Love's Enemy

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Book excerpt

Chapter 1

Katie McCray stood looking at the old ice cream parlor next door to the Sharpville Pharmacy. It used to be part of the pharmacy but had been closed off and was no longer used. It was perfect for her new combination bakery and coffee shop. The spacious front area had room for six tables, for customers who did not want to get their order to go. It had a counter with an old cash register that would need to be replaced. There was a good-sized kitchen, great for baking up treats, and there was an apartment upstairs. It only had one bedroom, but Katie was sure it would suit her perfectly, and there was a basement downstairs she could turn it into a storm shelter. Kansas weather was very unpredictable.

Katie turned to Marian Embers as she joined Katie outside. Marian had finished locking the place up after showing it to Katie.

“I like it,” said Katie.

“Let’s go to my office, look over the papers, and make an offer,” said Marian.

They got into Marian’s car and headed for her office. Katie did not have a car yet. She had just arrived in town by chartered plane at the private airfield outside of town and was staying at the bed and breakfast.

Even though she had been born in Sharpville, her family owned a cattle ranch east of Sharpville, Katie had been sent to live with her Aunt Annabel, in Kansas City, when she was seven. She had been back for two short visits since then. Her mother and youngest brother came to Kansas City to visit her a couple of times a year. Her father and older brothers ran the ranch, but her Grandfather, Amos, ruled with an iron fist. There was no way Katie was going to be staying anywhere Amos McCray was in charge.

When her Aunt Annabel had died two months ago, she left Katie her house and her stock portfolio. Katie sold the house and decided now was the time to put her dreams into reality. Annabel made Katie independent of her family. She intended to stay independent. Katie had finished college with a business degree and a certificate of completion for the cooking classes she took. She and her friend from college, Star, had been dreaming of opening a coffee shop and bakery together. Katie talked Star into trying out Sharpville with her. They were joined by another friend, Bambi. Star and Bambi were planning on finding an apartment to share. Katie was fine with being on her own. She really did not want to have anyone else in her space right now.

At Marian’s office they went through the papers, and Katie made an offer. She gave Marian a check to hold the property until the offer was accepted or rejected. Katie went to join Star and Bambi for lunch and took a key to the property so she could show them around. They had not gone with her earlier because it had been very late when they had arrived in Sharpville, and they were sleeping in.

They decided to meet up at Danny’s for lunch first. Katie stopped by a car place and bought a small cream-colored Toyota. She then drove to Danny’s to meet her friends. Star had a car, so she had driven herself and Bambi to Sharpville. Star and Bambi were already there when Katie arrived. Star waved to her from a table and Katie went to join them. Katie noticed her friends were receiving a lot of looks from the other customers, mostly men. They were a nice-looking pair. They were hardly going to go unnoticed. They were also new in town, so everyone was probably wondering who they were. Katie didn’t notice the other customers were giving her as many stares as they did her friends. Three new good-looking girls was a treat for this small town.

Brian came over to get their order. The waitress was busy, and he was helping her out. They ordered hamburgers and soft drinks.

“Is the table over there the one with the magic mirror?” asked Star.

“What magic mirror?” asked Katie, looking over to where Star was pointing.

“We overheard two older women talking about it at the bed and breakfast,” said Bambi. “They were in town for the younger one’s son’s wedding. She said the girl he married had seen him in a magic mirror. She said she was not going back to Kansas City until she had looked in the mirror.”

“The magic mirror is over at the table where the girls are taking turns looking in it. It does not always work,” said Brian with a smile. “I’ll get your soft drinks. Your hamburgers will be just a few minutes.” Brian left to get their drinks.

“You don’t really believe in magic mirrors, do you?” asked Katie. “What is it supposed to do?”

“The woman at the bed and breakfast said it showed a woman her true love,” said Bambi.

Katie looked over at the girls clustered around the mirror again. “It has to be a gimmick. How can a mirror show anyone true love?” asked Katie.

“There are the ladies from the bed and breakfast,” said Star looking at the door, where two ladies and a man in a uniform were entering.

Katie looked at the door and saw two elegantly dressed ladies standing there looking around. The man in uniform led the way to the bar and asked Brian a question. Brian motioned to the table with the mirror. The younger woman motioned for the man in uniform to stay at the bar and wait. She then took the older woman’s arm and headed for the table with the mirror. She stopped beside the table and waited. The girls at the table looked up at the women. They seemed to get nervous. The girls rose and left the table for the women.

Katie smiled. “They have their stare down pat. My Aunt Annabel could do that.”

The younger woman sat at the table and looked in the mirror. She started smiling. She glanced over at the bar where the man in uniform was talking to Brian. The man looked up at the mirror and stiffened in surprise. He glanced over at the table at the woman sitting there. She looked over at him with a satisfied look on her face. The woman rose from the table and the two of them headed for the bar. They collected the man and he held the door for them as they left. Katie looked out of the window and saw him helping them into a limo.

“Well, said Katie. “I don’t think this town is going to be boring.”

The waitress brought their soft drinks and burgers over to their table. After she had placed their food on the table, she started to leave.

“Can anyone look in the magic mirror?” asked Star.

“Sure, it doesn’t always show anyone, but it is fun to look,” she said.

Katie shook her head. “We have more important things to think about. I have the key to our new business. It’s not final, yet, but I placed a bid on it. I’m sure we will hear something soon.”

“I can’t believe it is really happening,” said Star. “We are going to have our very own coffee shop.”

“When we take the key back, we can see what is available in apartments,” said Bambi.

The girls ate their food and started to leave. They passed by the magic mirror and Bambi sat down at the table. She looked hard at the mirror, but only saw her own reflection. She sighed with disappointment. She got up and pushed Star toward the seat. Star sat down and looked in the mirror. She gave a gasp and looked hard at the mirror. Bambi and Katie looked in the mirror, but they only saw Star’s reflection. Star gave a sigh and stood.

“He’s gone,” she said.

“Who’s gone?” asked Bambi.

“I don’t know. He was a stranger. I never saw him before,” said Star.

Bambi took Katie’s arm and tugged her toward the table. “I don’t want to see anyone,” protested Katie.

“It won’t hurt to look,” said Bambi.

Katie sat and looked at the mirror. She read what it said about true love. She sat back with a sigh. She wasn’t looking for true love, or any other kind. Katie stiffened and sat forward, staring at the mirror. The image in the mirror stared back at her.

“Who are you?” demanded Katie.

The man in the mirror smiled at her. “I’m Carlos Kantor. Who are you?” he asked.

Katie pushed back from the table and stood. “No, No, No. No way,” she said getting louder with each no. She hurried out of the seat and out of the door. Star went by the bar to pay their bill, then she followed Katie and Bambi out of Danny’s. She found Katie standing by her car with Bambi trying to find out what was wrong. Katie just shook her head. “I’ll tell you all about it later. Let’s just go and look over our store.” They got into their car and followed Katie down to the store.