Programmed To Please (The Tau Cetus Chronicles) (15 page)

Leora let out a quick huff. “Believe it or not, I can understand your commitment, when you explain it like that. Must be because I’m a Callex.”

Marque hesitated, and then took her hand. “Not a Smith?”

Her mouth set into a mulish line. “Chavis was one of the few people willing to come near me. Willing to take the chance he wouldn’t be killed for it.”

“Do you love him, Lee Lee? I haven’t spoken to you since you married him.”

Leora was quiet for so long that Marque found himself holding his breath. So much depended on how she answered his question.

“No,” she said finally, “I don’t love him. He’s a pompous ass. So much of an ass that I expected you to come tearing over here and stop the wedding. In fact, I picked the worst possible person to marry,
praying
that you would come, just so I could see you. But you didn’t come. No. You hired Chavis to work for you instead. And so my life became even more miserable.”

Marque wrapped his arm around her shoulder again. Christ, if ever there was a poster boy for horrible brothers, he definitely was it. And he still hadn’t completed his fall from grace yet.

“Actually, I hired Chavis in order to keep an eye on him,” Marque admitted, letting out a breath. “But I obviously didn’t watch him closely enough.”

Leora pulled back. “What do you mean?”

Marque squeezed her shoulders. “I have something else to tell you. Something about Chavis.”

“What is it?”

“After I tell you, I want you to promise to answer a question for me honestly. Do you promise?”

“Marque—”

“Promise me.”

“Okay, all right. I promise.”

Marque took a breath. “A few months ago, three wasp missiles were smuggled out of my factory. They were subsequently used to assassinate a Regulator in Terra Domus. My security is iron-clad, so I had a strong feeling it was an inside job. I installed extra security cameras, and this week, another two stinger missiles went missing.” He paused. “We caught the thief on camera.”

Leora gasped.
“Not Chavis!”

“Yes. Chavis. He even admitted it when I confronted him.”

“But-but
why?”

There were two different ways Marque could have chosen to answer Leora’s inevitable question, but now that she’d admitted she didn’t love Chavis, why burden her with the allegation that Chavis needed the money in order to keep her happy? Hell, Marque wasn’t even sure it was the truth.

“There’s more. He also admitted he murdered – or ordered the murder of – an agent of Tau Cetus’ police force, who he says was sent to infiltrate Callex Industries.”

“What?”

 “Lee Lee, I…
we
… have to make a decision about Chavis. By rights, he should pay for what he’s done, but if you say the word, I will try to get him to tell me who he sold the missiles to, and get them back. For your sake, I would consider not turning him over to the High Council.” Marque shoved his free hand through his hair. “I’ve thought about this a lot. My first loyalty is to you.
My family
. You’re all I have. If you care for Chavis, I can’t in good conscience make your life even more miserable than it already is, not after all I’ve already put you through. What do you want me to do?”   

Leora was quiet for a long moment, shredding the tissue between her fingers. Even though she’d said she didn’t
love
Chavis, sending him away to certain death for murder and treason was something else entirely.

Still, he was counting on her to do the right thing. It was a Callex family trait.

“He’s admitted to murder.” Leora swallowed. “And he’s put the entire planet in jeopardy by selling missiles.”

“Yes, he has. Especially if we can’t get those missiles back.”

“Then he has to pay.”

Marque let out a breath. “I agree. But I want you to be sure about this decision. He’ll be turned over to the Council this afternoon. You won’t see him ever again. Not even to say goodbye.”

She made a small scoffing sound. “You think I see him now anyway? He works all day, and spends most of his nights at the gambling dens downtown. He’s told me more than once he can’t stand more than a few minutes in my company. He thinks I’m a shrew. Hell, I
am
a shrew.”

“Oh, Lee Lee…”

She waved a hand. “At least now I know where he was getting all his gambling money. You can’t imagine how much he goes through! I couldn’t believe you were paying him
that
well.”

Marque raised an eyebrow, grateful now that he hadn’t said anything regarding Chavis’s allegations about needing money to support Leora. He squeezed her shoulder. “It’s the right decision, Lee Lee. Thank you. I’ll handle things from here.” 

