Phoebe was stunned. “It's ... okay.”
She was glad he regretted his actions. Hurting someone was something she had never put inside his programming. She had never expected him to go this far even if she understood it was his way of protecting her. He just had to learn how to control this if they were ever to leave this place and thank God they had plenty of time to achieve that.
Shade stood up. “Am I forgiven?”
She smiled at him. “Yes, you are.”
He relaxed. “Thank you. I will do a better job defending you the next time the doctor comes by. I will not fail you again.”
Chapter 8
Shade watched Phoebe's smile disappear.
“What?” she said.
Hadn't she heard him the first time? “I said I will defend you better the next time the doctor comes by. I will not let her talk to you or touch you. I will be better prepared and take down the cyborgs if they try anything.”
Her jaw dropped open and her eyes went big. “You can't do that.”
Confusion filled him. “Why?”
“Because it's wrong. You can't hurt others just because they talk to me.”
Phoebe obviously didn't understand what he was trying to do. “I am defending you.”
She took a deep breath. “That is not defending me. That is locking me away from everything and everyone.” She placed her hand on his chest. “Remember the second phase? This is it. You must learn to control this. You must accept that others will always, one way or another, be around me.” She gave him a serious gaze. “I am yours and you have nothing to worry about. No other man will touch me the way you touch me, but I will talk with other people whether you like it or not.”
Everything inside him protested when he heard her words. Keeping Phoebe safe was his main priority. Why didn't she understand that? “Others can hurt you.”
He watched her as his thoughts lingered in his mind. Her logic didn't make sense. Didn't she want him to protect her? He had thought he had done the right thing when he had pushed the doctor away. The doctor hadn't seemed surprised by his reaction, though. Maybe she had known he would react like that and why wouldn't he? Jade had spoken to Phoebe. He knew words could hurt and he didn't want that to happen to Phoebe. He wanted her to be safe, and if it meant keeping her away from others, then so be it.
Phoebe's hand moved up to his cheek. “You can't protect me from everything. Pain is a part of life, one way or another.”
It was? That just sounded wrong. All the more reason to defend her. “It doesn't have to be. I can keep you away from it.”
“If you do, you will keep me away from living my life too. I have to support us when we get out of here.”
“I can support us too.”
She smiled. “Thank you. I appreciate it.”
Silence lingered between them for a while.
“Don't you want me to protect you?” he asked.
“No, I do want you to protect me, but you must learn to do it the right way.”
Do it the right way? What other way could there be than keeping others away from her? That was the only way she would be safe. To him, it didn't sound like she wanted to be safe and that bothered him.
“And what is the right way?” he asked.
She smiled at him. “Be by my side. Hold my hand, love me, but don't hurt anyone unless they are a danger to me. I know you see everyone as a threat right now, but I will help you see who is a threat and who is not.”
Shade didn't like this one bit, but for her, he would do anything. Even learn to tolerate others.
Chapter 9
Phoebe didn't know what to expect the following day when Doctor Jade Silva knocked on the door. She and Shade had talked for hours about what had happened. She had done her best to explain to him that he couldn't run around and threaten everyone who came near her. This second phase was a pain in the ass. She had learned about it during her months in school, but she had never expected it to be like this. Shade was willing to kill for her, literally, and that scared her. She feared for his life. Jade's words from yesterday that no cyborg was terminated didn't bring her much comfort. If Shade was unable to learn and control his possessiveness, they would never be able to be together.
The moment the knock was heard, Shade lunged for the door. He ripped it open, making Jade jump again. The long hours of talking seemed to be erased from his mind.
Phoebe hurried to the door and placed her hand on Shade's arm. “Remember what we talked about yesterday?”
“I'm defending you.”
“I know you are, but there is no need to scare the doctor. She was the one who created you along with her team of scientists, remember? Do you also remember me telling you that I have spoken many times with her before you were created?”
His face was like carved from stone. He almost seemed angry, but Phoebe knew he was only fighting with himself. His instincts told him he needed to protect her and moving away from the door to let Jade in was an almost impossible task.
“Fine,” he finally said. He turned his gaze to Jade. “You can examine me, but you are not going anywhere near Phoebe.”
“Fare enough,” Jade said.
Shade grabbed Phoebe by the arm and pulled her away from the door. She didn't protest when he placed her behind the couch on the other side of the room. It was a little bit extreme, but at least, he was co-operating. It was one step in the right direction.
Shade placed himself in the middle of the room, half turned toward Phoebe as Jade entered the room. The cyborgs from yesterday were with her, and just like yesterday, they didn't say a single word.
Shade pointed at the males. “They stay by the door. If they move a muscle, you will be thrown out before you can blink.”
Jade took a deep breath before she exhaled and turned her head toward Rain and Dare. “You heard him.” She looked at Shade again. “Anything else?”
He grinned. “Aren't you angry?”
She shrugged. “I'm used to this. All cyborgs go through this. Some more than others. Protecting your bound one is your main priority. You just wish her well, but you need to know when to protect her and when not to.”
