Chapter 12

When the baker woke again, several hours later, the bedroom was still dark. There was some very early daylight coming into the room via the huge window in the roof that she and the barber had looked through earlier that night. She realized now that the window must be facing the east, letting in the first rays of what promised to be a sunny day of early spring. Just like earlier that night however, the sky was still dominated by brightly shining stars.

Blinking so her eyes could adjust to the lack of light, the baker looked around. The room that she was in – Mr. Todd's bedroom, she liked to remind herself – was larger than she had thought. The bed, that was big indeed, was standing in the middle of the room, only its headboard touching the wall, which was located directly below the large window. As far as she could see from her position in the bed, there was a wardrobe in one corner and a table with a small mirror in another.

The most important thing however was missing. Mrs. Lovett realized with a jolt of shock that Sweeney wasn't with her, even though Teddy was still next to her, fast asleep.

"He's working," a voice behind her said.

The baker turned around quickly, finding Victoria sitting on a small stool in the darkest corner of the room, which was also the one that was the most far away from the bed. It almost seemed as if she wanted to dissociate her from the woman and the child that were occupying the room already.

"He leaves every morning at five o'clock to go to his first customers of the day."

It made perfect sense to the baker, remembering that Sweeney had told her that he didn't have his own tonsorial parlor any more but visited his rich customers at home now. She wouldn't have been able to recall it with Victoria's help however, feeling lonely now that the barber was gone, if only for a while, even though Teddy was sleeping next to her and she was talking to Mr. Todd's ward at that very moment.

"He asked me to let you know that he will be back at approximately seven o'clock, which is in a little less than an hour."

"Thank you," the baker said, sincerely grateful that the girl had sat there to give her Sweeney's message, just in case she'd wake up before the barber himself returned.

The girl just nodded and Mrs. Lovett realized again how quiet the girl was, never saying more than what was necessary. She knew now that the girl's life had been far from perfect so far, but Victoria's behavior seemed rather unnatural even with her status as an orphan in mind.

"You're welcome," the girl hastily added, almost as if she had read the baker's thoughts. Or, more likely, Mr. Todd had given her instructions to act politely to the woman who was sleeping in his bed. "I shall be going then."

"Victoria!" she found herself calling after the girl.

She didn't want the girl just to leave like that. Mrs. Lovett had the feeling that if she wanted to form a bond with Mr. Todd's ward, she had to do so now. And she wanted to do such a thing indeed. Not only because the girl lived in Mr. Todd's house and the baker would be living there as well for at least a short while and they might as well get along; but it was mostly because Nellie recognized a child in need when she saw one and Victoria was certainly such a girl. She lived in material luxury but had lost her parents years ago and even though she was sure that Sweeney did a good job of looking after the girl, he was still a man who wasn't exactly cuddly and had known his own daughter for less than a year.

Both the girl and the woman seemed surprised for a moment that Mrs. Lovett had actually called after her, but as the girl's brown eyes scrutinized her, her gaze betraying some of her surprise and curiosity, the baker felt that this was the right thing to do.

Remembering that Mr. Todd had told her that Victoria liked to watch stars, she gestured at the large room above her.

"Would you like to take a look?"

Victoria nodded rather shyly and approached the bed, sitting down on its edge.

"Come here," the baker said, patting at a free part of the mattress next to herself. "You can see the stars much better from here."

Casting a glance at the sleeping boy as if to reassure herself that she wasn't doing something forbidden, she did as Nellie suggested.

"I'm told that you know quite a lot about them."

Mr. Todd hadn't actually said so, but she sensed that it was safe to assume that Victoria did. She wanted to give the girl a bit more confidence to actually talk about the stars.

"Mr. Barker has been exaggerating, I'm afraid," Victoria said, blushing slightly.

Mrs. Lovett was confused for a moment because of the way the girl referred to the barber, but then remembered that he had changed his name again in order not to be recognized as the demon barber from Fleet Street. The baker mate a mental note to call him by his old name as well, or at least in public.

"And besides, I don't think we should talk at all. Teddy is sleeping."

"Don't worry about him," she replied, "he sleeps through everything. You can talk as much as you want, and he won't wake up."

It wasn't entirely true – she recalled an incident that had taken place only hours ago – but she didn't want the girl to be even more on edge than she already was. And besides, Teddy would probably only be happy to wake up with his new friend so close to him.

Victoria lay down rather awkwardly next to the baker, clearly not at ease in the presence of the woman. But when she caught a first glance at the glorious view that the window had to offer of the endless sky above, Victoria obviously became more pleased with the idea.

