Read Warrior's Wife for Free Online

know that since droids were nonexistent in her time, which was now his time. If the mission succeeded then the triad would remain in the past. The thought of being cut off from his research and the technologic support he’d taken for granted his entire life rocked his confidence.
    “Will he follow me if I set him down?” Tori’s question brought him back to the present. She’d survived far larger losses and managed to keep a sense of humor, courage and kindness.
    His voice deepened with respect and a rush of lust he hoped she wouldn’t notice. “He should unless his circuits or programming have been damaged.”
    She stooped and caught her balance, biting her lip.
    He stepped closer and gripped her elbow to steady her. “Please don’t be alarmed. I’m fully qualified to treat your injuries. You’re clearly in pain. Let me examine you.”
    “Thanks anyway.” For a few seconds she let him support her, almost as if she were aching for his touch as much as he yearned to caress her. Then she tugged from his grasp and hitched toward the exit.
    He frowned, worried about her leg and puzzled by her illogical reaction. He’d returned the pet to her, assured her of his competence and asked politely for her cooperation. Yet she refused his help. He concluded she didn’t trust him. Frightening her further would not achieve a positive objective. Aware she was a trained nurse, he tried an alternate approach. “How about I provide the medical supplies and you clean your wounds?”
    Tori turned her swollen lip and bruised cheek toward him. Her stunning hazel eyes narrowed in skepticism. “Where are you planning on getting these supplies, slick?”
    Slick was not an adjective anyone had ever used in reference to him. Did she intend it as a term of affection or as sarcasm? Unable to determine her state of mind, he went with a literal interpretation of her question. He patted his thigh. “Personal replicator. Antiseptic, gauze packs, tape and ice pack coming up. Anything else?”
    “No, that’s plenty.”
    “How about a broad-spectrum antibiotic and a cellular growth booster?”
    “You have something that does that?”
    “Absolutely.” The nanobots Nigel had calibrated for her would do all that and more. For once he practiced discretion by not blurting a treatise on the details of the science behind the bots.
    She narrowed her beautiful eyes again as he picked up a premeasured dose. “How about you hit yourself with a little of the serum first?”
    Horace blinked at the waste of precious bots. “If it makes you feel safer.”
    She nodded.
    He whipped out an injector, inserted the vial and pressed the syringe against his thigh. “Okay?”
    “Let’s give it a few moments.” Tori focused on her wristwatch’s second hand. “Go for it.”
    He reloaded then injector, inserting the bots in the fleshy part of her upper arm. “You’re favoring your left leg. I would be much happier if I examined you.”
    “The limp is from an old wound. All of the recent stuff is minor.”
    “If you say so.” Too conscious his prissy tone made him sound like the geek he was, he refrained from further grumbling about the difficulty of diagnosing internal injuries or concussions on oneself as he unfastened one side of his leg armor and activated the replicator. As each of the supplies materialized, he set them before her.
    Her hand brushed his when she reached for a gauze pack, she didn’t jerk away from the small contact. In fact, she laced her fingers with his. “In another time and place I would’ve fallen hard for you, slick.”
    Disappointment must’ve shown on his face, because the corner of her mouth turned up for an instant then she frowned. “It’s nothing personal. You are totally adorable and you smell way too good to resist. I have to keep my distance.”
    He didn’t think she was serious. However, he wasn’t certain if she’d intended to make a joke or to discourage him with biting wit. Neither possibility gave him