Woman of the Rose

Chapter 1

1

It's been nearly a month since I've been in Saint Véran. I recently acquired a job at Café du Livre, a café and bookstore, owned by a friendly older lady in her mid-fifties. She was kind enough to let me stay in her home until I was able to afford a place of my own. I remember my first day here; it was the middle of the night and I was drenched head to toe in the onslaught of rain that seemed to come from out of nowhere. I ran into the older woman outside of the café, during closing hours.

"Ah, you nearly gave this old woman a heart attack. You shouldn't be out here by yourself, women have been disappearing." She was a stout of a woman with a thick Irish accent. Her graying hair sat upon her head in a tight bun, and her dress, a faded gray color, looked like an old librarians from the early 1950's.

"I'm so sorry, I was hoping to look for a motel to stay at but nothing seems to be open." The rain started to come down harder as the wind began to pick up. "Well, you're not going to find anything at this hour. Come with me." I followed her down the footpath, towing my suitcase behind me until we reached a small bungalow not too far.

It looked a little run down but it had that homey touch to it. It smelled of cinnamon, in a strange way it was nice. "My apologies dear, I haven't introduced myself, names Esther." She held her hand out and I shook her calloused hand. "Violet." She showed me to the room I would be staying in, it was spacious and held a twin bed on the far side of the wall by the window. "I don't mean to intrude, it will just be for a night, at least until I'm able to find a hotel."

"Oh, nonsense. Stay as long as you like, it gets a little lonely around here anyways now that Albert's passed." I looked at her with a forlorn expression at which she smiled. "Years ago, no need to make such a face. I will get you some warm blankets and then you can get some sleep. Bathrooms across the hall." I thanked her when she came back and got settled into bed. My head was still spinning from the day's events. I pushed those thoughts away and fell fast asleep.

The next morning I woke to a rooster crowing, I rolled over and picked up my phone checking the time. 6:00 am. I let out a yawn, while I pulled the covers off. I headed towards the kitchen to see Esther making breakfast. "Good morning. How did you sleep?" She asked, setting a plate of eggs and toast in front of me, gesturing for me to eat. "Good, thank you." She sat down at the table with her chin in her hand and watched me for a minute. "So what were you doing out in the rain in the middle of the night?"

I took a sip of orange juice to clear my throat. "It's a long story." She nodded and patted my hand. "I understand. Well, I need to head over to the bookstore and set things up."

"Would you like some help?" I asked.

"That would be very kind of you, thank you. I'm so old now it's hard to get things done around here."

Ever since that day, I've been working at the café; helping out with as much as I could, sorting the books,  and making coffee to pay off my debt to Esther. She says it's not a problem but I know she could use the help.  "Violet?" I paused from stacking the books and made my way to Esther.

"Yes?"

"There's a box, in the back; by the storage room, it's filled with books, do you mind grabbing it?"

"Sure, no problem."

I walked to the back room to grab the box, but decided to pull just the books out instead since there wasn't that many. I soon regretted the idea as the stack in my right hand had begun to slip.

"Can I help?"

I glanced up at the man dressed in dark washed jeans, a white long sleeve V-neck, a grey pea coat and dark brown boots. His hair was a disheveled mess of chocolate brown, his chin sharp and supporting a five a clock shadow, and a pair of dark ray bans covering his eyes.
I gave a sheepish smile.
"Yes please."

He grabbed the stack of books out of my hands and placed them aside on the cart. I set the rest of books down, wiping my hands on my skirt and looked back up. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

I grabbed up a couple of new releases, and made my way back to the main floor. "Can I get you something to drink or read?"

"An English Breakfast tea would be great." His voice was deep and masculine, but his accent wasn't like Esther's. I made my way behind the counter and started preparing his tea.

"Are you new here?" he asked.

I looked up from pouring the hot water, "Yeah, I got here a few months ago actually." I placed the tea bag in the water, "Sugar?" I couldn't see behind his dark shades, but from the way his jaw was clenched he seemed a bit angry. Was it something I said?

"Honey and milk please, thank you.." he said, I placed the lid on the cup and handed it to him.

"On the house."

"Violet." He nodded and left the café.

I stood there gaping, the way my name rolled off his tongue sent chills down my spine.  Something about him seemed so familiar. Shaking my head, I went back to stacking the books.