"I love to come up here," she said even before the baker tried to get her to talk. "From here, it almost seems as if you can touch the stars."

"Can you tell me about them?" Mrs. Lovett asked, hoping to get a conversation started with the girl with the help of a subject that Victoria was clearly interested in.

The girl began to speak, a bit hesitantly at first, but with more and more confidence as time passed. She told Nellie what the most important stars were and where they were visible in the sky, and told her about the myths that were told about them and the way they were regarded in modern science.

The baker was hugely impressed by Victoria's knowledge; she knew a lot more about the stars than she had thought. And although she hadn't really expected it, Mrs. Lovett found herself actually intrigued by what the girl was telling her. She was also gradually approached by the girl, Victoria coming closer and closer to her to point at the stars she was talking about. The baker was glad to see that whatever uncertainties the girl seemed to have had regarding her were disappearing.

In some of the novels that Nellie Lovett liked to read, it was said that people's fates were written in the stars. She had never believed it, but now that she was lying in the comfortable bed with her nephew and the barber's ward on either side of her, remembering a wonderful night and anticipating a day that would possibly get much, much better, she couldn't help but wonder if it was true after all. The way she had met the barber again the day before and the way he shared her feelings now were on first sight completely coincidental and impossible – albeit ironic – no matter how bizarre they were. But maybe it was decided long ago that this was supposed to happen, that the barber would be hers one day as long as she waited long enough for him – and she had.

The girl's voice however faltered in the middle of a sentence about Polaris. Mrs. Lovett looked at her, tearing her eyes away from the balls of light far above them. She opened her mouth to ask what was wrong, but she recognized the look in the girl's eyes before she had the chance to do so.

"I've always wanted to have a mother," Victoria whispered. "And by now I don't care any longer whether she's my real mother or not."

The baker was moved by the emotion in the girl's voice. It was obvious that she was very pleased with the way Mr. Todd looked after her, but that there was something missing that only a motherly figure could provide. Mrs. Lovett would love to be that woman and she yearned to pull the girl closer to her, to hug her just like she would embrace Teddy and used to hold Toby. She told herself to wait however, sensing that Victoria had to act on her own accord.

The girl hesitated even as she moved slightly towards the baker, clearly wanting to get closer to her but unsure whether she really could and should do so.

"It's all right love," Mrs. Lovett said, "there's nothing to be afraid of."

Convinced now, Victoria moved closer to her, but her movements were still uncertain and her eyes never broke their contact with the baker's, as if she wanted to pick up any sign of rejection as quickly as possible.

After another moment however the girl was completely within Mrs. Lovett's reach. When the girl rested her head rather awkwardly on her shoulder, the baker wrapped her arms around Victoria, pulling her closer to her.

The girl was tense as she did so, obviously not used to receive physical affection like this. But the baker just held her, sensing that Victoria was going to relax sooner or later. And indeed, after several minutes, she finally seemed to realize that the baker didn't mind at all to hold her like this. She released a breath that she had obviously been holding for quite some time and made herself more comfortable in the baker's arms.

"I don't know if you're going to stay here, and if you do, for how long," Victoria said, her face illuminated by the first rays of sunlight that made their way into the attic that served as Mr. Todd's bedroom. "It's none of my business. But I hope that you can stay for a long time."

"So do I," the baker replied, smiling lightly. "So do I."

Mrs. Lovett sighed inwardly as she spoke. She had been in the house for not even a day, but now she already felt like she had always been there. And if there was one thing that she was sure of, it was that she never wanted to leave again – and she was rather sure that Teddy shared her opinion.

For the first time since she had been a little girl, she felt as if she was part of a family. Although the house was in London and not by the sea and these children were not hers and the barber's, this was the life that she had always dreamed of. Now that she had found out what it could be like to actually live here with Sweeney Todd, she couldn't imagine herself spending the rest of her life any other way.

The decision wasn't hers to make however. All what she could do for now was staying in bed with the two children, waiting for the barber to come home.

When the baker woke up again, she felt better than she had done in a long time. She was completely rested and for once, her stomach wasn't growling with hunger. Her back wasn't aching because of the thin mattress of her equally old bed and instead of darkness, she was greeted by bright sunlight that streamed into the room that she had slept in.

