Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
“Stay right there.”
Later that afternoon, Felicity gave the puppy a serious look. It was hard to do when the adorable pup looked at her with one fuzzy ear flipped up and the other down. Sunny cocked her head to the side and sent Felicity a puzzled look.
The puppy was so stinking cute! She had to turn away before she lost the struggle and smiled. She bit the inside of her lip to keep from breaking out in a laugh.
Ding.
She pulled the phone from her back pocket. She was surprised when she saw that Justin had messaged her. She still had the same phone number as she did when she was a teenager.
Justin: How’s Sunny? No more disappearing acts, I hope.
Felicity: She’s been good. She munched on another book.
Justin: Another?
Felicity: Yeah. She chewed on one the other day.
Justin: Sorry! I’ll pay for it.
Felicity: No need. I took care of it. I’m starting a library of chewed books.
Justin: *laughing emoji* Back to work.
Felicity: See U later.
With a smile on her face, she turned around. When she glanced down to check on the puppy, she saw that Sunny was busy pulling bags and boxes off the bottom shelf of the checkout counter.
“Oh, no. Stop.” She bent over and picked up the puppy. She looked into Sunny’s big brown eyes. “What am I going to do with you?”
Ding.
She reached for her phone, wondering what Justin had to say this time. If this kept up, she might be tempted to call them friends. Would that be pushing things? If so, it might be worth it. On second thought, it would definitely be worth it.
When she looked at the screen, she realized it wasn’t Justin. Instead, it was a response to one of the jobs she’d applied to. The corners of her mouth lowered. They’d turned her down just like the publisher before them and the literary agency before that.
The news pricked her good mood. She knew trying to get a new job at the end of the year was a long shot. The real problem was that she didn’t have a plan B. If she didn’t get a job by Christmas, what was she going to do? Stay in Kringle Falls? And what? Keep working at the bookshop?
As much as she loved Jingle Bell Books and Connie, she didn’t know if this was what she wanted to do the rest of her life.
Could she be happy here? She honestly didn’t know the answer.
However, she did know that she didn’t enjoy the long hours, including the weekends, she’d put in at her previous employer.
She held Sunny in one arm and with the other, she picked up the mess from the floor. Luckily, the pup hadn’t ruined anything. Maybe if Sunny had more toys to play with, she’d leave everything else alone.
Luckily, Connie was working in the office and hadn’t noticed Sunny’s shenanigans. Felicity was almost done cleaning up the mess when she heard the jingle of the front door opening.
“I’ll be right with you,” Felicity called out as she placed the last box on the shelf. When she rose, she found Merry standing on the other side of the counter. “Sorry about that. Just picking up a few things.”
“Good afternoon, you two.” Merry smiled brightly.
“Did you find a home for Sunny?” She didn’t know why those words immediately popped out of her mouth. It wasn’t like she was anxious to get rid of the puppy, even though having her here in the bookshop wasn’t exactly convenient.
When Merry shook her head, Felicity ignored the sense of relief that flooded her body. She continued to hold on to the puppy. Her fingers moved over the silky fur.
“I thought I had someone, but they aren’t allowed pets in their apartment. Can you imagine that?” Merry sighed. “But it looks like things are going well here.”
Felicity thought of the two chewed books and the mess she’d semi-cleaned up and then she said, “Sunny is fitting right in.”
Now what had she gone and said that for?
It wasn’t like she could keep the puppy.
She didn’t even have a real job. The chances of her landing a position in the city were shrinking every day.
If she did get a new job, she’d more than likely be working long hours.
That wasn’t a life for a dog. And even if she did get normal hours, the likelihood of her apartment allowing pets was slim to none.
Felicity once more reminded herself not to get attached. She’d already lost so much she cared about that she didn’t think her tattered heart could take much more.
In a feeble attempt to do just that she held the pup out to Merry. “Would you like to hold her?”
Merry’s gaze moved from Felicity to the pup and then back again. “She looks happy with you, and I can’t stay long. I just stopped in to see how things are going with the costumes. Will you have them ready in time for the curtain to rise next week?”
