Touching Ice Read online

  Touching Ice

  Laurann Dohner

  Book 4 in the Cyborg Seduction series. What can go wrong overseeing a bunch of android sex bots on an automated whorehouse in deep space? Great job, if Megan doesn’t die of boredom. Then she catches sight of the sexiest male she’s ever seen. On her grainy security monitor, she watches all his sexual exploits with the bots, and fantasizes. But that’s all she can do because he’s a cyborg. Then fate steps in.

  There’s a crash and Megan must escape or die. The cyborgs are rescuing the sex bots—taking them onboard their ship. She knows cyborgs hate humans. They’ll kill her if she asks for help so she devises an insane plan—pretend to be the most realistic sex bot ever made.

  His name is Ice, and Megan is now his personal sex bot. He will satisfy every sexual fantasy she’s ever had—and as many more as she can dream up. She just has to figure out how to keep her big, sexy cyborg from discovering that she is all woman.

  An Ellora’s Cave Romantica Publication

  www.ellorascave.com

  Touching Ice ISBN 9781419931093

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  Touching Ice Copyright © 2010 Laurann Dohner

  Edited by Pamela Campbell Cover art by Dar Albert

  Electronic book publication November 2010

  The terms Romantica® and Quickies® are registered trademarks of Ellora’s Cave Publishing. With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.® 1056 Home Avenue, Akron OH 44310-3502.

  Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the publisher’s permission. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. (http://www.fbi.gov/ipr/). Please purchase only authorized electronic or print editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

  This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.

  TOUCHING ICE

  Laurann Dohner Chapter One

  The female voice had a high-pitched Southern accent that grated on Megan’s last nerve. Whoever the programmer had been who had last worked on the station had obviously been a man with a sick, twisted sense of humor since he’d given the computer the most annoying voice he could download. He’d also had a thing for teaching Clara—the computer that ran Folion—how to be a smartass. Because of the state-of-the-art, artificial-intelligence chips that made up the computer’s “brain”, it was capable of learning.

  “You have committed violations since the ship arrived at dock six, sugar.” “I keep telling you to stop calling me that. My name is Megan.”

  “Don’t get your panties in a bind.”

  “I could take you offline for maintenance, you know.”

  The computer went silent for a few seconds. “That would be another violation. I’m

  keeping track.”

  “Bite me, Clara.”

  “I don’t have teeth, sugar, or I might be tempted. Is it that time of the month?” Oh yeah, Megan thought. If I ever meet the guy who had this job before me, I’m going to

  kill him for screwing up a perfectly good computer. She took a deep breath as she counted to ten. It didn’t help cool her temper by much but at least she wasn’t ready to try to escape the employee quarters and travel three decks to yank out Clara’s motherboards.

  Her attention returned to one of the screens where the sexiest man she’d ever seen slowly dressed. It should be a crime to cover up that perfect, dusky-gray body, she decided. He was unlike anything she’d ever seen and her one bright spot in a dismal job working as the programmer on Folion. She’d been desperate enough to transfer to a floating whorehouse in space four months ago since she’d needed the higher salary to pay off debts. No one had told her she couldn’t leave the employee quarters, couldn’t interact with other living beings, or that she’d have to put up with Clara’s annoying artificial personality.

  “It is against regulations to turn the cameras on in the client rooms. Master never did.”

  Megan rolled her sky-blue eyes. “Stop calling the last programmer that. He shouldn’t have ordered you to do that. Why aren’t you bitching about him breaking the rules? Did you screech about violations he committed?”

  “He is incredibly handsome and sexy.”

  Megan snorted immediately. “He’s probably some pathetic troll who couldn’t get laid if he had a ton of credits.”

  “He had sex with the bots.”

  “There’s a huge violation. How the hell did he do that?”

  “He changed my programming. I am forbidden to keep records or report the employees for making personal use of the bots.”

  “Well, there’s one violation I’ll never commit. They are all female and I don’t do women robots.”

  “They are artificial-intelligence, sexual-aid androbots. That is the official title the company has assigned them but you may call them bots for short. Master always did.”

  “I feel a headache coming on,” Megan muttered, watching the sexy man put on his boots.

  His hair was wet from the fresh-water shower he’d taken—one of the many luxuries aboard the expensive Folion—making it appear darker. When dry, it became a beautiful white-ash color. Most people would have just called it white but the streaks of light gray were something that Megan didn’t miss. The sex bot moved across the room to smile at him. Her lips moved as she spoke to the client but he shook his head.

  “The client has refused more service,” Clara stated. “The man you illegally watch having intercourse with the bots is preparing to leave.” She paused. “You will have to wait until he returns to violate company rules and infringe on his privacy again. You are making a habit of it each time this client pays for service.”

  “Shut up.”

  “Do you know the client?”

  “I wish.”

  “Clarify.”

  The man on the screen closed his shirt as he headed for the door. Depression hit Megan hard. Three months ago, she’d accidentally spotted the guy on a security feed when he’d forgotten to remove a gun he wore. It had sounded an alarm and brought him to her attention when Clara had ordered him to return the weapon to his shuttle. Those few minutes of staring at that beautiful, burnished-gray face had done things to Megan that she didn’t want to admit. His image had burned into her mind.

  He was a cyborg, something that shouldn’t exist anymore. Everyone on Earth had been assured they’d been killed off but obviously that had been a lie. Is he alone? Is that why he visits a whorehouse staffed with androbots who are programmed to never keep records or report who visits them? A real woman probably poses a threat to his secret existence.

  “Clarify,” the computer screeched.

  “Shut up. I just meant that I’m lonely and the guy is hot.”

  “You are horny and desire to have sex with a client. That is a violation I am not programmed to overlook. I would have to immediately contact the company if you left these quarters. Not even Master violated that rule. Unless it is an emergency, the bulkheads are to remain sealed between this section and the rest of Folion where the clients have access.”

  “Who made that stupid rule?”

  “Four years ago there was a hijack attempt and the programmer was extinguished wh