13th May 2013. As promised the next chapter... now where were we?... Oh, yeah.

Chapter 47.

Tanya walked into the ladies toilets, "Lauren? Where are you Lauren?" A cubicle door opened and she sighed in relief when she saw her daughter. There was blood on her face and hands. "I thought you meant you were bleeding..." she said.

"What is this, scotch mist?" Lauren snapped. "It came out of nowhere. I don't get nosebleeds, mum. Is this something to do with my heart?"

"Come here, sweetheart." Tanya said, taking Lauren's wrist and pulling her to her feet. She ushered her over to the sink. "This is just a baby thing, darling. Your body is producing lots of extra blood to go towards the baby. You might find you get nosebleeds for the next few weeks. It's perfectly normal, I promise. It's just your body looking after the baby, giving it plenty of nourishment." As she was speaking she was brushing away the blood from Lauren's face with a tissue from her bag. She could see the tears in her daughter's eyes. "I'd better call Lesley and let her know everything is okay..." She turned the taps on and pushed Lauren's hands under the water. "Lesley, its fine, it's just a nosebleed. No need for us to panic." She paused briefly and glanced at Lauren, brushing her hair back from her face. "She's a bit upset but she'll be okay." Another pause. "Yes, we'll be out in a few minutes." She ended the call and put her mobile back in her coat. She grabbed some more tissues from her bag and started again to wipe away the remaining blood from her face. "Talk to me, Lauren... what are you thinking?"

"I feel like everything is out of control. I cry at the drop of a hat. Apparently, I'm going to bleed that way too. I don't know what I'm doing, mum."

"We'll sort that out when we leave here, okay. We're all here for you, darling. Now, have you stopped bleeding?" Lauren nodded. "Well all traces have gone from your face and I think your hands are clean. Did you finish in the bathroom?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Shall we go back to our cake then?" Tanya said with a smile. Lauren nodded. Tanya pulled her into a hug, "It will be fine, Lauren. I know it's confusing but it gets easier, I swear."

*JL*JL*

Lauren sat on the bed that evening, waiting for Joey to arrive home. She was feeling pretty miserable again. She'd planned on seducing Joey when he got home from work. She'd put on some of the underwear she'd brought for their Italian holiday but it looked awful. It didn't fit her properly anymore and she was tempted to throw it away in disgust. She'd managed to stop herself though, hoping that one day she would be able to put them on again and wear them for her husband.

Instead she put on her new ugly underwear and then threw on Joey's dressing gown, not able to look at herself while wearing it. She was looking at the book her mum had brought her after their lunch break. It was a book for expectant mothers and Lauren was reading it with interest. She'd read the book Alice had got Joey from cover to cover, more than once in fact, but that was targeted at a first-time father so it didn't go into too much detail about the mother's side. The book she now had was more what she needed. It went into great detail about how she would feel and what she would experience throughout her pregnancy.

She heard the door open and knew it was Joey, "Hello, beautiful." He said.

"Hmmph," She said.

"What are you reading?" he asked, stripping off his shirt and tie.

She held up the book to show him. "Mum bought me it... it's a book about pregnancy." She glanced up at him and swallowed as she saw him push his trousers down his legs, "I had a bit of a fright earlier." She whispered, turning back to the book.

He was sitting behind her within seconds of her finishing speaking, "What happened? Why didn't mum call me? Why didn't you call me?"

"I overreacted. Mum was there. She sorted me out. Your mum would've called you if it was anything to be worried about."

He pushed his gown down her shoulder and kissed the base of her neck. "Tell me..."

"I went to the bathroom... I think I have a bladder the size of a pea, by the way." She told him and he chuckled against her skin, "Anyway when I was getting dressed again, I had a nosebleed. And I don't mean a small nosebleed... this was blood gushing out everywhere. There was blood all over my face and hands and I might have given mum the wrong impression. She rushed to the bathroom after I told her I was bleeding. She obviously thought, I was bleeding, you know. I didn't mean to worry her but... I thought it was my heart. I thought there was something seriously wrong and I didn't think about what I was saying. Anyway, apparently it's perfectly normal during pregnancy and she cleaned me up and calmed me down. Then after we'd had some food, we went to the bookshop and she bought me this."

His finger trailed down the bra strap on her shoulder, "And is this your new maternity underwear?" he whispered, kissing her neck. Lauren pulled the gown back up her arm and turned away from him. "What's wrong?" He asked her softly.

"It's ugly." She whispered, slamming the book shut and moving it to her bedside table. "I was going to seduce you when you got home. I got out the underwear that I wore for you in Italy... I wanted to surprise you... but none of it fits anymore." She lay down on the bed and wrapped her arms around her waist. "I refuse to seduce you wearing this... I'm as attractive as... something really repulsive." She said, a tear running down her face.

"Show me..." he whispered, watching his wife and knowing there was no way she was right. She could wear a burlap sack and she'd look breath-taking in his opinion.

"No. I'm not going to let you see me in this... it's hideous, just like me."