Felicity worried her bottom lip. “I will as soon as I find a ride.”
“A ride?”
Just then the door jingled again, and in walked Justin. His hair was a bit messy, as though he’d raked his fingers through it a time or two. It looked like he hadn’t had an easy day.
“Justin, you have good timing,” Merry said. “Felicity needs a ride.”
“I do?” The words popped out of Felicity’s mouth before she could stop them.
Merry arched a brow. “You just said you did, in order to finish the costumes.”
“Oh. Right?” Heat rushed to Felicity’s cheeks. She glanced at Justin. “But I can’t ask you…”
“You aren’t,” he said. “I’m offering. Can you go now? It’s snowing, and it’s supposed to get worse as the evening goes on.”
“I…I don’t know.”
“Sure, you can. I’ll clear it with Connie.” Merry looked sure of herself.
“Did I hear my name?” Connie came to stand at the end of the checkout counter.
“Yes,” Merry said. “Felicity is working on the costumes for the Christmas play, and she needs a ride for supplies. Justin has offered to give her a lift, but they need to leave right now. Is that a problem?”
Connie hesitated. Felicity willed her to say it was a problem because she didn’t want to impose on Justin again. Since when had Merry turned into such a matchmaker?
Connie glanced out the big picture window. “I don’t think we’ll get much business with that snow coming down. Go ahead. And if you want, I can keep Sunny until you get back.”
Felicity, realizing the puppy was Justin’s—at least temporarily—turned to him to see what he would say.
He nodded. “That would be great. Thanks.”
“No problem.” Connie smiled. “We’re becoming good friends, aren’t we Sunny?” She took the puppy from Felicity. “Be careful. It doesn’t look good out there.”
“We will,” Felicity said.
Felicity was surprised to see Connie put the puppy down to run around.
She hoped Sunny would be good. As though reading her mind, Sunny ran over to the big picture window.
She climbed up and sat down to watch the snow fall.
She looked picture perfect, but feeling Justin’s impatience, Felicity didn’t pause to take a picture.
Instead, she rushed to the back to gather her things. They headed outside where Justin was parked right in front of the bookshop. He opened the pickup’s door for her, and she got inside.
Justin walked around the front of the pickup and then got in the driver’s seat. He started the pickup and warm air blew out of the vents. It felt good against her skin.
When he didn’t immediately pull out, she glanced over at him. He was staring right back at her. She froze. The air became caught in her lungs. Why was he looking at her like that?
“Where are we going? The craft store?”
His words had her expelling her pent-up breath as she averted her gaze. “Um, no. I need to go to the storage unit near Clover Springs. Turner’s Storage. Do you know the place?”
He nodded. “I know where it is. I’ve never been there.”
“Neither have I. So, it’ll be a first for both of us.”
Justin put the pickup in Drive, and they set off on their snowy adventure. He turned on the wipers to clear the snowflakes from the windshield. As she stared straight ahead, the flakes were large, and the way they blew around was almost hypnotic.
They headed out of town. The road had snow piled on the edges, and now the snow was starting to cover the road. She hoped it wouldn’t take her long to locate the sewing machine.
Feeling guilty, she said, “I’m sorry Merry pressured you into giving me a ride.”
“It’s not a problem.”
She didn’t believe him. The next time she came to visit, she was definitely renting a car. Having to rely on Justin so much for a ride just wasn’t right. Although, she felt that each time was an opportunity for them to find their way back to being friends.
There was a four-way stop just ahead. All of the sudden Felicity felt the pickup slide sideways. The breath hitched in her lungs. Oh my! She reached out grasping the doorhandle in a death grip while her other hand latched onto Justin’s thigh.
The stop sign grew closer. There was the glow of headlights from oncoming traffic. This was it. Her heart launched into her throat. This couldn’t be the end of her story. She had so many things left unsaid. So much to make up for…
The pickup slid sideways, showing no signs of stopping…