His grin disappeared. “That is not a discussion between you and me. I only speak with Phoebe about those things.”
“Unfortunately, it doesn't work like that. I am your doctor and I am the one who makes sure everything is all right with you. You can talk all you want with Phoebe about things, but you must talk to me too. I am here for you. Remember what I told you yesterday. I am not your enemy.”
Shade's facial expression darkened. “Get on with your examination.”
Jade pulled out a small box from the bag she had on her shoulder. The box was black and about the size of a book. She pushed a button and it opened. Phoebe had no idea what she pulled out, but it was some kind of device no bigger than her palm. Shade looked suspiciously at it first, but after a few seconds, he relaxed and nodded. Phoebe realized he knew what the device was for just from looking at it. Sometimes, she envied him for his fast learning capability.
“I need you to remove your shirt,” Jade said to Shade.
Shade's shining eyes flashed with anger. “You don't have permission to see me without clothes.”
Jade sighed. It seemed like she was losing her patience. Phoebe didn't doubt that Jade was used to this, but she also seemed tired of this behavior from the cyborgs. She probably went through this on a regular basis.
Jade found her patience and gave Shade a serious gaze. “Listen, Shade. I have seen you naked many times. I saw you as a tiny cell, for heaven's sake, so can we just get on with this?”
Shade obviously didn't like Jade's attitude. He approached her with one fast move and placed himself face to face with her. The cyborgs moved, but Jade raised her hand to stop them.
“That doesn't give you the right to see me without a shirt,” he growled.
Phoebe didn't like where this was going. Fear lingered within her that this would end like yesterday. “Shade, please
do as the doctor says.”
He shot her a shocked gaze. Pain took hold in his shining eyes. “You want me to undress in front of another woman? You want to let another woman see me without clothes?”
Phoebe winced. His reaction was unexpected, but it made her realize how strongly bound he was to her. If she told him yes, she would break his heart and maybe even his trust for her. That was the last thing she wanted, but Jade needed to examine him. She had no idea what Jade's little box did, but there had to be another way.
“Can I do that instead?” Phoebe pointed to the box and looked Jade in the eyes.
“I guess we don't have another choice. It will take some more time before he will allow another person to touch him.” Jade took a step in her direction but halted and met Shade's angry gaze. “Give her the device.”
Shade took it from Jade without touching her fingers and approached Phoebe. Phoebe took the device from him. She saw a simple black screen on one side of it along with numbered buttons and other buttons that didn't make much sense to her. On the other side was a metal plate.
“What do I do with it?” Phoebe asked.
“Place it against Shade's chest as near his heart as possible with the screen toward you. It has to be against his skin.”
Phoebe nodded and met Shade's gaze. “Do you want to do it here or in the bedroom?”
“Bedroom,” he said, grabbed her hand, and took her to the bedroom. “There's no way I'll turn my back on any of them.”
Phoebe sighed. “We really need to work on your trust toward other people.”
“Later.”
The bedroom door remained open while Shade placed them near the wall. Neither Jade nor the cyborgs could see them, but they were able to talk. Shade took off his shirt and her body couldn't help but react when she saw his naked skin. She took a deep breath and wanted nothing more but to lock the door, caress him, and forget this peculiar situation. Her worry still lived inside of her, though. The last thing she wanted was to lose Shade. She comforted herself with the fact that it had only been three days. They still had a lot of time to get him to understand things, and Jade had said that if they needed more time, then they would get it.
“Now what?” Phoebe asked Jade as she pressed the device against Shade's chest.
“The screen should turn itself on.”
Phoebe watched the black screen go blue before a few red, blue, green, and purple digital buttons showed up on it. “It's on.”
“Good. Now press the digital buttons in exactly the order I tell you. Don't bother with any other buttons.”
“Okay.”
Jade rattled off a sequence that Phoebe followed. It took less than a minute and each time she pressed a button, the device made a sound. Shade stood still and watched her the whole time without saying anything. It almost felt too much to have him looking at her with his powerful gaze. It was as if he was making promises with it, that once they were alone, she would regret telling him Jade could touch him. It made her shiver with anticipation on the inside.
“You can remove the device now and give it back to me.”
Phoebe nodded even if she knew Jade couldn't see it. Shade put his shirt back on. She turned around to walk into the living room and hand the device back to Jade but was stopped by Shade when he grabbed her arm. Without a word, he took the device from her and handed it to Jade himself instead.
Phoebe took a deep breath. This was going to be a long night.
“Thank you,” Jade said to Shade as Phoebe entered the living room.
“What did that device do?” Phoebe asked.
“It scanned Shade. Now, I have to go through the results to see how he is evolving, but I doubt I will find anything wrong. Just by looking at him, I can tell he is all right.”
Apart from the possessive side, that was.
Jade smiled at Phoebe. “Don't look so worried. Everything will be fine. I will give you a break for the rest of the day, but tomorrow, I will come back.” She looked at Shade. “We will start your training then.”
He gave her a suspicious glare as he pressed Phoebe to him in a protective embrace. “What kind of training?”
“Socializing you. You can't keep on behaving like this if you wish to enter the outside world.”
