Free Copy - Flash Fiction by Zvi A. Sesling

 

Free Copy

Flash Fiction

by Zvi A. Sesling

 

            He was considered a wonderful  cook by his friends, especially his girlfriend. So, when the unsolicited email arrived with the offer telling Gilbert he was entitled to a free copy of the Cook’s Delicious Gilbert was quite excited by offer. He read and reread the offer certain it was not a scam or some other trick and clicked the Enter Site button which led to another button titled Accept. He placed the cursor on Accept and clicked on that one, which he assumed was an agreement to allow the website to track him. I wonder if they bake their own cookies, he thought as he laughed to himself as he filled in all the required spaces for name, address, phone and all the credit card information.

            Two weeks later a large carton arrived at his front door. Gilbert took it in the house to the kitchen. Inside were five frying pans of varying sizes, four sauce pans ranging from small to large, nine glass tops, nine wooden spoons of different lengths, nine plastic spatulas and three cook books, one each for meat, vegetables and fowl. Also, in the carton accompanying his cookware was an invoice for $375.99 plus $26.50 shipping and handling.  But what made Gilbert happy was the enclosed free copy of Cook’s Delicious.

Zvi A. Sesling, Brookline, MA Poet Laureate (2017-2020), has published poems and flash fiction and won international prizes. A five-time poetry Pushcart Prize nominee, his flash fiction books are Secret Behind The Gate. and Wheels. His story “Chili Man” is Pushcart nominated MA Sesling’s Selected and New Poetry and his short stories Infidelities are forthcoming. . He and his wife Susan J. Dechter live in Brookline.