Guilty Pleasures
"Juvia will only be a moment!"
Gray frowned, glancing up at the name of the store she was pointing toward, The Tattered Cover. He knew Juvia well enough by now to know she wouldn't be "just a moment" in a bookstore. More like a million moments—a million long moments. It was even when worse when she brought Levy along. There were more than a few times Gajeel and Gray had found themselves accidently in each other's company at the bar down the street because the two woman stayed late talking about books, drinking coffee and eating cakes.
Not that he minded all that much—it just depended on the circumstances.
"Meet me at the end of the strip then. I got a few places I need to go too. " he offered, desperate not to be stuck waiting amongst piles and piles of books. "An hour?"
"Thank you Gray-sama!" Juvia chirped, smile brightening her face as she twisted away from him and through the aged oak doors. Gray was assaulted with the smell of musty books and tea before the door slammed behind her.
Damn. Now he had to find something to do.
Juvia's arms flew out to her sides as she entered the bookstore, taking in a deep breath. Levy always said the best smell in the world was used books and ink on paper—it had taken a while, but now Juvia felt the same way. Reading books had always been a hobby for her, but not the passion it was for her blue haired friend. Once she had begun dating Gajeel, Juvia had decided to make an extra concentrated effort to spend time with Levy and become better friends, and that had all started on a coffee date to the bookstore.
Levy was definitely a persuasive person—it wasn't long before they started their own book club, which was a hit amongst the other girls in their group. Lucy would bring snippets of her novels to read, Mirajane would bring snack cakes, Wendy directed conversation and kept the peace when the debates would heat up. And Erza… Erza always had something new, either an adventure novel or something so downright naughty, they would have to cover Wendy's ears and all the girls faces would be bright pink by the end of it.
Juvia stopped in her steps through the book store, thinking back to the last book Erza had shared with the group. An erotic novel, if Juvia remembered correctly. That was a genre she tended to shy away from—what would people say if they knew she liked those stories? Juvia, the girl who always wore knee length dresses and boots that met the hem? Juvia, the girl who was too embarrassed to bathein a public bath with her closest friends—the one who was always trying to hide Gray-sama's stripping habit?
She glanced across the signs hanging from the ceiling, and headed toward the one that stated ROMANCE AND EROTIC.
Maybe just a peek wouldn't be too bad. After all, Erza read these books and found them completely palatable to share in front of everyone—she had even snuck them into everyone's bags once, fully expecting them to read and discuss by the next meeting. Juvia had read the book in the privacy of her own room, horrified and oddly satisfied with how the book had made her feel. If only Gray-sama would treat her the way the men in these books did…
Juvia shook her head, patting her cheeks too bring herself back to her senses. Not now, not in the middle of the bookstore! She didn't need to fall into a bumbling, melty mess in the middle of the romance aisle. She took a deep breath, stepped by the innocent romance novels and into the darker, more seductive erotic section.
She was glad Gray-sama hadn't decided to accompany her.
Rows of black, deep purple, sensual red and dark blue book spines met her eyes, embossed with gold or silver titles. Juvia checked behind her shoulder twice before she calmed down enough to actually glance the books over. Red Hot Night, Captive Rapture, Love on the Mountains… each title caused her fingers to twitch. She wanted to pull them off the shelves, her insides warming at the thought of what lie beyond the covers. Ruffians turned gentle lovers? Strong willed women bending to a temptation that called from within at the touch of the one they swore they hated? Maybe a broken hero in need of a special type of healing—Juvia bit her lip and drew her hand back, catching sight of a white spined novel with icy blue lettering.
Love on the Cold Seas
She reached and pulled the novel from the shelf. The dress of the main character wrapped around the spine to the back of page, a deep purple with golden tints. Juvia had a rule when it came to books—she only read the blurb, and then looked at the cover.
This time she turned to the cover first, where a pirate in blue and black held a woman in purple, his tanned face and lips pressed into her neck while she leaned into the mast pole, lips opened in ecstasy. Juvia's face burned bright red as she flipped to the back cover.
They look like Gray-sama and Juvia! She thought, all manner of images flying through her mind as she flipped to the back of the book. The words were typed over splashes of white foamed waves and icebergs, and Juvia could feel her excitement building. The story was about a woman named Jacqueline, who was taken captive by Captain Grenier when he and his privates attacked the ship she was on while traveling to visit family overseas. It said that she is caught off guard by her captor's firm yet kind attitude toward her, as well as his arduous good looks and sex appeal, and ended with the words "Some scars never heal, and others need the attention of a fairy lady…"
She didn't think twice. Juvia knew she couldn't afford another book at the moment, but she pulled the cover open and began reading anyway.
