An Unexpected Family

Jamie Petty never planned to be anyone’s anchor.

Drifting through life behind a bar, she was good at keeping things casual and walking away before anything could break her. But when a single phone call shatters her world, Jamie finds herself suddenly responsible for the one person who matters more than anything — her young niece, Hailey.

Grief doesn’t come with instructions. Neither does parenthood.

Overwhelmed and terrified of doing it alone, Jamie reaches out to the one person who once knew her better than anyone else — Ava, her former best friend, the woman she lost years ago without ever understanding why. Ava arrives ready to help, but what begins as temporary support slowly becomes something deeper: shared mornings, sleepless nights, and a fragile, growing sense of home.

As Jamie learns how to be a mother and Ava learns how to stay, the lines between friendship and love blur in ways neither of them expected. Together, they navigate loss, healing, and the quiet courage it takes to choose happiness when nothing looks the way it once did.

An Unexpected Family is a heartfelt romantic dramedy about grief, second chances, and the families we build — not by accident, but by choice.