# Chapter 5: The Family Detective
Hello everyone, it's me again! How are you all doing? Today I will continue to walk with you and review Chapter 5 of "Married at first swipe free digital audiobook" — and let me tell you, this chapter is an absolute rollercoaster of family interviews, hidden truths, and one very overwhelmed best friend trying to play matchmaker!
---
Jess was beginning to realize that finding Hannah the man of her dreams was not going to be as simple as swiping right on a profile. No, no — this was a full-scale mission, a project of monumental proportions, and the weight of it was pressing down on her shoulders like a ton of bricks.
She'd thrown herself into the Save The Date campaign with everything she had. Pippa and Andy were on board, the press release was nearly ready, social media ads were being crafted, and emails were pinging out to everyone on their mailing list. But with every passing hour, her anxiety seemed to multiply. What if nobody applied? What if thousands applied and she couldn't possibly choose between them all? And even if she did manage to narrow it down to a promising candidate, what if Hannah looked at him and said "absolutely not"? The responsibility was enormous. This wasn't just matching profiles on an app — this was holding her best friend's entire future in the palms of her hands.
Jess had known Hannah for more than twenty years. She'd always believed she knew her friend inside and out. But as she sat there scrolling through old Facebook images, studying the kind of men Hannah had gravitated toward over the years, she realized something troubling. One tanned, long-haired, beach-bum bartender started to look exactly like another after a while. And those men — the ones Hannah had chosen during her years of traveling — didn't seem to be the kind of men Hannah needed now. The picture was incomplete. There were gaps in their friendship, stretches of time when Hannah had been on another continent entirely, periods when Jess only saw her friend in snippets, never with the full context of her family life.
It was Tom, of all people, who offered the solution. There they were on the sofa, Jess pouring out her worries, when her husband — who could never seem to find his own children's PE kits, mind you — suggested the obvious. Why not take a few afternoons off and talk to Hannah's family? Her mum, her dad, her brother, her grandma. Not to tell them the full plan — that Hannah would actually marry whoever Jess matched her with — but just to get their insights on the kind of man Hannah should be with.
"Mr T, you are sometimes a bit of a genius!" she'd smiled.
"Sometimes? I think you'll find it's all the time," he'd replied, yawning.
And then, because Tom was Tom, the conversation immediately shifted to his own helplessness. Where was Sam's PE kit? Had she seen the email from the school about inset days? He couldn't do pick-up tomorrow, and there was a meeting in town on Wednesday, and couldn't she just swap things around? Jess had rolled her eyes, located the PE kits, updated the calendar, added reminders to her phone, and yes — she'd done it all. Because that was what she did. Tom seemed to believe that simply telling her things somehow transferred the responsibility for remembering them entirely onto her shoulders. And as he kissed her cheek and headed up to bed, she felt that familiar ache of resentment blooming in her chest, even as she pushed it down.
Half an hour later, with PE kits sorted and calendars updated, Jess had texted Joan, Scott, and Hannah's dad John, arranging to meet each of them over the coming week. She'd been brief in her explanation — she wanted to talk about the sort of man Hannah should date. Too late to call Vera on the phone, she'd sent an email instead, knowing how much Hannah's grandmother adored her iPad.
There was just one tiny problem. She hadn't actually told Hannah about any of this yet.
"So you're going to see my parents, grandma and brother to talk about me, but I'm not allowed to come too?" Hannah asked the following morning, her voice a mixture of bewilderment and amusement.
"Yep, that's about the size of it!" Jess laughed.
She went on to explain that she'd also messaged Dee in Australia and Johanna — who was currently in Myanmar, of all places, working for a humanitarian charity — and planned to send them questions by email.
"They're not ridiculous questions, Han," Jess insisted when Hannah protested. "They're going to help me find you a husband!"
Hannah eventually relented, though not without warning her friend. "Fine, go and see them, but don't blame me when you realise how weird they all really are!"
"Well, they are related to you, after all!" Jess had grinned.
---
Jess decided to start with Joan, Hannah's mum. Joan was still living in the pretty semi-detached house where Hannah had grown up — the same house where Hannah's world had fallen apart when her father left for another woman a decade ago. John now lived a ten-minute drive away with his second wife Charmaine and their daughter Seraphina. And Joan, Jess knew, was still rather prickly about the whole situation.
