The bell above the carved wooden sign gave out a trill as the door was opened. Natty looked up from the dusty old periodical she had been perusing this past half hour. She gave a little gasp.
Him.
Again.
He had come into the shop every week for the past few months. Natty's assistant Viv teased her constantly about having a crush on him. Tall, with dark hair and piercing eyes, Natty had to admit he was crush worthy. She watched him for a moment as he looked at the window display that Viv had changed yesterday. Then he opened the door.
The drowsy air was wakened with the intake of wind and snow. He banged his feet on the doormat and stepped inside. Natty felt a slow tingling feeling deep inside. He turned to face the high counter behind which Natty sat, and smiled. Natty's eyes opened wide, and a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips as if smiling had suddenly become contagious.
"Can I help you?" Her voice sounded small and childlike in the relatively large room they were in. She glanced at the clock, noting that it was nearly closing time.
"Yes." The man's voice was rich and deep like butterscotch with the hint of an accent and it curled around Natty, making her feel warmer. "I'm looking for a first edition of this." He held up a copy of Beauty's Punishment and Natty felt her cheeks redden.
"The Sleeping Beauty Trilogy." She said softly.
"Yes. I noticed that you had a rather large section of erotica in your shop. Some really beautiful things."
She nodded, bemused. It was a pet secret of hers, this enjoyment of erotica. She felt as if he had read her hidden thoughts. "I don't have a first edition of that, but I can try and track one down for you."
"That would be lovely." He looked at her for a moment. "Would you care to come have tea or coffee with me?" His voice was persuasive. She looked at the clock again and back at him. A little shiver ran up her spine. As if sensing her hesitation, he spoke again. "I promise I don't bite." The accompanying warm smile was too much for Natty.
"Well, I was going to close up in ten minutes..."
"There's a great shop just around the corner." His voice was persuasive, and Natty nodded.
"I know that place. I've heard they do a great Earl Grey."
"Perfect."
She slipped off her stool and went around to the back of the shop to grab her coat and lock up, feeling as if she were in a trance. In a moment she was beside him, her hand on the light switch. "The alarm gets set outside. I don't need the door open for that." She explained, pulling the heavy wooden door firmly shut with a satisfying clang. Her fingers flew quickly over the keypad of the alarm and in moments she stepped back into a circle of light from an overhead lamppost. The snow was fine but she could hear it scrunch under the soles of her boots.
"My name is Bram." He took her arm and guided her along the narrow walkways of the city. She resisted at first, but grew accustomed to the feel of his firm hand on her arm. It must be some European thing she mused. He spoke little, merely pointing out treacherous spots in the rutted sidewalk. She wondered at herself. Normally at this time she'd be heading home to her apartment, some dusty tome carefully wrapped up in oilskin, humming a tune and planning what she would have for dinner. She was a creature of habit. She liked her daily routine. Get up, get washed, get dressed and go to work. Day in the bookshop, maybe lunch on the small green space across from the shop, then home to read.
Yet here she was, being guided through the streets of the city by a perfect stranger. She blinked as a snowflake fell on her eyelashes and looked up at him.
"Almost there."
In a few short steps they were at the bright entrance to the Russian Tea Room. He held the door for her and she scurried through, wiping the snow off her coat.
"Table for two. Someplace quiet." His voice cut through the idle chatter around them and the small, dapper man behind the counter nodded.
"Yes sir. Right this way." He led them through the labyrinthine of rooms, pausing here and there to have a word with a customer, or to drop a small joke into the conversation. Finally they came to a small room with an exquisitely carved table and chairs. The small man bowed, and Bram spoke to him quietly. He nodded and whisked out the door, pulling it firmly behind him.
"I ordered for us. I hope you don't mind."
"No, not at all." She leaned back in her chair, trying to forget the oddness of her actions.
"You're not uncomfortable?"
She laughed nervously. "Maybe a little."
"Don't be." His hand came across the table and encompassed hers. She felt the warmth of his skin permeating her body.
"Don't you want to know my name?" She said.
"Yes, of course."
"Natasha. But people call me Natty." She looked around the small room, at the various pictures and articles festooning the walls. "I've never been here."
"What? Never?" he rubbed his thumb against the back of her hand and then turned it over to explore her palm.
"No. It's too expensive for me." Natty felt a slow heat spiraling out from where he touched her. This is madness. She didn't try to remove her hand.
"Have you read the books?" His voice jolted her back to reality.
"I...um...yes." She stammered, remembering the dog-eared pages of her paperback copies of the Sleeping Beauty Trilogy, resting in their spot under her bed. She wanted to bite her tongue after she realized she should have asked which books.
"What did you think?" his finger had made its way up her arm nearly to the crook of her elbow, gliding up her smooth skin and back down again.
"They're very well written..." she offered.
"When you read those words, do you long to be the captive princess Beauty?"
She made a move to extricate her arm but just then the door opened and the small man came in bearing a tray laden with delectable goodies. He set the teapot in the center of the table and gave Bram and Natty each an exquisite bone china teacup. For a few minutes Natty was spared as the man fussed about pouring the tea, but all too soon he was gone. Bram looked at Natty intently.
"Do you? I sense something inside of you, Natty. Something deep, something dark."
"How would you know that? We've just met." Natty exclaimed, taking a sip of the tea and instantly blowing on it to cool it down.
"I've watched you. Does that make you uncomfortable?" He leaned forward. Natty sat stock still.
