#firstwriting

“Would you like your receipt in the bag, ma’am?” Loki said as politely as he could muster for the 412th time during his evening shift at the bookstore. He was working here while going to college and when he first got the job, he was excited to be surrounded by books on a daily basis. He loved reading and he had made more friends with the novels on his bookshelves than the people that he found himself surrounded by on a day to day basis.

But sadly, working in the bookstore had not been what he had imagined. He spent most of his shifts ringing up customers, re-shelving books that customers carelessly left around the store and reading stories to children during the Storytime Hour. Apparently, he was a very good storyteller and had been roped into the job by his manager, Brian, who thought he had “a way with children.” Now, Loki didn’t mind children in small doses but the barely controlled chaos of Storytime Hour was another thing entirely. 

Loki gave the customer her receipt and sighed, glancing at the clock. He was only halfway through his shift but at least it wasn’t overly busy in the bookstore. He noticed a few people browsing when his eyes caught on a rather large man mumbling to himself in the Erotica section.

Now, Loki didn’t judge; he himself had actually read one or two such novels (ok it was more than a few but who could blame him with the specimens on the covers). It wasn’t abnormal to see a guy in that section. In fact, what really had caught his attention was that the man currently trying to select a book could himself fit on the cover of more than a few of those “bodice rippers”. He was tall and built with dark blond hair that was shaved close and brought out the ridiculousness of his chiseled jaw. The dark jeans the man was wearing gave Loki a very nice view of his butt and his deep red t-shirt looked like it was busting at the seams over his enormous biceps.

Loki found himself moving before he had really thought about it. “Can I help you find something, sir?” he said as he drew closer to the man. When his head popped up from the novel he was holding, Loki was stunned by the blue eyes staring at him in complete confusion. 

 Loki pulled his eyes away from the man’s face and looked at the book in his hands. It was Fifty Shades of Grey. “Um,” he said slowly. “Looking to spice things up with your girlfriend?” escaped his mouth before he had time to filter his response. He could feel his cheeks flushing and bit his bottom lip.

“What?!? No..uh..I’m looking for a book for my mother” the man responded. “I wasn’t aware of what this book....contains. My aunt was raving about it to Mom and she seemed interested but perhaps you could point me in a better direction.”

Not letting his brain (or heart) get too excited at hearing that the book wasn’t for a girlfriend, Loki took the book from the man’s very large hands. Glancing towards the cash register and noting that one of his coworkers had taken over ringing up purchases, he re-shelved the book. “No problem, sir. What are your mother’s interests? What authors does she like?”

“Please call me Thor,” Thor says, smiling down at Loki as he reads his name tag. “Thank you for your help, Loki. Mom likes gardening and baking. I’m not quite sure what authors she usually reads.”

Loki offered a few suggestions to Thor but on their way towards the registers to pay for his selections, they somehow ended back in the Erotica section. “Do people use these books for inspiration?” Thor asks, his fingers chasing down the spine of a book. “I mean why read when you can watch...or do?” His face takes on a slight blush as he glances towards Loki.

“Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it,” Loki says with a wink. “The written word is a powerful thing.”

“Oh yeah? Hmmm...” Thor looks playfully at Loki, a mischievous sparkle in his eyes. He reaches for a book and starts to flip through the pages.  “His tongue fought with mine, sweet and dirty. It caressed my teeth and his hands grabbed my ass as my hips undulated against his hardness. I could not control the moan that left my lips.” Thor’s eyes met Loki’s and Loki’s face burned. Thor stepped closer and his voice dropped even lower, sending chills up Loki’s spine. “His skin was hot against mine as there were no barriers between us. His eyes flashed like lightning and his growl sounded like thunder...”

Loki bit his bottom lip and stared at Thor. He gulped and then whispered “I would like to book you for a private reading.” Loki blinked slowly and willed his knees to not buckle under Thor’s unrelenting stare.

The heat in Thor’s eyes made his heart beat faster. “Yeah,” Thor rasped. “I could go for some heavy...reading.”