Disclaimer: I own nothing except my imagination and the kids names.

a/n: Thank you for all the love the last chapter has gotten and after sweet and fluffy comes a bit of serious. Matt has the Dawson's over for a first real evening with them but will it go smoothy or will it crash and burn? I hope you guys enjoy this next chapter.

As promised, Gabby checked with her parents if they could come over for dinner at Matt's the following Friday and they had agreed, although a bit reluctantly on her father's part and she had confirmed with him as well. She walked through the firehouse on Wednesday to bring some lunch over for Matt since they hadn't seen much of each other in the last couple of days.

"Casey's lady love is here." Mouch said loudly as she walked through the common room door. "What brings you by Gabriella?" He leaned against the couch and looked at her, waiting for an answer.

"Came to bring Matt some lunch. He in his office?" She wondered, an answer from anyone would do.

"In his office." Shay hugged her as she came back from the bunk area. "By the way, we need to plan something, for real."

"I know. Just let me get through dinner at Matt's with my parents Friday night and then we'll get to planning something."

"Oh!" Herrmann exclaimed. "In-laws." He shivered, making everyone laugh.

"Matt thought it was a great idea." She chuckled and left the common room under sharp intakes of breath and damn's or shit's coming from everyone. Matt was hunched over yet another report and he looked tired. "Take a break?" She leaned against his office door and lifted the bag she had in her hands.

"Yes." He got up and kissed Gabby, taking the bag from her hands.

"Hard shift?" She wondered as she sat down on his cot.

"Haven't been sleeping very well." Lying would serve no one right now so he opted for the truth.

"Please tell me it's not about dinner on Friday?" She didn't let him talk before she continued. "Matt, we can cancel it, I'm sure my parents wouldn't mind."

"No, we're not cancelling dinner with your parents. I'll take something to help me sleep while the girls are at school tomorrow and I'll be ok for dinner on Friday."

"I knew this would be a bad idea." She huffed. Having dinner with her parents was making Matt nervous and giving him insomnia.

"It's not a bad idea Gabby. I'll be fine, I promise." She eyed him suspiciously, making sure he was telling her the truth.

"What are we having?"

"I thought I could make spaghetti with meatballs for the kids and seafood pasta for us, how does that sound?"

"Perfect. I have to run but be careful."

"I will, thank you for the lunch." They kissed and Gabby left so she could grab some lunch of her own before going back to the peds department.

Friday afternoon, Casey's house

"Alright girls, I want you to go up for a nap."

"But dad, we're not tired." Grace spoke for both of them.

"Gabby is coming over around three with her kids and they'll be joining us for dinner along with Gabby's parents so I need you to be well rested and behaved. Now up to bed."

"Fine." They both grumbled, hugging their dad and going up to their room. Just as Matt had thought, fifteen minutes later, he went upstairs and the girls were sleeping soundly. He went back downstairs and tidied up a little bit before getting some pans out to start the spaghetti sauce for the kids so it would be ready. then he started getting all the sea food ready and to rest in water until Gabby arrived, Matt not wanting to have it ready too soon. Once he knew everything was ready, he pulled a beer out of his fridge and drank it slowly, hoping tonight would go well. He looked at the various pictures that were hanging with magnets on his fridge, a smile coming to his face. Not only were the girls on there but also several members of his extended family. One was of Severide with one girl on his back and the other one around his leg, all three smiling. An other one was of Shay and the girls making kissy faces, the next of his niece Violet with the girls, the cutest selfie he had ever seen and finally, one of himself with the girls, Christie and Violet as well as Shay and Severide, Boden having taken it at a CFD BBQ a couple of years back. Now, he was hoping to add one of Gabby and her brood or better yet, one of Gabby and himself, making the fridge picture collection complete.

He was taken out of his happy thoughts by the knocking on his door, then it opening and closing.

"Hey Matt, Severide told me you were having Gabby's parents over for dinner." Christie walked into the kitchen, keeping her voice down, knowing the girls were sleeping.

"Yeah. You must think I'm crazy right?" He placed his beer on his countertop and handed her a bottle of water.

"No. I think it's a natural step. I'm happy that you're finally happy and that Hallie is gone."

"I told her I loved her." He couldn't help but smile.

"That's wonderful Matt. I just stopped by to give you this for the girls." She handed two present bags to Matt.

