Page 126 of That Rush

Paige has no idea about the room.

Three days later, she also has no idea I’m standing at the counter of the bookstore with her paperback in one hand and a screenshot of an out-of-print hardcover’s listing on my phone.

The woman behind the register studies both, then looks at me. “You want that exact edition?”

“Yes.”

“The signed anniversary hardcover with illustrated endpapers, gold foil, and digitally printed edges.”

“That’s what the listing says.”

“It was a limited release.”

“I know.”

“And it sold out eight months ago.”

“I know that too.”

She leans one hip against the counter. “So what do you want from me?”

“How to get one.”

Her mouth twitches. “Money, patience, and a willingness to lose an online auction to someone named DarkRomanceQueen.”

“I have the first two.”

“Everyone thinks that until the bidding starts.”

I glance toward the special-edition display Paige helped manage during the author event. I understand sprayed edges now. I know what alternate covers are, why signed tip-in pages count, and that a discreet edition can contain the filthiest book in the room.

None of that prepared me for subscription-box exclusives, resale groups, or adults trading romance novels with the intensity of a cattle sale.

The bookseller takes Paige’s paperback and checks the copyright page. “There’s another anniversary edition. It isn’t signed, but it has the bonus epilogue and the same artwork.”

“The edges are different.”

She looks up. “You noticed.”

“The skyline is silver instead of gold.”

“Very good.”

“Paige likes the gold.”

I think of her paperback—the foil on the cover, the spine, even the tabs she used to mark pages were all shades of gold or yellow.

The bookseller turns the paperback over. “Is this her favorite?”

“She said it was.”

“Then she may already own the special edition.”

“I’ve seen her shelves.”

“All of them?”

“Yes.”