It was 8:15 the next morning when Ianto was woken by the shrill ringing of his mobile. Jack grumbled sleepily next to him, burying his head further into the pillows. Ianto rolled his eyes fondly before answering the phone,
"Good morning Mam"
"How did you know it was me?"
"Well for one no one else deems this an acceptable time in the morning to call" Ianto teased, "Oh and there's such a thing as caller ID"
"No need to be a smartarse Ianto" his mam chastised, "I'm just seeing how you are. I haven't been to see you since you moved in with that handsome man of yours"
"I know, its all been a bit hectic" Ianto said, "we could meet for coffee if you like"
"Oh, you know no coffee will compare to the one you make at home Ianto"
Ianto smirked, "You're about as subtle as a tank. Would you like to come around to me and Jack's for coffee?"
"Ah yes that would be lovely!" his mother beamed triumphantly, "I could bring Rhiannon too, I'm sure she'd love to see you both"
Ianto smiled tightly, "I'm sure she would"
"So its settled, we'll be around this afternoon"
"Jesus thanks for the notice!"
"Language Ianto! I know it's your day off today, do you have other plans?"
"Well no but…"
"There we go then! I'm sure Jack will be happy to see us"
"I'm sure he will. I better go and let him know hadn't I"
"Yes, quite right. See you this afternoon, love"
"Bye mam"
He hung up the phone and turned to Jack, who was peering at him blearily from beneath the covers.
"Do I want to know?"
Ianto sunk back into the pillows with a groan, "My mother has invited herself and my sister over here this afternoon"
"Oh ok" Jack smiled, "Makes sense really, she hasn't been over since you moved in, she's bound to be…"
"A nosy old bag?"
"I was going to say curious" Jack laughed slapping at his arm playfully, "it'll be nice to see them both" he suddenly turned nervous, looking at the pillow below, "I need to spend some more time with them anyway, need to prove myself"
"What are you talking about?" Ianto looked at him in confusion, "You got on with them so well right from the start"
Jack nodded, "I just really want them to like me, for them to know how important you are to me"
"They do! They love you, Jack, just like I do" Ianto grinned, "well, not exactly like I do, obviously"
With this his hand moved from where it rested on Jack's cheek further down his body, sweeping over his bare chest and over the waistband of his pyjama bottoms. Jack raised an eyebrow,
"Oh really? You wanna show me exactly how you love me?"
"Damn right I do" Ianto smirked at him, his hand continuing his journey southwards as their lips met…
X-X-X
"Ianto, stop fussing the house looks fine"
Jack stood watching as Ianto rushed around him like a whirlwind, adjusting the cushions and ornaments, ensuring everything was in its proper place.
"it's the first time they're visiting I don't want to give them anything to moan about"
"oh yeah they're likely to throw a fit over the arrangement of the sofa cushions" Jack said sarcastically, pulling Ianto away from the sofa and into his arms. He kissed him gently, "Just relax"
Ianto took a deep breath and nodded just as the doorbell rang. He rushed to open the door, finding his mother and sister grinning at him. They were almost too excited in his opinion, which wasn't helping his nerves. He greeted them quickly then passed them over to Jack, heading to the safety of his coffee machine. Rhiannon was looking around herself eagerly, checking out her brother's new home. Jack lead them through into the living room with his trademark grin. He was far better at hiding his nerves than Ianto, his natural charisma getting him through,
"What a beautiful house!" Rhiannon exclaimed, "love what you've done with it"
"Thank you" Jack smiled, gesturing them to sit down as Ianto emerged with a tray of coffees, perfectly timed as always.
"I can see why you'd choose to stay here rather than Ianto's flat" she stared at Ianto as they sat down around the coffee table, her gaze questioning. Ianto had expected this, her worrying around the idea of Ianto having moved into a house technically owned by somebody else. She was thinking practically, of course, but it was a tad overbearing.
Ianto sighed, "I still have the flat Mam, I'm subletting it"
"Yes, you said" she said patiently, "I'm just checking, isn't a mother allowed to worry"
Ianto looked to his sister, "help me out?"
"Nah its funny watching you squirm" she winked, before turning to her mother, "Mam you know Ianto, he's sensible. And Jack's a nice guy as we know, they'll have talked it all through don't you worry"
Jack grinned at her, "Thanks for that. But for the record yes, we're sharing everything equally, its all worked out, Ianto's even got a bills spreadsheet on the go"
"What can I say, I like to be organised" Ianto shrugged
"I know" Jack said fondly, pecking him on the cheek lightly.