Both Teddy and Victoria were nowhere to be seen, but Mr. Todd was in the middle of her view, sitting on the stool that Victoria had occupied earlier that morning. He had placed it in the middle of the room, right in front of the bed, so he could keep a good look on her. She had no idea for how long he had been there, watching her, but the knowledge that he had been doing so for at least a while was a very pleasant one.

"Good morning," she said, the first thing that came to her mind.

The two words couldn't have been more accurate. On a usual day she said them dozens of times, mostly to her customers and colleagues when she had still worked in the bakery. It had been nothing but a greeting, something she said because she and so many others always did so. Those days had without exception however been nothing but good.

"Good morning," he replied.

But this, the baker knew with absolute certainty, was going to be a good morning indeed.

He stood up from the stool to sit down on the edge of the bed. It was clear that he was very eager to do so; Mrs. Lovett was surprised that he hadn't actually woken her up in order to talk to her again. It was not that she would've minded, but after having been gone through some particularly exhausting months and having just had a night that had been filled with activities that had been far different from sleeping, she was grateful to be as rested as she currently was.

She had no idea what this day was going to bring her, seeing how completely unexpected the previous one had turned out to be, but it might be going to be even more intense than the one that had just passed. But whatever was going to happen, she was as ready now for it as she would ever be.

Mr. Todd moved over her as she was still lying comfortably in the bed. He kissed her cheek and as Mrs. Lovett closed her eyes as he did so, savoring the touch of his lips, she hoped that this morning would be followed by many, many more good ones.

"Did you sleep well?"

"I did," she replied.

She fully realized for the first time that she had spent the night sleeping in a bed with Sweeney Todd right next to her. That was quite memorable indeed, but she had been so overtaken by everything that had happened in the most recent hours that had passed to let this knowledge dawn on her fully.

Now that she did however, she was mostly amused by the fact that this had happened but that it hadn't gone further than that. For years she had been convinced that if they would actually end up in the same bed, this would be to do things quite opposite of sleeping - and that he would be gone as soon as it would've been over.

But this night he had slept at her side, simply holding her, and if it hadn't been for his work he would've still been there when she woke earlier that morning. Even when they had kissed and caressed each other, they hadn't gone further than that. The baker was obviously still hoping that this would change in the near future, but she was very happy with how things between them were going so far. They were completely different from what she had always imagined, but this was by far the most pleasant – and sustainable - scenario.

"I slept very well," she added, feeling that she couldn't make that clear enough to him.

Talking to him however wasn't what she wanted most. Very much aware of the way he was still hovering above her, she reached for his hair, pulling at it lightly to bring his face closer to her own once more.

When the distance was small enough, she had the courage to bring her mouth to his own, kissing him on the lips. It was a short and chaste kiss; she didn't dare doing anything more than that, not familiar yet with the way Sweeney reacted to her now.

As soon as she moved away from her however he followed her, his lips touching hers again. They lingered there for a moment, letting the baker know that he was quite happy with the way she had just greeted him.

She was tempted to take a hold of his neck and pull him on top of her, letting him know just how much she liked to wake up in his bed like this. Remembering the weakness of his leg however, she decided against it, not knowing how Sweeney would end up if she'd do so.

The kiss was slow and gentle, almost leisurely. It was for the baker a delight that he was kissing her like this, indicating that he wasn't in a hurry at all. It was a relief that his kiss told her that they wouldn't separate their ways anytime soon and although it was rather clear to her by now that he wouldn't do so anyway, it was pleasant to see it confirmed like this.

She had been asleep only a moment before and as he was kissing her, she awoke fully. It was almost as if he was kissing her awake and even when he was doing so, she couldn't help but wish that there would follow many, many mornings that would begin like this.

When he broke away slightly, there was a hint of a smile on his face. Not an actual smile – she wasn't even sure if his facial muscles were still capable of that – but it came close enough.

"I slept very well," she repeated, wanting to make very clear to him how much she had enjoyed everything that had happened that night – and not just sleeping - without revealing too much of how much unlike her usual nights they had been, during which she hadn't even been able to dream of such quiet and tender moments. She wasn't ashamed of those times no longer, but she simply didn't want to be reminded of them.

Looking at him, she suddenly recalled the short moment that had passed when she had fallen asleep in his arms several hours ago. Even now that the night had ended and she was fully awake, she couldn't determine with certainty whether he had really told her that he loved her, or that it had simply been another dream. The latter seemed much more likely, but she wanted to be absolutely sure of it. Just asking him however felt wrong – and it was not as if she had the courage to do so anyway. In spite of everything that had happened, she was afraid of the answer.

