Authors Note: Hello! I know its been quite a while since I've posted but that's due to two very pivotal reasons. One, I was working nonstop trying to finish the other story which was updated a while ago. And two works got pretty intense with summer and all that jazz. Anyways, here's chapter 6! Yay me!

Disclaimer- I really wish I did, but I don't own the Mortal Instruments.

Chapter 6

Jace POV

The past month with Clary around had been all-around smooth sailing in his opinion. By some miracle, three out of the 4 kids seemed to absolutely adore her, which was a feat on its own. Every day he came home from work to find dinner served, and children content. Laurel would go on and on about how she missed her nanny when Clary would spend her one day off out of the house doing God knows what.

He had been apprehensive at first with how such a petite woman would be able to handle the little hellions, but if there was anything he had learnt in the past month, it was that size doesn't matter. At least not in this case. One sharp and pointed look from Clary could make even bull-headed Emmy grumble an apology before obliging.

Emmy. He sighed. He knew that out of all of them, the deaths of their parents had hit her the hardest and for obvious reasons. She had known them the longest. 'Heck, Lu won't even know her parents when she's older' Jace mused sadly as he got out of bed and checked the time. It was way too early for him to be awake, but thankfully he was off the next day and was in search of a midnight snack. He tried to tread as lightly as possible in hopes of not waking any of the kids up. He knew what a terror even cheerful Ezra could be when disturbed and he didn't even want to get started with little Lucky.

What surprised him was that he could see a faint light coming from the dining room and adjoined kitchen. Curiously, he peered inside to see Clary curled up on one of the bar stools, hunched over a sketchbook, pencil scratching away.

"A little late to be awake, don't you think?" he said softly as he walked towards the kitchen. A beat later, she raised her head as if it had taken her brain a second longer to register that someone else was in her presence. Technically, he had no right to ask her what she's doing because it was her only night off. But they had established a shaky friendship if that was even the word for it. They had easy conversations that didn't usually stray past their favourites and opinions on light topics.

"I sometimes have my night of insomnia but its nothing to worry about. Is there any I can do for you Mr. Herondale?" she said as she moved to leave her seat. But he waved her away, emphasizing that he was fine. " Sleep doesn't always come easily for me so I usually just sketch here or in the living room." Clary continued.

Jace's brows puckered at the thought of her having so many sleepless nights without him knowing. " Is something wrong with the room, or your bed? Is that what's keeping you up?" he asked with a concerned tone.

"Oh no, not at all! Enough about me though because I'm assuming you didn't wake up in the middle of the night to investigate your insomniac riddled nanny," she said with a smile on her lips.

Jace allowed a small grin to appear on his face as he explained that he just woke up for a midnight snack. Yes, dinner had filled him he had just happened to want something else to eat. No dinner was absolutely great. No, he didn't need her to cook anything for him. Yes, he knew there were leftovers in the fridge. Yes, he knew how to make a grilled cheese.

"Clary!" he said, cutting her off for the sixth time. " Thanks for the concern but I'm completely capable of making a snack for myself. It's your night off anyway, you shouldn't be trying to look after me. If you really don't believe in my culinary skills, you'll be sitting in that barstool watching me," he said the last part with a small smirk on his lips as she tried of something witty but still respectful to say back because she couldn't deny that he sometimes got on her nerves when he wouldn't let her help him but he was still her boss.

As he heated up the pan, Clary filled the silence, "I was actually planning on meeting up with my friend tonight but she had to cancel so I'll be going out with her tomorrow. Any plans for your weekend off?"

"Thankfully my parents took the kids for the weekend so I might actually be able to relax for the weekend. First I've got to clear some stuff up from work but other than that I don't have any real plans. Actually, on second thought, I forgot to mention it by my brother and sister will be coming over for dinner on Sunday. Sorry, I forgot to mention that beforehand." he said sheepishly.

"Nah its all good, I'll cook on Sunday. What's it like having siblings? I was an only child." Clary explained, setting her pencil down to fully engage in conversation.

"Well, I was adopted when I was around 12, but the family was friends with my parents. They're a little crazy at times, but they took me in as if I were blood-related. They're a real family. I've got a brother and a sister, but you'll get to meet them on Sunday. What was it like being an only child?" Jace inquired as his sandwich sizzled on the pan beside him.

"Growing up alone was kind of lonely I guess. I'd envy those lucky kids around me who had a sibling to tell stories to or bicker with about who got shotgun. But I had a best friend who was almost like a sibling to me. We did everything together, to the point where he even called my mom 'Mamma Fray'." she said with a giggle, her eyes alight with happiness. "Everything was perfect. It was just Simon, my mom and me. Us against the world." suddenly the light dimmed and the sides of her mouth turned down, "Until it wasn't. Everything was different." Jace watched as her emerald eyes clouded over and she stared at her sketchbook with a peculiar expression on her face, as if she weren't really in the present, but rather dragged into the past.

"Hey," Jace said lightly, his fingers grazing her forearm, "go and try to get some rest, okay? For once try and enjoy your day off." He said, smiling a little at her. She gave him a meek one back before bidding him goodnight and retreating to her room.

As he sat there alone mulling over his grilled cheese, he couldn't help but think about Clary. She seemed to be hiding something, but for some peculiar reason, he didn't feel threatened by this for once. Sure, he'd only known her for a month, but in that time he could clearly see what a genuine person she was, and that made his heart warm to think that the kids had someone like that in their lives he couldn't be around.

I really do feel bad about taking this long guys but I wanna try and make this story a priority and maybe continue the other one eventually, depending on which you like better. Let me know!