"What's the occasion?"

"I wanted to buy them something for school when they started and didn't find what I was looking for until now."

"You didn't have to."

"I wanted to. It's a huge step for them." Another knock on the door made them look in the direction of the sound, Matt excusing himself to go answer the door.

"Hey baby. I didn't expect you so soon." He kissed her lips sweetly and took a sleepy Valentina from her arms, the boys coming in, already excited.

"Are Grace and Emma there?" They questionned, the house sounding too quiet.

"They haven't gotten up from their naps yet. You guys want to go wake them up?" They nodded, excited and bounded up the stairs under their mother's laughing gaze.

"They've been having trouble standing still all day. They barely napped." Gabby followed Matt into the living room as he put Valentina on the couch, placing pillows on the floor in case she fell.

"I had to force mine into bed." They walked into the kitchen where Gabby came face to face with a smiling Christie.

"Hi, I'm Christie. You must be Gabby. Matt has told me so many things about you."

"Good things I hope." She looked from Christie to Matt and back to Christie.

"Only the best. I'll let you two spend some time together, I was just dropping off some presents for the girls."

"It was nice to meet you Christie."

"Likewise."

"I'll walk you to the door." Matt kissed Gabby's cheek and walked Christie out.

"You liked to me Matt." She turned around to face him.

"I did not." He countered.

"You did. She's not beautiful, she's gorgeous. She looks like a keeper, don't let her go little brother."

"Thanks Chris." They smiled at each other and hugged before Christie turned and went down the stairs and back towards her house.

All four kids returned, sounding like a pack of hyenas, waking Valentina in the process. "How about your guys go play downstairs and we can fix a snack for Tina?"

"Ok." All four didn't need to be told twice before they went downstairs to play in their designated play area. Matt had long ago made it so downstairs and the girls had gotten used to playing down there so toys weren't littered on the main floor where people could get hurt on them.

"I wish they would listen like that more often." Gabby chuckled as she cut an apple up for Valentina.

"You, are a great mom. Mine don't always listen like that either. They are testing our limits. I'm pretty sure you gave your parents a run for their money." Gabby tried to stiffle a laugh but failed.

"I was a devil child, so stubborn all the time."

"I think I was ok but Christie could probably tell you good stories."

"Speaking of Christie, maybe we could arrange a dinner with her?" Gabby asked shyly. She had time to think in the past few days and it didn't seem fair that Matt got to officially meet her parents and she didn't get to meet the one person that was so important in his life besides his daughters.

"I think she'd like that. She's been asking about it too." Gabby handed Valentina the cut up apples in a bowl and she settled herself at the kitchen table, the little climbing up on a chair.

"Maybe something without kids maybe? I don't know." She walked back to Matt and settled in his embrace as they watched Valentina eat.

"Maybe we can check with her, see what she likes too. There's no pressure here."

"I know. What about you, did you sleep yesterday?" She faced him now.

"Yeah, the medicine helped. What time did your parents say they would come over?" Just that moment, the doorbell rang.

"That must be them." Gabby was about to go get it when Matt stopped her.

"Let me." He kissed her check and went to answer the door, Gabby going to sit with Valentina as she finished her snack. Matt opened the door and was face to face with Edouardo and Esmeralda. "Mr. Dawson." Matt extended his hand to Gabby's father which he shook as he motioned for them to enter. "Esmeralda, you look lovely tonight." He kissed her cheek and she patted his shoulder in return.

"Matthew."

"Abuela, Abuelo." The twins ran up the stairs screaming and practically pouncing on their grand parents.

"Whoa there boys." Matt stopped them both in their tracks. "Let them come in first. It's not polite to swarm people when they arrive somewhere." Both boys grumbled as part of them didn't like to be told what to do by Matt.

"Enough boys. Mr. Casey is right. Let us come in first." Mr. Dawson scolded the boys as Gabby arrived, holding Valentina's hand as she slowly walked next to her.

"Mom, dad." She smiled at them as they gave Matt their coats. She picked her daughter up and went to give her parents a hug and a kiss.

"You look tired honey." Her mother kept her in her embrace a little longer.

"I'm fine mom." Gabby protested as her mother took Valentina from her arms so she could hold her granddaughter. The boys were now free to attack their grand parents and they did just that. As soon as Valentina was on the ground, the boys hugged Esmeralda as she laughed, happy to see her grandkids. When they let go, they went straight to Edouardo and hugged him as well. Both Emma and Grace had shyly come up the stairs and were now standing close to Matt, not sure about the strangers that were in their house.

