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It had been longer than Morgan liked to think about since she'd had a cuddly morning in bed with someone she was ridiculously fond of, so getting up with the alarm after she'd dragged Adam home with her was even harder than usual. But the kids had to get up for school, they had to get up for work, and Chloe hadn't slept in a day in her little tiny life. She'd been serious about getting the kids used to Adam being there in the morning, but it would be a lot easier on everyone if they were upright and fully clothed when it happened.
Not that she was worried at all. She knew the kids liked Adam, and had always been happy to have him over. Even if they hadn't twigged on him as a potential stepd— no, she was not finishing that thought right now – it wouldn't take them that long to adjust. Even though she'd never brought anybody home. Ever.
It would be fine, though. Totally fine.
Adam was watching her with that openly fond expression on his face that always made her chest go tight. "You know you said that last bit out loud, right?"
"Shut up." She stole a kiss, because she was allowed to do that now and she didn't have to explain it to the kids yet. "And how dare you not wear a tie. Do you have any idea how distracting your throat is?"
He smiled a little, stealing his own kiss. "I have to go home and change anyway. There's no point."
"My sanity is the point," she muttered, then took a deep breath and put her hand on the door handle. "Ready?"
He nodded, expression serious now. "Ready."
They went to get Chloe, who showed that she interited her mother's excellent taste by being delighted to see Adam, then headed into the kitchen. After getting Chloe secured in her seat, the two of them started the process of making breakfast while Chloe provided helpful commentary on their choices. Anything too fancy would be instantly met with suspicion, but Adam was patient enough to scramble eggs without letting them burn and Morgan was in a good enough mood to bother finessing their extremely finicky toaster.
When Ava appeared, Morgan slapped a piece of peanut butter toast directly into her hand. "If you're willing to sit down for a couple of minutes," she said, inclining her head toward Adam, "there's eggs in it for you."
Ava raised an eyebrow at her mom, then gave Adam's back a long speculative look. Morgan forced her shoulders to stay relaxed as Ava raised her voice enough to make it clear the question was directed at Adam. "I hope you're putting cheese in that."
"Of course." He turned to look at Ava over his shoulder, like he knew what she was really asking. "And next time, I'm bringing higher-quality cheese."
Ava smiled a little at that, giving Morgan an approving look that she was too relieved about to be annoyed by. "I'll teach you how to change Chloe sometime," Ava told him lightly. "It'll be exciting for all of us."
She wandered off, still holding her toast, and Morgan looked over at Adam to see his reaction. He was just finishing up the eggs, responsibly turning off the burner, and when he felt her watching him he turned to meet her eyes. "What?" he asked mildly. "You think I can't figure out how to change a diaper?"
She smirked, filled with a different kind of relief, and squeezed his shoulder as she went to get some plates. "Just as long as I get to film it when it happens."
When Morgan turned back around, though, her relief stuttered. Elliot was just standing there watching them both, a slight frown on his face like he was thinking too hard and didn't particularly like what he was thinking about.
She took a deep breath, setting the plates down on the counter. "Hey kiddo," she said gently. "Want some eggs?"
She saw Adam tense, clearly picking up on something in her voice, and he slowly turned around as well as Elliot finally spoke. "Does Dad know about this?"
His tone kept it a question, not an accusation, but there was real worry and at least a little frustration in his voice. Morgan was sure she and Ludo were on the same page about their relationship – they'd joked about one of the teachers at his school who kept trying to seduce him with oat-bran cookies – but it seemed like Elliot didn't feel quite as logical about his parents transitioning from a couple to friends as he'd pretended to.
Working on instinct, she stepped forward. "Not yet," she told her son, pulling out her phone. "So let's tell him."
When Elliot nodded, she dialed and waited until Ludo picked up. "Hey, little bit of an update," she announced brightly, putting the phone on speaker. "Elliot and I wanted you to know that Karadec and I are dating now. He just finished making scrambled eggs, and if you want we'll save you some."
There was a brief moment of silence on the other end of the phone. "Is Karadec there?" he asked finally, like he'd been deep in thought himself.
Keeping one eye on Elliot, she turned to include Adam in the discussion. He was still so tense, clearly more nervous about this than getting yelled at by his boss. Still, he squared his shoulders and spoke. "I'm here."
Another pause. "You used cheese, right?"
Adam's shoulders relaxed a fraction. "Of course. And I'll bring better cheese next time."
"Good man." Ludo's voice was warm and cheerful. "Now, if you two fight I'm mostly going to have to side with Morgan – mother of my children and all that – but I am uniquely qualified to understand just how frustrating she can be. If you need to, feel free to call me. If it's allowed under the unspoken co-parenting agreement, I'll happily commiserate."
A little bit more of the tension left Adam, but she could see him keeping one eye on Elliot as well. "I'll keep that in mind."
"Good." Now Ludo's tone turned a little more solemn. "Elliot? Thank you for telling me. If I find someone I care enough about to want to start dating, I'll make sure your mom knows about it, too."
Elliot didn't say anything for a moment, looking between the phone, Morgan and Adam. Finally, he cleared his throat. "You're not upset?"
"I'm not upset." Ludo's voice was gentle enough to make Morgan's throat tighten a little bit. "The only thing that would upset me is if your mom tried to date someone who wouldn't be good to you kids, and I know Karadec is going to work just as hard to protect and take care of you all as your mom and I do."
"I will." Adam's voice was rough with emotion, intense as any promise. It made Morgan's throat tighten more than a little. "I absolutely will."
He'd focused on Elliot for that last bit, saying the words directly to him, and Morgan could see her son absorbing the information. Giving it more thought, he nodded. "That would be a good idea," Elliot said finally, then hesitated. "But if you do start dating someone, we should meet her first."
"Absolutely," Ludo said easily. "Now, I've got to go, but you'd better be serious about saving me some of those eggs."
"I'm on it," Adam said, a positive sign that he was picking up the family banter.
They ended the call, Morgan still watching Elliot. "Ready for breakfast?" she asked carefully.
Elliot considered this for a moment, then nodded. "Ready." He walked over to Adam. "What do you know about fluid dynamics?"
"Not as much as I'd like," Adam said seriously. "Any chance you could help me learn more?"
Elliot's entire face lit up as he immediately started explaining. Morgan let herself just watch them, utterly content.