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“It states ‘loved always’ in our cyborg written language. Inside the band is my name in English.” He released her hand and held up his own, to show off a matching band with the same designs. “Your name is on the inside of my band.”
She felt tears rising and didn’t try to blink them back. “You got us wedding rings?”
He nodded. “I did. It’s an Earth tradition that I thought you might want to keep.”
“Oh, Sky. Thank you!” She threw herself forward, hugging him.
He chuckled, catching her, and grabbed hold of the back of her head. “I have one more surprise, too. Ready?”
She nodded. “Yes. But this is more than enough.”
His gaze left her to look at something behind her. She tried to turn her head but Sky’s hand gripped her gently, keeping her from looking. “Don’t move. Your surprise is coming.”
She heard a slight noise and frowned. Clothes didn’t make noises. What was behind her? Then in her peripheral vision, a big body came into view. She turned her head slightly, staring at the person.
It wore a black uniform like the cyborgs, but its skin was pale white. It took a few more hesitant steps, until Sky released her head and she turned fully toward it.
It wasn’t a person or a cyborg—it was an android. She’d seen some before. The model in the room was unlike any of the more mechanical versions on mining operations, though. It had a humanoid body, without any gears or wires showing. Big artificial brown eyes that widened, making the doll-like features seem oddly scary.
Then it smiled. And part of its midsection began to shake back and forth.
It was as if the thing was trying to dance by shaking his hips.
She stared at it, stunned speechless. Sky had gotten her a creepy android.
“It’s Jorg,” Sky whispered.
Her mouth dropped open as she continued to stare at the doll-like face.
“Mick?” Sky’s said tentatively. “This isn’t the reaction I expected. There’s something wrong with his voice box, but we can get that fixed. My friend Brute is going to take one from another model and switch them out once we return to the Star. He has access to at least ten more of this model.”
She tore her gaze off the android to meet Sky’s. “Um…Jorg was a dog.”
Sky’s eyes widened in shock.
Now it made sense why the android was shaking his hips. “He’s trying to wag his tail.”
Sky released her. “Oh shit!”
She stood from the couch, staring up at the android, and took a few steps closer. “Jorg?”
Sky got up too, standing at her side. “You never said! I just assumed it was a humanoid companion android.”
“Artificial pet companion. Jorg couldn’t talk,” she whispered, staring into those big brown eyes. Her Jorg was in that human-shaped body. She saw recognition in the way he looked at her, even if the eye color and shape were all wrong. He wiggled some more, almost falling over in his apparent excitement.
She lunged forward and gripped the android by the hips. “Easy, boy. Calm.”
The android stopped shaking and his mouth opened, a gray artificial tongue sticking out. Jorg gazed down at her with a dopey adoring look. The doll-like features still made him appear creepy as hell.
“He’s standing on two legs.” She couldn’t get over it.
“That makes more sense now.”
She turned to Sky.
He sighed. “When I booted his program at first, he collapsed to his hands and knees. I thought it was from the body being stored for too long, or maybe a programing conflict. The androids on the Star were never put in use when we took possession of the ship. This is a massage model. It was designed for human use in a health spa. I picked him because his basic programming made him very aware of how fragile human bodies are. I was afraid a food-serving droid would hurt you by accident.” He sighed again. “I had to order Jorg to stand repeatedly, but he had some problems getting up. He seemed to overcome the issue quickly enough. He lurches around a bit while walking, but I spoke to Brute. He was going to see if he could fix the malfunctions I found after booting Jorg.”
“Jorg is programmed to learn fast. One of his front legs malfunctioned once. He began to walk on three legs within a minute. He adjusts.” She peered up at the android. “Hey, Jorg!” She smiled. “Head motion mode. Are all your system functioning?”
He shook his head.
“I bet not.” The humor of the situation hit, and she began to laugh. “You’ve got no tail, have to walk on two legs instead of four, and you’re much taller!”
Sky put his arm around her waist. “I’m sorry.”
She turned into him, clutching his shirt, still laughing. “Don’t be. This is hysterical! It was also such a sweet, wonderful thing to do for me.”
Sky didn’t seem to agree, but he gave her a small smile. “I’m glad you think so.”
“You didn’t know. The fact that you found a body for him is amazing.” She released his shirt and reached up, wiping a tear from her eye, and then faced the android. “Jorg, relax mode.”
He collapsed onto his hands and knees onto the floor with a crash. Mick flinched at the sound. Jorg might have an android body, but he wasn’t used to it being in that configuration. She let go of Sky and crouched, staring into her artificial pet’s eyes. “Jorg, sit.”
Jorg sat back on his legs, his hips wiggling. It looked funny but she resisted laughing again. It would take some time for them both to get used to his new body.
“Jorg, new orders mode. Indicate when ready.”
Jorg stilled but kept her gaze. His tongue disappeared, mouth closing. He gave a sharp nod of his head.
“Access pre-exiting software of current body model. Are there operating instructions for basic mobility, such as sitting on furniture?”
Jorg closed his eyes but then opened them. He shook his head.
“A lot of the original programming was wiped except for the safety ones.” Sky crouched next to her. “We can see if it’s possible to build a dog body from parts when we return to the Star. They have a lot of androids in storage.”
