Instinct: Always Return

Chapter 1: The Committed Reader

A scent of afternoon coffee surrounds the entire bookstore while soft music plays, and leisurely people spread throughout the cozy store, all with a book in hand.

"Hey, Tara!" Whispered a young woman's voice filled with gossiping giggles, "that man has been in here for a week always buying books and eyeing our staff, too."

Another woman looked up over the 5-feet tall bookshelves from scanning and selfing a book below with her supply cart and return her to her work.

"I have seen him in here several times, too since my shifts this week. Well, at least we got a good customer. I sold seven books to him the other day. He is very nice too but, you are right I can feel him staring at us. Very weird. Very awkward," replied Tara who had encountered the man three times this full week and at the coffee shop across the road. She continues to restock some cookbooks in order.

The other younger woman takes a peek at the gentleman in Tara's angle-view, Siana watched her voice, "Goodness, he is gorgeous, too and smart! He's so nice, He has been buying us coffee too since yesterday."

The gentleman sat in an armchair reading through a thick book in the carpeted reading center of the book store looking undisturbed.

Siana came closer to Tara, "He says," she mocks a lower voice, "since I come over often mind as well treat you all," she finishes with a squeal and accidentally drops a few books from the cart and cries "Oh, my bad!"

"What! so that coffee I had just now was from him?" Tara tastes of rich Colombian black and creamy, nutty hazelnut- just as she likes it... She finishes her restock and moves the cart as Siana replaces the fallen books and playfully pushes Siana. "You already got a good boyfriend, stop eyeing others," She teases and lectures her younger teammate.

"Hey, he's like in his thirties, too old for me..." Siana nods, "Mike's the best, too" she looks up and daydreams. "I'm going to ask that guy for a white caramel latte for tomorrow," she greedily peeks at the sitting gentleman.

"Oh, stop! He might not come tomorrow," Tara softly kicks Siana. Tara glances at the gentleman for the curiosity of his looks that she had never thought about until mentioned. 

"I'm going to say 'Hi'" Tara winks at Siana whose staring at Tara's hypocrite-ness. Tara limbs over to the reading seat-n-read area towards the man.

A handsome chin lifts up to the sound of closing troubled footsteps, his eyes glistened with a shine of dark golden color. "G-good morning, ugh" stumbles his tenor voice in a surprising awareness of Tara stepping closer.

"Oh, good morning, sir. How are the books? You have finished quite a few dozens already, I suppose," guesses Tara at the handsome customer. Did he just stutter? Oh, I must have interrupted him. Oops! She frowns in a sorry pose 5 feet in front of him.

The gentleman quickly and lightly snaps the books close and swiftly stood up from the comfort of the armchair as replies to her. "The books were amazing. I enjoyed the Catcher and the Reye, a reminiscence of my high school years," he says it carefully watching the hostess with a soft brow and smile.

Tara notices a deep fold of the soft blue sweater the customer is wearing along with dark grey dress pants and clean brown leather shoes and the pair clicked as he got up. "That's wonderful! I am glad you are enjoying them all. I see you are starting another new book, here. This one is exciting too, but I haven't finished halfway through, yet. It was getting to a suspenseful turn in the plot!" Tara trying to sell the thick new book that she did start be her eyes were quite strained from the long texts.

After those words, the gentleman's smile melted away a bit and paused before he began with a swallowing breath, " I'm Vince..."  he studies the woman's expression and loss a breath, "... by the way. Sorry, I hope I haven't been too much trouble here, miss... misses Tara..?"