Marcus 582: Book Three of Cyborgs: Mankind Redefined (25 page)

“The simplest touch from you makes me insanely happy,” he whispered. “Do you know how hard that much happiness is for a cyborg to feel?” He kissed the fingers she brought to his lips.

“Come,” she ordered again.

When her hand slid down to his and tugged, Marcus let Rachel pull him along with her as they made their way to her bed. The covers were still messed up from their last lovemaking session in it. The homey sight made him feel at home at last…and wanted. She made him feel wanted.

He tugged her to him in gratitude and crushed her mouth with his. He’d meant to be gentle, but desperation didn’t allow him enough restraint not to press his advantage. Rachel undressing him finally tipped the scales and set free the rest of his needs. Their haste in getting him undressed as well had him chuckling again.

When he was naked, he lifted Rachel up until she had no choice but to wrap her amazing legs around his waist and hang on.

He was easing inside her as they landed on the bed together. Her back bowed as her body arched in welcome. She was so tight, so perfect. He stilled and wondered how in the hell he would have ever survived her loss if she had died.

“I love you more than there are words to tell you,” he said, cherishing the way her body clutched desperately at his. “Do you think you might marry me one day?”

Rachel moaned at the fact Marcus wasn’t moving. She really, really needed him to. She needed it badly. Opening her eyes, she huffed out a breath. “
Tomorrow
,” she hissed.

“You’ll marry me tomorrow? Or we’ll talk about it tomorrow?” Marcus asked.

He surged involuntarily when she pinched him hard on his very toned ass. His chuckle in her ear had her shivering beneath him. Smiling at his lover’s eagerness, he finished her peak off with long claiming strokes and then shifted his angle and kept going until she clawed at his back and sent him reeling over the edge.

Her breathing was ragged when she smacked his ass a second time. It didn’t faze him…other than to turn him on again.

“Control freak,” she croaked.

Marcus nodded against her face and laughed. “Yes. But I’m a control freak who loves you.”

“Next year…marry,” Rachel whispered.

“Okay,” Marcus said softly, content with her concession. He kissed a path downward until he could lay his head between her breasts and listen to her heartbeat. He sighed in contentment as she ran her hands through his shaggy hair. He was so happy and so relieved, he almost missed hearing her next whispered words.

“I…love…you….too.”

For the first time since the war, he felt hope surging inside him. He gathered her close and kissed her everywhere he could.

Chapter 19

When he’d asked to work in maintenance part-time after his facial reconstruction, they had laughed at the idea and almost denied the request. He’d argued the benefits and ultimately won his request after demonstrating how much access to the company even the lowest of Norton employees had. As for access to the labs and to the reports coming out of them, he’d soon found his own method of gleaning that information.

He glanced up at his next patient, smiling in pleasure when he saw who it was. Kyra was nothing if not predictable in her secrecy measures. Too bad he hadn’t figured it out before her rebellion against the UCN had become a problem. Perhaps if he hadn’t been receiving mind-numbing drugs on a regular basis, he might have gotten there sooner. He reminded himself to let that go and focus only on the positive gain from the current situation.

“State your full cybernetic identity and the purpose of your visit to maintenance today.”

“I am cybernetic unit Bradley 360. My handler, Dr. Kyra Winters, has ordered me to have my data purged completely. She requires proof to be sent to her, along with a copy of all retrieved data. You are to offload it to a transfer disk. I am to wait and return with the disk in hand.”

“Understood. You know the routine Bradley 360. Have a seat in my chair. I can’t wait to see what wonderful new tidbits you’ve collected.”

“Was that meant as a comment or a question, Doctor? If a query, could you please rephrase?”

“Bradley, she’s made you into her damn lapdog.” He doubted his eyes could roll much higher up in his head. “Nathan was such a disappointment to me and you’re not much better. You need a hell of a lot more than maintenance.”

“My processor does not support understanding metaphorical or analogical statements. Please rephrase if you wish me to answer.”

“And that’s precisely what I’m talking about.”

He shook his head as he fastened down the chest strap and the one across Brad’s forehead.

“While I have appreciated using your lesser talents to help me navigate Norton, I now find myself at a loss for some real help in carrying out my contracts. I wasn’t expecting to lose my off-site lab or Nathan 180. Unlike the others, he was actually showing some promise in filling your shoes. Right now I don’t know which I miss more—him or the technology. His death was such a waste of brain matter.”

“Am I a waste of brain matter?”

He stopped hooking Brad up to look into his confused gaze. He couldn’t help raising an eyebrow at the questions there. “What made you ask such a question, Bradley? Are you actually breaking free of her hold on your mind?”

“Wanting information made me ask my question, Doctor. I do not understand your other query.”

He smiled into Brad’s trusting gaze. “How much control does Dr. Winters currently have over your behavior? Analyze and state the answer to a second decimal.”

“Eighty-eight point five three percent of the time I am compelled to do all she asks.”

“That’s a much lower rate than last time you checked. I do believe we’re making some progress. Now let’s get to that maintenance, shall we? I don’t want Kyra wondering about you for long. I’m quite anxious to replace your logic chip and see if the new one lowers that percentage even further. Despite the setbacks, I am feeling very lucky today.”

“Will the new chip increase my capacity to understand your questions?”

He laughed as Brad’s eyes flickered when he started the data drain. “Bradley, when I get done with you today, you’re going to be a totally new man.”

***

“My damn day off,” Rachel grumbled, yanking her jacket from Marcus’s hands.