"So lovely of you to pop over!" Joan cried, ushering Jess inside. "I thought we could have a glass of Pinot Grigio while we chat," she giggled girlishly.
"Joan, you're so naughty, it's only two o'clock!" Jess laughed. "But go on, I'll have a very small glass — I'm driving, sadly."
Joan fussed around with side tables and coasters before finally settling into her chair and sipping her wine with a contented sigh. "So, this sounds exciting: you're trying to get Hannah to finally settle down, I hear?"
Jess explained that it had actually all come from Hannah herself. She wanted someone long-term, someone to build a life with back home. And so Jess needed to understand what had gone wrong with Hannah's previous relationships. What had Joan thought of the men her daughter had brought home over the years?
It turned out Joan hadn't met very many of them at all. "She rarely deigns to bring them round to meet me," Joan said rather bitterly. The teenage boys had been unambitious, she said. The men Hannah met abroad — well, Joan barely knew anything about them. There was a man Hannah had met in Fiji, someone from Australia or New Zealand, and Hannah had apparently taken him to Wales of all places — but the relationship had fallen apart soon after, and Hannah had stopped mentioning him entirely.
"I don't really know anything about my daughter's love life," Joan admitted with a sad little smile, "and I'm sure that's the way she likes it!"
When Jess pressed her on what kind of man Hannah *should* be with — especially if she was looking for something long-term — Joan's answer came immediately. "She needs someone who's going to balance her out."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you know what she's like, always rushing headlong into things; she needs a man who's going to make her stop and think before she runs off to the nearest hot country to 'find herself' again."
But he couldn't be boring either, Joan insisted. No accountants or tax advisers. He had to have an exciting, exploring streak about him to keep Hannah interested. And he needed to be intelligent. Joan sighed about how Hannah could have been a high-flyer in some big company, like her friend Mary's son who was now a top lawyer in London, but instead she'd ended up behind bar in yet another beach resort. Still, Joan supposed, you had to let your children do what they wanted.
"What's the most important thing to Hannah in a relationship?" Jess asked.
"Gosh, I've never really thought about it, you'd probably have to ask her."
"But what do you *think* might be important to her?" Jess pushed.
Joan pondered. Kindness, she said. And funny — Hannah had always loved to joke around. And... "That he seems like he might be good with children, I suppose."
Had Hannah ever talked about having kids? Jess asked tentatively.
Not directly, not recently. But Joan remembered how Hannah had always adored children. When she was little, she used to wish for a little sister — she was desperate to dress up her dolls in pink baby clothes. She'd grown out of that, of course, once she'd found Jess at secondary school.
Finally, Jess asked one last question: was there anyone Hannah definitely *shouldn't* date?
"A cheat," Joan answered crisply, her voice hardening. "Hannah would hate to be humiliated and I would hate to see her hurt. Once a man has cheated, he's a cheat for life, believe me. No matter what the circumstances, there's never an excuse, never."
Jess smiled awkwardly and thanked her. She couldn't help wondering if Joan was speaking from bitter experience. After all, John had left her for Charmaine. Maybe, in Joan's mind, all cheating men were the same.
---
The following afternoon, Jess was supposed to visit Hannah's dad John. But the bank had called to confirm what she'd already discussed with the adviser in person the week before — Save The Date's financial position was every bit as precarious as it had been, and hearing it all again had upset her so much that she'd missed the correct turning and had to double back, arriving nearly twenty minutes late.
John, bless him, didn't seem to mind at all. He showed her into the kitchen of the house he shared with Charmaine and their young daughter Seraphina — a warm, lived-in space covered with children's paintings and crayon-filled pictures.
"I've promised Hannah I'll help find her The One," Jess explained, "but I can't do it on my own, which is why I wanted to talk to you about the kind of man you think she should go for."
"In my dad role, I obviously don't think any man out there is good enough for my little Hannah," John laughed. "But I do think she'd love to have someone to settle down with now she's finally putting down some roots back home."
John's answer was warm and thoughtful. Hannah needed someone who would let her be herself without clipping her wings, but who would also make her *want* to stay in one place — preferably somewhere local. "It's been so nice having her back home for the past six months," he said, "and I know her mum appreciates it too."
