C791 (Cyborgs: More Than Machines) by Eve Langlais Page B

did.
     

Chapter Five
     
    Joe’s internal processor woke him with a status report, a boring one that let him know all on-board functions remained within the normal range. Rested, he didn’t return to a regeneration state but instead assessed the situation at hand because it proved so new and enjoyable.
    A warm and naked body lay draped over him, and he couldn’t help the smile that curved his lips. With a trust he wouldn’t have expected, Chloe not only let him copulate with her, she slept cuddled with him. Even better, she didn’t try to escape or kill him unlike some of his brethren’s captives.
    More surprising than her docile – and passionate – acceptance of him, was his reaction to the situation. While he’d expected to find pleasure in Chloe’s arms, he’d also discovered the true meaning of ecstasy along with other feelings he didn’t have words or logical explanations for. According to his stored research of human emotions, he deduced he experienced happiness. Actually, it went deeper than that. Somehow having her with him made him feel complete and at peace, something he’d not realized was missing until he found it in her arms.
    Cradling her close, he rubbed his nose in her hair, inhaling her scent and recalling how those same strands looked when she’d tossed them over her shoulder as she rode him. What a sight, her breasts jiggling and her eyes glazed with passion. I definitely captured an attractive specimen. As a matter of fact, she always appeared appealing to him even when she grumpily pushed him away when he’d attempted their fifth coupling during the convalescent period. The quick reminder that she didn’t recuperate as quickly as a cyborg cooled his ardor — for the moment.
    He trailed a hand down her arm, gently so as to not wake her, and then halted abruptly as his processor caught an anomaly. Before he could analyze what caught his attention further, she stirred and opened her brilliant green eyes.
    “Morning,” she murmured, her soft smile causing his heart to malfunction and stutter.
    “More like afternoon if we are abiding by human time,” he corrected, softening his announcement with a smile that widened when she giggled.
    “You weren’t exaggerating about being able to go all night long.”
    “You will find cyborgs to be very truthful in most respects.”
    “So I’m seeing.”
    A strange noise filled the silence. “What is that sound?” he asked, peering under the covers from whence he’d detected its origin.
    “My tummy.” He popped his head back up and watched as a red hue crept into her cheeks. “I’m hungry. Do cyborgs have food for those of us that can’t process metal?”
    Chagrined that he neglected her human needs, he scrambled from the bed. “I will fetch you something from the stores immediately.”
    He strode from the room, only to return and grab his pants, belatedly realizing his nude state. Her laughter made him smile as he walked clad only in slacks and still barefoot down the corridor to the former mess hall. Once a military owned cruiser, they left the never expiring rations on board in case of need. Or as Seth liked to joke, “In case we need to torture some military types.” The food, while not exactly gourmet, was palatable so Joe didn’t entirely follow the humor, although now he worried about Chloe’s reaction when he presented his findings.
    While on his way back with several foil packets, he ran into Solus, who took in his lack of attire with a shake of his head.
    “You are behaving most uncharacteristically,” he remarked.
    Joe ran a quick internal diagnostic and shrugged when the result came back as normal. “I am in full possession of my faculties.”
    “Are you? I didn’t believe you had any interest in the humans, and yet, not only have you brought one aboard, you relegated your work shift to others that you might spend more time with her fornicating.”
    A wide smile crept unbidden across his face. “Chloe is different. I