Six Months Later.
May.

"It's just a small favour," mom said on the phone. I rested an elbow on top of the tower of packing boxes in the living room and sighed. "And trust me, I searched for other options first. You were a last resort."

"I don't know how to feel about that."

"Well hear me out and then decide how to feel."

"Okay."

"Abby is being released next week. Seven months later," she sounded exhausted. "Look. She can't go home to live alone. It's part of the rules. She won't come and live with me and Dad. She flat out refuses to get an apartment with Lucas and Mills. I even asked Spencer and Nathan but Liam is being a little shit or something like that. It's not a good time to throw a house guest into the mix. The one person she agreed to live with, was you."

"Oh."

"Yeah and I know it's bad timing. Amalia just moved in and you want to have that period of banging on every surface in the house—"

"Mom! Geez. You sound like Dad—"

"Yeah that was actually how he phrased it when I said I was going to call. But anyway. If you can't do it, I'll tell her she has to come back to Texas. But I thought I'd ask."

"She's really not moving back in with Flynn?"

"No, honey. She won't even return his phone calls."

I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose.

"Like I said, I can give her no other choice but to come home if it's too much. I don't wa—"

"No no, mom. Of course she can come here. I just wish she'd patch things up with Flynn. She can't do that in New York."

"You'll be home for the summer, won't you? It's just a month or so."

"Oh. Yeah."

The days had been rolling into one recently. Amalia had just moved the last of her things into the apartment. We were officially living together and had talked about upgrading at some point in the near future.

It made sense that she was living in New York now. This was where her work was. But she'd put it off for a while due to the fact that she didn't want to leave Bernie.

Bernie ended up being the one to push her out the door.

"Yeah she can come here, mom."

"You don't want to talk to Amalia about it first?"

"I think Amalia would be unhappy if I didn't let my recovering sister move in with us. I know her. Don't worry."

"She's lovely," I could hear mom's smile.

The whole family loved her. Unfortunately, the more comfortable everyone was around her, the more outrageous our family gatherings were.

She never complained though. Her appreciation went to the fact that I didn't embarrass her the way that dad and Lucas embarrassed mom and Milly.

"Okay, well," mom exhaled a breath. "I'll let her know and organise the details. I'll let you know when to meet us at the airport."

"Yeah, mom. Sounds good."

"Love you honey."

"Love you too."

When Amalia came home from work later that afternoon, she was cradling two bags of Chinese food.

Her hair was up in a bun and strands of loose bits were clinging to her damp neck.

"I ran up the stairs," she gasped, fanning her face as she dropped the food onto the countertop. "Shit. It's hot."

"Why did you run up the stairs?" I laughed.

"It's good exercise. I've put on weight since we started dating. I swear. We eat so much good food."

She looked perfect. More than perfect.

"Uh that reminds me," I sat down on a barstool while she pulled a water out of the fridge and raised an expectant brow. "So Abby—"

She gasped and almost choked on her water. "I wasn't thinking," her palm connected with her forehead. "That was insensitive. I'm sorry, Max."

"Oh, no," I said. "It's just that she gets out of rehab next week and she has to be put in the care of a family member for the first month or so. Mom asked if she could come here. She's reluctant to move in with anyone else. Is that okay?"

"Max, of course," she nodded and stood in between my legs.

"I know the timing is sort of bad. You just moved in and we—"

"Na uh," she put a finger to my lips. "This is family. It's important. I would do it for Bernie. Don't even consider that I would be anything but on board with this idea."

I smiled. She was so full of love and compassion. Sometimes I couldn't believe how blessed I was.

"I love you."

She gave me a kiss on the cheek and spun on her heel, heading for the bathroom. "I love you too."

"Shower quick," I called, earning a playful glare before she disappeared into the corridor. "So you can eat while it's hot."

Having Amalia here every day was going as well as I imagined it would. For the last month she'd been here almost all the time as it was.

But seeing her things around the room. Her touch in the decor, it had never felt more like home. There were paintings on the walls and colour coming from her little throw pillows.

I'd told her to do whatever she wanted to our bedroom and so far there was a pin board of all of her sketches, her full length mirror and pale pink bed spread.

Half of the closet was hers and it still wasn't full. She'd put some candles out and knick knacks were placed here and there.

It was perfect. She'd worried that she'd done too much or that it was too girly. But there could never be too much of her.

I loved seeing it become our space. Knowing that this was our home. It was perfect. Waking up beside her would never grow old.

Cooking together in our kitchen. Cuddling up on the sofa for a movie or catching a cab back to our apartment after dinner. All of it was time that I would never take for granted. Moments that I wouldn't take for granted.

I couldn't wait to marry her.

___

Abby's POV next. We'll pick up in a week from now. (A week in the story. Not a week irl) give me another day or so.) and yes Max and Amalia will continue to play a major role in this next part of the book. Lucas and Mills will be back. As well as Drayton.