Spending time in the bookstore had become a regularity for Aaron. He never thought twice about heading in and going straight to the fantasy and science fiction to find his next book. However, right next to the fantasy section was the romance section.
Aaron had always been curious about reading a romance novel. In his free time, he absolutely loved watching the occasional romantic comedy. More recently that curiosity continued to be sparked by the occasional recommendation of a romance novel on BookTok. However, he just had not taken the plunge yet because his anxiety constantly kept him worrying about the perception others had of him, considering "men" didn't typically read romance novels. It was silly and stupid, but for some reason he continued to let that perception keep him from exploring beyond his usual fantasy and science fiction novels.
As Aaron's eyes began to glaze into the romance section once again, a woman began to enter the aisle. She held about 5-6 books in her hands, but that clearly didn't keep her from searching for more. She herself wore bookish glasses that were a bit thick and had blue eyes. Her hair went about half-way down her back. She wore those knee-high boots that you might see either a dominatrix or goth girl wearing, but not with the vibe of either. Though clearly his eyes were lingering too long, as she took notice. When his eyes locked eyes with hers, Aaron quickly diverted them back to the romance section to the book he had been eyeing as she entered, "Taking the Lead" by Emma Harcroft.
Aaron had been eyeing this book months because the story not only appealed to his romantic side, but to his erotic side as well because it was about a female taking the lead in a romantic relationship with a man. Something with his anxiety that deeply appealed to Aaron.
Fortunately or unfortunately for Aaron, the woman followed his eyes. Without saying a word, she picked up the book he had inadvertently looked at. Before saying anything, she took her time looking at the cover and reading the back of the book before adding it to the pile of books she was holding. Before leaving the aisle, she simply said "Good Girl." I hope to see more of you soon, as she turned around and headed towards the cash register
That sent shivers up Aaron's spine, but he didn't think of it much more until about 5 minutes later after he had arrived at his car with his latest fantasy book purchase, "The Lights of the Calderan Plains" by Scott Alwood. What he found was a copy of the book Aaron found on the shelf on the windshield of his car with a note tucked in the front that read:
"I saw you eyeing this book. I figured you wouldn't buy it for yourself, so I took it upon myself to purchase it for you. I really hope you enjoy this story and it awakens something in you like it did for me. I expect you to read this book over the next week. When you are finished text me at (901) 270-4332 what you thought about it. Do NOT text me before you finish the book. I'll send you more instructions after you tell me you're thoughts, assuming they are compatible with mine."
Aaron's mind was racing after he read the note. What did she mean by the book "awaken[ed] something" in her, and how the heck did she know this was his care. Despite those concerns, what raced inside him the most was the curiosity and the intrigue of the situation. More than anything, he wanted to know what the additional instructions were if their thoughts were compatible. Now his goals were clear, Aaron had to read this book over the next week.
Fortunately for him, the book was relatively short, but despite that, his week was very busy between social events for friends and work. This ultimately left very little time for reading, so he had to find whatever little time he could to fit the reading the book into his schedule from sitting on the toilet to work to his 15-20 minutes before bed. Ultimately, he was able to finish the book and with a hole day to spare!
Aaron took that hole day though preparing his message back to the mysterious woman. He wanted the message to her to be perfect. After spending the last 6-7 days just fantasizing about her and curious about what the "additional instructions" would be, he wanted to do whatever would earn him more time to interact with her. However, ultimately what he settled on was an honest review, as he was worried anything else would sound too fake, so he sent her the following message about 5 minutes prior to the deadline she had given him.
Aaron: Hello! It's Aaron from the bookstore.I was able to finish the book within the deadline you gave me, and man did I love it! It was so refreshing compared to the everyday romcom I watch on Netflix. The fact from the first minute of siting each other in the coffee shop the woman was the one taking the lead in the relationship was so hot. I think this is something I've been seeking, but just didn't know I was looking for. I found it interesting that overtime though she seemed to mold him into a model house wife in terms of responsibilities like in the 1950s. I know Tom resisted this at first in the story, and this was where the main tensions were. Honestly, I feel his plight. I didn't even want to pick up this book at first in fear of being perceived outside the norm. Maybe I need to look outside the norm. Anyway, I hope this was the review you were looking for.
