Page 121 of Ezra
I moisturize my face and ruffle out my hair, then wrap a robe around myself and glance at my feet. I nearly scream, stumbling back, then catch myself and cover my mouth.
A real spider. Goddammit. Where do these things come from? I stare at it as it scampers harmlessly across the floor and sigh. “Really?”
Charlie watches me curiously from where he’s climbed onto my counter, beeping.
“Look, they’re a lot scarier than you think,” I say. “Don’t worry, I wasn’t going to squish him.”
Charlie gives a little beep-boop of excitement and skitters back and forth on the counter.
“I know, I know, he’s just like you, only smaller. You’re not scared, are you? Take it easy. I’ll put him outside.”
Grabbing a flat towel and a water glass, I manage to herd it and capture it, then carry it out to my living room window. I set it on the open windowsill then shoo it away.
“Go. Go on. Go eat bugs or something.” I shut the window, and head back to dry my hair.
“I’m surprised. No bone-chilling scream? You’ve made progress.”
I practically jump out of my skin and whirl around, wide-eyed.
Ezra stands in my kitchen, hands resting in his pockets with his sleeves rolled up and a warm smile on his face. When I glance at the doorway, I see his trademark trench coat hung up on a peg with his hat. He’s already loosened his tie.
“Ezra,” I breathe.
“I didn’t even have to bust the door down,” he says.
Is this a dream? I blink a few times. He’s still standing there in front of me.
Then I run to him, and he catches me, laughing as he twirls me around and buries his face against my neck.
Relief—joy—overcome me. “You’re safe.”
He plants kisses against my neck. “Chief had to make sure I wasn’t a ticking time bomb before I returned to work, and I didn’t feel like allowing the analysis team a window into my private life. Hard to have any contact with you when they’re scanning my memory banks and looking through my systems over and over again.” He gazes at me. “Are you all right?”
I’m crying. “Y-yeah, I’m fine now. Everything’s fine.”
He squeezes me tightly. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I’m happy. I thought I lost you.”
“When you cry, you send my gratification drive into panicked circles.” He cradles my face, peering into my eyes with a chuckle.“And somehow you still manage to be the most beautiful woman in this whole damn city.”
“Not the world?” I ask playfully, just grateful to hear his voice again, feel his hands on me, gaze into his eyes without worrying it’s the last time.
“Take me with you, and I’ll be able to tell you for certain,” he teases, dodging a smack of my hand. “Don’t hurt yourself. I’m made of steel.”
I cup his face, touching him, and that damn tremor returns to my hands again as I trace his shoulders, his chest, checking him. “You’re okay. You’re really okay. You’re perfect.”
“Thanks to you,” he replies. “You saved my life. And the lives of others. I don’t know how you did it. I can’t remember everything after they reprogrammed me. But I do remember your face, your voice, the way you spoke to me.”
It feels odd, being thanked for that. “I love you,” I whisper. “What else could I do if not that?”
“Regardless.” Ezra brushes strands of my hair out of my eyes. “There’s no telling what I might’ve done, had you not been there. And because of you, we now have the TerraPura virus. We can study it. Their grip on androids will weaken considerably.”
“For now,” I muse. “I’m sure they’ll design another one, and it’ll be worse.”
“Maybe. But you’ll have helped the ACU save bionic lives.” He caresses my cheek with his thumb. “Now isn’t the time to be humble.Youdid that.”
The way he lowers his voice, eyes beckoning, threatens to derail me. “I just never want to be that close to losing you ever again.”