"How about you?" she asked, realizing that the barber looked very rested himself as well.

Mrs. Lovett still had to get used to the way he looked now; except from the more pronounced lines on his face and slightly graying hair, there was nothing that hinted that he had aged ten years since she had seen him for the last time. Because of the time that had passed since she had seen him for the last time, she had some trouble reminding the way his face had looked a decade ago in detail to begin with, so her judgment wasn't completely reliable. But still, she was convinced that he looked a lot healthier now than he had done ten years ago.

This wasn't so strange, seeing the way he lived now, but the baker had learned that physical wellness was only a part of one's health. But as she looked at him, studied his face in the bright sunlight, she didn't find a single sign on his face that betrayed that he was still haunted by the ghosts of the past.

"I slept very well too, thank you," he replied, the right corner of his mouth visibly moving upwards. It still wasn't an actual smile, but the baker sensed that it was an expression that was rarely seen on his face after all. She felt pride for having caused it. "I didn't want to leave this morning, but I had to get to work."

"I understand," she said, hoping that it was clear to him that she truly didn't mind.

"You slept a lot last night so I had thought that you'd be awake again by the time I had to leave. But you were sleeping so quietly and I didn't want to disturb you."

"Thank you," she said again.

She was indeed grateful now that he hadn't woken her. It would've been a lot more difficult if she would've known that he had to leave for two hours.

"Victoria told me that you were gone to work but would return soon."

"I asked her to do so, yes. I had the feeling that you would want to know that I..."

The barber's voice faltered, a strange look appearing in his eyes.

"When I returned here this morning, I found you with Victoria and Teddy. The three of you were sleeping, but still holding each other. I sat here for hours, watching you and the children, trying to persuade myself that I wasn't dreaming."

He looked at her, as if he couldn't fully believe that she was lying in his bed even now.

"I kept thinking that you were going to disappear right in front of my eyes. But Teddy woke, and so did Victoria a short while later. They were real, so you had to be too – but when I was watching you, I was afraid to blink or look away for a moment, because I still felt that you would be gone as soon as I did."

"I'm real," she whispered, shocked and delighted that the barber was thinking about her that way – she would've felt exactly the same if their roles had been reversed.

To proof her point, she kissed him again, sighing with delight when the kiss deepened and he lowered himself next to her.

A breathless minute later, Mr. Todd was quite convinced indeed. He lay down next to her when the kiss came to its end, resting his head on her shoulder.

Feeling bold, Mrs. Lovett took his hand in her own, wanting to be connected to him like that even though she wasn't sure whether he was willing to let her take such liberties with his person. He simply allowed her to do so however, caressing her hand with his thumb to show her just how much he didn't mind.

"Victoria and Teddy are having breakfast now with Mrs. Clint," the barber said after a while, aware of her question before she had asked it. "I suggested them to go to the park as soon as they're done eating."

They were quiet for a while, looking at nothing in particular in the sunlit room while making sure to stay very close to each other. Mrs. Lovett tried to suppress the thought that this meant that she and the barber were going to have the large house all to themselves and wouldn't have to worry about the children hearing and seeing things that they shouldn't. The knowledge that this was going to happen soon was indescribably pleasant, but just thinking of how Mr. Todd and she might take advantage of the situation was overwhelming to such extent that she preferred not to think about it just not yet.

"I'll get us something to eat as well," he said at length, probably reminding how hungry she had been last night only now. Now that she too was slightly getting used again to Sweeney's close presence, she felt that she was quite eager to have breakfast indeed. Although she wasn't by far as hungry as she had been the night before, she certainly would like to eat a big and proper morning meal.

He stood up and left the bedroom quickly, obviously wanting to return there as soon as he could.

When he was gone, Mrs. Lovett took the opportunity to take a look at the room that she had spent the night in now that it was filled with daylight. Although the bedroom was very large and there hardly wasn't much furniture except for the large bed, the room wasn't overly big or intimidating at all. She had the feeling that it may have something to do with the gentle color of the wallpaper – a nice shade of brown that he would've detested ten years ago – or the curtains, that were so unlike the sad pieces of material that she was used to.

He came back after a few minutes, carrying a large tray with them. She was glad to see that Mr. Todd had taken a very generous quantity of food with him. Although still not as hungry as she had been earlier, her stomach was growling at the sight of the plates of food.

She sat up, placing her pillow against the headboard of the bed so she could lean against it. Mr. Todd did the same thing as he sat down next to her, placing the tray in between them.

