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“We’ll see you tomorrow at New Year’s Day dinner,” Molly said, hugging her again.
“Looking forward to that and everything else.”
“Welcome home, Lexi,” Lincoln said when he hugged her. “We’re so glad to have you back in town.”
“It’s great to be here. It’s all I wanted the whole time I was sick, to get back home to Butler and Max.”
“We couldn’t be happier to have you, sweetheart,” Elmer said when he hugged her. “Congratulations on all the great news,” he added in a whisper.
“Thank you, Mr. Stillman.”
“Elmer.”
“Elmer. That’ll take some practice.”
“We’ve got all the time in the world to practice.”
After they waved off Molly, Linc and Elmer, Lexi and Caden went upstairs to her apartment.
“You’ve got a lot of work to do in here,” Caden said as he surveyed the stacks of boxes.
“I sure do.”
The family had placed all the furniture, and her new bed was set to be delivered the next day, but there were boxes stacked everywhere. She’d brought an air mattress for her first night.
“Where should we start?” Lexi asked him.
“Probably kitchen and bathroom.”
“You’re a wise young man.”
“Grammy says those are the two most important rooms in the house.”
“She’s right. Let’s start in the kitchen.”
Lexi pulled the tape off a box labeled KITCHEN and opened it to find the silverware and cooking tools she’d bought at a discount store in Houston. The only money she had was the small inheritance she’d received from her father’s parents when they passed, so she had to be frugal until she started working.
She’d heard what Max had said about not having to worry about money, but she meant it when she told him she wanted to be independent. This would be the first time she’d ever lived on her own, and while she looked forward to sharing her life with him, she wanted some time in her own place before they made a home together.
A previous tenant had left a silverware organizer in one of the kitchen drawers, so she put Caden in charge of unloading the stainless-steel pieces from the box and into the drawer.
“How’s your vacation been?” she asked him.
“Great! We finally got to ski the big hill again, and I hung out with my cousins a lot.”
“That sounds like fun.”
“It was. I wish we didn’t have to go back to school so soon. Why does vacation go by so fast, but school is so slow?”
Lexi laughed as she unloaded a motley collection of coffee mugs into one of the kitchen cabinets. “That’s a very good question.” She loved having him all to herself so they could get to know each other better.
“It’s so weird how that happens. Vacation flies by and school drags.”
“Because one is something you want to do, and the other is something youhaveto do. Big difference.”
“I guess so. Did you like school?”
“I loved school. I’m looking forward to getting back to it in January. I’m going to take a few classes online.”
