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With a rough shout, his body tensed, and then jerked convulsively. His hot seed flooded her, and then his full body weight collapsed on top of her.
    His hot breath tickled her shoulder for a long minute before he managed to speak. “That… was… fucking… amazing.”
    Good for him, maybe, but she could barely breathe with all 180 pounds of him crushing her.  “Mustn’t…damage…the merchandise.”
    Marque’s head lifted from her shoulder, and he stared curiously into her eyes. She pointed desperately to his body atop hers, and he seemed to get the message, because he let out another one of those rough laughs, then pulled out of her and rolled onto his back on the mattress. Throwing an arm over his eyes, he struggled to catch his breath while Jai inconspicuously tried to do the same.
    What happened now? Was Jai expected to speak, or just lie here silently waiting for Marque to say something?
    Close your eyes. Don’t talk.
    Jai considered what to do.
    Frankly, she was still amazed that he’d fucked her missionary-style. Plain vanilla. Why did he need to come to Beautiful Dolls just to get laid in some non-kinky way? There must be a million women who’d jump into his bed at the drop of a hat. Women were drawn to powerful men, even if those men had questionable business practices.
    But if Marque simply wanted to get laid in a generic way, this assignment might be bearable after all.
    “Is it possible to turn you off?”
    Jai turned her head on the mattress to look at Marque. The expression in his eyes was unreadable. “Turn me off?”
    “Yes. Can I shut you down?”
    “Why? Our hour is not yet up, Marque.”
    “Doesn’t matter. I’m done with you.”
    Jai struggled to keep her face neutral. Hadn’t she done her job? Hadn’t he just said the sex was fucking amazing ?
    Was this assignment in jeopardy?
    “Didn’t I please you, Marque?”
    “Just answer the question.” His voice was rough now, and that frown was back between his brows. “Can I turn you off?”
    Jai thought fast. No one on her team had considered this possibility. “I…can put myself into hibernation mode, but only Mr. Carron can turn me off.”
    “Fine.” Marque sat up on the bed. “Put yourself in hibernation mode, then. I don’t want to look at you.”
    Jai sat up, too. She reminded herself that she was a Beautiful Doll, programmed to follow instructions. She gave Marque a confused look, then scooted down the bed, picked her sarong up off the floor, stood, and wrapped the garment around herself. Without a backward look, she went to sit in the hard-backed chair next to the bed, and then slowly closed her eyes.
    It was the closest thing to hibernation she could think of.
    She heard Marque climb out of the bed and slowly dress himself. The click of his shoes on the wood floor as he crossed the room echoed loudly in her ears. The sound of the door being flung open and hitting the wall behind it made her flinch.
    Jai held her breath, waiting, straining to hear what he might say to Carron, but Marque Callex apparently left Beautiful Dolls without a single word.

Chapter Three
     
    Imbecile. Idiot.
    Marque paced in his concrete-reinforced office, cursing himself for a fool. It had been nearly twenty-four hours since his session at Beautiful Dolls. He’d barely slept last night, and he couldn’t seem to concentrate on work this morning. In fact, yesterday’s encounter was all he could think about.
    What a clever trap they’d laid for him!
    How do I feel? the Doll, J, had asked after he’d buried himself deep inside her. Not how does it feel or how does that feel, but how do I feel.
    She’d made things…personal.
    Beautiful Dolls owner Anson Carron didn’t want to addict him to sex. No. This was far more dangerous than that. This was addiction of another kind. A deeper kind. If Marque didn’t look too closely at the Doll, he could almost believe she was real. A real woman, with a perfect body. His ideal woman, in fact. Made to his