Jess mentioned the revelation Joan had shared — that young Hannah had desperately wanted a little sister. And John's face softened with bittersweet memory. Hannah had asked every day whether she was getting a new baby sister. She'd pointed at her mother's tummy, tried to listen for a baby's heartbeat, and once even told her teacher that she was going to have a sister — poor Joan had been forced to explain that no, she most certainly was *not* pregnant. Hannah had believed that if she wished for it hard enough, a baby would simply appear.
"Sadly, it wasn't to be," John said gently, "but thankfully she met you a few years later, and I know she sees you as the sister she never had, Jess."
Jess's throat tightened with emotion. "Me too."
Other qualities? John thought for a moment, then said something that made Jess's heart ache. "To tell her how much he loves her every day. I know Hannah adores her grandmother, and her poor grandfather before he passed away... she often talks about their amazing relationship. I know me and her mum didn't always have the best marriage, but I always loved Joan. I just wish I'd told her more often. I'm trying not to make the same mistake this time though."
He cleared his throat, embarrassed by his own honesty. And then, as if on cue, the front door burst open and a whirlwind of a little girl came charging in, full of stories about insect houses and books about boys with funny eyes and magic carpets.
"Daddy, we made insect houses at school today and then Mrs Wilson read us all a story about a boy who had a funny eye and got laughed at except by one nice little girl in his class and then they became best friends and went on a magic carpet together. It was awesome."
Seraphina was adorable — curly-haired and full of life. And Charmaine followed shortly after, warm and welcoming, insisting Jess bring the twins over for a play date with Seraphina.
"We were just talking about Hannah and her new man. Well, the new man Jess here is going to find her," John said.
"I hope he's handsome!" Charmaine said. "Hannah is so pretty that she needs a good match in the looks department."
"Noted!" Jess said, trying not to laugh at John's face.
And then, from nowhere, Seraphina made an announcement that froze everyone at the table. "Hannah would like to marry a painter," she said, through a mouthful of carrot and houmous.
"Really, why do you think that, darling?" her father asked.
"She told me," Seraphina replied importantly. "She was plaiting my hair and we were talking about why she didn't have a boyfriend and she said she hadn't found anyone who made her tummy whoosh enough. I asked her who would do that and she said someone creative and I asked her what creative means and she said like a painter and I said that we had a painter coming to paint our hall tomorrow and I could ask him if he had a girlfriend if she wanted, and then she laughed but I don't know why."
Jess laughed too. "Wow, you do have a good memory, Seraphina! I think someone creative sounds perfect for Hannah."
---
The next meeting was the one Jess was dreading — Scott. Hannah's younger brother. In her teenage years, Jess had harbored a secret crush on him — he was the hot older brother, the one all the girls whispered about. Hannah had caught her admitting it once and had mercilessly ripped the mickey out of her for an entire year. But Scott, as Jess remembered him, was also a bit of an idiot. Charming, good-looking, but not exactly deep.
They met at a hipster café in the Northern Quarter, at Scott's suggestion. Jess, ever the planner, had managed to arrive half an hour early and was already on her second latte when Scott finally sauntered in. He was still as good-looking as ever — strong jaw, high cheekbones, chocolate-brown eyes just like Hannah's. His dirty-blond hair was gelled neatly at the front, except for one carefully artless lock falling across his forehead in what he probably thought was an attractive way, but which annoyed Jess immediately.
She was secretly pleased to see the grey bags beneath his eyes — evidence that fatherhood was keeping him up at night, same as everyone else. And she was relieved to feel none of the old attraction. In fact, she was already compiling a mental list of things to avoid in her match for Hannah, and at the top of that list was "men who are nothing like Scott."
"So how are you?" she asked as they sipped their drinks.
"I'm really good. I've got loads of work on at the moment. I manage construction sites so I've got literally hundreds of people that I've got to make sure are pulling their weight and not taking liberties. It's hard work, but they all respect me, you know, so it's all good."
Jess tried not to pull a face. But then Scott started talking about Julia and baby Leo, and her heart softened despite herself.
