“Maya’s heart sank when she realized her mistake—checking her phone to discover she’d arrived at Julian’s gallery opening a full twenty-four hours early. Standing alone in the dimly lit space surrounded by half-installed sculptures, she felt the familiar flush of embarrassment that comes with being wildly, spectacularly wrong.”
But what if being wrong was exactly right?
In “Gallery Mix-Up,” Maya’s mistimed arrival leads to something far more meaningful than any planned networking event could have offered. Instead of polite small talk over wine and cheese, she finds herself holding lighting fixtures, offering insights that even art critics missed, and sharing takeout on the gallery floor with an artist who sees her—really sees her.
Real life mirrors this beautiful chaos constantly. The missed train that leads to meeting your future partner on the delayed one. The wrong classroom that introduces you to your best friend. The job interview you’re running late to that somehow goes perfectly because your flustered authenticity charmed them more than polished preparation ever could.
Romance novels are finally catching up to what we’ve always known: the best connections rarely happen according to plan. They unfold in the spaces between our carefully orchestrated lives, in moments of vulnerability when our guards are down and our true selves shine through.
Sometimes getting lost is the only way to find exactly where you belong.
Find “Gallery Mix-Up” on Youtube, Rumble, and Amazon.
Rene (Rose) Hawthorne 