He kissed the side of her bony forehead, and smiled down at her.

“You know what? I’m starving. I had an…
appointment
…at lunchtime, and didn’t get anything to eat. Do you have any food in this place?” Now that he and Leora were back on friendly terms, he was determined to fatten her up a little. The need to take care of his sister was ingrained in him.

“I’m sure I can find something in the industrial refrigerator here.”

“Good.”

 A soft knock at the front door drew their attention to the apartment entrance. The lead bodyguard had his hand on the door knob, and was poking his head around the door. “Excuse me. The decorator’s here, Mrs. Smith.”

“Send her away,” Leora ordered. “I’m visiting with my
brother.”

Chapter Eight

“I want to buy my Beautiful Doll.”

Marque stood at Anson Carron’s reception desk at the Beautiful Dolls boudoir. He’d been looking forward to this moment all morning, even more than the gratifying sight of Bursus hauling off Chavis Smith yesterday afternoon to answer to the High Council for his illegal arms dealings.

Hmm. Good things came in threes, right? First Leora had forgiven him, then Marque had turned in Chavis, and now he was going to take home J. It was a good couple of days in a life that didn’t see many good days.

Marque nodded contentedly. “I want to take her with me after my final session today.”

Behind the reception desk, Anson Carron smiled, but shook his head. “I’m sorry, the sexbots aren’t for sale.”

“Everything’s for sale, Carron.” Marque was not put off in the least by Carron’s response. He knew how this game was played. “I’m a businessman, too. And as a businessman, I understand your strategy behind offering a free week in the arms of a Beautiful Doll. Well, I’m sure you’ll be pleased to know that the tactic worked. I’m hooked on mine. But I’m not coming back here every time I want to see her. In my line of work, it’s too dangerous.”

Marque purposely kept his voice cool. There was no way he’d let Carron know he was in love with J. No. That would make her price go up markedly. So he’d fallen back on his ‘my-life-is-dangerous’ line. Which was nothing but the truth. For a man constantly in fear of his life, it was unheard of for him to be out of the office for an entire week, even just for one short hour at lunchtime.

Carron again shook his head. “Proprietary issues forbid—”

“Cut the crap, Carron. I don’t care what the hell makes her tick; I just want to use her. I’m taking her home with me today. So name your price.”

“You didn’t try the sex toys on her, did you?” Carron said, in an apparent attempt to deflect the discussion.

Marque frowned. Christ, he hated this slimy bastard Anson Carron. This was the second time in two days he’d mentioned those damned toys. And the ever-hovering assistant Leith Wyatt was getting on Marque’s nerves, too. He’d be damned glad to see the last of this place. “What the hell business is it of yours how I use the Doll?”

Carron bowed his head. “Not my business at all. Apologies. We’ll discuss your purchase request after your session.”

It annoyed Marque even further that Carron’s answer was patently non-committal. Not
we’ll discuss your purchase
but instead
we’ll discuss your purchase request.
So to drive home his determination, Marque said, “Good. Because I’m also going to need some instruction in her upkeep. And if you play your cards right, you might even talk me into an extended warranty.”

There. That should give Carron something to think about for the next hour. Profit was a powerful motivator.

Marque threw a scowl at the assistant, Wyatt, and then turned toward J’s room. Bursus took up his usual position by the doorway.

#

Sitting on the hard-backed chair in her Beautiful Dolls boudoir room, Jai struggled to tamp down her nerves. Ever since yesterday afternoon’s debriefing in Commander Rainey’s office, she’d been trying to figure out the best – and least traumatic – way to tell Marque she was human.

Oh, she expected him to be upset about it, absolutely. But she was counting on his feelings for her – and a sense of relief that he wasn’t actually in love with a
machine
– to override his anger.

Please, let it be so…

First, she had a job to do. She needed to wrap up this case. And to accomplish that, she had to make sure Chavis Smith would pay for his crimes. The fact that Commander Rainey hadn’t called off this sting operation meant Smith was not yet in custody.  So for now, at least, she must continue to pretend she was a sexbot.