"And these two young ladies must me Emma and Grace." Esmeralda smiled at them, Matt making them at least come in front of him.

"I'm Emma."

"And I'm Grace." Their voice wasn't nearly as loud as they usually were but Matt knew that they'd end up opening up by the end of the evening.

"I'm Esmeralda, Gabby's mom and this is my husband Edouardo, Gabby's dad." Clearly she was used to kids as well and the girls smiled at her.

"Hi." They said together.

"Alright guys, why don't you go back downstairs while I get your dinner ready and I'll call you when it's done." All four oldest ones started giggling and took a smiling Valentina down into the basement with them to play."

"They seem to be getting along." Edouardo watched them bound down the stairs, Grace taking Valentina's hand and going slowly down the stairs with her.

"They do. And I think they get along in class as well. We haven't had bad comments from Miss Alice." They moved towards the kitchen.

"Yet." Gabby's mom wrapped her arm around her daughter's shoulder and they walked in sync together towards the kitchen.

"Can I get you anything? A beer, some wine?" Edouardo asked for a beer and Esmeralda a glass of red wine, something she had in common with Gabby. He poured two glasses of wine for the girls and grabbed two beers before grabbing a pot and filling it was water for the pasta, the sauce already in a pot on the stove. They made light conversation as dinner for the kids was prepared and after both Gabby and her mother set the table, Matt called them back up. All four kids were talking animately while Esmeralda insisted on feeding your granddaughter, Gabby supervising the four oldest ones, Matt and Edouardo in deep conversation.

"Gabby told me about what happened between you and your ex spouse." Matt had been staring at the kids at the table, Gabby helping out but that got his attention back to Edouardo.

"Yeah. I was scared of losing them." He sighed and took a swig of beer.

"The judge made the right call, they are happy here."

"Thank you sir, they're my world."

"Call me Edouardo."

"Did you ever think that you'd lose one of your kids ever?" He knew that Gabby and Antonio had a great childhood and he had doubts on occasion about his ability to be a dad.

"Every day after Gabriella turned about thirteen." He confessed. "She was so stubborn and independant, even as a child. In a sense, I had lost my little girl."

"Was it hard when she decided to leave the country?"

"It broke my heart but she was in love and Alberto gave her a wonderful life before he passed." Matt looked at his girls and wondered if they would ever choose that kind of path. And then he looked at Gabby. She was laughing at what the kids were telling her, she looked happy. Edouardo looked at him and decided to give him an extra piece of advice. "Matt." He called to grab his attention. "The best you can do is give them the best that you are and all the tools to succeed in life. The rest works itself out on its own." He patted Matt on the back and Matt thanked him before they went back to looking at their women in the kitchen with the kids.

Dinner was done for the kids and Matt helped clean everything with Gabby and they popped some popcorn and put a movie, all five kids with their eyes glued to the tv, leaving their parents to spend time with the other adults.

"You are doing a wonderful job with these girls Matthew." Gabby's mother complimented him as they walked back into the kitchen.

"Thank you. I try."

"Matt, why don't you show dad the house and the yard, he loves architecture. Matt remodelled the whole house when he bought it." Gabby hadn't missed her mom's subtle signal that she wanted to have a word alone with her daughter.

"I would love to have a tour." Edouardo said and both men disappeared outside to start.

"He's wonderful dear." When they were out of earshot.

"I was lucky." She tried to downplay it as she started on their own dinner.

Esmeralda kept an eye on her daughter as she cooked. "You love him don't you?" She suddenly said, Gabby stopping what she was doing.

"I do." She blushed. She had always been open with her mother but she always found a way to notice everything.

"I'm happy for you. You deserve a good man and he's great with the kids. How are they taking it?"

"They know that Matt is in my life and they are ok with him coming around more often but we haven't talked about the future with them."

"And have you told him?" She knew what she was asking and it brought a slight blush to her cheeks.

"Last week, and he said it back." She looked at her mother and smiled, knowing she would want to know if it was reciprocated.

"That's wonderful sweetie." She hugged her and kissed her cheek.à

"So you did all the work?" Matt and Edouardo came back through the kitchen door after being gone for about twenty minutes.

