In Her Book Novels & Stories

she said and lay back onto her bed. I sat on the other side, my feet hanging off the side of the king size bed. I glanced at Sienna and I saw that her top had ridden up slightly, so I was now seeing her toned and very flat stomach. Fuck me. "I take it you haven't read this book," I said as I held the book up in my hand. She chuckled. "It is called How To Not Be A Bitch. Rocco gave it to me. I personally think he needs it more than I do," she said.

It was to fulfill her promise to Dave. But, to be honest, she was a little hesitant to go to the bookstore with the only hope of finding something. There were many books, of course, and it confused her. Which one to buy it? The introduction seemed boring—she spent a more extended time skimming some chapters—and some too business was very confusing. She could only blink blankly, not understanding at all. Moreover, there were many. She should have asked for his recommendation. She picked up a fairly thick book, around four centimeters. It had ‘Profit’ in the title. And as the title suggested, it talked about how to make a profit in any business.

She wanted to save her co-defenders so badly, but at the same time, she didn't want to put the life of the rest of the creatures in danger. Instead of overthinking about it, she spent her time looking for an interesting book to read inside the library that could possibly help her in the near future. She started reading all the titles of the books that are organized in the lower section of the huge wide shelves. Nothing still caught her attention, so she raised her head and used her ability to fly to start searching on the higher section. A few seconds when she was about to give up, a unique book caught her attention. It was titled "reverse," which was also written backward. She quickly pulle

I could feel her discomfort—the kind that isn’t spoken but weighs heavily between words. “So,” she said finally, forcing a smile, “do you read books?” “Regularly,” I replied. “You?” “Of course,” she said quickly. “I love… uh… self-help.” “Any specific author?” I asked. She hesitated. “You know… the famous ones.” I waited. “…I can’t remember the names right now,” she added, her voice quieter. I didn’t push further. There was no need. In my mind, Alice appeared again. How she referenced articles and cited sources, even as an intern. How she listened before reacting.

I thought about the six books. I thought about Arthur. She'll know that. I thought about a woman reading to feel less alone for twenty-nine years and the specific and worn spines of the books she had returned to and the receipt used as a bookmark and the full and attentive quality of a person who was genuinely inside a book, genuinely finding in it the thing she had gone looking for. I thought: she opened the first one. I thought: she is telling me she opened the first one. I thought: she is telling me she knows.

She looked no older than eighteen. "Hello. I'm looking for a book." He said to her. She straightened up instantly, tapping away on her computer. "Of course, Alpha. What book are you looking for this evening?" She asked, her body stiff as she spoke to him. Was his presence that intimidating? "I'm actually looking for the book by Lily Thornstun." He mentioned. Her eyes lit up instantly.

In the evenings she talked with Ernest and Don, walked in the garden with them, sat in the sitting room with a glass of wine and talked about her work and her life and the things that had happened since her last visit. On Sunday evening she came to the sitting room where Ernest and Don were. She had the bound volume with her, open to a page near the end of The Emergent World. She sat in the chair that had become her chair across the years—the wing chair near the fireplace, the one with the good reading light—and she looked at them across the sitting room. She said: "The gap." Don looked at her.

I pulled out the chair opposite her and sat down, my eyes moving across the books. “You've been studying all this since then?” She sighed. “Trying to.” I raised an eyebrow. “Trying?” “There are too many things to learn.” She gestured toward the books. “Every time I think I've understood something, another book explains it differently. This one is the easiest to understand.” She tapped the book directly in front of her. “It explains everything in more detail. But I've been using the others for references.” I picked up the book she had mentioned and glanced at the cover.