Joey lifted her from the bed and pulled her onto his lap, "You are the sexiest person I know, baby girl." He whispered to her, brushing his hand up her leg.

"Stop it, Joe. I'm not feeling very sexy right now." She told him, pushing his hand away.

"Then let me show you how sexy I find you..." he breathed in her ear. "Let me prove it to you..." She didn't say anything in response and Joey knew she would've done if she really didn't want him to do this. He moved her so her legs were either side of his and he loosened the tie around her waist. "Touch me..." he said. Her hand moved to cover his length, squeezing him gently. "Feel how I react when I look at you, baby." He said softly. He opened the gown so he could see her and ran his eyes down her body. What he saw really did take his breath away. Yes, okay, it wasn't quite the same as what she'd worn that weekend in Italy but it wasn't the way she'd described it either. They hardly looked like maternity knickers... they were little shorts that were black in colour and covered in white dots. Her bra matched and fitted her much better than her normal underwear. "Beautiful, baby girl. So beautiful." He murmured. His hand lifted and ran down her arm until his fingers laced through hers. "You get more beautiful each day, baby and do you know why?" She shook her head silently. His other hand lifted and covered her tiny belly, "Because inside you is a symbol of our love; a perfect combination of all the good bits of me and you." He said softly, leaning forward and kissing her mouth. "A child we have dreamt of for almost two years." He whispered against her lips.

"Joey..." she breathed, "You always say the right things."

"That's because we are made for each other, Lauren. I have never known anything more certain in my life." He kissed her again. "Do you feel how just looking at you has affected me, baby girl?" he asked, knowing her hand was cupping his very prominent erection. "I've barely touched you and I'm already hard..." Her fingers tightened on him and he moaned, "Now did you say something about seducing me earlier?" he asked, "Because I think you started the moment I walked through the door." He saw a small smile appear on her face, "So are you going to finish what you started?" he whispered.

She looked into his eyes and nodded. She moved away from him and let the gown drop from her shoulders onto the bed behind her. "Lie down..." she whispered. He did as she asked and inhaled sharply as she moved to straddle him, pressing against his length. "I hope your words work as well when I look like a beached whale, baby." She bent forward and kissed his chest. "I hope they work when your child has stretched my body and won't give me a moment's peace." She moved so she was staring in his eyes, "And I hope you still love me once our child is here and my body still looks misshapen and flabby."

He could see the seriousness in her eyes. He rolled them over so he was hovering over her, "I told you on our wedding day, barely eight months ago, that I love you more than I thought it was possible to love someone and that I looked forward to spending the rest of our lives together." He said softly, "That will never change, you could be the size of a house and I would still love you."

"Don't even joke about it, Joe." She gasped, a look of horror appearing on her face at his words.

"I'm not joking, Lauren. This isn't about how you look for me... it's about what is in here," he kisses her forehead tenderly, "and what is in here," he kisses above her heart. "Now I'm going to make love to my beautiful wife and she is going to believe me when I say she is beautiful because she knows I would never lie to her." His hand slipped behind her back and he undid the back of her bra. Gently he moved the straps down her arms and then flung it to one side. "You, my dear, are the perfect woman for me." He sighed, kissing her lips.

"Joey, I need you..." she breathed, "It's been too long."

He brushed his length against her and heard her moan. "I know, baby. I've missed this." He told her softly. "Are you sure it's safe to do this?" he asks her.

"Its fine, Joe. The book said so..." She wriggled beneath him, trying to increase the pressure of his cock against her.

"Oh god," he moaned. He pulled away from her and shoved his boxers down his legs. He turned back to her and saw her staring up at him, her eyes full of lust and love. His eyes drifted down her body, pausing briefly on her breasts before lowering. He leant down and pressed his mouth to her small bump, dotting kisses across it over and over as he slowly pulled her knickers off her. He kissed up her body and pushed himself into her, both of them moaning at the sensations they felt. Once he was deep inside her he stilled, staring at her face. "Is this okay?" he asked, "I'm not hurting you or the baby?"

"We're both fine." She said. "I love you so much, Joe." She told him, her hand brushing the side of his face. "I'm going to be an amazing mother to our child, baby, I promise you."

"I never doubted you would..." he said softly. He moved within her and Lauren moaned.

"Feels so good, Joe." She moans. She lifted a leg off the bed and wrapped it around his thighs. "It's never felt as good as this..." she whimpered. Joey smiled at his wife, a thrill running through him as he saw how much she was enjoying what he was doing. He moved quicker inside her, his hands fisting the duvet beneath them as his own arousal increased. She was right this was the best it had ever been.

*JL*JL*

Lauren lay in Joey's arms, smiling as she saw the book on her bedside table. It had been so right. Sex was a much more intense experience when you were pregnant. Suddenly she was even more grateful to her mum for buying it for her. She wondered what else she would learn from it.

TBC

A/N: So who agrees with me that Joey is just about the most perfect man ever? He certainly seems more than capable of dealing with his wife's hormones and insecurities. Bless him... Back tomorrow...