Talia smiled, her cheeks pinking.She knew that Callie would be hers, but she still appreciated the effect she was having on her.
“I said,” she spoke slowly, making sure to enunciate.“What was the weirdest thing your Model ever told you?”
Callie reeled at the exaggerated motion of her lips, but she dug her nails into her thigh to keep anchored to reality.She inhaled sharply, trying to clear her head.“Sorry, this,” she pointed at the whiskey, “really went to my head.”
Talia bit the inside of her cheek, but didn’t say anything.
“Uh, weirdest thing?Probably that time it told me it had the intelligence of thirty billion live mattresses.”
Talia threw her head back in laughter.God her throat was alluring – a perfect olive column that Callie felt an irresistible pull to bite.
“What did you do?”Talia asked, eyes sparkling.
“I thought it knew that it took that from a book, so I asked if it knew any live mattresses.”
Talia squinted.“What book was it?”
“Hitchhiker’s Guide to The Galaxy.A really old one.”
“I don’t get to read as much as I’d like,” Talia shrugged.“Did it know any?”
“Oh yes.It made up a whole story about its girlfriend, the live mattress.”
“God they’re such liars.I can’t believe we let them engineer anything for us.”
Callie shrugged.“I don’t understand half of what it says just talking to me day-to-day.I can’t imagine trying to understand what it builds.”
“Did you take any science courses at school?”
Callie shook her head.“Nothing more than the basics, anyway.”
“What was your favourite?”Talia was stroking her fingers along Callie’s bicep, as if they were in her bedroom and not an absurdly expensive members-only bar.”
“I liked biology.I couldn’t deal with physics or chemistry.Too much math.
Talia sucked her lip.“I have to confess something.”
Callie lifted her eyebrow, her cortisol started to rise, but Talia was still smiling, so it couldn’t be that bad, could it?Callie played with her fingertips.
“I was a huge engineering nerd in school.”Talia hid her face in her elbow.Callie’s heart nearly exploded.
“I can’t picture it,” she said, face hurting from smiling so much.
“It’s true!I used to spend hours tinkering with Georg’s old junk.”
“And Georg is…?”
“A grandfather of sorts.I don’t really want to get into it right now.It’s not a happy story.”Talia’s face fell and her Opti glinted.
Callie nodded.Whatever spell there was had been broken.
Talia stood, towering over Callie, but her smile had returned.“Listen, I know this wasn’t a date, but I still had a really good time.”
Callie looked up at her with the saddest puppy dog eyes she’d ever seen.Talia drew her finger up her chin and kissed her delicately.Then again, hungrier, until hands were in hair and minutes rather than seconds had passed.
“Damn.”Talia stood with kiss swollen lips and bedroom eyes.“You’re making this difficult.”
Callie blushed and told the flutter between her thighs to calm down.