The Butchers Dog

The Butchers Dogs was a typical family run Inn, a handsome fireplace with a well stoked fire, a few hardened drinkers at the bar and dark nooks and crannies here customers can hide away, not seen by people passing, sat with their drinks whispering conversations about business deals or illicit affairs.

It was a popular pub and run very well by the Braggings family. John Braggings thought the Butchers Dogs was popular as his ale was a good price and he was a good landlord, but the real truth of it was that John had two very beautiful daughters that helped out and men travelled far and wide to come and admire them from behind their pint glass.

One of Johns daughters was Sara and this particular morning she was waiting for her cousin to arrived, but it wasn't long before something caught her eye, or should I say someone!!

Sara had some very large mussels that needed to be sold in the market, and being a genteel type of girl, her father had instructed her not to go to the market without Rebecca. The market was loud and brash, people shouting the best price and someone like Sara Braggings could easily get washed up in the atmosphere of it all and then there could be no telling what would happen to her. John did worry about her, even more so since she turned seventeen, it seemed to him that Sara had the body of a woman but the mind of a child, and he really didn’t know what to do about it. He was trying his best, but it’s really not that easy to run a pub with two young daughters to look after. Being a widow had really taken its toll on him, and he was fearful of where it would all end. He hoped not in catastrophe.

As Sara waited patiently for her cousin in the warming April sun, she couldn't help noticing the man, the new arrival at the river side. He was very tall, slim framed and walked with an elegance about him that she had never seen with the local chaps, and his eyes, his eyes were like blue sapphires, she was hypnotised. He looked directly at her and smiled, feeling the chemistry from across the path, but not understanding what it meant, Sara looked at the floor and prayed Rebecca wouldn't be too long. She felt her cheeks burning and her legs were slightly jellified. As she gathered her pose and prepared to look up to steal a second glance at the stranger her cousin turned up and off they went on their journey to market with the large basket of mussels.

Later that evening Sara was asked to help out behind the bar at the family inn, her father is of the mind that it is the best way to bring out his beautiful daughters personality and also give her an insight into the real world. Shining the pumps furiously she turned towards the door and in 'he' walked, came straight up to the bar and asked Sara for a drink. With trembling hands she felt his penetrating stare as she poured him his pint of beer. As he touched her palm with the money to pay for the refreshment she could swear she felt a small electric shock right in the centre of her palm, then Sara just stood there, not knowing what to do, still as a statue, with money in hand, frozen. Luckily her father shouted across the bar, asking her to put another log on the fire, it broke the spell and with a jolt Sara came back to reality, dutifully answered this request and went and got a log from the basket and tossed it on to the burning embers.

The man came over to the fire and introduced himself as James, explaining he was in town to measure some blocks for a bridge he was building, and would be leaving for Bath tomorrow. Sara didn't hear a word he said, only the sound from her own beating heart and had to steady herself by reaching out and placing her hand on the wall of the pub by the side of the fire. She tried to compose herself, but having never kissed a man before she has an odd feeling swell up from inside her, Sara had to use all her strength to hold back this almighty urge to kiss him right on the lips. With a large intake of breath she made it back to the relative safety of the bar and began cleaning the glasses, she made this activity keep her occupied until closing time.

As the last customers left and Sara gave a cheery goodbye, she couldn't help noticing that the man, James, was still in the bar. He stood up and walked towards the door that she was holding open, as he walked past, Sara wondered if she would ever see those eyes again? If she would ever get an opportunity to spend time with him, to chat about each others lives and get to know one another? He was half out and half in the door when he turned around. There he was, the handsome stranger she knew as James, he had turned around, and was facing her in the door way. Sara let the door go and it started to swing shut, James stopped it from closing in his face, walked up to her and planted a hard and warm kiss right on her lips. Then he walked away into the night without a word.

James the mystery kisser with the sapphire blue eyes left unanswered questions on her lips and now Sara wanted more. She stood there, for what seemed like an hour, just looking down the path, looking for him, but he was gone and her lips felt good, different, but good. Her Dad called her in, so Sara went in locked up with her Dad and went upstairs to bed, to dream of James and the kiss, although at this point Sara thought she might have imagined the whole thing, that kiss, that kiss was truly wonderful. She grinned to herself under the blankets and drifted off into sleep.