Page 113 of A Perfect Fit

Curiosity fills my body. “What kind of game?”

Jackson takes out a card from the shelf and passes it to me. I read the heading, Romance Book Lover Challenge (Bella’s Version), my heart melting at the cute title. Below the heading are words starting with each letter of the alphabet, such as accommodation, blue, and cake.

“There are twenty-six words on here,” Jackson says. “You have twenty-six minutes to find as many books as you can on your to-be-read list that correlate to each word. You can pick one book for each word only.”

My competitive spirit buzzes. “How do you know which books are on my list?”

“I asked Jen.” Jackson takes out his phone and opens his Notes app. “I have the list here.”

“You know, there are more than twenty-six books on my list.”

A cocky grin taints his lips. “If you like, we can do this again when you go on a second date with me.”

“You seem confident about a second date,” I tease. “We haven’t even finished our first date yet.”

“There’s no way this will be our last date, Isabelle.”

“We’ll see.” I briefly turn away to hide the goofy smile on my face.

Jackson sets a timer on his phone. “All right, get ready because I’m starting the game.” He flashes his dimples. “You snooze, you lose.”

“Not a chance,” I say. “Bring it on.”

He presses the start button, and I get to work, taking Jackson’s card as I race around and scan the shelves, running my fingertips along the spine of each book. Jackson picks up a shopping basket, joining me on my hunt.

I grab a book that relates to the word accommodation. “This book has a scene where the characters are staying at a resort.”

Jackson scans the book title, then the list on his phone. “Nice.”

With a satisfied smile, I place the book inside his basket.

Next, I pick up a book with a blue cover, a friends-to-lovers romance I’ve been meaning to read soon. “This one has a blue cover.” I head to another shelf and select a third novel. “This one has a marriage-of-convenience storyline, so I’m going to say it relates to cake, like wedding cake …”

“Not bad,” Jackson says from behind. “I’m impressed.”

I go through the rest of the list, managing to find twenty-two books. When the time’s up, the only words I stumbled on are rain, trouble, Xmas, and zealous. I’m surprised I didn’t pick up a book relating to Christmas, and I think it’s a sign I need to add more holiday romances to my list.

“I guess I didn’t pass the challenge,” I admit with a sigh. “It was so fun, though.”

Jackson cocks a brow. “You know I’m getting you all those books in the basket, right?”

My mouth opens. “Jackson …”

“You think I’m gonna take you to a bookstore and leave without getting you any books?”

“But …” I do the math in my head. “Twenty-two books … it adds up to a lot.”

Jackson flaunts a teasing grin. “Think of it as repayment for all those physiotherapist, dentist, optometrist, and dry-cleaning fees I billed under your name.”

I stare at him. I can’t believe he still remembers all those conversations.

Something gentle creeps into his facial expression when I don’t joke back. “It’d make me happy to treat you. I know how much reading means to you.”

I give him a smile. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

He puts down the basket and picks up a random book from the shelf. It’s the last copy of that book in the store.