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The BookStore   by a k edmonds

There wasn’t much going on in the store that day. Frigid air and blizzard warnings were keeping people from venturing out. I hadn’t seen a car pass the shop in an hour.

I stood in front of the large plate glass window searching for signs of life outdoors, but there wasn’t any. I thought about closing up and going home before the storm hit, but for some reason, I just stood there another twenty minutes or so.

Finally, the smell of coffee brewing in the back room appealed to me, so I went to fetch my big mug. I poured the coffee, added a bit of cream and ambled back to the window. The wind was battering the small tree outside the shop and debris was sweeping down the street. Other than that…nothing else to see.

I had left my house this morning locked up good and tight and there wasn’t really anything to go home to since I had been alone for six years. My dog and I were all that was left of a once happy family of four, and poor old Sadie was on her last leg.

Ariel and her cat practically ran from the house. She thought I was insane after being together almost three years. Thirty-two months of blissful living, so I thought. It ended with a loud shriek from Ariel, and a harsh hissing sound from her damn cat.

I still see Ariel occasionally with that big hunk of a woman she took up with and is now her ‘roommate’. They seem to be happy, and I’m not one to begrudge anyone’s happiness. Besides, not answering to her every whim and not pretending to like her cat turned out to be rather nice for me.

I left the window and strolled back behind the counter. Pecking at the register until it clinked and the drawer slid open. I closed the drawer thinking that I needed another form of amusement to fill my day.

Suddenly, the door bell clanged and a small woman bundled in a thick coat and bulky scarf trudged inside. Her snow boots looked ten times bigger than she needed and the sweater hat not only covered her head, but nearly all her face.

“Not even the weather keeps you from the books, eh, Mousy?”

“Well, good morning to you too, Storekeep!” She sniggered.

Melicent Danover’s parents moved here from the west coast when she was a junior in high school. I was a year ahead of her. I couldn’t remember how she got her nickname, but it was probably because she was a mousy little gal with long stringy brown hair and not a lick of meat on her bones. She was sweet and friendly, but never acquired a lot of friends. People liked her, but Mousy kept to herself.

I seemed to be the one she chose to talk to, and I listened to her woes of life in the bleak city of snowbound hell in the winter and fire of Hades in the summer. Twenty-four years later, she still had the same complaint.

“Can someone please turn up the heat?” she squealed.

“I can, but then you’ll whine about it.”

“I hate this town.”

So why are you still here, Mousy?”

She plucked off her hat and batted her eyes at me, “Because I can’t tear myself away from you and your books, gorgeous. Here, I brought a treat for Sadie.”

She slapped something down on the counter, but I wasn’t paying attention. I was astounded with her hair. The long strings were gone. Instead, tiny ringlets of gold brushed around her face and haphazardly covered her head.

“Wow! Your hair looks great!”

“You like it?”

“Wow! I love it!”

“Well then, it was worth the torture.”

I was still staring at her hair thinking how different she looked when I asked if she would like a cup of coffee. Mousy always shared coffee with me in the mornings on her way to work. She was a big-wig at the bank. If it hadn’t been for her, I wouldn’t have gotten the loan for the bookstore.

“Of course, why else am I here?”

I went to the back and poured her cup, no cream, and brought it to her. She had taken off her coat and scarf and was pulling off her gloves. I sat the coffee on the counter and waited while she struggled with the gloves.

“Any news from the main branch?” I asked. She didn’t answer. Her mind was set on her gloves. It was the same routine everyday of winter. I reached over the counter and pinched the fingertip of the glove and yanked it off.

“Oh thanks, Lee,” she mumbled. “They want me to relocate to New York. I have a bank presidency job if I want it.”

“That’s great news, Mousy. You’ve been waiting for a chance like this for years.” I felt a tinge of sadness as the words left my lips. Mousy and I had never been extremely close, but I had grown fond of seeing her everyday.

“If I accept the job, I’ll be gone in a month.” She frowned.

“Well, the weather is a mite better in New York.”

“Maybe, but will there be a little bookstore across the street from the bank? And if so, will the owner be friendly and gorgeous?”

