Page 127 of Press Play

I roll my eyes but step aside, letting him take the keypad. He glances at me, his hand hovering over the buttons. “You sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure,” I reply, though my heart is pounding.

He enters the sequence, and for a tense moment, nothing happens. Then, with a hiss, the door slides open.

“See?” he says, flashing me a cocky grin. “I’m a natural.”

“You followed instructions,” I retort, stepping past him into the weapons room.

The room is dimly lit, with a glowing control panel in the center and a massive cylindrical device along the back wall. A label readsFUEL SYSTEMin bold, blinking letters.

“Step two,” I say, pointing to the device. “We need to fuel the system.”

“Fuel it with what?” Theo asks, glancing around.

I spot a series of canisters stacked in the corner, each labeled with alien symbols. Beside them is a chart, showing how the symbols correspond to different energy levels.

“These,” I say, grabbing a canister. “But we need the right one, or it won’t work.”

Theo picks up a canister, studying the alien script. “Any guesses?”

I glance at the chart again, my mind racing. “We need the one with this symbol,” I say, pointing to a mark on the chart that matches a canister near the bottom of the stack.

Theo crouches down, carefully pulling it free. “Got it. Now what?”

“We load it into the system,” I reply, pointing to the cylinder.

Together, we maneuver the canister into place. It clicks, and the system hums to life. The control panel lights up, displaying a series of blinking codes.

“Final step: Input weapons activation code,” the robotic voice announces.

“Of course there’s a code,” Theo mutters.

I step closer to the panel, scanning the numbers. “Wait—this looks familiar.”

Theo tilts his head, watching me. “Familiar how?”

I point to a set of numbers scrawled on one of the documents we found earlier. “These were on the alien files. They have to be the code.”

“Then let’s punch them in,” he says, stepping aside for me.

My fingers hover over the keypad, nerves prickling my skin. “What if I’m wrong?”

“You’re not wrong,” Theo says, his voice steady. “You’ve been right about everything else so far. Go on.”

His confidence steadies me, and I press the sequence. The system hums louder, and the screen flashes green.

“Weapons system activated. Alien vessel neutralized.”

“We did it!” I leap into his arms, and he swings me around before stopping.

“Youdid it.” Theo corrects me, his tone soft and admiring. “I was just the muscle. You’re the brains here.”

The air between us shifts, charged and electric. He presses his forehead against mine, and my heart thunders in my chest.

“Can I—” he starts, his voice almost shy.

I nod before he can finish, and then his lips are on mine. It’s soft at first, hesitant. But when I lean into him, his hand comes up to cup my cheek, the kiss deepening with desire that makes me tremble.

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