Free Shuttered Affections (Cornerstone #1) by Rene Folsom

  Now run along! I’d love to see what you come up with,” she replied
with both hands shooing me out the door.
    As I began to leave, I spotted a beautifully framed mirror
that hung on a wall near the door. Its intricate metal frame looked like it
could be brass and the mirror was in mint condition. I just stood there,
staring at myself in awe. Not in awe at myself, but in awe of this beautiful,
antique mirror.
    “You like it, dear?” I heard Pat’s question from behind me,
making me jump slightly.
    “Oh, yes. It’s very beautiful, and in such good condition. How
much is it?” I asked as I turned to face her.
    “That one there is definitely an original. It’s so unique. I
haven’t been able to find another one like it. I had a couple in here several
months ago wanting to redo their master bathroom. The wife fell in love with
this beauty, but because they had two sinks, they also wanted two matching
mirrors. I wasn’t able to sell it without a match, which is a pity because it
is priced at $600.”
    My heart fell and my shoulders sagged. Damn. There was no way I could afford that.
    “Oh, that’s too bad they couldn’t buy it. It would be a
perfect addition to a sink vanity,” I said, trying not to show my
disappointment. I think I failed.
    “I can see that you love it, dear,” she said as she placed
her hand on my shoulder. I could see her face through the mirror and feigned a
polite smile. “I wish I could just give it to you to see your face light up
like it did when you first saw it. But, alas, I paid over $300 for it myself
and would need to make at least a 25% profit.”
    Now I felt bad. I didn’t want her to feel like she owed me
anything. If anything, I owed her. “Please, don’t feel any obligation toward me.
Being a college student, I know I cannot afford beautiful antiques such as
these. I do love the mirror, but I never anticipated being able to own it
anyway,” I said softly.
    “I would still love to take some photos and feature your
place. Is that okay?”
    “Well, of course, my dear. By all means. Enjoy yourself. And
tell your friend she can enjoy herself too,” Pat said with a wink. She must
have noticed Maddy out back already. Then she turned and went into the back
room she first appeared from.
    As I gathered my digital camera from the car and walked around
back, Maddy nearly mauled me and exclaimed, “Where have you been? This place is
absolutely breathtaking!”
    “I was just asking the owner if it was okay that we took
photos. I didn’t want to overstep my boundaries,” I explained quickly.
    “Oh, shit, Julia. This place took me by such surprise, I
totally forgot about asking,” she said as she wiped her brow with her fingers
in frustration.
    “It’s okay, Maddy. The owner, Pat… she’s a really sweet, old
lady. She said she loves and welcomes any visitors who share a love of nature
with her. I also told her I would feature her shop and gardens on my blog.”
    “It’s a good thing you’re skilled with all that technical
stuff, ‘cause God knows I’m not. I tell ya…” she trailed off, rolling her eyes.
    “I also grabbed my digital so I can take a few color shots
for the blog,” I mentioned, while patting the digital camera at my side.
    As I began taking infrared shots of all the various antiques
around the gardens, I also took digital shots and even a few from my phone so I
could upload them to the web right away.
    Lastly, I took some digital photos of the front and inside. I
couldn’t help myself and had to take a few infrared shots of the sun shining
through the windowed door, the sun’s glow framing the mirror from the angle I
was at.
    Maddy and I traveled around for another hour or so, taking
various landscape photos. One in particular I was excited to see developed was
one of her standing underneath an extremely large oak tree, right in the center
of a huge field. With the infrared, I was confident it would come out good.
    After our morning ventures, we