Stealing Coal by Laurann Dohner Read Free Book Online

she made sure to get his arms too when she covered him in a thick
    layer of the stuff.
    She stepped back and put the canister down, turning away to get more rags. She
    took her time and then faced him again. The foam melted and with it the oatmeal slid
    off his muscular, wide chest. She swallowed. Her ex-husband had been pale,
    overweight, and the only muscles he’d had were those developed from using his
    insulting mouth to verbally abuse her. She walked closer and waited for the cyborg to
    open his eyes. He shook his head, lifted his face, and his gorgeous eyes snapped open.
    They immediately locked on Jill.
    “I’ll dry you.” She shoved one rag under her arm and gripped the second one with
    both hands. She hesitated and then leaned over him. He had a lot of body to rub down
    with the dry material. “Just give me a second. I don’t want you getting chilled.”
    He didn’t protest when she started at his waist and worked her way up, careful not
    to touch his skin with hers. She had barely reached his chest when she had to toss away
    the damp towel and use the second one. She hesitated at his neck, staring at his
    handsome features.
    “If you’ll close your eyes I’ll dry your face and head.”
    His intense gaze narrowed but then his eyelids closed. She very gently patted dry
    his face and his mostly bald head. Her thumb brushed the skin at the top of his head,
    feeling rough stubble, realizing that he was able to grow hair. She paused, also noting
    something else about him.
    “Are you feeling well?” A horrible thought struck her as she dropped the towel and
    pressed her palm flat against his forehead. Alarm filled her as it registered how warm
    he felt. His eyes opened. “You’re burning up!”
    “I run hotter than humans.”
    Her hand slid to his cheek and then to his neck. “Are you sure you aren’t sick? You
    really feel feverish. I thought I set the controls to be warm enough to keep you from
    catching a chill.”
    He studied her for long moments. “You’re touching me.”
    28

    Stealing Coal
    Her hand jerked away. “Sorry.” She lifted her chin and stared at Arm. “Are you
    monitoring him, Arm?”
    Two lighted sensors snapped open and Arm’s head adjusted until he’d targeted Jill
    with them. “Affirmative. His temperature is unchanged from when we rescued our
    man.”
    “Our man?” Anger tinged the cyborg’s voice instantly while he glared at Jill. “You
    said you’d free me. You lied?”
    “No.” She shook her head. “We’re going to release you when we reach Hixton
    Station. He just calls you his man. I told you he’d been designed for military use.”
    “You said you had him remain with me to keep me company but you lied. He’s
    watching my every move.”
    “Not really.”
    “You just asked him if he’s been monitoring me.”
    “Arm is not only a soldier droid but he’s a medic. That’s what I meant. He monitors
    all life around him. It’s in his programming. He would have scanned you just the way
    he does me every so often. It’s what he does. I just meant had he scanned you for illness
    recently.”
    He glared at her. “I don’t believe you.”
    “It’s the truth.” She shrugged. “It doesn’t really matter though. You’ll see in a few
    days when you’re standing on Hixton with money to get you back to wherever you
    came from. Here’s some advice though. Stay away from humans.” She hesitated. “They
    aren’t nice and you’re a rarity, which means you’re worth big bucks to traders.”
    “Are you going to sell me, Jill?”
    Hearing him say her name had an odd effect on her. She licked lips that suddenly
    had gone dry. “No. I stole you to set you free.”
    “Then do it now.”
    She took a deep breath. “Even if I were willing to believe you wouldn’t kill me
    outright, I don’t trust you not to steal my shuttle. It’s not much but it’s all I’ve got. I
    can’t return to Earth.”
    “Why not? You’re human.”
    She hesitated. “When my