It had been well over two hours, and Gray was tired of waiting. He knew leaving Juvia behind at a bookstore had been a bad idea, but he had to at least trust her when she said it would only be a moment. Shoving his hands in his pockets, he headed back down the strip with the few items he had purchased while she was gone. Shopping was much easier when she wasn't there pointing out everything that caught her eye or making him try on 18 different shirts before he could say he liked the first one anyway.
The bookstore wasn't that far from the edge of the strip, so he came upon the doors quickly enough. An elderly woman pushed her way through and he held the heavy oak for her so she could get through, smiling back at her as she said thank you. Gray slipped into the store and glanced around the racks for Juvia's blue hair. He didn't see her sitting in the café where she would normally be if he left her behind, and she wasn't in the historical or cooking sections like he was used to. Gray rounded the displays of magazines, expecting to find her in the back by the bridal and wedding books—because Juvia was always planning a wedding—but she wasn't there either.
He was kind of thankful for that. The last thing he needed was her shoving pictures of dresses and flowers in his face when they weren't even—technically—dating.
Without any other direct leads, Gray began walking the aisles one by one, peeking around the corners in home that she would appear somewhere. He passed religion, mage studies, non fiction, adult fiction, graphic novels and children's books before he rounded the romance and erotic section.
No.
There was no way that was where she was.
Was there?
Gray peeked around the corner, surprised to find Juvia standing with a book half read, her face flushed a pretty shade of pink. Her right foot tapped the floor repeatedly, one hand held to her lips in a fist. He had half the mind to turn around and walk away, but for some reason the idea of Juvia reading an erotic novel and getting that excited about it made him stay put. He wanted to see what she would do, wanted to know what she was thinking. Decidedly content watching her read, Gray leaned against a bookshelf with his arms crossed.
He was itching to take off his shirt, and was glad he had the mind frame to realize he was tugging at the edge of the fabric otherwise he may have lost his chance to view her taking in a guilty pleasure. This was entertaining.
Juvia squeaked, both of her feet stomping on the floor as her cheeks turned scarlet, eyes wide. "G—Gray-sama, why won't you do that to Juvia...?" she asked absently, removing her hand from her lips to turn the page.
She skimmed a few more pages before something—Gray wasn't sure exactly what it was—caused her to glance to her right, holding the book close so no one would see. He couldn't see the cover from here, but judging by her reaction he was sure something unusually sensual was about to go down in her little white and purple novel. Once she was sure no one was peeping from the right, Juvia turned to the left.
Gray stood there, taking in her expression as she registered the fact that not only was someone watching her, but it was him. Her cheeks burned a shade of red he couldn't name, the book dropping to the floor. She looked absolutely mortified—something Gray did not know Juvia could feel. She did a lot of things that embarrassed him, he couldn't help but take a bit of pride in knowing he could catch her just as off guard as she could him.
"G-G-Gray-sama!" Juvia's hands flew out in front her, shaking roughly. "This isn't what it looks like—the book, Juvia just wanted to take a peek and—"
"This one?" Gray took a step forward, lifting the book and taking a good look at its cover.
Ah. That was why she picked this one. The two characters did look similar to them. He flipped to the back, eyes scanning the cover.
"Gray-sama—"
"Pirates, huh?" he asked, eyes raised. "You like this kinda stuff?"
Juvia's cheeks remained rosy, but her hands fell in defeat. She had been caught, and now that he had the book in his hands there was no way she could deny it.
"Erza brings these books to our bookclub and so Juvia thought… maybe…" she fumbled over her words, trying to form something that would make sense and not give away the fact that she had just been imagining herself as the strong willed Jacqueline, warm and panting beneath Captain Grenier as he bent her over his desk, head pulled back as his breath tingled down her neck… "Juvia is so embarrassed! Gray-sama must think…"
For some reason, that only made her blush more.
He smirked.
"You want this?" he asked, handing the book back to her. "I'll buy it for you."
"Huh?" she turned her gaze back to his face.
He shrugged, turning around once she took the book from his hand and heading toward the cashier. "If you like it, I'll buy it. Just make sure you read the good parts to me later."