I looked down into her pale blue eyes, noting how stunning they appeared with her new hair-do. Mousy had always called me gorgeous, but I wasn’t. I was average, medium build, but tall, my hair was short, black, and wavy, my eyes were green, but there was nothing special about me.

“I don’t believe there will be anything or anyone to take my place, Mousy. We’ve known each other too long. There are no replacements, only new friends for you to meet.”

“Sure, I’m great at making friends. How many do I have now? One?”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself. Just open up your heart. Stop feeling so dreadful about everything.”

“No one knows me the way you do, Lee.”

“I hope that’s a compliment.”

“You’ll never know how much.”

She looked up at me with eyes sparkling. Suddenly, a new feeling came over me. I didn’t want her to accept the job in New York. I wanted her to stay, but I didn’t know what to say to her.

We just stared at each other, until she reached over the counter and grabbed my shirt in both hands and pulled me to her. She kissed me with lips I had never noticed she had. Full, wet, soft lips that parted when they met mine.

I felt the blood rush to my head, and my brain send urgent messages to other parts of my body. What was going on? I wasn’t attracted to Mousy. Why was I feeling that way? Had she been anyone but her, I would have jumped the counter and ravished her, but she was Mousy. Instead, I gave in to the feel of her mouth and the gentle way she meshed it to mine. My head was reeling.

When she finally pulled away, I was dumbfounded. Words wouldn’t form on my lips, nor thoughts in my mind. I just stood staring at her.

“I guess I’ll go give this to Sadie, then I gotta get to work.”

She then disappeared into the back room. I heard Sadie squeal. She made that sound whenever she saw Mousy. She liked Mousy a lot and became excited. Sadie saw her everyday. I guess she got a little attached to Mousy. I guess I did too.

Mousy returned to the counter after stopping for a book. While she put on her winter covering she told me to put the book on her tab, and she’d see me tomorrow.

Then she left without another word, no explanation…nothing.

I went into the back room and sat on the cot next to Sadie. I leaned over and hugged the old Labrador, but she didn’t notice. She was too busy chomping on her treat.

Sitting there several minutes trying to arrange the barrage of thoughts and feelings that slammed through me, I came to realize that I enjoyed that kiss. I didn’t understand why, but Mousy’s lips had felt warm and sensuous.

I mulled over the morning’s events all afternoon. When I finally looked out the window, I saw a horrendous blizzard. Snow blowing everywhere, I couldn’t see the little tree in front of the store, let alone across the street. It appeared to me that Sadie and I would be spending the night in the store. Good thing my little refrigerator in the back was packed.

At closing time, which seemed to be a moot transaction since I hadn’t had a customer all day, I locked up the store, grabbed a book and headed for the back room. What I was reading did not impress me. It was supposed to be the latest and hottest in lesbian romance, but the characters were a bit shallow. I liked reading about complicated women who found themselves in unpredictable situations. Three chapters into the book and I guessed the ending. It was banal reading. I put it back on the shelf and tore down the ‘drippy’ poster.

Perhaps, I had been too harsh. Romance novels were not my favorite and I tended to be cynical about the whole romantic thing. Girl meets girl, girls fall in love, and girls live happily ever after. Yeah? In what sappy world? I hung the poster back up.

Suddenly, I heard banging on the shop door. Who could be out there? Who would dare?

I went to open the door and Mousy practically beat it down until it swung open and she ran inside.

“What took you so long, Storekeep?”

“What in hell are you doing here?”

“Apparently dying of frost bite.”

“I opened the door right away.”

“You think? Then why don’t my knees bend? My legs are frozen stiff.”

“Let’s get you out of those clothes.”

“My clothes are fine.”

“I meant, your over clothes, Mousy.”

“Oh, okay.”

I helped her out of her gloves and coat. She was right. She was as cold as ice, and she looked like a frozen Popsicle. Brushing the snow off her, she mumbled something inaudible, and then I pulled off her hat. She bent over and shook her head.

“Why are you here, Mousy?”

I can’t get home, so I thought I could make it across the street. I sure didn’t want to spend the night in the bank, but I nearly froze to death.”

“Well, I would sure love the company, but there’s no where for you to sleep.”

“You have a cot in the back. We can pile up our coats for Sadie. She can sleep on the floor.”

