Dianne woke up to the sun blazing through the window. London, on that particular day, had reasonably good weather, lots of sunshine but a bitter breeze to go with it. Feeling Joe close to her, she flickered her eyes open while smiling tiredly. Last night had been one of the best sleeps she had had in a long time, a very long time. Being held like that, in the presence of another, of him, made her feel like the luckiest girl in the world.
Rolling over, she took in the man next to her. Everything about him was everything she had wanted, from physical aspects like his charming eyes to the emotional ones like his sense of humour, and of course how he had made an effort with Emelia so early on. Dianne had truly found something special in him. A few moments after she rolled over, she felt his arm pull her closer, sensing her movement. She shifted closer to him in return, feeling their noses brush slightly. His scent had flooded in the air around him, some of it flirting with her senses almost.
His eyes flickered open gradually, those little blue hues becoming clearer and clearer until eventually their sleepy eyes met, tired smiles also meeting.
"Morning beautiful." She giggled, gently pressing her lips to his, feeling his move with them before they parted.
"Morning handsome." It was his turn to giggle, softly, brushing away the few hairs from her face, wanting to get a perfect view of her. "Nice sleep?"
"Best I've had in ages. You?" Both of their voices were extremely soft, delicate even. Truth was, he really did have the best sleep he had had in ages. There's something about sleeping with the person you love, sending you into a sleep that could last a lifetime.
"Same as you, best I've had in ages. What's the time anyway?" He sat up, his blondish hair falling in front of his face, not even sorry. Dianne had noticed this, and thought it was adorable.
"Half six. What time does Em wake up?" She sat up too, reaching down to grab her top that she had disposed of during the night but instead grabbed one that was on the pile of Joe's folded tops, the ones he hadn't put away yet. She slipped it on, Joe didn't know what to think when he glanced at her, seeing her smile innocently but also a blush on her cheeks.
Part of him was all warm and fuzzy inside, seeing her in his clothes. They suited her, at least that's what Joe thought. The other part of him had realised that his wardrobe was no longer sacred.
"You look adorable in my clothes." Joe chuckled, seeing her in them. Dianne grinned, resting her head on his shoulder.
"Glad you think so, you may be seeing this more often." Joe scowled at her muschievious comment, placing a hand over her back.
"Does this mean you will be raiding my wardrobe then?"
"This does mean I will be raiding your wardrobe."
"Damn." She laughed, kissing his bare shoulder quickly before resting her head back where it was, grinning to herself.
"Yeah, But you love it though." He rolled his eyes, there was no point in denying it. He sighed lightly, nodding.
"I do, almost as much as I love you." She chuckled softly, lifting her head to put her lips to his, affection being given and taken in an endless cycle of love before they pulled away.
"You're so adorable in the morning, I mean you're soft anyway but still." Joe went a little red. He had been called many things, but soft wasn't one of them. She pecked his lips quickly before flopping backwards.
"And she normally wakes up at seven." Joe nodded, flopping back also. He held an arm out, Dianne rolling into him and resting her head on where his shoulder and chest met.
"Oh so we've got a while, what's the earliest she's ever woken up?"
"Christmas. Five o clock on the dot, she came marching in with her cousins, they all wanted to take their auntie Dot to the living room." Joe furrowed an eyebrow.
"Dot? Like a nickname." She nodded.
"Yeah, it's short for Dianne, I don't know how but it's just stuck I guess."
Joe smiled down at her. "Dotty." She hadn't heard that one before, and actually quite liked it, it was cute and could be significant to them.
"I like that one." she said quietly, shifting a little so one of her legs rested between his, feeling him pull her closer with his arm, the two drifting off to sleep, soundly and peacefully. All was silent...
...until soon enough the seven o'clock rang out, interrupting the once peaceful silence. Dianne buried her head into Joe's shoulder, wanting to stay there for at least another hour.
"Do you want me to get up, make a coffee?" Throughout his time on the show, he had learnt that she really loved her coffee, it really was her guilty pleasure. She nodded, gently kissing his jaw.
"Please, I'll be up in five. God I hate alarms." Joe chuckled as Dianne shifted of his shoulder. He sat up, throwing on his bathrobe and leaving the bedroom. He wandered into the spare room wondering if Emelia was awake, which she wasn't but rather drowned in the sheets of the biggest bed ever. Joe smiled, but at the same time didn't want to wake her.
He sat on the edge of the bed, gently shaking her awake. "Emelia...time to get up." He said softly, a melodic tone with it. She stirred, wiping her eyes with her dainty hands. "Morning."
"Morning Joe. Is mama awake?" He shook his head, standing as she moved to stand up, yawning and using her arms to make two rainbows.
