Rae doubted he believed his flattery. He was an interesting enigma. She couldn’t tell fully what he really meant and when he was teasing. Where there were tricks – things like whispering softer to get a girl or boy to lean in closer – Rae got a perverse pleasure out of finding ways to react in the opposite way than expected. When he’d whispered and walked off earlier, she’d let him go. Sure enough, he’d found his way back to her again, or rather the book had. So he was just as good at the game to her estimation.
She let the comment about princesses go with only an ambiguous chuckle. He could think that if he wanted to. Either he was teasing her and she decided not to rise to the bait just yet or he actually believed that and life would teach him better.
The unsettling jolt passed but her spirits suddenly dampened. If Antonio was to be believed, there was someone magical out there with the talent of finding novice witches or something. She wasn’t clear on the details. Abel didn’t impress her as particularly dangerous, but she was wary of leaving the store with him to destinations unknown. She slowed her pace to linger a moment by one of the displays of impulse items kept just to the side of the registers. Rae skimmed over them but directed her question to him. “So, you pick up girls at bookstores often?” It was an attempt to bring the conversation back to playful banter but there was a clear undercut of uncertainty she couldn’t hide.