Day 30! Whoo! 30% done with this! Thanks to all who read the last chapter, I'd love to know what you think about this fic, any ideas or thoughts are much welcomed! Next chapter won't be too long away, hope you enjoy XxX

3. "My treat"

Iain arrived home as soon as he could after his shift finished, opening his door to find his house empty. He thought that Rita would be back by now. He pulled out his phone to call her.

"Reet's, you alright?" Iain asked, almost as soon as she answered.

"Yeah, sorry Iain, the party overran. Fairy godmother got a bit carried away! We're on the way back now, should be about half an hour or so, that ok?" Rita, replied, he could hear the kids chatting away in the background.

"No problem, I'll sort them out some dinner. See you in a bit." Iain smiled, the thought of seeing Rita filling his heart with joy.

Half an hour seemed to go by fast. Iain only had time for a quick shower and to put the oven on before his doorbell rang. He opened it to reveal Rita, she was stood wearing his jacket, soaking wet, a bruise forming on her arm and pink glitter covering her from head to toe.

"Do I even want to know...?" Iain tentatively asks.

"Probably not but I'm going to tell you after I've borrowed your shower." Rita replied as she let go of the children's hands as they ran in past Iain laughing with smiles plastered on their faces. Rita looked up at Iain who let her past.

"You know where it is." Iain told her, sharing a smile as she headed up to his shower before he headed off to play with his niece and nephew, trying not to think too much about Rita in his shower.

She emerged a while later and Iain couldn't bring himself to look away, she was wearing his old army t-shirt and boxers, meaning she had been in his bedroom, in his draws. Iain just stared at her, he was alone having fed the kids and let them go and play by themselves for a while before he would go up and put them to bed.

"Do you mind? Nothing else would've fitted and my clothes need a wash," Rita asked as she held up her glittery wet clothes and his jacket she had borrowed that morning.

"Absolutely not." Iain smiled, "let me take those, I'll put them on a wash." He said, taking the clothes and going to his kitchen to his washing machine.

"Good shift?" Rita asked, standing in the doorway, watching him.

"Not too bad, only one serious crash, the rest was just falls and broken bones. ED was busy though, Robyn said to say thanks." Iain sighed, leaning back against the counter.

"I think I got a good deal, children's parties are a breeze compared to vomit and blood." Rita laughed.

Their eyes met across the room, Rita pushing herself off the doorframe, somehow moving towards him and ending up standing next to him, they were facing each other. Iain's hand moved up to touch her shoulder when he heard Jake calling him.

Iain's hand retracted and they both let out a breath, laughing. Trying to brush off what had almost just happened.

"I'll go sort them out and I'll be back to hear about that bruise." Iain smiled, pointing to the purple mark on Rita's upper arm, before running up the stairs pretending to be a dinosaur ready to eat any children's toes he could see out of bed.

Rita hid her face in her hands. That hadn't been the first and probably wouldn't be the last moment like that they had experienced.

Iain came back downstairs to find Rita sat in front of the TV on her phone; she looked up as he came into the room, putting her phone on the coffee table. Iain sat down next to her.

"So," Iain began "want to tell me about the glitter?" He asked, pouring them both a glass of the wine he had brought in.

"It's a long story," Rita smiled, taking a sip of the wine before starting her explanation of the day's events, laughing as she remembered the funny things that Holly and Jake had said.

Her bruise had come from paint balling; apparently Jake was a very good shot and had managed to hit Rita in the one place they didn't provide much padding for. The glitter apparently split by accident by Holly had ended up on her head and over her clothes and as they were leaving the last party the kids had decided to turn the sprinkler on and Rita had been caught right under it.

"... and that's how I ended up like you saw." Rita finished, it was getting quite late now and she was starting to get hungry.

Iain smiled, "Thanks Reet, I wouldn't have been able to do today without you, can I persuade you to give up even more of your day off for pizza? My treat?" Iain asks, their knees are almost touching now, Rita's hand a fraction of an inch away, it would be so easy to lean out and grab it, pull her closer to him, maybe kiss her...

Iain's thoughts are interrupted yet again with a small voice comes from the door, "Auntie Rita, can you read me a bedtime story?"

Please let me know what you think x