Page 164 of The Revenge Game
CRITICAL ERROR: M&M SORTING ALGORITHM FAILURE
DESCRIPTION: BROWN M&MS DETECTED IN SEQUENCE. EMERGENCY PROTOCOLS ENGAGED
SUGGESTION: EMPLOY BOYFRIEND WITH PERFECT M&M SORTING CAPABILITIES
I push my glasses up my nose, a grin spreading across my face. Okay, so it’s probably poetic justice that Justin decided to mess with my technology. Though I get the feeling he didn’t do it alone. This has Leo’s fingerprints all over it.
But before I can do anything, another message appears:
WARNING: REVENGE PLOT SUCCESSFULLY TRANSFORMED INTO LOVE STORY
LOCATION: COYOTE CREEK HIGH SCHOOL GYMNASIUM
DESCRIPTION: SUBJECT DISCOVERED THAT REVENGE IS BEST SERVED WITH A POWERPOINT PRESENTATION AND A KISS
The attachment is a photo from our reunion kiss that was widely circulated on social media by one of our old classmates. We’re completely lost in each other, oblivious to the crowd around us.
“Need help debugging something?”
Justin’s voice behind me makes me spin in my chair. He’s leaning against my doorframe with that smile that still makes my heart skip.
I lean back in my chair. “I seem to be having a few technological errors.”
“Have you tried turning it off and on again? I hear that works wonders,” he says.
I can’t help laughing. “Do I want to know how you managed to hack into my system?”
“I did have a bit of help,” he says.
“Leo?” I guess. “And Xander must have been involved somehow.”
“Turns out Xander is very susceptible to bribes involving Dragon’s Sphere premium memberships.”
“Who would have thought,” I say as Justin comes forward. He leans down to kiss me, a simple greeting kiss that quickly turns delicious.
When he pulls back, his smile turns slightly nervous. “There’s one more message you haven’t seen yet.” He nods at the screen.
I click my mouse, and another message appears:
FATAL SYSTEM ERROR: MARRIAGE PROPOSAL IMMINENT
ACCEPT Y/N?
My breath catches. When I turn back, Justin is down on one knee beside my desk.
He holds out a simple platinum band that catches the office lights.
“So,” he says, his voice shaky but his eyes steady on mine, “what do you say, my Techno-Genius? Want to debug life’s code together?”
There’s a lump in my throat the size of a Rubik’s Cube. Oh my god. My favorite person in the world is asking me to spend the rest of our days on this planet together. How did I manage to get so lucky?
My glasses seem to have fogged up, so I can barely see, but I manage to choke out, “You realize this means I’ll have to include this security breach in our next system audit?”
Justin’s laugh is bright and beautiful. “Is that a yes?”
“Yes,” I say, pulling him up to me. “Though I hope you know I’m expecting you to create our wedding invitations in PowerPoint format.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he murmurs against my lips before kissing me.
When we finally pull apart after our first incredible kiss as fiancés, Justin reaches over to my laptop and hits a button, and the screen flashes one final message:
SYSTEM UPDATE COMPLETE: HAPPILY EVER AFTER
INSTALLATION SUCCESSFUL
And there isn’t a single error message in sight.
A Message from Jax!
