Disastrous First Date
From Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Dating Game
By Ava Pennington

Love is an act of endless forgiveness, a tender look which becomes a habit.
~Peter Ustinov

I concealed myself in the toy department aisle, pretending to straighten shelves filled with board games. It seemed ironic that a stack of The Game of Life hid me as I peered around an end cap. After all, I was straining to catch a glimpse of the man who made my heart flutter in a way I’d never felt before.

Russ walked into the office to speak with my department manager, and I took that opportunity to step out of the aisle and slip into the stockroom. I hated that stockroom and usually avoided it at all costs. It was dirty and dimly lit, and I was sure I had seen a mouse or two scurrying in the far corners. But... it just happened to be located next to the manager’s office. I hovered in the vicinity of the office with the excuse that I was looking for a particular game to restock. I couldn’t have been more transparent, but I didn’t care. It was one more opportunity to “bump into” this man who had become the object of my affections. (Keep reading)