Page 15 of The Gunnery Sergeant's Ready-Made Family

With Finn finally dressed, Stevie carried him downstairs, leaving him in his playpen in the lounge room and guiding Ranger to the dining room table where he could draw with his crayons, and more importantly, where she could see them both. Stevie hurried around the kitchen, opening and closing cupboards, scribbling items down on her fortnightly shopping list. Stevie usually loved her fortnightly grocery store shopping trip, she found it relaxing choosing her items and imagining what she was going to make with them, but today it was just one more thing that she needed to get done. Stevie checked their laundry and bathroom cupboards, and their deep freezer, double-checking that she had everything on her shopping list. Satisfied, she stowed her list in her jeans pocket, and, making sure that the boys were still happy, made a start on cleaning up the kitchen. Breakfast had been a messy affair, Ranger had spilt his cereal, and Finn had smooshed banana all through his high chair. It wasn’t until Stevie was wiping down the tabletop that she finally heard Chase’s keys in the door, Ranger rushing to meet him, peppering him with questions, their voices growing louder.

“I’m so sorry I’m back so late,” Chase fished a mug out of the cupboard and poured himself a coffee.

“No need to apologise,” Stevie smiled across the room at him. “Is it all sorted now?”

“Yes, thankfully, my recruit had gotten himself into some serious trouble, but I was able to reach a resolution that everyone is happy about, so that’s nice. Now,” Chase looked around the room, “what else needs help with?”

“You don’t need to help Chase, you must be exhausted, you go upstairs and rest.” Stevie hated the thought of him being up all night only to return home and start helping her out, especially on work that Stevie herself had wanted to be done, not something that was necessary for the running of the house.

“Aww, come on Stevie, what are Saturdays for if not running errands and pottering around the house?” As Chase grinned across at her, Stevie felt her stomach flip flop, the second time that week that it had happened. She really hoped that she wasn’t getting a stomach bug, that was the last thing they wanted in their house.

Shoving her butterflies aside, Stevie led Chase and the children back upstairs, the children to their room secured with a baby gate, and Chase to his room. It felt weird for Stevie, opening the door to Chase’s room, almost as if she was invading his privacy, and she hesitated, letting Chase pass and open the door himself. Chase’s room was nothing like Stevie had thought it might look like, having only ever shared a house with her brother Kyle, she was expecting rather a messy appearance, maybe some shoes and deodorant cans strewn around. Instead, what she saw was calm, relaxing. Chase had repainted the room when he had done the boy's room, opting for a pale sage green with a crisp white trim. At the back of the house, his room had a window overlooking the backyard, the smell of orange blossoms wafting in through the window.

“Chase, are you sure about this? We can always put a fold-up bed in my room, or in the boy's room and I can sleep on it? I just don’t like the thought of you having to give up your room.”

“I don’t have to, I chose to,” Chase replied as he emptied his wardrobe, piling his clothes on the bed. “Nikki will be more comfortable in her own space, and you need yours too. If I need space, I can go to work, or have a run, trust me, it will be fine.” Stevie decided not to argue the point anymore, Chase could be stubborn when he put his mind to it, and, as he kept reminding her, he was going to take care of them all of them, no matter what it took. With the two of them working together, they had soon emptied the room of Chase’s belongings, relocating them to an empty space in the laundry, where Chase had hung a clothes rack and Stevie had added a dresser. Just as they stopped for lunch, the removalist van arrived, and Chase went to help the removalists carry her grandmother’s boxes upstairs, not returning until the job was complete and the removalists had left. Tired out from the day’s excitement, Ranger didn’t argue when Stevie tried to put him down for a nap alongside his brother, the two boys falling asleep within minutes. Leaving Chase in charge and urging him to rest while he could, Stevie headed for the grocery store, opting for the one located off base, although the prices were a little more expensive, there was a wider ranger there.

