“I told you it would for a bit. You still think you did the right thing?” Mack held her arm and carefully kissed her way up to the tattoo site. It was wrapped in a bandage with cling film over the top to protect it.

“I would do it every day if I needed to. It means the world to me. I’m part of the Sharkeys now.”

“You are, and you’re never getting rid of us.”

They lay in bed, in their newly decorated bedroom. While Flora recovered at Mack’s mum’s house, Nikki’s building contractors set about making the upstairs flat part of Flora’s home and redecorated. It was Nikki’s gift to both Mack and Flora.

In the meantime, Flora was looked after hand and foot by Mack’s mum and auntie. They loved fussing around her, not just because of what she had done, but because they couldn’t have imagined a more perfect woman for Mack to bring in to the family.

They didn’t push her for conversation or anything like that. It was all taken at Flora’s pace.

Another thing that was taken at Flora’s pace was this, intimacy. They hadn’t made love since before the attack, and Mack was being as careful as she could with her partner.

But Flora had taken her by surprise. After coming home from getting her Sharkey tattoo, she jumped on her, literally, just after they got through the door. Mack carried her upstairs to their new bedroom, and it was as they undressed each other that Flora felt the pain of her freshly inked tattoo.

Mack pulled her into her arms as they lay in bed. “Are you sure this is the right thing to do? Your arm is going to hurt.”

Flora’s face fell. “Do you think it’s a bad idea? Do you not want me?”

“Did I say that?” Mack said.

This was one of the facets of Flora’s mind that Mack was learning about. She didn’t always get the intention behind how or why Mack had said something.

“I just don’t want you to think you have to do this for me.”

“For you? No way.” Flora giggled.

This was another new thing Mack had to get used to. Conversations could go from sadness and misunderstanding to laughter in seconds. It kept Mack on her toes.

Flora rolled on top of Mack and kissed her. “I’d only started to explore this, sex with you, before I was injured. I’d waited a long time to have this kind of relationship, and then in you walked, my dream butch.”

Flora saw the edges of Mack’s mouth rise up into a smile. It was lovely to see.

“As much as I love your mum and Auntie Chrissy, all I could think about while I was recovering was touching you again.”