The sandwiches that he had taken with him were delicious. It didn't come as a surprise, but the baker appreciated their quality almost just as much as the fact that she was having a proper breakfast, with the barber himself of all people.

"I talked to Victoria this morning," Mrs. Lovett said when she had eaten two sandwiches. "She is a nice girl, but she's..."

She didn't know exactly what she wanted to say with this, but she just wanted the barber to know that they had spoken to each other that morning. The two of them were getting along a lot better now than before, but there was still something about the girl that disturbed her a little.

"I know," Sweeney replied. "But she doesn't do it on purpose. I think she's trying to protect herself. After her parents died, she seems to expect anyone she cares about to die or disappear."

Mr. Todd paused for a moment and the baker wondered just how much he recognized those feelings as his own.

"She was also afraid that I didn't want her to live here anymore now that I took you and Teddy with me. I told her that this is absolutely not the case and that she has nothing to fear. Things may change, but those changes will be for better – for all of us."

Mrs. Lovett nodded, realizing now why the girl had acted so hostile towards her when the four of them had traveled in the carriage. It hadn't been personal, but it was a rather unfortunate attempt of Victoria to intimidate the older woman to try to get her away from her guardian.

"I hope you don't mind," he said, looking up at her abruptly as if he suddenly realized that she might be bothered by what he just had said.

"About what?" she asked, her mind still processing the last words he had just said, about good changes for all of four of them.

"About Victoria, living with us. I know that this wasn't what you had in mind all those years ago – none of it is, probably – but she is staying here. I have no other choice, but even if I had... she's staying. I hope you understand."

"It's all right," she said, taking his hand in her own once more to show him the sincerity of her words.

It was true that her dreams of a cozy cottage and seaside wedding had never included the presence of a twelve year old ward of the barber, but ten years ago she hadn't been able to predict that she would lose Toby and end up raising her nephew instead. Actually, deep inside of her she had known all along that Mr. Todd and she would never live by the seaside – or live together at all. And yet, here they were.

Besides, no matter how much the baker wanted it to be otherwise, she was too old now to have children of her own – for as far as she had ever been able to in the first place. She knew that Sweeney and she could never have a child together; it was one of the prices they were going to have to pay for the long time it had taken them to truly find each other.

The baker however had looked after quite some children that weren't her own throughout the years and although she would've preferred those to be her own, this had never stopped her from loving them like a mother would. Victoria wouldn't be an exception.

"But you don't mind about Teddy, do you? I know he's... well, he can be quite a nuisance, but he's a good boy."

"He can stay here, of course," the barber said, as if the idea that he didn't want her nephew to be there as well was a ridiculous one. "He belongs with you, just like Victoria belongs with me."

She was very glad to hear that. The choice between Teddy and Mr. Todd would've been a cruel one.

The most important question however wasn't answered yet. She didn't know about what amount of time the barber was talking about. How long did he intend for Teddy and her to stay? Was he talking about weeks, months, or even longer than that? Or maybe he would realize soon that she wasn't who he had thought her to be and would throw her out of his house after all. It was indeed not as if his apparent feelings for her were actually build on anything – or at least, they weren't based on something that she could fully rely on. She hardly knew him and the same went for his knowledge regarding her. This time, she wasn't the only one who had been living partly in a world of make-believe.

She was tempted to ask him for how long he wanted her to stay, just like she still wanted to know whether he had truly told her that he loved her that night or that this had indeed been nothing but another illusion. She didn't do so however – she was afraid of the answer.

They finished their breakfast in silence. It was a comfortable and amiable one however and although the baker loved to talk, especially to the barber, and she was eager to get to know more about his current life – to get to know him – she wasn't bothered by the quietness.

Even when they were eating, her head rested on his shoulder and his left arm was wrapped around her body. For the moment convinced that nothing could go wrong, or at least not in the very near future, she simply enjoyed the food and the barber's presence, trying not to remind herself too much how unbelievable it was that she had both now.

When both of them had eaten as much as they wanted, Sweeney placed the tray on his nightstand. Making sure that the item was out of the way, he turned back to her. When he was almost next to her again however he remained sitting still, looking at her with wide eyes.

"What's wrong?" she asked, shocked by the expression on his face.

"Your hair," he muttered, not taking his gaze away from her.

Nervousness rising up within her, she moved her hands to her hair, having no idea what he was talking about.