It took Stevie longer than she had realised to grocery shop, entirely her own fault, she kept getting distracted by items she didn’t need, imagining how she could use them or how much Ranger might like them. Stevie knew that she was prone to overcompensating where Ranger was concerned. He had lost both of his parents, and while Stevie knew she could never replace them, she would often buy little treats or treasures for her young nephew. She had spoken to Chase about it, not wanting to end up spoiling Ranger, and Chase had assured her that Stevie was not going to ruin Ranger, that she merely wanted him to have nice things, and that there was nothing wrong with that, as long as they taught him to live a Godly life, and to be thankful for every opportunity that came his way, they would all be just fine. Comforted by that, Stevie added another box of Ranger’s favourite cereal to the trolley, smiling as she thought of how his face would light up when he saw it in the bag. There were treats for Chase and Finn as well, a bulk bag of his favourite trail mix, and a soft picture book, and for Stevie and her grandmother, a new novel that she had been eyeing off, and some marzipan fruits. It was a very tired Stevie that finally made it home, the truck loaded up with bags of groceries, shortly before dinner time.

Chase and Ranger helped to unload the bags, exclaiming over everything as Stevie unpacked and put items away. As expected, the men in her life were happy with their treats, Ranger begging to be allowed to have a bowl of cereal for dinner, instead of the braised steak that Stevie had originally planned. Not looking forward to cooking, she agreed, Chase making everyone a plate of grilled cheese sandwiches while Stevie fed a sleepy Finn. While Chase was upstairs reading to Ranger and Finn, Stevie rushed outside to the truck, hauling in a square box she had wrapped in garbage bags and hidden in the backseat. She shifted some furniture around in the lounge room, making some more space along the far wall, where she took out her purchase and set it up, standing back to admire her handiwork as Chase came back downstairs.

“Stevie, what on earth?” Chase gestured to the fold-out bed that Stevie had just erected and made, complete with pillows.

“I didn’t want you cramped on that sofa. This is your house too Chase, with your job, you need a good night's sleep.”

“Thank you.” He held her gaze, the hair on her arms standing on end.

“You’re welcome,” Stevie broke the weird feeling that had descended upon them, “Good night Chase, sleep well.”

Stevie was up early the following morning, by the time Chase had come downstairs, she had already put dinner in the slow cooker and turned it on, ready for tonight. Chase was going to be taking Ranger and Finn to church today, a short walk from their house, while she drove out to the airport to collect her grandmother. Ranger had begged to come, but Stevie had held firm. He would see them both back home after church. She tooted and waved as she left, excitement filling her. She had missed her grandmother, despite the older woman only being gone a few short weeks, and she was looking forward to talking with her one on one before they got home. Although she had told her grandmother about Chase’s proposal and had received her blessing and good wishes, Stevie was sure that her grandmother would have more to say on the subject, and she wasn’t wrong.

“Gran, it isn’t like that with Chase and I.”

“Well, your grandfather and I weren’t always smitten with each other, there were a good many days when I couldn’t stand the sight of him,” the older lady chuckled, “especially when he used to come home from fishing, the fish stinking up the house, cleaning and filleting them right in my kitchen,” she shook her head at the memory.

“No, gran, I mean Chase and I are not in love or smitten, or whatever. We only got married because it was convenient, it gives Finn and Ranger and I security, it gives us a home and it gives the children access to the educational benefits that the Army provides, not to mention the medical benefits.”

“I see, and what does Chase get from this arrangement?”

“Chase gets the family that he always wanted, a house, a home full of people who love him and care about him.”

“So you admit that you love him?”

“Of course, I love him, Gran, I've known the man for nearly two decades, there is no one else on earth that I trust enough to be married to.”

“Love and trust are the cornerstones to a successful marriage, Stevie.”

“Gran,” Stevie rolled her eyes, “I told you, we are just friends.”

“Mm-hmm, that is what you said, wasn’t it?”

“Let me guess, you don't believe me?”

“It isn't that I don't believe you, Stevie, I'm sure that on some level you actually believe what it is that you’re saying, I just think that you are wrong, both of you. I think that the feelings that you and Chase have for each other go deeper than just a mutual friendship and respect.”

“I see.”

“Stevie, it is okay to want more, it is okay to admit that you have feelings for people, to love and to be loved, it is okay to feel.”

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