personality
programming.
Devlin looked as if he would say more,
but he’d caught the flicker of her gaze and was warned. He curled
his lips in a smile that looked far more feral and frightening than
pleasant. “Would you like to have makeup sex in the shower
again?”
Carly wasn’t so sure she wanted to be
alone with him in his current mood, at all, much less for the sex
he’d suggested, but avoiding the issue wasn’t going to make it go
away. She tried to look delighted at the prospect. “Oh! Let’s
do!”
She discovered she needn’t have
worried. The moment they had the privacy to talk without being
recorded Devlin dropped any pretense of having romance on his
mind.
“I don’t know what’s going on here,
Carly. There’s a lot that I don’t understand, but there’s one thing
I’m certain of and that is that I’m not a cyborg. I’m not a
machine.”
Carly looked at him pityingly. “Devlin
….”
His expression tightened. He gripped
her upper arms. “Don’t! I am Devlin Bear. This isn’t programming or
AI. I know who and what I am.”
He sounded so certain Carly felt a
flicker of doubt. “It isn’t possible ….”
He released her and raked a shaking
hand through his hair. Carly felt her belly execute a strange
little quiver at the gesture and more doubt than before. “Why isn’t
it possible?”
Carly swallowed with an effort.
“Because you … Because he died.”
His lips tightened. She could see the
frustration and anger in his eyes. “According to reports—maybe.
That doesn’t mean it was true.”
Carly felt her heart skip a beat. “You
mean to say you remember …? You know you didn’t …. I mean. Oh god!
I don’t know what I mean!”
He smiled faintly. “You aren’t
convinced I’m a cyborg.”
It was statement not a question and
Carly felt a mixture of embarrassment and distress. “I would
absolutely love to believe you really are Devlin Bear because
….”
He lifted his dark brows.
“Because?”
Because she was in love with a man that
no longer existed, had fallen in love with him after he’d died! She
couldn’t say that. She knew he was a cyborg, but he seemed
absolutely real to her and all she could think was how absolutely
crazy it would sound to Devlin, the real Devlin, to have some
stranger tell him she’d fallen in love with his Sim. “Well, I mean,
Brenda is a friend. And it would be wonderful for her to discover
that it was all … just some kind of bizarre mix-up.”
Eagerness flickered in his eyes—and
understanding that made Carly’s cheeks redden with discomfort.
“Sooo—you at least admit it’s possible?”
She felt her throat close with misery.
She struggled with it. “Possible. But not very likely,” she said
sadly. “You were positively identified.”
The excitement vanished from his eyes,
but he frowned thoughtfully. “Body parts.”
Carly felt a little queasy at the
reminder of what Brenda had said. She managed a nod.
“There was an explosion in the lab. I
imagine it was pretty messy. That still doesn’t rule out the
possibility that I survived it. For whatever reason, someone wanted
me to disappear.”
Carly really hated to play devil’s
advocate. “But someone else didn’t want you to so they took you to
a facility for treatment and then lost you at some point and you
ended up in the factory where I’d ordered a cyborg that looks just
like you?”
He blushed, with both anger and
embarrassment.
“I’m sorry that sounds so condescending
and sarcastic, but you do see where I’m coming from? It’s just too
farfetched to be believable.”
“I don’t know the circumstances, but I
do know who I am. So as ridiculous and unbelievable as it may sound
to you, something happened.”
Carly stopped him when he would have
stalked out. He glared at her when he turned to look at her
questioningly and she allowed her hand to drop from his arm. “I
know you’re confused and angry but, for both our sakes, we have a
role to play. We
programming.
Devlin looked as if he would say more,
but he’d caught the flicker of her gaze and was warned. He curled
his lips in a smile that looked far more feral and frightening than
pleasant. “Would you like to have makeup sex in the shower
again?”
Carly wasn’t so sure she wanted to be
alone with him in his current mood, at all, much less for the sex
he’d suggested, but avoiding the issue wasn’t going to make it go
away. She tried to look delighted at the prospect. “Oh! Let’s
do!”
She discovered she needn’t have
worried. The moment they had the privacy to talk without being
recorded Devlin dropped any pretense of having romance on his
mind.
“I don’t know what’s going on here,
Carly. There’s a lot that I don’t understand, but there’s one thing
I’m certain of and that is that I’m not a cyborg. I’m not a
machine.”
Carly looked at him pityingly. “Devlin
….”
His expression tightened. He gripped
her upper arms. “Don’t! I am Devlin Bear. This isn’t programming or
AI. I know who and what I am.”
He sounded so certain Carly felt a
flicker of doubt. “It isn’t possible ….”
He released her and raked a shaking
hand through his hair. Carly felt her belly execute a strange
little quiver at the gesture and more doubt than before. “Why isn’t
it possible?”
Carly swallowed with an effort.
“Because you … Because he died.”
His lips tightened. She could see the
frustration and anger in his eyes. “According to reports—maybe.
That doesn’t mean it was true.”
Carly felt her heart skip a beat. “You
mean to say you remember …? You know you didn’t …. I mean. Oh god!
I don’t know what I mean!”
He smiled faintly. “You aren’t
convinced I’m a cyborg.”
It was statement not a question and
Carly felt a mixture of embarrassment and distress. “I would
absolutely love to believe you really are Devlin Bear because
….”
He lifted his dark brows.
“Because?”
Because she was in love with a man that
no longer existed, had fallen in love with him after he’d died! She
couldn’t say that. She knew he was a cyborg, but he seemed
absolutely real to her and all she could think was how absolutely
crazy it would sound to Devlin, the real Devlin, to have some
stranger tell him she’d fallen in love with his Sim. “Well, I mean,
Brenda is a friend. And it would be wonderful for her to discover
that it was all … just some kind of bizarre mix-up.”
Eagerness flickered in his eyes—and
understanding that made Carly’s cheeks redden with discomfort.
“Sooo—you at least admit it’s possible?”
She felt her throat close with misery.
She struggled with it. “Possible. But not very likely,” she said
sadly. “You were positively identified.”
The excitement vanished from his eyes,
but he frowned thoughtfully. “Body parts.”
Carly felt a little queasy at the
reminder of what Brenda had said. She managed a nod.
“There was an explosion in the lab. I
imagine it was pretty messy. That still doesn’t rule out the
possibility that I survived it. For whatever reason, someone wanted
me to disappear.”
Carly really hated to play devil’s
advocate. “But someone else didn’t want you to so they took you to
a facility for treatment and then lost you at some point and you
ended up in the factory where I’d ordered a cyborg that looks just
like you?”
He blushed, with both anger and
embarrassment.
“I’m sorry that sounds so condescending
and sarcastic, but you do see where I’m coming from? It’s just too
farfetched to be believable.”
“I don’t know the circumstances, but I
do know who I am. So as ridiculous and unbelievable as it may sound
to you, something happened.”
Carly stopped him when he would have
stalked out. He glared at her when he turned to look at her
questioningly and she allowed her hand to drop from his arm. “I
know you’re confused and angry but, for both our sakes, we have a
role to play. We
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