Author: Toni McIntyre

Title: The One with All the Pretending 3/?

Summary: Joey and Rachel go to a party at Rachel’s boss’s place and her boss hits on Joey. Starts getting more romance by the end of this chapter but not huge till next part.

Note: Thank you so, so much to everyone who gave feedback! This is my first Friends fic but I have an inkling this could turn into an as of yet un-named series.

Dedication: To Helen…again.

The One with All the Pretending 3: For Better or For Worse

"Woo hoo, do you look good," Joey comments as Rachel enters the living room slowly.

"Thank you," Rachel smiles. She’s wearing a nice red dress with a squared off neck and that is just short enough to accent her long legs. "You don’t look so bad yourself Mr. Tribianni." Joey gets a smug look on his face as Rachel fixes his tie. He’s in another navy suit, this time with a black dress shirt and red tie.

"So…how YOU doin?" Joey asks, one eyebrow raised.

"Nice try, but no sex, that’s a rule," Rachel smiles.

"Boy this is starting to sound more like a real marriage every second," Joey mutters as Rachel grabs her bag and they leave.

They find Ross and Phoebe out in the hall, preparing to enter Monica and Chandler’s.

"Oh wow don’t you two look like such a couple!" Phoebe grins and Ross shuffles his feet uncomfortably.

"We have to go to that party," Rachel says.

"Oh, eh, so you guys are married again?" Ross asks, glancing at their poorly manufactured wedding bands.

"Yup, only for another hour or so," Rachel says.

"Hey kinda like yours," Phoebe points out to Ross.

"Is tonight going to be full of divorce jokes?" Ross asks dryly.

"Maybe."

"Well we gotta go," Rachel says, grabbing Joey’s arm. "See you guys."

"Okay, don’t stay out too late!" Phoebe calls after them. "Have fun!" She turns to Ross, sniffing melodramatically. "They grow up so fast!"

Ross just rolls his eyes and retreats into Monica and Chandler’s apartment.

Andrea’s house is just outside the city and big enough to fit Rachel and Joey’s apartment inside at least a hundred times. The followed what seemed to be a kind of procession towards the door where Andrea was greeting the guests.

"Now don’t be nervous," Rachel tells Joey.

"I’m not," Joey shrugs.

"Cause you know, there’s a lot riding on this," Rachel points out, her own voice shaking.

"REALLY not nervous."

"Well it would be okay."

"Rach, calm down," Joey says soothingly, grabbing her arm.

"Okay, right, calm," Rachel breathes slowly, as if trying to remember the definition of the word.

"Rachel!" Andrea says happily as they reach the door.

"Andrea, hi," Rachel grins as they exchange a brief hug.

"Joey, a pleasure of course," Andrea says, shaking Joey’s hand. "And this is my husband, Walter."

Walter is a severly disheveled middled aged man, going bald and hiding it with a bad toupe. He’s holding a glass of bourbon in his hand which never seems to be empty, even thoguh he continually sips from it.

"A pleasure," Walter slurs.

"Oh honestly," Andrea rolls her eyes. "Five minutes into the thing and he’s already completely conked out."

"Are you talking about our sex life again?" Walter demands loudly and Andrea looks at him, shocked. Rachel and Joey exchange looks of surprise amnd amusement.

"Well, I feel like a drink myself," Rachel laughs, breakignt he silenc.e "Come on honey."

"Oh right," Joey says and follows Rahcel inside to the house. Tons of people are standing aroudn, talking quietly to themselves, cocktails in hand. Rachel heads to the bar and grabs a glass of water whiel Joey serveys the buffet table.

"What is this?" Joey demands to her.

"Food," Rahcel syas simply.

"I mean what kind of food?" Joey asks, poking at a snail with a straw. "Even I wouldn’t eat this and that’s sayign something."
"Oh Joey you can’t go on looks alone, just try something," Rachel waves him off.

Joey shrugs and starts pilign the most innocent looking dishes on to his plate.

"Rachel!" a woman’s voice cuts happily through the throng. She’s short with chin length blonde hair and a little older looking then Rachel.

"Hi Meredith," Rachel smiles and hugs the woman.

"Oh how you doing honey?" Meredith asks soothingly. "How’s the mornings going?"

"Better now actually," Rachel smiles. "Between you and Phoebe I have enough pregnancy advice to last me a life time."

"Oh it really is no problem sweetie," Meredith says and her eyes catches Joey raising an eyebrow at the caviar. "Oh is that you beau?"

"Oh yeah, Joey!" Rachel waves for him to come over. "Joey this is Meredith, she works with me. Meredith this is my husband Joey."

"Hi," Joey says and Meredith shakes the hand not holding the plate full of food.

"Oh well aren’t you adorable," she comments and Rachel snorts into her water.

"Uh…thanks," Joey smiles uncertainly.

"You two just make the cutest couple!" she goes on in a high, happy voice. "And your children will be beautiful! Oh, let me get a picture!"

"Oh Mere, I’m pregnant, I’m insecure," Rachel objects.

"Oh shut up and cuddle with your husband," Meredith says, pulling a camera from practically no where. She strikes Joey as one of those people who takes one everywhere she goes for fear she’ll miss something important.

Joey puts down his plate of food next to Rachel’s water and places a hand on her waist. Rachel puts a shakey hand on his chest and smiles up at him as his arm snakes around her waist, pulling her closer.

"Oh don’t you too look so cute!" Meredith oohs from behind the camera. She takes the picture but Rachel continuous to smile up at Joey, not quite sure why she can’t stop herself.

"Rach," Joey whispers, snappign her back to life.

"Hmm…yeah?" Rachel asks, sahkign her head, finally letting her smiles drop.

"The picture’s over," he grins.

"Oh yeah," Rachel gives a small laugh.

"Here," Meredith hands the polaraoid to Rachel who smiles appreciatevly before slipping it into her purse.

"Thank Mere," Rachel says before the small woman hurries on her way. "She’s kidn fo weird but I like her," Rachel explains to Joey. He hands her the water bottle and she steals a cracker from his food plate as th walk aroudn the room aimlessly.