"Every room. I fell in love with this house and even before everything that happened, I saw it with a family.

"You did a great job son. I just might be looking at fixing the back yard soon."

"I'd be happy to help."

"Alright, dinner is almost ready. Can you set the table babe?"

"Sure." He kissed her cheek as he pulled everything out of the cupboards. "And just for the record, I was supposed to cook tonight, give you a break."

"That's fine, you can cook the next time." She winked at him. Once he was done setting the table, she served the seafood pasta and they all dat down, a new bottle of wine opened.

"How's everything at Lakeshore, do you still like it there?" Edouardo started to make conversation as they ate.

"I love it. It feels like a family in peds."

"I'm glad to see it hasn't changed." Esmeralda said between bites. "This is really good."

"Gabby gets all the credit." Matt placed his hand on her leg and squeezed it.

"I only cooked it, it's your recipe."

"Trust me, you make all my recipe's better." He chuckled making Gabby and her parents laugh too.

"And what about you Matt, how's 51?" Edouardo finally put his attention on Matt again.

"Dad!" Gabby exclaimed. She really didn't want this dinner to turn into an interrogation again.

"I'm only asking him how it's going at 51, I won't bite." He promised, Matt simply laughing it off.

"51 is great. We've had big shifts lately though but we do good so I don't mind missing out on some sleep."

"It must not be easy to raise two girls with 24 hour shifts, how do you do it?"

"Dad!" Gabby exclaimed again, she couldn't believe her dad was doing it again.

"I'm just trying to find out more about the man that is in love with my daughter." He said, Gabby almost chocking on her food.

"DAD!" She almost screamed this time, the blush coming back with a vengence.

"What? Do you think your mother is the only one who sees everything?" Gabby stayed quiet and Matt gave her leg a reassuring squeeze and they smiled at each other.

"My sister Christie is my life saver. She helps me in the mornings and when I'm on shift on the week ends. And like I said before, 51 is like family, they help out a lot too." It was all subjects he had been ambushed with the evening he had interrupted Gabby's dinner with her parents but this time it was different. Her dad was really interested and not trying to see if he was good for his daughter.

"The girls are very lucky then." Esmeralda added.

"I'm the lucky one." Matt smiled at her. Both Emma and Grace were his lights and he couldn't be more honoured to be their dad.

They kept the conversation light throughout dinner and when they were done, they realized that it had become increasingly quiet in the living room. Matt went to peak into the living room to find all five kids asleep, mostly on each other.

"Today tired them out." He walked back to the kitchen to help clean everything up before he would move the girls to their beds, cleaning them would wait in the morning.

"I think they had fun."

"They always have fun." Matt chuckled. Every time the kids would all get together, they would end up in bed early that night and tonight wasn't different. Once everything was cleaned out, coffee was made and poured and the adults had a nice conversation. Matt took a few minutes to move the girls from the couch to their beds before Gabby's parents left.

"I've had a wonderful evening Matthew." Esmeralda hugged his and Matt kissed her cheek.

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself."

"You have a nice house and beautiful girls, you should be proud." Matt took the hand that Edouardo extended.

"Thank you sir, Edouardo." Matt had to remind himself to call Gabby's dad by his first name.

"And take care of this one." He motioned to Gabby who was in her mother's embrace.

"I will." Matt and Gabby exchanged a smile before her parents left, closing the door behind them, Gabby's back to it.

"The house didn't explode." Gabby chuckled as Matt pulled her by the waist.

"And I'm still alive." He kissed her tenderly.

"How do they even see all of that?" She leaned her forehead into his chest, referring to both her parents already knowing they were in love with other.

"Because they're your parents and they know you. But I meant it, I'll take care of you, always." He kissed the top of her head.

"I love you."

"I love you too baby." They shared a most passionate kiss this time. Matt helped her get the kids ready to leave and into her car and he watched her drive away before he walked back inside and turned off the lights, heading up to call an early night as well.

a/n: Alright so as promised, I'm posting before the end of the week. Both Gabby and Matt expected this evening to be like the first time when the four of them were in the same room but they were able to enjoy a fun grown up evening, Gabby's parents finding out a bit more about Matt and how the both of them already have those strong feelings for each other.

Please take a few minutes to review and tell me what you guys thought. I'll see you guys on next Thursday for a brand new update - Sarra