 |
| A Science Fiction Romance Short Story |
EXCERPT:
Copyright 2012, Pippa Jay
All rights reserved
Marie jerked her gaze up to meet that of
the man before her, then reassessed her first thought. This was no normal man.
Although the impossibly deep, almost indigo blue of his eyes held her, she
noted the silvery sheen of his skintight one-piece with the logo VASA at the
shoulder that marked him as one of Venus Ascendant’s subsidiary avatars. Her
distress at Jaisen’s message had no doubt sparked the AI into an immediate
response—that kind of emotional hit on its empathic sensors wouldn’t have been
missed, although it was probably equivalent to no more than a poke in the eye.
For Marie, it was like someone carving out her heart with a blunt instrument.
“No intention of mine,” she snapped.
Not now. Not ever!
“Perhaps I can be of service?”
Marie stared at him…at it. She’d heard about the VA avatars but never been so close to
one. She’d learned from the space station’s blurb that the main AI took the
form of a young Indian woman called Ganesa, spoken of with as much reverence as
the bronze-cast deity behind her. This particular avatar had been crafted into
a ruggedly handsome, if stereotypically human, male. Thick blond hair left a
shade too long framed his face perfectly; darker brows arched over eyes the
most glorious shade of deep blue she’d ever seen. He was broad shouldered and
athletic, and the thin, snug-fitting one-piece in gray outlined the
well-defined musculature of his torso in a way no doubt intended to draw
attention and tease the imagination of potential clients. A shapely hint of
what lay beneath without full disclosure, like the metallic foil used to cover
chocolate treats. Also a complete contrast to the man she’d hoped to see, and
all too perfect to be real.
“I don’t need your service, thank you very much.” She jumped up and tried to shove
past him, but the dense composition of an avatar meant she only jarred her arm
and had to sidle past in an embarrassingly servile fashion. He made no attempt
to stop her, and she headed blindly down the nearest access corridor.
AVAILABLE IN ALL DIGITAL FORMATS
BUY LINKS
ADD IT TO YOUR GOODREADS SHELF HERE
No comments:
Post a Comment
I always love to hear your thoughts.