A woman is expecting a baby with her window cleaner after they fell in love while he washed her windows.
Gemma Stephenson, 36, first noticed Sean Nodwell, 37, when he was working on her neighbours' home. After enlisting his help with her own windows, the pair struck up a friendship during breaks in work - which soon turned into stronger feelings.
Though inviting him over on a strictly professional basis, Gemma couldn't help but be charmed by his helpful nature when he offered a hand as she struggled with shopping from her car.
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She said: "I first saw Sean in my next-door neighbours' garden as I was coming from the car with my weekly shop. He said hello to me in a soft Scouse accent and offered to help me with the shopping which was really sweet but to which I politely declined.
"At this point, I thought that was a really nice gesture, as I had been a single mum for many years and was used to doing this kind of thing by myself.
"A few weeks later, I saw him again on my estate and he asked how I was doing and offered me his window cleaning service in the future, to which I agreed as my neighbour had also recommended him.
"Out of the blue, approximately a week or so later, he walked into my garden carrying his ladders and a bucket and made a cheeky remark, saying, 'alright love, I've come to clean your windows for you'.
"While he started work, he shouted down to me, 'any chance of a brew like haha' so I made him a cuppa and he came down and we started talking about our lives.
"The next time he came round, he was full of smiles and genuinely seemed happy in himself and we continued our regular brews and chats together in the garden during him working.
"I enjoyed seeing Sean because he always made me laugh and we would talk about the most crazy things, from music to kids to gardening."
Sean eventually stopped cleaning Gemma's windows with a career change in mind and they didn't see each other for several months. But the pair reunited for his leaving drinks down the pub with friends when he was moving out of the area and back to Merseyside after splitting with his wife.
The goodbye turned out to only be the beginning for the pair as newly single Sean got in touch the following week to say he was free for the weekend and wanted to see her. Gemma, who lives in Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire, with her two children from a previous relationship, said: "He contacted me seeing what I was doing and he said he was looking forward to the weekend as he had been busy at work and didn't have much planned.
"We continued to chat a bit more until half an hour into the conversation, he said 'I'm going to get a train now and come see you, is that ok?'
"That night, we chatted until the early hours of the morning, playing poker, having a few drinks and laughing like teenagers."
From that first weekend in June 2021, the pair continued to meet up regularly and enjoyed trips to Blackpool and Wakefield on the weekends. They visited karaoke bars and restaurants, staying in hotels and going for spa days together.
After eight months of bliss, Gemma and Sean couldn't believe it when they found out that Gemma was pregnant in February 2022 but are now happier than ever.
Sean, who now works as a warehouse operative, said: "Gemma and I, we're going well. Finding out we had a baby on the way was a bit of a shock to the system.
"We found out we're having a baby boy - we're calling him Joseph, not after the technicolour dreamcoat, but Joseph my granddad.
"You never know when you're going to meet someone. I'm looking forward to bringing Joseph up and being a happy, normal family, and he could be a Man United fan too."
Gemma said: "The good times just didn't seem to end. We were living a carefree life of fun, passion and excitement - it was like a rollercoaster and the ride just got better.
"We met up whenever we had free time and then I discovered that I was pregnant and went into total shock mode. Four months later, we are happier than ever to be having our first baby together."
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