“I was planning on using the cot.”

“You can share.”

“It’s a pretty small cot, Mousy.”

“Are you afraid to share it with me, or repulsed?” Her blue eyes sparkled, but I saw a hint of worry.

“You’ve never repulsed me. I’m just warning you. It’ll be a tight fit.”

“Maybe, we should talk about it.”

“Yeah, I think we should. You start.”

We sat in the winged back chairs by the window. She heaved a sigh, and said, “Where do I begin?”

“Begin by telling me why you kissed me this morning.”

“I’m leaving in a month. It seemed the best time for a goodbye kiss.”

“That was a goodbye kiss?”

“Yes.”

“So you decided for sure to take the job in New York.”

“Yeah, well like you said, I’ve been waiting for a chance…and…well…I’m single. There’s nothing here to holding me back.”

Her words felt like a punch in the stomach. What was wrong with me? “You’ve got me and Sadie,” I said lightheartedly.

She frowned at me, and then asked, “Do you have some coffee?”

“Sure, I’ll get you some.”

She jumped up. “No, I’ll get it myself.”

I followed her into the back room.

“Do you want a cup?” she asked.

“Sure,” I answered, then glancing at Sadie who had started her squealing, I repeated, “Really, Mousy, you have me and Sadie here.”

She handed me a cup of coffee then took a sip of hers. I held my cup to my lips waiting for her to say something. Her blue eyes sparkled at me. She lowered her cup and opened her mouth.

“I’ve been trying to get into your pants since high school. If it hasn’t happened by now, I doubt that it ever will.”

I was flabbergasted, and didn’t have words to answer her.

“You will never have the time or feelings for a ‘mousy’ little thing like me,” she continued.

Her words blazoned on my heart. I had told her that so many years ago, and suddenly, I remembered how she got her nickname. It was my teenage arrogant attitude that had punned her ‘Mousy’.

I just stared at her, reflecting on the kiss she had lavished on me earlier, and how exciting it had felt. I didn’t want her to go to New York, but I didn’t have the guts to admit I was attracted to her. I knew her twenty years and never imagined a hair-do would change her so drastically.

It couldn’t have been the hair. It had to be the kiss, a kiss that came from lips I had never noticed, the soft wet lips that had literally drowned me in exquisiteness.

“I didn’t know. I’m so sorry, Mousy. No. That’s wrong. I meant, I apologize, Melicent.”

“I’ll be gone soon, Lee, so it doesn’t really matter, but you can call me Mel.”

Mel and I talked for hours before we got up the nerve to share the cot. I put our coats on the floor and picked up the old dog and laid her in the middle of them.

“Sadie…Stay!

She whimpered a little but didn’t attempt to move. I turned my back so Mel could disrobe and put on one of my big t-shirts that I kept at the shop as extras. Then she climbed into the cot and turned her back to give me the same courtesy. I flipped out the light and undressed, but I didn’t bother with the t-shirt. I wanted to climb in the cot naked, hoping that she still wanted some of my action.

When I got in the cot, I was pleasantly surprised that Mel turned towards me and was also naked. I kissed her, finding her lips hotter and wetter than they were this morning. She returned the kiss.

We must have necked for an hour before passion overcame me. I was already almost on top of her because of the tiny cot, but I maneuvered my body so that I was between her legs. She moaned as I pressed my hips against hers and we undulated until we both writhed in orgasm.

Ohhh, Lee,” she moaned.

“Ahh, Mel…ahhhhhhh…Mousy,” I moaned loudly.

It didn’t stop there. Mel and I made love the entire night. We did things to each other we had only imagined in our wildest of dreams. Just before we drifted to sleep, I cuddled her in my arms as she cried softly. Tears of joy, she called them.

Mel never did go to New York. She lives with me and Sadie. She still works across the street from the bookstore, but she is now the President of the bank. She comes into the store every morning for coffee, Sadie, and a few kisses from me. I still call her Mousy to her face.

The strangest happening since I realized my feelings for Mousy…I carry more lesbian romance novels in the store. I have more ‘drippy’ posters up, and I love reading girl meets girl sappy stories.

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Copyright 2006 akedmonds. Copyright 2006 Lezotica. All rights reserved