A/N: Thank you all for reading, favorite, following, and reviewing this story! It means so much to me. As long as everyone wants me to finish this, I will do my best to bring it justice. Good news is, I am no longer flying by the seat of my pants, so hopefully (fingers crossed), updates won't continue to come every two weeks like the past. As always, feedback is greatly appreciated!

Buck stirred as the alarm sounded through the room. He swung his arm over and hit the offending item, effectively silencing the alarm. The morning had arrived too early for his liking. She had to leave early to return to her mom before a ten-hour stint at work that night. He pulled her close and held her tight. He wanted to make it to the hospital before the doctor did his morning rounds to get an update on Maddie, but he wasn't ready for her to leave. The feeling was new to him. He had never been one to want to constantly be with his girlfriends, but with Abby, he never wanted to leave her.

The fact that she had met his family, weathered his grandmother's antics and was still with him, made him wonder if maybe their relationship had shifted. Maybe things were starting to get really serious between them.

He pulled the hair from her face, taking a moment to watch her sleep before reluctantly shaking her shoulder. "Abbs." Her moan brought a smile to his face. "Come on, sweetheart. You got to get up."

Her eyes dragged open before she blinked to rid the sleep from them. "One more hour." She said before closing her eyes and snuggling into his side.

"As much as I would love to stay in bed with you all day, we have to get moving."

"It's all your fault. You kept me up late."

Buck smiled. "I didn't hear you complaining last night. Maybe moaning and begging, but no complaining."

She tilted her head upward, a gentle smile playing on her lips. "No complaints here."

He rolled her onto her back, using his elbows to keep his weight from crushing her. He ran his fingertips along her temple to push the hair from her face. Her fingers gently caressed the base of his neck as she gazed into his eyes. "What are you thinking about?" She asked.

There were a lot of things running through his mind but he went the safe route. "You met my family and didn't go running for the hills."

A quiet chuckle past her lips. "That was nothing. Just wait until you meet my brother."

He lowered his head and brushed his lips against hers. "I can't wait." He knew there wasn't a thing her brother could say that would make him change his mind about being with her.

He placed one more kiss to her lips. "We got to get moving."

A sigh passed her lips. "I know but it feels good to just lay in your arms."

"Yes, it does." He ran his knuckles over her cheek, enjoying the peaceful moment they had together. "No words can describe how beautiful you are." He said, placing a lingering kiss to her lips.

"If we hurry, we can stop at the little coffee shop close to the hospital before you have to hit the road." He tempted her as he maneuvered his weight off her, taking the blanket with him.

"I'd like that." She said before slipping out of the bed and heading for the bathroom.

Abby made her way back to the dining room after ending her call with Buck. Two weeks had past and she found herself wishing their conversations didn't have to be cut short.

"How is your hunk of man meat?" Carla's question brought a smile to her face. Carla always had a special way with words.

"He's doing good. Maddie's improving. He said she'll have surgery tomorrow to have a metal plate put over the spot where they removed her skull, then they'll start bringing her out of the coma."

"That's great," Carla said as she handed Abby a plate of spaghetti cut into small pieces.

Abby nodded as she took a seat on the side of Patricia's bed.

"What's that?" Patricia asked as she crinkled her nose.

"Spaghetti."

"It doesn't look like spaghetti." Patricia peered at the plate in Abby's hand.

"It is." When Abby held up the spoon, Patricia shook her head. "Come on, Mom. Try it."

Patricia took one bite and asked, "That's spaghetti?"

"Yeah," Abby responded, feeding her another bite.

Patricia took two more bites and shook her head. "No more."

"Please, Mom." She tried to give Patricia another bite but she turned her head. "Would you like some oatmeal instead?"

Patricia shook her head. "I'm not hungry."

"Okay." Abby relented. She knew she couldn't make her mom eat. The doctor said she would eat when she was hungry but still didn't ease the worry in her heart.

Abby took the plate to the kitchen where Carla was washing dishes. Abby placed the plate on the counter and stared at her mom. The last time they had spaghetti, she ate half of her plate. Buck was also there that night. "Have you noticed how she eats more when Buck's here?"

"I haven't paid much attention to it, to be honest. She might not have an appetite tonight, sweetheart. "

"Hmm." She caught Carla giving her a look out of the corner of her eye. "What?" Abby asked, turning her head toward Carla.

Carla ran her eyes over Abby's face then raised a brow.

"I miss him, okay?" She gestured out with her hands before grabbing a glass from the cabinet and headed for the refrigerator for a bottle of wine. Lately, her mind wondered to him more often and it had nothing to do with how he was handling his sister's condition. She missed hearing his laugh. She missed seeing his smile. She missed his arms around her. "It's weird." She said, closing the refrigerator door. "I've never missed someone this much."

"Don't you think that might be a good thing? It means things are moving in the right direction."

"I guess." Carla gave her a sideways look as she poured wine into her glass. "Will you stop looking at me like that?" Abby asked before taking a sip.

Carla laughed. "Come on, honey. Admit it. You really like him."

Abby went silent for a beat. "I do. And it scares me a little. I never thought things would be this serious. I thought we'd have a little fun and that would be the end of it. I never expected him to stay around and I definitely didn't ever expect to meet his family."

"Sounds like things are getting serious between you two."

Abby swirled her wine, the motions mimicking her thoughts. She wasn't sure where they stood as a couple. A part of her wanted to know; the other was scared his feelings weren't on the same level as hers. "I don't know." She finished the last sip of her wine and poured another glass with Carla watching her every move. "Last one."

Carla shook her head and returned to the dishes. She knew what Carla was thinking and she probably was leaning on the alcohol a little tonight. She was a grown woman. She could do what she wanted.

She also was a woman who was doing something she never would have guessed she would do. She was starting to fall for a younger man.