Mistletoe Magic Read Online Free

be only fifteen hundred people in that town.”
    The dilapidated city sign proudly displaying the town’s population passed my window in a blur.
    “I didn’t say fifteen hundred. I said fourteen hundred ninety-nine.”
    I felt a little guilty. After all, some poor soul was going to have to change the sign. Then again, with a town boasting the highest unemployment rate in the state, someone could probably use the work.
    “I still don’t understand why you moved back,” Monica said. “You’ve never wanted to return to your hometown.”
    “I want to teach in a small town.”
    “Sarah, there are small towns just outside of Memphis.”
    “I want to teach here.”
    Monica’s voice became a whisper. “Because it’s safe?”
    “Because it’s home.”
    It was a simple answer and so much easier than the truth.
    After promising to call tomorrow, I tossed my cell onto the passenger seat and gazed at the highway. Monica was my best friend, but she couldn’t understand my turmoil. Granted, she’d stood by my side through it all, but she wasn’t the one consumed with memories and needing a fresh start.
    She couldn’t possibly understand.
    Breathing deeply, I flexed my fingers around the steering wheel and tried to concentrate on the scenery. The two-lane highway leading into town was surrounded by nothing but countryside and brimming with wildflowers. As I crept closer to the city limits, the mountain range became visible, standing tall and proud and unbelievably green.
    I reached for the radio dial and pressed a button in search of the local station. I grinned when John Cooper’s gravelly voice filled the air. The man had to be in his sixties by now, and his tired tone reflected those years. Coop had been on the air every weekday afternoon since I’d been a kid. He hadn’t been very popular with the teens because he’d played oldies instead of anything remotely current. When his raspy voice introduced a George Jones song, I smiled.
    It was just further proof that very little changed in Sycamore Falls.
     
    * * *
     
    “Sarah Bray, is that you?”
    It was only the eighth time I’d heard those words in the past hour, but who was counting?
    Sighing softly, I closed the freezer door and dropped the ice cream into my grocery cart. When I turned around, I was greeted with the pearly white smile of Shellie Stevens.
    “It is you!” Shellie clapped her hands, reminding me of the regional basketball game when she had fallen from the top of the cheerleading pyramid, landing face first onto the gymnasium floor. I vividly recalled the blood and her horrified expression when she realized her two front teeth had been broken.
    But that was a long time ago, and it would probably be impolite to mention it now.
    “Hi, Shellie. How are you?”
    “I heard you were back in town. Teaching at the high school, I hear.”
    “Yes, I am.”
    “I’m the cheerleading coach.” She smoothed her hair with her palm. It was still long and blond and straight out of the bottle.
    “Are you a teacher, too?”
    “Nope, I’m a dental hygienist over in Winslow.”
    How ironic.
    “You don’t have to teach to be a coach,” she explained. In small towns, it was sometimes hard to find good coaches. It was even harder to keep them here.
    I smiled. “Well, I’m sure you’re a wonderful cheer coach.”
    “You’ll make the second new teacher this school year. One just recently moved here from New York to take Mr. Franklin’s place,” Shellie said as she followed me down the produce aisle.
    Charles Franklin had been my American history teacher my sophomore year. His was the only class besides English I’d truly enjoyed.
    “Did he retire?”
    “He suffered a stroke and passed away in March.”
    “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.”
    “We miss him.” Then, her face brightened. “But wait until you see the new teacher. He’s single and so handsome. Rumor has it he was in the middle of some big scandal up North and moved to the mountains to