“I’m sorry. Seetha needs to see you about something and she said it couldn’t wait. If you had a handheld, you’d have gotten these messages yourself. After you get done there, we’re going to go get you one. Buy one to match your clothes and glue sparkles on it if you want, but you still need a handheld. You have more technology in your head than in one of those devices. You need a way to keep in touch with people who care about you. Don’t be stupid about this. You’re not going to win this time. Apparently, letting you get by a hundred times is my limit.”

“Can’t talk so…handheld stupid,” Rachel argued.

She punched his arm when he’d wrestled the jacket back from her hands and pushed it onto her. If she could have talked, she would have told Marcus Kells that it was a good thing he was great in bed. Otherwise, she would never tolerate his bossiness today or any other day.

Why the hell did he care if she put in any overtime at Norton? It wasn’t like they needed the money. He’d given up his residence and moved in with her. Norton paid for the space…not them. Plus, he was loaded anyway. He never looked it, but it had shown up in the streamlined airjet he’d purchased for them last week…and in the stylish clothes he had insisted on buying for her.

“Even if you can’t talk on the device, you can at least text people…and you will text them. Hell, Edward thinks you still have the handheld you ground up in the recycler when I wasn’t looking. I don’t know where the hell you got that one, but from the scraps I found it looked like top of the line. It makes me shiver to think how much money you wasted on it before grinding it up in a fit.”

Rachel snorted. She found his accusation funny, especially since she had no recall about doing what he seemed to think she did. Marcus had shown her the ground up bits, so she didn’t doubt someone had dumped the thing in there and turned the recycler on. She certainly liked thinking it was her. She was contemplating doing the same thing to the one he planned to buy her today. The thought made her smile as she stomped out of the door in front of him.

“Having great legs does not mean you get to throw temper tantrums anytime you want.”

Marcus shook his head and laughed as she lifted an irreverent finger to him over her head. Maybe it was his imagination, but every day it seemed like Rachel was getting a little sassier and a little sharper. He wasn’t sure he liked it sometimes. Maybe this was what confidence looked like on a temperamental woman.

Sighing, he stepped in the airlift with her, grateful she’d at least held it for him. He gave her a look when her fingers crept over to link with his. “Temper tantrum over? Are we friends again?” he asked.

Rachel snorted and squeezed. “No,” she denied.

Marcus gripped her hand tightly and smiled at her contrariness. He knew just the thing to help her get rid of the rest of her bad mood.

“Do you care if I ask my mother to dinner next week? I’d like her to meet you. Maybe we can have Edward over too. She’s single. He’s single. Who knows what magic might happen, right?”

Rachel’s look of terror and open-mouthed shock kept him smiling for their entire walk to Norton.

***

Rachel wasn’t sure how long it was going to take for her to get over being angry. Marcus had insisted on seeing her all the way to the lab. She was tired of using her voice to fuss at him, so she let him trail along. When he followed inside too, she wondered if he intended to hover over her all day. They’d had a long talk about his hovering a couple nights ago. She’d agreed to the tracking chip and to wearing the expensive bracelet Eric had converted to a homing beacon. What more tagging did he need to relax and let her try to forget what had happened to her? If he kept it up, she was going to insist Marcus get some counseling.

She yanked off her jacket and hung it on the pegs by the door without even looking around. When she did, it was to find a lab full of people staring quietly at her.

“Took you long enough to get here,” Seetha teased. “I’m your boss. You’re supposed to come running with a smile on your face when I call and ask for your help.”

Rachel gave her a look she usually reserved for Marcus when he was being dense. “
Day…off
,” she rasped out, happy to hear the words conveyed some of her incredulity.

Seetha laughed. “I know it’s your day off, but I had to sync a ton of schedules to get everyone here. Now I’m throwing you a welcome back party, girlfriend. Will you try to at least enjoy it? Look around, I invited all your friends.”

Rachel did as Seetha ordered. Indeed, these were her friends. All but three of the dozen or so were cyborgs. “Thanks,” she said finally. She heard Seetha snort at her tepid response.

“Come on,” Seetha commanded, tugging on her hand. “You get the seat of honor at the party. William, out of the chair.”

Rachel didn’t quite know how to respond when Captain Talon smiled and winked as he left the medical chair. Seetha all but pushed her into it afterwards. She squirmed, hating every second. She wondered if it showed.

She looked up and saw Seetha was busy picking up one of her tools from a nearby table. She couldn’t help glaring when Seetha walked her way carrying it.

“I told you I wasn’t going to give up until I found a way to get you talking again. Well, this is going to exceed my wildest dream and probably yours as well. I dragged you here today to make another attempt to get it right. The question is…are you going to let me?”

Rachel crossed her arms. She was adjusting to her raspy voice. Marcus didn’t seem to care. Patients didn’t care. What if the fix stopped it from working entirely? Kyra had already warned her some rewiring might be necessary if it got worse.

She shook her head, not meaning no exactly, more like she wasn’t sure it was worth the risk. The sudden silence in the room was all the people in it waiting to see what her response was going to be. If she didn’t try, they would think she was a coward. If it didn’t work, she’d be back to silence again, or worse, more hours in the restoration chair.

Rachel saw Eric work his way through the crowd until he could squat down in front of her. “I did some research and found some old footage of you in college. We took your normal voice from several of those clips and ran it through some analysis until a voice pattern emerged. The pattern is in the settings Seetha is talking about. I know there is a risk it won’t work, but if it does work, it may actually give you your real voice back. The one the pseudo-creator gave you was sexy, but I think your real voice is even better.”

The thought that Eric would go to all that trouble for her made her eyes burn. “Thank you,” she whispered huskily.

“Thank Marcus. It was his idea. He’s too dumb to do the work himself, so he made me do it. You can’t imagine all the trouble he’s gotten me into over the years. I have a hard time saying no to him.”