"Nobody tells you you're going to feel... well, feel so much, really. And Julia is just amazing. Seriously, I thought I knew what love was but it wasn't until I saw Julia feeding Leo that I *knew*, if you know what I mean."
He pulled out his phone, already scrolling for pictures. "Look at this one I took yesterday when I came home from work — they were both spark out on the sofa, bless them."
The picture was lovely — Julia peacefully asleep with tiny Leo on her chest. Jess felt a pang of recognition. She couldn't help but note she'd never looked that beautiful after the twins' arrival, but she pushed that thought away.
"Hannah's very sweet with him," Scott said, "although she has also taught him to blow raspberries, which Julia's not quite so happy about! It is actually really nice to have her back here in Manc, though I can't understand why she didn't stay in Oz or wherever she was. I know I'd be out there like a shot if I could."
Jess steered the conversation toward the real purpose of her visit. Why did Scott think Hannah's past relationships hadn't lasted? What kind of man was right for her?
Scott looked surprised. "I guess all the guys she previously went out with were just not right for her — or she wasn't right for them, anyway."
"But why do you think that is?" Jess probed.
"Well, she's very headstrong, isn't she? If she doesn't want to do something then she's not going to do it, which might put some men off. And she's quite independent. Even as a kid she was always climbing trees or off reading in a corner on her own. Most of my mates had their sisters trailing round after them wanting to be part of our crew, you know, but Hannah was never like that. She's always been independent and guys just sometimes want to look after their birds and be that hunter gatherer, whereas Hannah never seemed to need that."
Jess raised her eyebrows. "Okay, what about Hannah's *good* points? What do you think she brings to a relationship that other women don't?"
"God, do you know how weird it is thinking about my sister getting it on with someone!" Scott made a vomiting noise, and Jess briefly considered abandoning the entire project right there. She was supposed to find Hannah a husband, and surely her first prerequisite should be that she actually *liked* the man? Maybe she should just go home and scroll through the Save The Date database for men who were nothing like Scott.
"Maybe just think about their first date, rather than them getting it on," she suggested through gritted teeth.
"Right, got ya. Okay, so I'll say one thing for Hannah and that's that she always has good chat. Some women look ten out of ten but as soon as they open their mouth they drop to a five out of ten, you know what I mean? Hannah always has something to say or a great story about when she went travelling or whatever. And obviously she's a good-looking girl — she is related to me after all!"
Scott found his own joke hilarious and chuckled to himself for a good sixty seconds. Jess smiled politely and thanked him for his invaluable contribution to the project. *Invaluable*, she thought wryly, in confirming that Scott was just as much of an idiot as he'd been as a teenager. She could only hope for Leo's sake that Julia was a better influence — otherwise she pitied that poor child's chances.
"Ahh, mate, it's been so cool. Say hi to Han from me and tell her Julia will text her tomorrow, yeah?"
Jess wasn't sure why he couldn't just text his own sister, but she nodded and hurried to catch the bus back to school pick-up and the safety of snacks on tap. She and Tom might have their problems, but at least he wasn't a misogynistic little idiot like Scott.
---
The final visit was the one Jess had been most looking forward to — Hannah's grandmother, Vera. She drove over to Vera's sheltered-accommodation flat and was touched to see that the elderly lady had gotten out her best china in honor of Jess's visit.
"When you're my age, you take every opportunity possible to use the posh tea things," Vera said, waving away Jess's protests. "And anyway, it was Carla who set it all out nicely like this — she's the lady who comes in to help me twice a day, and she's a total sweetheart, except when she's trying to get me to do something I don't want to do, and then she's a nightmare!"
"I can't imagine you doing anything you didn't want to do, Vera!" Jess smiled, pouring the tea and helping herself to a biscuit.
"No, well, you'd be right there," Vera chuckled. "Now, what can I do for you, young Jessica? This is about our Hannah, I presume?"
Jess explained her mission. Vera's eyes lit up with delight. "Now this is the kind of conversation I like! Although I do have to say that I wouldn't count myself as an expert in these kind of matters. As you know, I have only ever loved one man in that kind of way — and I've never met a better man than my dear Robbie."
Jess saw her eyes mist over and cursed herself for not being more thoughtful. But Vera rallied quickly, and her advice was — as always — sharp as a tack.