Once the Smith situation was settled, though…

Jai’s eyes drifted closed. If today was like every other day this week, she and Marque would make love. In fact, she was counting on it. The only thing she wasn’t sure of was whether she should she tell him she was human
before
they had sex, or
after
.

There were potent arguments in favor of either strategy.

If she told him beforehand, they could make love as two human beings, as two people who were emotionally involved and committed to each other. Sex would be all the sweeter because they’d be equal human partners in it.

On the other hand, if she told him after sex, their sweet lovemaking might lessen the blow of her news. Marque would be relaxed, satiated, hopefully in a more receptive frame of mind.

So which one would be best?

Jai froze as the door to her room abruptly opened.  Goodness, was it 12:30 already? Good thing she’d already been sitting in her chair with her eyes closed!

Close call. You’re slipping, Jai…

I am not. I know my duty, and I’ll do it. But then I intend to have my reward…

The door slammed closed. Jai wanted to frown, but didn’t dare. Marque had never slammed her door on arrival before. If he was in another foul mood, it could make her confession today all the more tricky.

She concentrated on holding perfectly still while she heard him cross the floor. “Hello, J.” His voice sounded rough, edgy.

Carefully, she opened her eyes. That crease between his brows was deeper today. Shame. Over their last few sessions together, it had eased dramatically. And she flattered herself that she’d had something to do with it.

Had things not gone well with his sister yesterday? If that was the case, Jai was going to have to convince him to turn over Chavis Smith
and
tell Marque she wasn’t a robot. Oh, dear. She’d be earning her pay grade today.

“Hello, Marque.”

He frowned, and loosened his tie. Pulling at the knot, he threw the tie on her bed.

“You look unhappy, Marque.”

“Fuck. Up until a minute ago, I was extremely happy.” He blew out a breath and then gave her a small smile. “No, I’m not unhappy, I’m just annoyed. I need a minute to calm down, that’s all.”

“Certainly.”

Hmm. If he’d been fine until a minute ago, it boded well for the discussion with his sister yesterday. Something must have transpired just now between him and Anson Carron.

Probably the subject of buying her.

Which Anson Carron would have undoubtedly refused, in order to protect Jai’s cover.

Don’t worry Marque. If things go as planned, I could still be going home with you today. It just won’t be the way you’re expecting.

The thought made her smile.

Marque massaged the back of his neck with a hand, rotated his shoulders, and then blew out a breath. “There. Better now.”

He held out his hand to her. Jai placed her fingers in his, and he tugged her to her feet, leading her the few steps across the room to sit at the foot of the bed.

Then he stood before her, his hands moving to his clothes.

Dear God, was there anything sexier than watching a man undress? Jai’s eyes riveted on the sight of Marque casually shrugging out of his suit jacket, tugging his shirttail out of the waistband of his pants, slowly unbuttoning the buttons at the bottom of his long sleeves, and then starting to undo the long row of buttons down the front of his crisp white shirt. The skin he revealed as the material parted made her want to lick her lips. Or run them down his chest.
Now.

Right now.

“Christ, J, when you look at me like that, I just want to be inside you.”

Jai glanced at his cock. He wasn’t kidding. Marque was obviously
ready
to be inside her.

No. Not yet.
She had the subject of Chavis Smith to resolve first. And she’d never do it if she couldn’t get Marque’s suddenly eager hand off the zipper of his pants.

“Stop.”

Zipper down, Marque’s fingers paused on the button of his waistband, and he arched one eyebrow in surprise. “Did you actually just tell me to stop?”

Jai swallowed hard. She was a Beautiful Doll. Programmed for pleasure. Her entire function was sex. What possible reason could she give for delaying him?

“I just wanted to ask… how things went with your sister.”

Instead of a look of annoyance, a huge smile split Marque’s lips and transformed his entire face. He took a step forward and cradled her cheeks in his two hands, leaning down to kiss her. It was a slow, drugging, thorough – and thoroughly perfect – kiss. Jai’s toes curled from the sheer pleasure of it.

“You were right, beautiful J.
So right
. She’s still a prisoner of her life because of me, but now she knows it’s all for her safety. She knows how important she is to me. She knows what a vital job I really do. I’m back on loving terms with my sister, and I owe it all to you.”