...The Bookstore Bet

It was a quiet afternoon in "Chapters & Chatter," a cozy little bookstore in the heart of the city. Emma loved spending her weekends here, browsing through shelves of novels, drinking overpriced lattes, and escaping the chaos of her life.

Today, she was on a mission to find a specific book—The Forgotten Letters—for her book club. She searched high and low, but it seemed the book was nowhere to be found.

That’s when she spotted him.

Tall, scruffy-haired, and wearing a leather jacket that looked a little too cool for the setting, he was standing at the counter, holding the very book she needed.

Of course.

Emma hesitated for a moment before walking up to him. “Excuse me,” she said, tapping him on the shoulder.

The man turned around, looking surprised. His green eyes locked on hers. “Uh, hi?”

“Hi,” Emma said, forcing a polite smile. “I couldn’t help but notice you’ve got The Forgotten Letters there.”

“Yep.” He held it up.

“Well,” she said, clearing her throat, “I kind of need that book for my book club. It’s the last copy, and I’ve been looking for it everywhere. So… do you think you could let me have it?”

He raised an eyebrow, a teasing smirk tugging at his lips. “Let you have it? Just like that?”

“Yes, just like that,” Emma said, folding her arms. “It’s the polite thing to do.”

“Hmm,” he said, pretending to consider it. “You see, I’ve been meaning to read this book for a while now. And I’m not really the ‘polite’ type.”

Emma stared at him, dumbfounded. “You don’t even seem like the type who reads books like that!”

He laughed. “And what type is that?”

“The type that doesn’t wear leather jackets inside bookstores,” she shot back.

He chuckled, clearly enjoying the banter. “Tell you what,” he said, leaning casually against the counter. “Let’s make it interesting. I’ll flip you for it. Heads, I keep the book. Tails, it’s yours.”

“Are you serious?” Emma asked, narrowing her eyes.

“As serious as a man with a leather jacket in a bookstore can be,” he replied, pulling a coin from his pocket.

Emma sighed. “Fine. Let’s do this.”

He flipped the coin, and they both watched it land in his hand.

“Heads,” he said, grinning triumphantly.

Emma groaned. “Unbelievable.”

“Tell you what,” he said, his grin softening. “I’ll let you borrow it when I’m done.”

She rolled her eyes. “Gee, thanks for the generosity.”

---

The next weekend, Emma was back at Chapters & Chatter, sipping her latte and trying to enjoy a different book. She was still annoyed about losing the coin toss, but more annoyed that she couldn’t stop thinking about the leather-jacket guy.

As if summoned by her thoughts, he appeared again, carrying a bag from the bookstore. He spotted her and walked over.

“Hey,” he said, setting the bag on the table.

“What are you doing here?” Emma asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Returning this.” He pulled out The Forgotten Letters and handed it to her.

Emma blinked. “You’re… giving it to me?”

“Yeah,” he said with a shrug. “Turns out I’m not really the book club type. Figured you’d appreciate it more.”

She stared at him, unsure of what to say. “Why would you do that?”

“Maybe I felt bad,” he said, then added with a smirk, “Or maybe I just wanted an excuse to see you again.”

Emma felt her cheeks heat up. “Oh. Well… thanks, I guess.”

“Don’t mention it,” he said, slipping his hands into his jacket pockets. “By the way, my name’s Jake.”

“Emma,” she said, trying not to smile too much.

“Nice to meet you, Emma,” he said, backing away. “Enjoy the book.”