information related to pole polishers was restricted.
I s hould have told her public sex with a few pleasure droids who serviced triads is a special honor awarded to battle units who distinguished themselves by successfully completing their missions. Vilmos looked away from Minka, unhappy withholding facts and yet unwilling to explain the truth.
“Your arrangements sound…efficient, but not exactly romantic.”
“Efficient is an accurate assessment. Mechs are battle units. Romance is like humor, it does not further our training or achieve our missions.” He repeated what they had been taught, wondering if romance would feel as sweet and light as laughter. Perhaps a crash course in the art of seduction was what they required in order to accomplish the new mission Batzorg envisioned.
“Fun is part of being human. It’s good for you, it even helps relieve stress.” She laughed wryly.
He drank in the brief, bubbly sound.
“Sorry for lecturing, it’s occupational hazard. I used to teach.”
This was exactly what he’d been doing, lecturing her with misinformation. His enjoyment of the moment escaped like air from a vacuum-sealed chamber and because of his unwarranted pride, he had unintentionally misled her. Now she did not understand what it meant to be mech. She thought of the triad as natural men.
A brisk rap on the door postponed correcting his mistake by explaining mechs were first-class warriors, but second-class citizens with none of the rank or privileges natural humans enjoyed. Vilmos sighed with relief. “Enter.”
“You still hangin’ out in here?” Lorcan raised an eyebrow in exaggerated surprise, petting the cat in his arms.
Vilmos found himself instantly stuffy and defensive again. “Minka and I were talking. She was very kind to me.”
“Huh, Batzorg wants to see you.”
Vilmos nodded to acknowledge the information then turned back to face Minka. “Thank you for a stimulating conversation, dear.”
“You’re most welcome, Doc. I hope we can do it again.”
Her lovely lips curved into a stunning smile, which made him feel larger and more powerful. Minka was a special woman made even more so because she seemed to have no concept of her own worth.
On his way out of the room, he reluctantly shut the door to preserve the heat from the fire, leaving Lorcan alone with his Minka.
Chapter Three
They’d been doing so well. Vilmos even laughed for the first time, and then something had gone wrong. When she’d asked about their off-duty time, Doc stayed sweet and polite, but he’d been upset. His distress bothered Minka more than it should. She’d actually started to climb off the bed to console him again before she caught herself. As much as the idea of comforting him appealed to her, thank goodness she’d gotten a grip before making a fool of herself. She wasn’t qualified to be his therapist and she was even less qualified as a sex worker.
What is so different about these men that makes me think about completely inappropriate touching? The way they take care of me? Their kindness? Their scent?
The first two smelled fantastic with their own special notes added to the same dark spice and clean male musk they shared.
She held out her arms for Nigel. When Lorcan stepped close enough to give her the cat, she couldn’t resist inhaling. A sigh of longing escaped from her lips.
Lorcan’s special scent held the same wonderful base notes as Batzorg’s and Vilmos’ natural fragrance. On the big guy’s smooth skin, the spice and musk combo came with a delicious splash of tangy citrus.
How unfair, they looked like sex gods and acted like heroes—strong, brave and caring, plus their scent was some kind of aphrodisiac that made her want to rub herself against their hard bodies. Even more unfair, she was so ordinary and wore eau de baby wipes with notes of feline. To further widen the gap separating her from them, they were sought-after lovers and she…wasn’t. In fact she had