"Hitman Walked Into A Romance," by Roberta Gibson, in SoWest: Wrong Turn, DS Publishing, 2023.
This is apparently one of those anthologies that came into being miraculously without an editor. At least none is credited.
Some stories from the criminal's point of view are 90% planning and 10% crime. This is one of the opposite type: 10% crime and 90% getaway. It's not enough to do the nefarious deed; you have to escape afterwards. See Jim Thompson's great novel The Getaway, for instance.
And that's Ronnie Maul's dilemma. He is, as the title promises, a professional assassin. He quickly disposes of his target, but the cops arrive before he can make his exit. His only option for a hiding place is a bookstore. And the only way he can stay in there is by claiming to be part of a book club discussing a romance novel.
Not surprisingly he is the only man in the group. Not surprisingly the other members take quite an interest in the newcomer.
I guessed where this was going but I had good time getting there. Surely the most charming hitman story I have read in quite a while.
