Chapter One

      Early-morning fog danced in wispy tendrils outside the bay window of the breakfast nook, making the rural, southwestern Virginia landscape resemble a dreamy watercolor. Leaning against the cherry window frame, Kinley Carmichael sipped cinnamon-laced coffee and studied the pink-and-gray sunrise framed by lace curtains. Her sentimental younger sister, Bonnie, would see that lovely spring view and sigh, thinking of fairy tales and romance. Practical and pragmatic Kinley saw an excellent photo-op for the Bride Mountain Inn website. In fact, maybe tomorrow morning she’d head out early with her camera in hopes of capturing a similar scene for advertising purposes, aiming to appeal to potential guests looking for quiet relaxation in pristine, natural surroundings...just the ambiance the inn aimed to provide.

      She almost laughed when the wistful sigh she’d predicted sounded from behind her. “Isn’t it beautiful?” Bonnie asked in little more than a whisper, her tone almost reverent. “Even after living here just over two years, I never get tired of seeing that view first thing in the morning.”

      “That view would make a perfect cover for a marketing brochure. I’m considering going out in the morning with my camera to try to capture it.”

      Bonnie gave her a teasingly chiding look. “You can’t capture magic, Kinley.”

      “I can try,” she answered cheerily. “And then I’ll do my best to package and sell it.”

      Bonnie’s second sigh was more resigned than romanticized. With her blond hair, blue eyes and flawless skin, she looked a bit like a porcelain doll and had the perfect, petite figure to match. She wore her favored uniform of a pretty, lace-trimmed top and a gauzy skirt, adding to her vaguely old-world appeal. Her delicate appearance and openly sentimental nature led some people to think she was meek and easily pushed around. Those people were wrong. Behind that sweet face was a sharp mind and a fierce resolve that both her siblings could attest to. Though she was the youngest, it was wholly due to Bonnie’s determination and insistence that the three of them were now running the bed-and-breakfast together.

      As close as they were, the two sisters had always been very different in nature. Even their choice of clothing illustrated those dissimilarities, Kinley thought fondly. In contrast to Bonnie’s soft, floaty garments, Kinley wore gray slacks with a gray-and-white shell and a pearl-gray three-quarter-sleeve cardigan suitable for the cool spring morning. Bonnie had once accused her of dressing as if she were always expecting an impromptu business meeting, and Kinley supposed that was accurate enough. But her tailored style suited her just fine.

      Peering out the window again, Bonnie nodded toward a particularly foggy patch in the garden, near the tall, graceful fountain. “Look at the way the fog swirls just there, almost as if it’s alive. Do you think if you set your camera on a tripod and used a very slow lens speed, you’d catch a peek of the bride hiding in the mist?”

      Kinley glanced automatically toward the open kitchen doorway, making sure no guests had overheard her sister’s fanciful speculation. “Don’t even joke about that. You know how I feel about that old legend being connected to the inn.”

      “You have no whimsy, Kinley.”

      “So you keep saying.” The mostly forgotten legend had long been a sore spot between them. During the past hundred years or so, there had been a few reported sightings on Bride Mountain of a ghostly woman dressed all in white who appeared in the mist to newly engaged couples. An old local story speculated that those who were lucky enough to spot the bride were meant to live happily ever after. Bonnie had initially suggested that reviving the legend could be a charming way to promote the wedding services they offered at Bride Mountain Inn. Kinley and their cynical older brother, Logan, had firmly vetoed that idea, both wary of the clientele who would potentially be attracted to their inn by a ghost story.

      Bonnie shrugged. “You can believe what you want. I still like to think that Uncle Leo and Aunt Helen really did see the bride on the night he proposed to her in the garden.”

      Kinley shook her head indulgently. “Uncle Leo just loved seeing your reaction to that story every time he told it to you. You were always his favorite,” she added without resentment.