"That's a big stretch, and not yet. I'm just going to make her a coffee, you coming?" She nodded, still wiping her eyes. "Did you have a good sleep?"
"Yeah, the bed is really really big. You could fit...a million people!" She used her arms again, something that Joe was softened by.
"You're right, it is really big. Right, what do you want for breakfast?" Joe was getting started on the coffee, turning on the coffee machine he had a feeling he would be using a lot more often from now on. Emelia was trying to climb onto the countertop, not quite tall enough just yet. He turned around, hearing her squirm a little.
"Do you need a hand Em?" He chuckled. She nodded. Joe walked over to her. "Right. Three, two, one..."
"Weeeee!" She was seriously the cutest kid ever, and Joe knew it. "I'm tall now. And can we have pancakes?"
Pancakes sounded good. "Sure." He quickly got the ingredients out, taking out some bowls and things. Luckily he had remembered the recipe Zoe had showed him a few weeks ago, he loved it.
"So do you want to stir?" To avoid his kitchen becoming a winter wonderland of flour, Joe had quickly measured everything out. Emelia nodded, Joe passing her the bowl. He made sure to keep an eye on her, only breaking eye contact when he entered the bedroom to give Dianne her coffee, she was mid putting on a dressing gown over her pyjamas, taking it gratefully off him and kissing his lips.
"Thank you. I can't live without coffee, honestly." Joe chuckled, the two headed out arm in arm. Emelia was on the counter, mixing up pancakes.
"We're making pancakes! And I'm very strong!" Dianne smiled, seeing her so happy. She leant her head on Joe's shoulder, gulping back a mouthful.
"Oh that sounds delicious, and wow you are, be careful not to spill any." She nodded, that very moment a drip going onto the counter, Dianne shaking her head while laughing.
"I jinxed it, didn't I?"
"It's fine, it's only a drip anyway. I think that's about done." By this point they were all in the kitchen, Joe checking the mix. "I'll start pouring it into the pan, it's very hot bearing in mind."
"In the pan...with Joe and Dianne, well, mama, but hey, it rhymes!" They both have approving looks, exchanging a grin.
After breakfast it was time to get ready for the day ahead, which meant Emelia getting ready for school. "Your things are in the spare room, can you put on your uniform please?" Dianne has just finished up the dishes, Joe and Emelia engrossed in a conversation about the greatest showman.
"Yep. I will go right now mama." She bounced into the spare room, simultaneous to Joe heading over to Dianne and embracing her from behind.
"What's that you were both on about? The greatest showman did you say?" Joe nodded, resting his head in her shoulder.
"Yeah, it's a movie musical about a man who gets a lot of unusual people to join the circus, it's really good though." She nodded, wiping her hands. She turned around, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"Maybe we should watch it one day, and no doubt she'll be singing it everywhere." Joe chuckled, the two in a comfortable silence. "She really loves her musicals you know."
"Oh does she, that's cool. I've never really seen one, they seem like a lot of fun though." Dianne nodded, having been to a fair few herself.
"They really are, But do you know what else is fun?" There was a hint in her voice, a cheeky grin plastered on her face alongside the hints in her eyes, she inched her lips closer to his.
"I don't know, this?" He asked before pressing his lips to hers, the feeling of them creating warmth throughout his veins. They deepened it together, smiling into it while their lips moved on one another.
"You do love each other! I knew it!" They both pulled away, slightly panicked. They both looked over, seeing her dressed and stood by the glass doors, giggling like crazy. Joe and Dianne realised that it was now or never. This was it. She nodded to Joe before calling Emelia over.
"Emelia, can you come over here please?" She nodded, making a shy way over. She had gone slightly quiet.
"Am I in trouble mama?" Dianne shook her head, picking Emelia up and resting her on her hip, brushing away a few of the blonde hairs that had fallen.
"No, you're fine angel. Yes, me and Joe do love each other." They exchanged a warm smile. "Very much."
"So are you boyfriend and girlfriend then?" Joe nodded to Dianne, who encouraged him to proceed with her own expressions. He took a small deep breath, finding his words.
"No, not yet. We wanted to make sure you were okay with it first, because it's important that you know what's going on." He took another breath, asking a question he never thought he'd ask.
"So is okay if I love your mummy?"
Without hesistation, she nodded. She had seen the way they had made each other happy, and she already thought the world of Joe. Relief and even more love filled both Joe and Dianne. She even almost cried, feeling a few tears rearing their heads.
"So, official?" Joe asked, Dianne nodded and wrapped her free arm around him, holding him tightly as if for dear life.
"Official." She put Emelia down, then going to kiss her boyfriend, who kissed his girlfriend back with equal love, which was a lot of love indeed. They pulled apart, holding each other close.
"I love you Dianne." She pecked his lips, the same magic never leaving.
"I love you too Joseph."