Most of Martha's storylines were central to her on-off relationship with Jack Holden (Paul O'Brien). Viewers saw the couple go through marriage, divorce, a second marriage and Martha being widowed. Holy Soap said that Martha and Jack proved to be one of the "best loved couples", before they married for the first time. However, their marriage does not last long and they split. Martha and Jack start to lead separate lives, but Jack is there for Martha after she has an abortion. Martha is feeling low at this point and kisses him; Jack's girlfriend Sam Tolhurst (Jessica Chapnik) sees this. O'Brien stated: "I think Jack felt like 'Oh this is nice, but I've moved on, I've finally moved on and found someone', but deep down he still wants Martha." Martha is left "shattered" after Jack plans to marry Sam. Martha was caught trying on Sam's wedding dress as she tried to figure out if she still had feelings for Jack. Gordon said that from day one, Jack and Martha have wanted to be together, but "they're never in the same headspace". O'Brien added that he believes Jack was always in love with Martha, even whilst he was in a relationship with Sam. Both O'Brien and Gordon agreed that when Jack and Martha first broke up it was a bad time for Jack, as his life was spiraling out of control, he needed her, but she left him when he needed her the most. They later become friends; O'Brien believed it was hard to understand how Jack could be so forgiving toward her.