"What that darling girl needs is someone who will not only treat her right, but who will also make her think differently about things from time to time. I often think Hannah has quite set views and she isn't one to change her mind once she's decided something. That can obviously be a very positive thing, but I get the sense my granddaughter isn't very good at compromise."
She reminded Jess of the boy Hannah had brought back from somewhere exotic, the one she'd been all set on marrying after some walk on a beach in Wales. Hannah had told Vera they split up because he thought playing the guitar was a profession, not a hobby. "Now, she may well have been right as I never had the pleasure of hearing this boy play, but it was definitely her way or the highway, so he chose the highway. I remember talking to her at the time about letting people have the space to be whoever they truly are, but if I'm honest, I'm not sure she took much notice of what her aged G-ma was telling her!"
"I can't remember what she told *me* was the reason for them breaking up," Jess confessed. "Especially as about a week later she flew off to Argentina or somewhere and it was a struggle to even get her to text me regularly!"
"That sounds like my granddaughter!" Vera smiled.
Then she insisted on hearing every detail of what Joan and John had said, doing a series of theatrical nods and eyebrow raises to indicate agreement or disapproval, along with some uncanny impressions of her own daughter. Jess laughed until her sides hurt.
All too soon, it was time to go. Jess washed up the tea things, made sure Vera was going to eat the sandwich the Meals on Wheels team had left, and hugged the older woman goodbye.
"You are a good girl, Jessica." Vera smiled at her from the doorway. "But you make sure you find darling Hannah the right man, won't you. Or you'll have me to deal with!"
Jess laughed as she let herself out of the flat — though she knew, deep down, that G-ma had only been half-joking.
---
As she drove home, her mind was whirling. Joan wanted someone grounded but exciting, balanced but not boring, someone who could handle Hannah's independence but keep her near. John wanted someone who would adore Hannah, tell her he loved her every day, and make her want to stay home. Scott, bless his clueless heart, had essentially contributed nothing except the confirmation that Hannah was pretty and good at conversation. Vera wanted someone who would challenge Hannah's rigid thinking and encourage her to compromise. Charmaine wanted handsome. And little Seraphina, in her innocent wisdom, had suggested someone creative — someone who made Hannah's tummy whoosh.
Everyone had a different idea of who Hannah should be with. But what did *Hannah* want? What would make her happy? Jess was starting to realize that perhaps the most important person she needed to understand was the one person she'd known longest — and yet maybe, just maybe, the one she knew least of all. Finding the perfect man for her best friend was going to require not just knowing Hannah, but truly *seeing* her — all the messy, complicated, beautiful pieces of her that she kept hidden even from the people who loved her most.
The responsibility was terrifying. But Jess had made a promise. And she was determined to keep it — no matter what it took.
---
**Reader's Impressions & Star Rating:**
What a delightful, charming chapter! I absolutely loved watching Jess play detective, gathering clues about Hannah from the people who know her most intimately. Each family interview revealed something new and layered — Joan's bitterness about the past mingled with genuine maternal concern, John's heartfelt confession about wishing he'd told Joan he loved her more often, Scott's frustrating but hilarious idiocy, and Vera's sharp wisdom wrapped in love (and threats!). Jess's own relationship with Tom provides a running commentary on the different ways long-term love works — and sometimes struggles. This chapter masterfully sets up the quest ahead while deepening our understanding of Hannah through her family's eyes. The writing is witty, emotional, and completely engaging.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ **Rating: 4.8 / 5 Stars**
**Next Chapter Prediction:**
Now that Jess has gathered all these family insights, the real work begins! I predict the next chapter will feature the official launch of the Save The Date search — and maybe the first flood of applications. But with Hannah's family giving such contradictory advice, Jess is going to have her work cut out for her. Could this be when we meet a potential candidate for the first time? And how will Hannah react when she realizes just how much her family has been sharing about her love life? I have a feeling things are about to get very interesting!
To listen free the next reviews chatpers, please access website novelsaudio.com and search keyword: Married at first swipe free digital audiobook or click the link in the description of this video or if you want to listen or read full the Married at first swipe free digital audiobook please access website Novelsaudio.com