My Enchanted Enemy

Chapter One

Shoreham, England
1810

Cole Strangford pushed his magnifying spectacles up onto his forehead and stifled a sigh of exasperation. A few feet away, his uncle Gillie was fiddling with the coiled copper tubing that fed oxygen into an iron compressor tank, his movements clearly calculated to draw Cole's attention. Gillie had entered the laboratory some five minutes before, but Cole had pretended blindness to his presence, wanting to finish work on his oxygen compressor. Unfortunately, though, Cole was beginning to realize that he'd have no peace until he entertained his uncle's latest complaint, whatever it was.

"Don't touch that," Cole barked.

Gillie jumped, his fingers dropping away from the tubing as though it had scorched him. His grizzled eyebrows rose as he looked at Cole. "So, you've finally noticed me."

"I noticed you from the start, Uncle. I was hoping you'd go away if I ignored you. I'm in the middle of an experiment, and it's a very important one. Please come back later."

"I have important news for you," Gillie said, a hint of wariness entering his gaze as he examined the copper and iron app ... read full excerpt from My Enchanted Enemy ebook