Love's Reflections

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Book excerpt

Chapter One

Melanie smiled happily as she removed the sign from the door of the gallery and prepared to open for the day. The sign said “Closed for Valerie and Marcus’ Wedding – Open Monday”.

It had been a beautiful wedding and reception. Everyone enjoyed themselves, even after Valerie and Marcus left to start their much-anticipated honeymoon. Melanie sighed. They were so in love. It had been a joy to see her daughter so happy and in love. To think she owed it all to a bee. Melanie laughed softly. Marcus was a great addition to their family. Even though they were going to be living in Denton, they were close enough to visit regularly.

Melanie got everything ready for the new day. Angelica had asked for the day off to handle some business, which wasn’t a problem, since the wedding was over. Melanie had more time for the gallery. When all was in order, Melanie went into the back to check in with Cindy.

“Good morning,” she said, as she entered the back room.

“Good morning,” replied Cindy. She looked up with a smile. “Did Valerie and Marcus get going okay?” she asked.

“Yes, they were so happy, I think they floated to the plane,” replied Melanie, with a smile. She looked at the box Cindy was beginning to open. “Isn’t that some of stuff we brought back from Italy?” asked Melanie, puzzled. “I thought all of the things we brought back were already taken care of and unpacked.”

“This box must have gotten mixed in with some others. I just found it,” replied Cindy.

Melanie looked on curiously, while Cindy opened the box. Cindy reached inside to withdraw an old-fashioned hand mirror. It was very clear. She turned it over and admired the intricate design on its back. It was very beautiful.

Melanie watched Cindy admire the mirror. She smiled as she saw how fascinated Cindy was with the mirror. “We bought those three mirrors from an old man in an antique store. He said the mirrors belonged to his three daughters. According to him, the daughters did not need the mirrors anymore. They are all happily married. The daughters only had sons so there were no daughters to pass the mirrors on to.”

“I asked him if his daughter might want to hang on to the mirrors. He said ‘no’. The mirrors had served their purpose, and it was time for them to help someone else.”

“How can a hand mirror help anyone?” asked Cindy.

“I asked him the same question,” said Melanie. “He said the mirrors will help someone find their true love. He said when a girl looks into the mirror, she will see a reflection of her true love looking back at her. The old man said it worked for his girls. Now it was time for someone else to be helped.” Melanie stopped and smiled at Cindy. “I do not know if they work, but they were so beautiful, I had to buy all three.”

Cindy dug into the box and unpacked the other two mirrors. She looked them over carefully. All three had different designs on them. One was silver-colored with large blue flowers on the back. She lay it down, carefully. The next mirror was copper-colored. It had a climbing yellow rose and a butterfly on its back. She lay it down and picked up the last mirror. It was gold-colored. It had some sort of shield on its back. She turned it around, slowly, to look in the glass. At first, she saw only her reflection looking back at her. As she kept looking, her reflection faded, and she saw the reflection of a man, standing at a bathroom mirror, shaving. He had soap over his face so she couldn’t see his face plainly. Since he was without his shirt, she could see that he was very well put together. The man suddenly seemed to see her looking at him. He turned and looked behind him to see if there was anyone there in the room with him. When he saw there was no one behind him, he started to turn back to the mirror. Cindy quickly lay the mirror face down. Her cheeks flushed to think she had been spying on someone in their bathroom.

“How much are you going to ask for the mirrors?” she asked Melanie.

Melanie had been watching Cindy with the gold mirror. She wondered who Cindy had seen in the mirror. She smiled. She would just have to be patient and see what happened. “I’m not going to sell them,” replied Melanie. “I want to display one of them in the gallery. I want a large sign behind it saying, ‘Look in the Mirror to Find Your True Love’. It should be a great draw for the gallery.” Melanie smiled as she waited for Cindy’s reaction.

“Yes, it will,” agreed Cindy. “I’ll get it set up.” She picked up the gold mirror. When she looked in it, it showed only her reflection. “If you think of a price, I want this one. It feels like it should be mine.”

Melanie smiled at Cindy. “You may have it,” she said. “Who knows, it might show you the person who is meant for you.”

Cindy smiled as she hugged the mirror to her chest. “Who knows? Stranger things have happened. Thanks, Melanie.”

Melanie went  out to the front to wait for customers. Cindy went to put up her mirror and to design a display for the front room of the gallery. While she was working, her mind drifted back to the hunk she saw in the mirror. Even with soap on his face, she could tell he was very nice to look at.

Cindy thought about the story the old man told Melanie. Was it possible the man she saw in the mirror was her own true love? Cindy grinned. Then her grin faded. How was she supposed to get together with her hunk? She had no idea who he was.