Page 39 of Nolan
“Thank you.” Relieved, Jessica reaches out to him. “Help me up?”
I look at him in shock. “How’d you know that? Just from looking at her?”
Nolan taps the side of his head, near his eye. “I can scan vitals and run diagnostics on humans and on other androids, remember?”
“I know, but I didn’t know you could tell that.”
“I heard its heartbeat.”
“Wow,” I marvel. “That’s really amazing.” But suddenly I think of something. “Wait, have you scanned me?”
Nolan’s smile is cryptic and infectious. “What, you? Who, me?”
Everything Nolan does is adorable today. I watch him help Jessica to the dance floor. My sister-in-law leans over to him and says something in his ear, standing on the tips of her skates. Even then, Nolan bends down slightly to accommodate her, as though her telling him a secret is as natural as can be. I imagine he doesn’t even have to respond that way, with his super hearing as an android, but still, his behaviors are so natural, I guess from being around us and seeing our body language. There’s nothing mechanical about anything he does.
But that little whisper has me curious. When Nolan comes to return to me with a smile, I squint at him in mock suspicion. “What was that about?”
Nolan shrugs innocently and kneels in front of me. “She said she’s happy I’m here.” He takes my foot gently. “May I?”
I bite my lip to try and harbor the broad smile I’m trying to hold back but can’t. “You may.” Internally, I’m practically screaming as he slides my skate on and deftly ties it up for me. He takes his time. I feel like some kind of princess in a fairy tale at the minute, trying on a glass slipper.
Except my prince isn’t some fictional charmer who slays dragons; he fights fires and saves lives. I’m the luckiest girl at this rink right now, if not the entire city.
“Are you going to be able to cover for Jess?” I ask, leaning back and offering the other foot when he reaches for it. “I know it’s hard for you to lie.”
“It’s not a lie. It’s just omitting a certain truth. And it’s a happy one, at that. If nothing else, Apollo will forgive me for trying. But he’s not in the habit of talking about his relationship with Jess in that in depth with me or anyone else. Shouldn’t be a minefield.”
“That’s good to know.” I cock my head as he finishes tying up my second skate. “You’re really good with kids.” My ovaries might not want to ever have those, but goddamn, did they appreciate the show.
“All part of the programming,”
“So, what? You just download whatever you need?”
“Exactly. Only takes a few seconds, if that.”
“So you already know how to skate?”
“Yep.”
“CPR?”
“Please. I came programmed with that.”
“Horseback riding?”
“Too heavy for a horse, but if that wasn’t an issue, then yes.”
“Shakespearean acting?”
Nolan smirks as he sits next to me and fastens his own skates. “‘O, for a Muse of fire . . .’” he says.
God, he’s so hot. “Say more things like that.”
He leans over, his lips nearly against my ear. My flesh is on pins and needles as he whispers. “‘Let me not to the marriage of great minds admit impediment. Love is not love, which alters when it alteration finds?—’”
“‘Or bends with the remover to remove.’” I shiver and lean against him, fighting off the urge to grab his face and give him the biggest kiss of his life. “How did you know I liked ‘Sonnet 116’?”
“It’s a popular one. A safe bet. I can’t take credit based on cleverness alone,” Nolan remarks, pulling away. “Just a play of the odds.” He stands and offers his hand. “Shall we?”
