WIP Wednesday - CyberServed: Built to Last

 

She's coming undone

She noted his stare and suddenly realized she’d run onto the bridge in her nightie. Her nearly sheer black nightie that dipped low between her breasts and barely skirted her ass. “Shit.”

“You’re exceptionally lovely in black lace. If I were a human male, my appreciation for your sleepwear would be obvious,” he chuckled. “That could have made for an embarrassing episode.”

“It still is for me,” she muttered, stopping herself from tugging the hem lower, which would have given him a lot more cleavage to check out. He wasn’t subtle about ogling her at all, and it flustered her. Especially since she remembered the dream she’d been having about him.

“Your dress before was business formal. I like this side of you. So feminine and flouncy. Sexy.” His tone became an insinuating purr.

Gooseflesh erupted all over her. She babbled in her awkward uncertainty, feeling he was owed an explanation for her suggestive attire. “I hate to sleep nude, but I also don’t like to wear anything heavy. I can’t seem to find any nighties that fit the bill beyond what a woman would wear on her honeymoon.”

“You look lovely. Don’t worry; I only respond physically when I command my matrix to do so. You have nothing to be apprehensive about where I’m concerned.” Though his tone and words were easy, his gaze on her was hot. Evaluating. Appreciative. She could almost feel his attention physically caress her skin as he examined her.

Why was she standing there, letting him gawk? His stare had weight. She felt pinned in place as he took her in, not bothering to hide he did so. His regard lingered on her toned legs, especially where they disappeared under her nightie. He drank in the shadow between her breasts.

“You’re coming untied.” He drew near enough she could feel warmth coming from him. Body heat from a cyborg? True, he had skin and a circulatory system of sorts, but Amadis couldn’t remember whether they were supposed to give off warmth.

He was handsome, his features flawless despite being bare inches from her face. Those luscious lips parted, and she thought he might kiss her. She stood frozen, wondering if his kisses would be demanding or tender. She wondered which she preferred.

His gaze held hers as he grasped the ribbon on her bodice, tied in a precarious bow that was indeed threatening to unknot.

I don’t want him to touch me. A lie. With those dark eyes on her speaking of the unspeakable acts he could do to her, with those lips nearly close enough to kiss, all her reasons for protesting were laughable. She did want him to. Very much.

He pulled the tie. It loosened, and the fabric covering her breasts began to slide down. She didn’t try to stop it. In her mind, the nightie was already slithering down her body, puddling at her ankles, leaving her in lacy bikini panties. Almost naked, offering her flesh for him to caress right there on the bridge.

Instead, he tightened the lace and retied the bow. His fingers never touched her skin, though they were so very tantalizingly close.

“All fixed,” he murmured. “You can go to bed, Amadis. Get some sleep. I have everything under control here.”

When she failed to retreat to her cabin, still absorbed in the fantasy she thought must happen, he turned her and pushed her toward the door to her quarters. The door shut behind her before she realized he’d sent her to bed. Alone.

She whirled to stare at the door. What the hell had happened? Under that knowing regard, she’d crumbled. Victor had done barely more than look at her, and she’d melted into a puddle of goo, eager for the promise in his heavy stare. Had he kissed her as she’d been sure he would, her devotion to career as her sole drive would have disappeared. She wouldn’t have resisted him.

“Sweet rings of Saturn. No wonder they were so successful as spies,” she muttered.

On sale August 5, 2022

Pre-order now available, print on sale now:Amazon, Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and print.

Threatened and pursued, they have no business falling in love. So that’s exactly what they do.

Victor was a cyborg spy during the corporate wars that devastated Earth. Now he’s a refitted demo model for CyberServe, spotlighting the services a repurposed cyborg can offer…in life and love. Suave, cultured, and fully realized as a sentient being, Victor has it all, except the love he wants for himself.

Amadis Dubois has played second fiddle to the powerful her entire life. Now she has the chance to prove to everyone and herself she has what it takes to lead. She accepts a humanitarian mission to bring desperately needed medical supplies to a disease-stricken space station. If she can pull off rescuing thousands of lives, she can finally move out of others’ shadows.

Fending off the attentions of a lovelorn cyborg becomes a secondary concern when the captain of Amadis’ ship dies suddenly, leaving her the only human on board. With her career-setting mission endangered, pirates and rebels threatening at every turn, she has to turn to Victor for assistance after trying to keep him at a distance. Between moments of fighting for her life, she’s vulnerable to the numerous charms of the cyborg she has no business falling for.

Life and love hang in the balance for Amadis and Victor, with trouble at every turn. They can have it all, if they survive.

 

Also on sale, the first of the CyberServed series: Made to Order

Available at Amazon, Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords. Print is also available.

She’s marked for death. He’s her only hope. But can a de-commissioned cyborg once programmed to kill humans be trusted with her life…or her heart?

They called him the Wall, part of a cyborg army that terrorized humans during a long war waged by those intent on wielding power. When Tosha Cameron, owner of a multi-billion corporation, first sees the deactivated cyborg, he’s a tattered remnant of a horrific past.

Most would prefer to see cyborgs destroyed, but those with vision see a valuable resource. When Tosha’s business rivals target her for assassination, the Wall—whom she renames Brick—is her best bet for protection.

Reprogrammed, Brick proves he’s more than a mere machine. Programmed to guard Tosha, he can supply her every need. He soon develops beyond his learning matrix and software, becoming capable of humanity…and more.

Dark secrets from a bloody past are waiting deep in his circuitry, however; secrets that could kill the woman he loves and has sworn to protect.

 

Also on sale, the second book of the CyberServed series, Mine to Keep

 

On sale now from Amazon, Amazon UK, Smashwords, Barnes and Noble and in print.

He was the most hated cyborg on Earth, and love is far from his original design. But when old enemies hunt the woman he’s sworn to protect, he discovers a passion for vengeance…and her.

On Earth, he was known as the Warden, and his punishment of prisoners was legendary. Reprogrammed by the president of CyberServe as an assistant in the office…and as her chief researcher of intimate programs…PSM-426021, better known as Alek, is a flawless example of what buyers want in their repurposed cyborgs. 

CyberServe’s president Lillian Kwolek enjoys Alek on her terms: no love, no strings attached. It’s easy to keep him at a distance and guard her heart from hurt until an extremist group determined to right old wrongs targets her. Alek is loaded with a security program to keep Lillian safe, and it opens the cyborg to learning emotions. 

Alek doesn’t like these feelings, which include a confusing mix of devotion to and wariness of Lillian. She doesn’t like his developing emotions either. The new Alek, who fulfills desires and her need for safety from increasing threats, is too intoxicating a temptation for a woman who can’t trust men, whether they’re flesh or machine. 

They can’t resist each other, but past hurts threaten to destroy what they could have…and open the door to killers bent on annihilating cyborgs and Lillian.