Gemotions

The ringing phone was a physical shock. Liam flinched, knocking over a stack of books on his desk. He picked up the receiver and listened, his eyebrows drawing together. A woman's voice, warm and familiar, but…off. It was *BookwormBelle*, the voice he had been waking up to for months via their mutual book club calls.

"Meet me at the park? The one near the library?" The caller’s voice was the same, but the situation was not. It was a request, not a planned discussion. He felt a knot tighten in his stomach. His gaze darted around his apartment. He was usually so composed, but his thoughts were now a tangled mess.

The world seemed to spin slightly. He stared at the wall, the paint colors swimming before his eyes. It was a different kind of dizzying sensation. He hung up the phone, and his heart skipped a beat.