Shade didn't say anything. He just kept glaring at Jade as she placed the device inside the box and then the box inside her bag. A minute later, she said goodbye and left together with the two cyborgs. Shade approached the door and locked it. Phoebe tensed when he turned around and looked at her with anger in his eyes.
“I belong to you,” he stated and approached her. “Is that somehow unclear to you?”
“No.”
“Then why did you want me to be touched by the doctor?”
“Because she was just doing her job. She wasn't trying to seduce you. She was only going to examine you to make sure you are all right. For me, that is okay. I can't help you if something turns out to be wrong. I can drive a car, but that doesn't mean I can repair it. I can take care of my health and body, but when I break a leg, I have to go to the doctor to fix it. Same thing goes for you. She is your doctor, your creator, and I trust her. I trust her enough to put your life in her hands. All I want is for you to be all right.” She placed her hand on his cheek. “I can love you. I can feed you and take care of you, but I can't fix you if something breaks. Do you understand?”
Shade remained silent for a while, just watching her. Phoebe hoped he understood what she was trying to tell him. She had tried to explain it as best as she could.
Without a warning, Shade grabbed his shirt and threw it off himself. A second later, he grabbed her hands and placed them on his bare chest, making her gasp with surprise. She felt the heat from his body against her palms and his muscles work under the smooth skin. She swallowed as warmth gathered between her legs.
“I belong to you and only you. No one else touches me.”
“No one will touch you the way I touch you, but you can't stop people from saying hello to you and shaking your hand.”
He wrinkled his forehead. “Shaking my hand?”
Phoebe remembered that he didn't even know the most basic social skills. He learned quickly about what everything in the room was, like the television, but when it came to spending time with other people, he knew nothing and didn't seem very willing to learn either. He just wanted to protect her instead.
“Yes,” she said. “When humans greet each other, they shake each other's hands and say 'hello'. Here, let me show you.” She grabbed his hand and shook it lightly. “Hello, Shade.” She smiled.
Shade's gaze narrowed.
“You are supposed to say 'Hello, Phoebe'.”
He remained still without saying anything.
Phoebe sighed. “There are many different ways to greet someone, but this is the way we, who live here, do it.”
“You allow other males and females to touch you like this?”
“Yes, and you can allow it too. I will not get angry at you for saying hello to someone.”
He went silent again. Phoebe took a deep breath. Thank God they had a month ... or more if needed.
Chapter 10
Phoebe stared at the ceiling from where she lay on the bed. Shade had gone to the bathroom and she was left alone for a while. It gave her time to think. Getting Shade to understand the cultural and social things in life was not easy. He wanted her to stay away from people to stay safe, but she couldn't do that, and she wouldn't. She would continue living her life as she had, but she wanted him by her side. Somehow, they would find a way, together.
It's been almost a week since he had woken up. Jade came by with the cyborgs once a day to help Shade adapt, to help him get used to the cyborgs and her, but progress was slow. He still didn't let them near her. When they were alone, a lot of their time was spent in bed and Phoebe loved every minute of it. They got to know each other better. They laughed, cuddled, ate, watched movies, or just talked. He was everything she had wanted him to be. O
nly the socialization made things difficult.
Phoebe sat up and grabbed her bag that was near the bed. She opened it and pulled out her cell phone.
“Call Faye,” she told it and pressed it against her ear while it dialed the number. She heard the familiar beep a few times before Faye answered.
“Hey, girl,” Faye said with a happy voice. “I've been waiting anxiously for your call. How are things going?”
Phoebe smiled to herself. She was glad to hear Faye's voice again. “Everything is fine.”
“Fine? Then why do you sound so down? Isn't he what you expected him to be?”
“No, he is everything I expected him to be and more. He is absolutely amazing and I know you will love him once you meet him.”
“So what is it?”
Phoebe bit her lips together. “We are in the second phase now. You remember I told you about it some time ago?”
“Yeah, something about socializing him.”
“Yes, and I expected it to be difficult, but he is more stubborn than I ever believed he would be.”
“What do you mean?”
“He literally doesn't allow others to touch me. He thinks they will hurt me.”
Faye chuckled. “Well, you wanted a cyborg and you got one. They are all overprotective when it comes to their bound ones, honey.”
“I know, but I never expected him to be like this. I have tried to explain it to him, but he still refuses to listen.”
“It's been just a few days. You still have a lot of time. As long as you are there for him, I'm sure he will learn and understand.”
Phoebe took a deep breath and relaxed. “Yeah, I know. It's just me worrying too much. It will devastate me if I can't take him away from here.”
“I'm sure you have nothing to worry about.”
“I hope so, but it's obvious that what we are doing now isn't working.”
“And what are you doing now?”
“Shade's doctor, Jade Silva, comes by every day to take a look at him and to talk to him. I don't think he is fond of her. She is straight forward about everything and she always has two male cyborgs with her that look like mean killer machines. They never say or do anything, but their presence alone make him tense. Jade said she understands and sees this, but they need to be with her. They are for her own protection.”
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