She turned to look at him. “It’s okay. That sounds super difficult. Jorg can learn to adjust to that body. I’ll teach him how to function better once I know his new parameters.” She leaned toward Sky and smiled. “You gave me a new project to do when we return to space. This is great. I might even be able to teach him how to talk, now that he’s in a body that can do that. I’ll assume these models had speech ability?”
Sky nodded. “Yes.”
“Thank you so much for giving me Jorg back.”
Sky didn’t look as happy as she felt. “I messed up. I should have asked more questions about Jorg.”
“It made me sad to talk about him.” She waved at Jorg. “This makes me happy. I’ve got him back. Thank you, Sky. I can adjust to Jorg looking like a man-child and help him learn how to move and sit without breaking himself or the floor.” She grinned. “Games of fetch aren’t going to happen, though. That would just look too weird. Maybe I can teach him to catch balls with his new hands.”
Sky hesitated. “I should confess something.”
“What?”
He hesitated. “I not only chose the massage spa model because of the pressure safety sensors that came with him for human bodies, but because he looks goofy. I thought he was a male companion to you…as in, a possible sex bot. It made me jealous. This model isn’t anatomically correct or sexually appealing. And I had most of his programming wiped, in case the humans who trained him were into sexual massages. I didn’t want him touching you that way. I’m the only one getting you off or running my hands over your naked body.”
“Oh, baby.” She turned toward him, getting on her knees. “That’s so sweet and cute at the same time. Jorg was just my dog. At least that’s one male we won’t have to worry about. He didn’t have a dick before, and still doesn’t.” She began to laugh. It was funny that Sky thought Jorg had been a sex companion.
>
“I’m glad this amuses you.”
She pushed Sky, knocking him over, and straddled his hips where he lay sprawled on their living room floor. Jorg made a sound behind her, and she turned her head. He was glaring at Sky and scooting his bulky body closer. He probably worried she was under attack.
“Jorg, sleep mode,” she ordered.
Jorg froze and closed his eyes. His head slumped forward.
She turned back to Sky. He looked confused.
“Jorg is programmed to protect me. He can’t attack, but he was trained to get between me and anything he perceives as a threat. He’s never seen me interact with anyone before. I bought him before I left for Velion One but didn’t activate him until we got there.”
Sky gripped her hips. “And why did you knock me over?”
She lowered her body, going for his mouth. “To kiss you. I love you, Sky.” She pressed her lips to his.
He opened for her, and she moaned as they deepened the kiss. His hands slid from her hips to her ass.
She broke the kiss, peering deeply into his eyes. “Thank you. This was a wonderful surprise.”
“I’m glad you like Jorg, and our wedding bands.”
“I love them almost as much as you.”
He grinned. “I’m glad.”
She peered deeply into his eyes. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, too. Thank you for saving me.”
He reached up and cupped her face. “Even if we’re going to be spending more time in space than on this beautiful planet? I know you love it here.”
“Being together is all that matters. I mean that, Sky. You are all that matters. Us being together. I don’t care where we are.”
His expression sobered. “I just wish I wasn’t putting you in danger. It’s not going to be easy to find the Markus Models and stop them, now that we know they’re using the pirates.”
“Digger rig operator, remember? Then I was the only person alive on a planet that could burn me to a crisp under the midday sun without protective gear, that had storms that threw rocks around, and it would have taken weeks for help to reach me if I got hurt. My whole adult life has been dangerous, but I was always alone. Not anymore. I’m with you. We’ll face whatever comes together.”
Sky grinned. “We’re going to have a hell of a lot of fun.”
“We sure are. Starting right now.” She jerked her head toward the bedroom. “Let’s go make love. I want to take advantage of us having time together before your council puts you back to work.”
He released her face and cupped her ass, grinding his hardening cock against where she straddled him. “I want you here, now.”
She glanced up at Jorg. “Remember how you picked that model of android because he wasn’t sexy?” She met Sky’s gaze, letting her amusement show. “You nailed it. We’re never doing it in front of him. He might be shut off, but…” She shook her head. “I’m holding you to your word, when you said you never wanted another man to see me naked. That now includes Jorg.”
He laughed and sat up, helping her to her feet. “Good. I’m always going to be your only male.”
“Yes, you are. Always and forever.”
Then he stood and scooped her into his arms. She wrapped her own around his neck, pressing her cheek to his shoulder as he carried her into their bedroom.
She was looking forward to their future, whatever it might bring, because Sky made her happy.
About the Author
NY Times and USA Today Bestselling Author
I'm a full-time wife, mother, and author. I've been lucky enough to have spent over two decades with the love of my life and look forward to many, many more years with Mr. Laurann. I'm addicted to iced coffee, the occasional candy bar (or two), and trying to get at least five hours of sleep at night.
I love to write all kinds of stories. I think the best part about writing is the fact that real life is always uncertain, always tossing things at us that we have no control over, but when writing you can make sure there's always a happy ending. I love that about being an author. My favorite part is when I sit down at my computer desk, put on my headphones to listen to loud music to block out everything around me, so I can create worlds in front of me.
For the most up to date information, please visit my website. www.LaurannDohner.com