Lucas cursed and sneezed as he attempted to move a giant box from the corner where he’d been searching.
We’d been up in this attic for two hours. It was filled with antique furniture and dust, lots of dust. The thought was daunting, considering I had a storage shed also filled with furniture.
“I don’t think the chest is up here. I can’t find it anywhere,” Lucas said.
Glancing around, I sighed. “What in the world are we going to do with all this furniture?”
Lucas shrugged. “I guess we could have an estate sale.”
I walked up to the wardrobe chest and pulled open the top drawer that had all the jewelry in it. I had taken a picture of the ruby necklace, as well as a few other pieces, including a small diamond bracelet, and given it to my brother to take to his friend who was a mineralogist. I asked him to see if it was indeed costume jewelry or not. I still couldn’t believe all of this was just thrown into a drawer in a wardrobe.
Shutting the wardrobe, I looked around and saw something by the window on the north side of the house. I carefully made my way over and bent down.
A small wooden box sat on top of an old wooden stool. It was no bigger than the size of a shoebox, but it required a key to open it. My heartbeat picked up, and I couldn’t have wiped the smile off my face if I tried.
Carefully, I picked up the small box and walked to the sofa and sat. I stared at it while I ran my finger over the name carved on it.
William Lucas Foster.
“Lucas, I found something.”
He quickly headed over and sat down. “What did you find?”
I held it up. “I believe this is the chest you have been looking for. It was sitting right on that stool, plain as day.”
Lucas looked over at the window, then back down to the box. “You think this is it?”
I nodded and pointed to the keyhole. “It takes a key to open it.”
Reaching into his pocket, Lucas said, “Only one way to find out.”
He inserted the key, turned it and we both heard the click.
“Holy shit! You found it, Paige.”
With a giggle, I handed the box to him. “You should open it. William meant for you to find it.”
Lucas stared at the box. Then looked at me. “We don’t need to open it.”
My eyes widened in shock. “What? That’s why we’ve been up here for the last few hours. Searching for this box. For the reason William left us this house.”
He shook his head. “I don’t care why he did it. All I care about is you. Helping you start your flower shop, going over to my folks’ place each Sunday for dinner. Arguing with you on what color to paint our bedroom walls. Planning our wedding in the greenhouse. That’s what I care about.”
My eyes filled with tears and I tried, without success, to hold them back. When they slipped free, Lucas placed the box to his side and bent down in front of me, his hands on my face, his thumbs wiping away my tears.
“I love you, Paige. For whatever reason we’ve been given a second chance, and I don’t want to question it anymore. The thought of wasting another minute makes me crazy. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, plain and simple.”
My throat burned as I fought to hold back a sob. “You really don’t know the meaning of slow, do you?”
He laughed and pulled my mouth to his, kissing me. When our foreheads met, we both let out a contented sigh. I drew back first.
“I want all of that, too, but I also want to honor William’s wishes. He wanted you to find this chest. It must have been important to him.”
Lucas closed his eyes and let my words sink in.
“Are you afraid of what you’ll find?” I asked.
He opened his eyes and looked directly into mine. “No.”
“Then let’s do it together.”
Lucas picked up the box, sat down next to me. I laced my fingers with his and smiled.
He opened the box, and we both looked inside it. We exchanged a quick glance, then Lucas picked up a stack full of envelopes.
“They’re handwritten letters,” he said as he opened the top letter and drew a deep breath. “It’s from Grams to Granddad,” he added in a barely-there voice.
I moved closer to him. “Do you want me to read them?”
He handed me the letter and nodded.
I cleared my throat, drew in a breath, and read.
Dear William,
Please do not be upset with me. I was confused and scared. I know today you asked me to be yours. I cannot, at least, not now. I do love you with all of my heart, though. Please never doubt that. Don’t be angry with Lou, there is nothing inappropriate going on between us. He agreed to help me, to see that I got off safe. I knew if I told you of my plans, you would stop me. I need to do this, William. I fear if I don’t, I will forever wonder if my life was full or not.