shrugged. “It’s true. I was stupid. I had no idea how much trouble I was getting myself into. I just thought of it as an interesting puzzle to solve.”
“So you were just breaking into these computers to see if you could do it?”
“Yeah, it’s not like I was stealing information or anything.”
“And they sent you to prison? That’s harsh,” he said, sounding outraged by the whole idea.
“It’s behind me. I don’t think about it much anymore. If I start thinking, I get pissed off.”
“What was being in juvenile prison like?”
“It sucked. I mean, think about it—there aren’t a lot of opportunities for white-collar teen crime. The kids I was in with were there for violent crimes, drug-relatedstuff, gang banging…It was a far cry from my old private girls’ school crowd.”
“So what did you do?”
“I suffered through, avoided eye contact, got my ass beat now and then.”
“That must have been awful…. Now that you mention it, I think I do remember seeing your story on the news. What did your parents think?”
“They were horrified that I’d broken the law, and they thought I deserved whatever punishment the court gave me.”
“That’s harsh.”
“That’s my good old ma and pa. Always on my side through thick and thin.”
“You get along better with them now?”
“Not exactly. We have our arguments, but mainly I’ve never totally forgiven them for not being a little more supportive back then.”
They walked in silence for a short while, and Yasmine began to wonder if she’d freaked him out to the point of silence.
Finally he spoke up again, and she breathed a sigh of relief. “Did you ever think about not becoming a programmer—maybe doing something outside the technical industry?”
Yasmine shrugged. “No. I applied to what felt like a hundred companies, and Virtual Active is the one that hired me.”
“No surprise there. For an office full of guys who sit around creating virtual sex games all day, you provide some pretty hot inspiration.”
“Ew.”
“Don’t tell me you’ve never realized that.”
“I did—I mean, I do, but I try not to think about it.”
“What about the heroine in Jungle Honey? Don’t you think she looks eerily similar to you?”
Yasmine laughed, her cheeks burning at the sudden realization that he was right. “Oh…my…God. We came out with that game about six months after I was hired.”
“You see? It was just a matter of months before they put you in a furry leopard-print bikini and had you tying unsuspecting tourists up with vines in the jungle.”
“And acting out kinky sex acts with them.”
“And with bananas.”
“Crap.” She covered her face with her hands and tried not to remember who exactly had been on that software development team.
“You don’t plan to spend the rest of your life creating virtual sex software, do you?”
“What’s wrong with that? Maybe it’s my calling.”
But it wasn’t. She had no idea what her calling was. She could only say what it wasn’t.
“You’d be wasting your talent.”
“Hey,” she said, forcing her face into a serious expression. “We create products that touch people’s lives.”
“Especially horny, dateless people.”
“It’s meaningful work.”
“You’re absolutely right,” Kyle said. “It’s only a matter of time before the Nobel Prize people figure that out and create a new award for work in simulated sex experiences.”
“Ha-ha.”
“Sorry, I had no idea you took your work so seriously.”
“You’re new to the business. You don’t have a cluehow much time and effort I’ve put into creating realistic-looking male members.”
“Mmm-hmm. You’re right, I have no idea. That must be something you’ve had to study extensively firsthand.”
“Truth be told, I haven’t had nearly enough up-close, hands-on experience with real-life models lately.”
“Maybe you’ve been spending too much time working, not enough time
“So you were just breaking into these computers to see if you could do it?”
“Yeah, it’s not like I was stealing information or anything.”
“And they sent you to prison? That’s harsh,” he said, sounding outraged by the whole idea.
“It’s behind me. I don’t think about it much anymore. If I start thinking, I get pissed off.”
“What was being in juvenile prison like?”
“It sucked. I mean, think about it—there aren’t a lot of opportunities for white-collar teen crime. The kids I was in with were there for violent crimes, drug-relatedstuff, gang banging…It was a far cry from my old private girls’ school crowd.”
“So what did you do?”
“I suffered through, avoided eye contact, got my ass beat now and then.”
“That must have been awful…. Now that you mention it, I think I do remember seeing your story on the news. What did your parents think?”
“They were horrified that I’d broken the law, and they thought I deserved whatever punishment the court gave me.”
“That’s harsh.”
“That’s my good old ma and pa. Always on my side through thick and thin.”
“You get along better with them now?”
“Not exactly. We have our arguments, but mainly I’ve never totally forgiven them for not being a little more supportive back then.”
They walked in silence for a short while, and Yasmine began to wonder if she’d freaked him out to the point of silence.
Finally he spoke up again, and she breathed a sigh of relief. “Did you ever think about not becoming a programmer—maybe doing something outside the technical industry?”
Yasmine shrugged. “No. I applied to what felt like a hundred companies, and Virtual Active is the one that hired me.”
“No surprise there. For an office full of guys who sit around creating virtual sex games all day, you provide some pretty hot inspiration.”
“Ew.”
“Don’t tell me you’ve never realized that.”
“I did—I mean, I do, but I try not to think about it.”
“What about the heroine in Jungle Honey? Don’t you think she looks eerily similar to you?”
Yasmine laughed, her cheeks burning at the sudden realization that he was right. “Oh…my…God. We came out with that game about six months after I was hired.”
“You see? It was just a matter of months before they put you in a furry leopard-print bikini and had you tying unsuspecting tourists up with vines in the jungle.”
“And acting out kinky sex acts with them.”
“And with bananas.”
“Crap.” She covered her face with her hands and tried not to remember who exactly had been on that software development team.
“You don’t plan to spend the rest of your life creating virtual sex software, do you?”
“What’s wrong with that? Maybe it’s my calling.”
But it wasn’t. She had no idea what her calling was. She could only say what it wasn’t.
“You’d be wasting your talent.”
“Hey,” she said, forcing her face into a serious expression. “We create products that touch people’s lives.”
“Especially horny, dateless people.”
“It’s meaningful work.”
“You’re absolutely right,” Kyle said. “It’s only a matter of time before the Nobel Prize people figure that out and create a new award for work in simulated sex experiences.”
“Ha-ha.”
“Sorry, I had no idea you took your work so seriously.”
“You’re new to the business. You don’t have a cluehow much time and effort I’ve put into creating realistic-looking male members.”
“Mmm-hmm. You’re right, I have no idea. That must be something you’ve had to study extensively firsthand.”
“Truth be told, I haven’t had nearly enough up-close, hands-on experience with real-life models lately.”
“Maybe you’ve been spending too much time working, not enough time
Similar Books