"Thanks for inviting us over Yan" Rhiannon grinned mockingly, knowing full well their mother would've engineered the whole thing, desperate to get insight into Ianto's lovelife. And honestly she was pretty curious herself.
"Like I had a choice" he muttered, earning an elbow in the ribs from Jack, who flashed Rhiannon a beaming smile,
"It's always lovely to see you both. Probably a bit overdue, but Ianto had a of stuff we had to move in and organise"
"Bet that took a fair while, Ianto's so anal about his stuff" Rhiannon teased,
"yeah well better that then living in a bombsite, I've seen the state of your wardrobe" Ianto retorted with a scowl. Rhiannon stuck her tongue out at him childishly
"Cut it out you two!" Ianto's mother rolled her eyes in a move that was so classically Ianto that Jack had to smile, "honestly, winding each other up since they were toddlers"
They continued in casual conversation, from the restaurant to Rhiannon's family to Jack's ongoing book, until they'd drained their drinks.
"Now I have no chance of competing with Ianto's coffee, but I can manage tea and a slice of homemade banana loaf" Jack said with a grin, rising from his seat with the tray.
"I'll help you out, Jack. I'm dying to see the kitchen" Ianto's mother beamed. Ianto watched them go with a fond smile. He turned back to his sister who was grinning knowingly at him,
"You've gotten a right soppy bastard since you fell in love, I hope you realise that"
"Oh shut up" Ianto rolled his eyes, wondering what Jack and his mother could get up to in his kitchen between them.
They'd reached the kitchen, Jack sticking the kettle on while Glenda sliced some of the banana loaf Jack had spent the morning, with Ianto obsessively running behind him clearing up. Jack was a wonderful baker but did usually manage to destroy the kitchen in the process.
"The house really is lovely" she said as she glanced around the kitchen approvingly, "you've really settled down here together haven't you"
Jack nodded, "yeah it's been amazing. Thank you for understanding, I know it must've seemed sudden for us to move in together, but honestly it was what we both wanted and just felt like the right time"
"You boys have been through a lot in the time you've been together" she murmured, "What with Ianto's accident and everything"
"Mrs Jones, I…"
"Call me Glenda. And I can see in your eyes you think yourself to blame for what happened"
"I am to blame" Jack's voice broke as he said it, "I am the reason John went after him like that, and I can't apologise enough for the hurt I've caused your son"
"You really can't think that way. That man clearly was not sane and that's not in any way your fault. You are the reason my son is so happy right now, Jack. The two of you together just…fit. You are exactly right for each other., anyone can see that. And if I have my way, you're going to be together for a very long time"
Jack smiled down at her, "That's what I want too. He is the love of my life"
Glenda grinned, "Well good, glad we cleared that up. Now we better get back in there before they tear each other's heads off"
Jack chuckled, following the older woman back into the living room with a relieved smile. After his little chat with Glenda, Jack was feeling more and more relaxed. He hadn't had very much of a family in such a long time, and to be welcomed into Ianto's meant the world to him. He sank back into the sofa as he chatted with Rhi, watching Ianto become more and more relaxed as the afternoon went on. It was a delight to see, watching him open up to his family about their relationship and their home. He grinned at the memory of how tense Ianto had been on his first meeting the women.
"Well as lovely as this has been, we better be heading off" Rhiannon said, moving to get up, "God knows what state my house is in with Johnny and the kids unsupervised"
Ianto shuddered at the thought, rising to show his family to the door.
"Well thank you for coming, we'll have to do this again sometime"
"Sometime soon!" Jack added, "Maybe dinner?"
"I'm so glad you love to entertain, Jack, makes a nice change from Mr. Unsociable over here" Rhiannon nudged at her brother, who graced her with another eye roll.
"That would be lovely" Glenda smiled, reaching to give both Jack and Ianto a hug. Rhiannon hugged them both too, having to be prized from Jack's arms by a mildly irritated Ianto after she'd got a hold of him. Jack grinned cheekily
"Hey cant blame her for wanting a piece of this" he joked, earning himself a death glare as the women hid their giggles behind their hands. As they made their way out the door, both beaming at the happy home they'd both spent the afternoon in, Jack wrapped an arm around his boyfriend watching them go. Ianto leaned into his side,
"Thank God that's over" he sighed, locking the door behind them as they stepped inside,
"Ah it was great" Jack grinned, "I love your family, Yan"
"Yeah and they love you too, Rhi was about ready to take you home"
"One Jones is more than enough for me thanks" Jack assured him with a kiss.
