Another week passed and Jac and Emma ended up coming over for dinner twice more. Jac and Fletch agreed that it was time to tell the kids before they heard rumours from someone else, or before they jumped to another conclusion.
They gathered all five of the kids on the sofa in Fletch's living room and prepared themselves for uproar. The youngsters wouldn't bat an eyelid, but Mikey was bound to cause a raucous just for the sake of it, and nobody knew exactly what Evie's reaction would be.
"Kids, we got you all here so that we can tell you something, before you hear it from anybody else. It's nothing bad, we just want to keep you in the loop," Fletch explained, "Jac and I are in a relationship now, okay?"
As expected the kids didn't say a word, just nodded approvingly before turning their attention back to each other. Evie had an eyebrow arched as if to say 'you thought I didn't know?' which was better than Fletch had been expecting. Even Mikey didn't take it too badly, looking Jac up and down before nodding his acceptance.
The room fell back to a comfortable noise of chatter, with Jac and Fletch looking at each other, a bit bewildered by how smoothly things had gone.
"I should, uh, speak to Mikey. The fact that he didn't try to cause trouble probably means something's up. I'll be back in a minute or two, okay?" Fletch said as he tapped his eldest son on the shoulder and guided him out of the room.
As soon as Evie was sure her Dad wasn't going to come back, she crossed the room to stand by Jac.
"I would like to take this opportunity to say I told you so, you were lying to one of us in the car that day," she stated smugly, the signature Fletcher grin spread across her face.
"Evie, I swear that when we had that conversation, I had no idea where this was headed and we were just friends," Jac offered sincerely, "and I stand by my promise, I'll do everything I can."
The teen nodded gratefully, returning her attention to her younger siblings and approaching them to play with Ella.
Jac couldn't stop herself from smiling at the scene, Emma fit in so well and her little girl finally got a taste of the life she'd always wished she could give her.
Shamefully, she couldn't even be happy in that moment, not without the overwhelming concern that she was going to ruin this again, just like she had with Jonny, and just like she had with Joseph. This wouldn't last for long before she managed to bugger it up entirely and hurt not just Fletch, but herself too.
Happiness was all too fragile, and she was heavy handed when it came to anything but a scalpel.
Fletch poked his head back around the table to announce that dinner was going to be ready in five minutes. He met Jac's gaze across the room and winked at her, moving to stand beside her and wrapping his arm around her waist casually.
She let her head fall against his shoulder, wading in the feeling of this moment for fear it might end even sooner than she had thought.
At dinner, everything felt like normal. Mikey had, surprisingly, been completely fine about the two of them and had simply 'decided to be a grown-up about it'. Fletch asked Evie whether she had any thoughts while the others were distracted by their meals.
"I think this gives me eternal homework help rights, because you are absolutely useless and Jac will actually be able to answer my questions," she responded with a hopeful grin. "If I'm going to end up with a not-so-wicked stepmother, there should at least be some perks."
"Well I have no complaints. It seems like the education system needs some help raising the next generation of first class surgeons, so I'd best do my bit," she offered, reaching for Fletch's hand under the table and feeling him squeeze it reassuringly.
He was the perfect parent. Everybody knew that. Jac trusted him with Emma's life.
The other way around, however? She wasn't the model Mum that she imagined him wanting as a role model for his teenager. They were not equals, not in his home.
They ate just as a normal family would; the kids even helped with the washing up which was nothing short of a miracle. This was everything that Jac had ever dreamed of, though she hastened to admit it even within her own mind. All that she wanted was to give her children the childhood that she never got to have.
Both of the older kids were asked if they were comfortable with Jac and Emma spending the night here tonight, since it was getting quite late. Neither of them had a problem so Emma and Ella top-and-tailed while Jac awkwardly made her way to Fletch's room and slipped inside.
"You need a shirt to sleep in?" Fletch asked casually as he pulled his shirt off and turned to face her.
All Jac could do was give a shy nod. Fletch withdrew a t-shirt from one of his drawers and passed it to her, smiling.
She felt so childish. It wasn't like she'd never shared a bed with someone before, she'd shared a bed with Fletch before! But they'd never slept together and that felt like something else entirely from sleeping together.
Turning away from him, she pulled her blouse over her head, unlatched her bra, and put the looser, softer top on. Kicking off her slacks, she tugged the shirt down to cover her bum and quickly folded her clothes into a neat pile.
Jac placed them down on the bedside cabinet and sat on the edge of the bed. Fletch flipped down the edge of the duvet and climbed underneath it, reaching for the tv remote and turning on BBC One.
"Are you okay?" Fletch questioned with a hint of concern in his voice, reaching to put his hand on her arm.
She turned, slipping under the duvet and shuffling close to him, letting his arm wrap around her shoulders.
"Yeah, it's just weird, isn't it. This morning, we were the only people who knew and it was still sort of a secret, and now I'm staying in your bed and your kids know I'm here," she admitted, settling her hand on his bare chest and turning her attention to the television.
She fell asleep with her head on his chest, never having felt safer than she did with his arm wrapped around her.
