After an advertisement, “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” played on the speakers.Felicity once more grew quiet while he focused on the road.Right now, everything was coated in snow, so it was hard to tell exactly where he was on the road.The good thing was that no one else was on the road at that moment.
A few minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot of the storage unit.Felicity had the access code to open the gate.The parking lot hadn’t been plowed recently, so the tires made a crunching sound as they moved over several inches of fresh snow.
He scanned the building to his left.“What number did you say it is?”
“Eight thirty-one.”
He used the flashlight app on his phone to highlight the number plate on the side of the building.“We’re not even close.This one is three twenty.”
They drove around until they found the right unit in the back of the storage lot.He pulled to a stop, shining the headlights on the long metal building.The unit had not only an overhead door but also a man door.
“This place looks big,” he said.
“It does?”
He nodded.“What all does your mother have in there?”
“I’m not quite sure.”She opened the pickup door and got out.
Justin cut the engine and got out.The strong wind rushed past him.Snow was blown in his face.He squinted as he made his way around the pickup.By the time he caught up with Felicity, she was standing next to the building.She placed the key in the door lock and turned it.She pulled open the door and stepped inside.
It was pitch-black inside.Justin grabbed his phone and turned on the flashlight app again.He searched the wall and found a switch.When the lights flickered on, he was floored by the rows and rows of stuff.
“Look at all of this.”Astonishment sounded in Felicity’s voice.
“It’s massive in here.How will we find the sewing machine?”
“Good question.I have absolutely no idea.But since we have time to wait until the weather passes over, let’s start looking.”
He continued to stand still as his gaze continued to take in the sight.“What exactly are we looking for?”When she sent him a puzzled look, he clarified.“The sewing machine.Is it a standalone?Does it have a case?If so, what color?”
“Oh.Uh, it’s a standalone, and it should be in a white plastic carrying case.”
“Now we just have to hope that it wasn’t packed in a box.”He didn’t say it, but he felt as though they were searching for a needle in a haystack.
At least there were aisles that ran between the piles of cardboard boxes and furniture.There was enough stuff in here to fill an entire house and then some.
“I can’t believe it,” Felicity said.
“Believe what?”Maybe he shouldn’t have asked but he wanted to know what she was thinking.He had this urge to know everything about Felicity—the new Felicity—the successful woman who she’d become.
“That my mother kept everything from the house.She’d told me she did, but I guess I didn’t think she meanteverything.Who packs up an entire house and puts it in storage?”
“Apparently your mother.I was surprised when I heard she sold the house.I can’t imagine how you must have felt.”He checked one side of the aisle while Felicity checked the other for the sewing machine.
“I didn’t know.”Her words were soft, almost a whisper.
“Didn’t know what?That she put everything in storage?”
“Well, that too, but I didn’t know she sold the house.She tried to call me, but I was so wrapped up in my career that I didn’t have time to talk to her.”She paused, but it seemed as though she had more to say.“That isn’t exactly true.It was after my dad died, and I knew if I answered that she’d ask me to come home.I wasn’t ready for that.The house seemed so empty without my dad in it—without his deep laugh and his corny dad jokes.”Her voice cracked with emotion.“Anyway, I didn’t call her back, and she said the sale happened really fast…”
The way her voice trailed away left him wondering if there was more to the story, but he wasn’t going to push her.He knew Felicity would open up when she was ready—at least that’s how it used to be between them.Now, everything had changed, and he felt as though he were on uneven ground with her.
“I think I see it!”Felicity was looking at the back of the unit.
He moved to her side.He didn’t see anything but a bunch of furniture with dust covers and more boxes.So many boxes.But he didn’t see anything that resembled a sewing machine.
He squinted into the shadows.“Where?”