Her fingers moved through the messy locks, to her relief finding nothing that appeared to be strange about it. He kept staring at her however and she wondered if there was something stuck in her hair or something like that. She wanted to get a mirror to see for herself what was going on, but she felt captured by the barber's attention and found it impossible to move.

"It's beautiful."

The baker looked at him strangely. The long locks were still down and although this perhaps wasn't very appropriate, it was not as if hadn't seen her like this before. He himself had removed the pins that usually held her hair up after all and it was not as if she knew what he had done with them – or wanted to find out.

"The sunlight," he said, as if that explained everything.

Only when he reached for her hair, running his hands through the auburn curls, and she could see the locks from the corners of her eyes, she realized what he was talking about. The bright morning sun was illuminating her hair, giving it a bright red glow, making it seem as if her hair was even more fiery than usual.

She looked at the barber as he was admiring her hair, oblivious to her attention. The look in his dark eyes was one of complete awe and if she hadn't seen her own reflection in them, she wouldn't have believed that she was the one who was responsible for this.

"Beautiful," he repeated, and this time she was fully enjoying the way he pronounced those syllables, that flattered her more than anything that others had ever said to her.

His hands twined in the reddish locks, caressing them, as if he wanted to familiarize himself with each strand. The attention with which he did this reminded her of the way he had caressed her back that night and once again she couldn't help but wonder how it would feel if he extended the exquisite focus to the rest of her body.

He sat down on his knees in front of her, never removing his hands. Twining his fingers more firmly in her hair, he rested his forehead against hers, caressing her even as he did so. The barber was now within her reach and she too reached for him, carefully running her fingers through his locks. Although they had grown a little longer than she was used to, they weren't as wild as they once had been.

Their noses were touching as well and although Mrs. Lovett didn't know what he was doing, just sitting with him like that was a very pleasant experience. Thanks to the barber's presence and the spring sun she was warmer than she had been for a long time, and just thinking about the near future made her almost glow just like her hair.

The barber was so close to her that she thought that he was going to kiss her. But he sat back after a while. She missed him immediately, even though he was still within reach. There was nothing like the feeling however that he caused when he was actually touching her.

The moment was interrupted by the sound of an excited children's voice. Teddy's outburst was followed by a much more quiet response that she recognized to be Victoria's. The baker could hear a third voice, which must belong to Mrs. Clint. After a few moments, the front door of the large house was opened and closed again, the voices becoming inaudible once more if the three of them moved away from the house, leaving the barker and the barber all alone. Although the sounds had distracted both her and Mr. Todd, she couldn't care this time.

"They're gone," he said, a strange look appearing on his face that she found difficult to understand even now. "I'm going to prepare your bath."

The slight disappointment that she had felt because he moved away from her disappeared immediately. She had completely forgotten the bath that he had promised her the day before, even though she had been so excited about it the previous evening, too caught up in the things that had happened since that moment. But now that she was reminded of the slow, long and thorough bath that he had promised her, she was very eager indeed to take this bath at last.

Images of steam and pale skin entered her mind and she had to prevent herself from doing something that would betray how much she would like to take such a bath together with the barber. Although she was rather sure that he had suggested the night before that they were going to take a bath together, there was nothing that betrayed now that he was actually planning to do so. If he were, he would look at least slightly excited – or would he? His face was now a mask of neutrality once more.

Not wanting herself to expect too much, she forced herself to get used to the idea that she was going to bath alone. She could've asked him about his intentions, but once again she decided against it, not wanting to suggest too much so soon. But the wicked thoughts, that had appeared in her mind as soon as he had talked about taking a bath for the first time, just wouldn't leave her alone.

"If you want to take one," he said, misinterpreting her quietness.

"I do, very much," she said quickly, not wanting to let the opportunity pass. Even if she was going to bathe alone, it would be quite memorable as well, if only because she hadn't had the chance to actually do so for a long time.

Even when Mr. Todd was still sitting on the bed right next to her, looking at her as if he still wasn't convinced that she actually wanted to take a bath, Mrs. Lovett's overactive mind was once more going wild with possibilities already. This time not too tired to actually do so, she was lightly shivering with desire even as the oblivious man was still sitting opposite her.

As the barber moved out of the bedroom, it was even easier for her mind to come up with the most tempting situations, because she now didn't have to hide any longer just how much she would like to take a bath with him.

"Wait here," he called as he descended the chairs. "I'll call you when it's ready."

As she sat back against the pillows that were positioned against the headboard, her body perfectly comfortable and her mind swimming with the possibilities of taking a bath in the barber's house, she did just that.