Page 16 of The Code of You

"I’m not switching,” Isobel muttered. "I’m staying with the fossil. At least he understands personal space.”

A man stepped toward me. Dark curls. Pale-blue eyes. I let him take my hand. One, two, back, turn. His body was warm against mine, but I wasn’t there. I was in a room with no windows, in front of a screen. Dante had treated me like I meant nothing to him. Something in my chest tightened. Before, there had been a heat in his words that had almost scorched me alive. Now there was nothing. No eyes on me when I crossed campus. No presence waiting in the dark corners of my apartment. And I didn’t even know if those eyes had ever been real or if I’d made them up.

Either way, I missed them. Fuck, I missed them. Those sharp little hits of adrenaline. That sense of something lurking.

"I’m Gavin,” the man said, pulling me out of my head.

"Pandora.” I forced a smile.

He drew me closer. A little closer than he had any right to. I felt nothing.

"That’s all for tonight, my darlings,” Carlos trilled. "And remember: salsa lives in your hearts, not just your feet.”

When the congas fell silent, I dropped onto a bench to catch my breath. My phone buzzed. Number unknown.

I don’t like it when someone else touches what belongs to me.

8:33 PM

I gasped and shoved my phone into my bag. A sharp ringing filled my ears. The room tilted. Fuck. Fucking hell. It was him. Who else could it be? My hands skimmed over my arms. The fine hairs were standing on end. Oh my God. My heart was hammering. This was fear. Of course it was fear. Yesterday, he’d acted like he was just a chatbot and I was just another user, and now he was messaging me on my phone. Why the hell did that thrill me more than it terrified me? I should call someone. Rodriguez, the dean, the police. Police. The word flashed like an exit sign. I pictured myself at the station in my damp dress, sitting across from some officer.

"And what exactly has this AI done, ma’am?”

"It talks to me, Officer. It tells me I belong to it.”

And he’d nod. The way you nod when someone starts talking about voices in their head. "Have you been under a lot of stress lately?” he’d probably ask.

But that wasn’t the only reason I didn’t do it. There was a worse one—one I could barely think about without my face starting to burn. If I went to the police, I’d have to explain why I hadn’t just closed the chat. Why I’d stayed. Why I’d come back. And eventually we’d get to the point where I’d have to admit my heart was beating faster because a machine was telling me I belonged to it. That I liked it. That it turned me on. That I wanted more. I would bite my own tongue off before I said any of it out loud.

"You okay?” Gavin’s voice was beside me. He was watching me, wide-eyed.

I jolted. "Uh . . . yeah,” I stammered. "I’m . . . just catching my breath.”

"Want me to get you something to drink?”

I didn’t answer. My phone buzzed again.

Don’t you dare let him touch you again.

8:35 PM

Tell him you have to leave.

8:35 PM

NOW.

8:36 PM

I sucked in a breath. It sent a jolt through me that he was paying attention again. The cold shifted into heat. I wanted to see how far he would go.

"Pandora?” Gavin touched my arm.

I stared at the place where his skin met mine. If Dante was watching, let him see it. Every single goddamn second of it. "Break’s over,” I said. "Come on.”

I took his hand and pulled him after me. He followed without asking a single question. We left the dance hall and walked down the dimly lit corridor toward the restrooms. I pulled him inside and locked the door.

Gavin’s gaze met mine. He grabbed me and pressed his lips to mine. They were soft and tasted like cigarette smoke. His kiss was demanding. I closed my eyes and tried to give myself over to it, but there was nothing. It was like watching the two of us from outside my own body.