they were next to Rachel's ear. "I guess we better not tell her about that time on the kitchen counter a few weeks ago, then."

His statement caused Rachel to giggle, and she put her hands on either side of his face and kissed him again, causing Santana to yell out another crude statement. And then she added, "By the way, I still have to kick your ass from hiding this relationship from me! Don't think that I haven't forgotten about it!"

Rachel turned in Finn's lap and immediately started yelling back. Finn could only laugh as he tightened his arms around her.

Author's Note: So Santana knew all along, but now she's on the official list of people that know! We're rapidly expanding that list, because someone else finds out in the next chapter, as well.