Love For Sale (29 page)

“You must let her go now,” the nurse said. “Her duplicate should soon awaken.”

But, you see, I can’t let her go.

A sound behind him jerked his attention to the computer and the other bed. From behind came the rattle of the gurney’s wheels on tile, but he scarcely heard. Dread squeezed his heart. The android blinked, sat up and looked around the room. Her gaze locked on him. No recognition shone in the eyes. His stomach wrenched as he pushed off the wall and came to horrified attention. It blinked rapidly as the surgeon unplugged and removed the helmet. Again, those familiar yet strange eyes fixed on him.

He took a cautious step forward. The robot cringed back, its eyelids fluttering. Dear God, the transfer had failed! The agony of loss bled through him.
I’ll volunteer to be the recipient of the next transfer. If only I could obliterate myself now.

A slow smile curved its lips. His breath stalled. The droid launched itself off the bed and raced toward him, arms outstretched. The gray hospital gown fluttered around it. She crushed him to her, tight enough to break a human rib.

“Christian, Christian, it’s me. I’m here.” She tilted her head to look up at him.

March’s eyes sparkled.

He cradled her face in his hands and kissed her, long and desperately. “March, my March.” Emotion made his voice gruff. “Oh, my darling, we are immortal. We can be together. Forever.”

She nodded, smiling, tangled her hands in his hair and tiptoed to kiss him. Then she threw back her head and laughed, dancing a circle around him, as she sang, “I love you, yeah, yeah, yeah.”

A word about the author…

Something of a gypsy—actually nothing quite so romantic!—Linda was born in South Carolina but has lived in England, Canada, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Atlanta and Houston. She’s seen a lot of this country from the windshield of a truck pulling a horse trailer. For many years, she bred, trained, and showed Andalusian horses. Her stallion Bonito was twice National Champion in Halter.

She started writing early in life, mostly poetry dripping with angst, but her writing career came to a screeching halt when an editor at the local newspaper critiqued her work. As a result, she put down her pen for twenty years. When she started writing again, she was undaunted but maybe daunting. Her first manuscript topped 1,000 pages, following the beloved hero Morgan D’Arcy everywhere he went. That book later became her second published novel,
Sinners’ Opera
, at a much smaller page count.

Linda has won several writing awards, including the Georgia Romance Writers Magnolia Award and the SARA. Her first published novel,
Gemini Rising
, a dark fantasy, was first in the 2012 Preditors & Editors Poll in the Mainstream category. She has two other paranormal romances,
Cardinal Desires
, (the Maggie winner) and
Sinners’ Obsession
, a sequel to
Sinners’ Opera
.
Black Swan
, a short story, is available from The Wild Rose Press. Currently, she writes copy for a Houston advertising agency.

Linda is the mother of two wonderful sons, a retired legal assistant, a member of the Houston Symphony League and enjoys events with her car club. She loves to dress up and host formal dinner parties.

http://www.lindanightingale.com

Blog: http://lindanightingale.wordpress.com/

Twitter: @LNightingale

https://www.facebook.com/linda.nightingale.52

Thank you for purchasing
this publication of The Wild Rose Press, Inc.