Chapter 74: Episode 74: Human Adonis

“Eek!” Nikki jumped slightly, her hands gripping the bumper of the SUV.

The roar of the children swarming the God of War was so loud, so chaotic and joyful, that she hadn’t even heard the caretaker approach her side.

“Changed?” Nikki echoed, her dark eyes wide as she looked down at the woman in the flour-dusted apron. “What was he like before?”

The caretaker crossed her arms, a wistful, almost melancholic smile touching her worn features. “He rarely came here,” she explained, her voice barely carrying over the shrieks of laughter from the courtyard. “In the three years since the Fall, I have only seen him in person twice. He came to deliver automated medical supplies and to audit the structural integrity of the warehouse. It was strictly business. Cold. Calculating.”

She gestured toward the chaotic pile of children currently trying to climb the General’s legs. “He never brought food like this. He certainly never stepped out of his transport to interact with them. He was a ghost, a terrifying shadow that we all prayed would just leave us be. But…” The woman paused, her eyes softening with profound gratitude. “He is also the one who hired us. He pulled me and three other women out of the deepest, most dangerous parts of the slums. He gave us this job. He gave us a purpose when we thought the world was just going to end.”

Just like he held her that day from trying to kill herself.

Nikki listened, her chest tightening. The narrative of the ruthless, unfeeling dictator was fracturing more and more with every truth she uncovered.

“It is a first for us to see him here like this,” the caretaker continued, giving Nikki a knowing, sidelong glance. “And it is an absolute first to see any sort of emotion on his face. Everyone in Sector 4 knows General A-01 lacks feelings. He is a machine. But looking at him now… it is clear that this is only possible because you are here with him, Miss.”

Nikki didn’t deny it, but she didn’t make any grand promises either. The weight of the world was heavy enough without swearing oaths she was still figuring out how to keep. She simply offered the woman a gentle, reassuring smile.

“It will only get better soon enough,” Nikki told her softly, a fierce, protective fire burning in her chest. “I know it’s certain to.”

Nikki turned her attention back to the courtyard. What she saw made her breath catch in her throat.

Adonis was on one knee in the dirt. His coat was already smudged with dust from tiny, frantic hands. A brave little girl with braided hair had managed to clamber onto his broad, shoulder, giggling hysterically as she tapped on his face.

And then, the impossible happened.

The little boy, the one with the mismatched shoes, boldly poked Adonis right in the center of his chest. Adonis’s blue eyes widened in a display of exaggerated, theatrical shock. He crossed his eyes, literally manipulating his glowing blue lenses to angle inward, and stuck out his tongue, making a completely ridiculous, purely human face.

The children erupted into shrieks of absolute delight.

And then, Adonis laughed.

It wasn’t the dark, terrifying chuckle he used to intimidate his rivals, nor the low, seductive rumble he saved for the bedroom. It was a bright, genuine sound of pure amusement that vibrated across the dusty yard.

Making everyone smile to soften.

Nikki’s heart shuddered with a joy so intense it bordered on pain. She leaned against the SUV, completely mesmerized. She remembered her desperate, tearful confession in the kitchen.

She hadn’t expected a response, hadn’t expected him to magically understand the depth of human love overnight.

But watching him now, playing in the dirt with orphans, she saw the undeniable proof that her big Android General was adapting to the warmth she was exposing him to.

He had never gotten anyone to expose him to so many emotions at the same time.

If he is like this now, Nikki thought, her pulse racing, how will he finally feel when he has completely learned the patterns of love?

As if sensing the intense weight of her gaze, Adonis suddenly raised his head. Over the sea of cheering children, his glowing blue eyes locked directly onto hers. The silly expression vanished, replaced by an intensity so deep, so fiercely possessive and raw, that it pinned Nikki to the spot.

She held her breath. The noisy courtyard seemed to fade into a vacuum of silence. She couldn’t look away, entirely captive to the unspoken promises burning in his eyes.

It felt like an eternity before Adonis finally broke the connection, looking away to gently lift the little girl off his shoulder and set her safely on the ground.

“Alright, you little monsters!” Nikki clapped her hands, shattering her own trance as she yelled over the crowd. “Who wants that big, fat dessert reward?!”

The children immediately abandoned the terrifying warlord, swarming back toward the back of the SUV like a flock of starving seagulls.

Adonis stood up, dusting off his knee and moved to assist Nikki and the caretaker in distributing the massive containers of sweets and pastries.

The drive back to mansion was drastically different from the ride down.

The heavy, oppressive gloom had vanished, but it was replaced by a thick, suffocating blanket of sexual tension. Adonis sat beside her, his massive frame taking up most of the space. He didn’t speak, but his hand was securely wrapped around hers, his thumb tracing slow, agonizingly deliberate circles over her knuckles.

Nikki’s earlier promise echoed loudly in her mind.

As a reward, we can cuddle all night long… and you will have the absolute choice of trying out whatever you want with me.

Oh, God. She had essentially handed a blank check to a war machine with infinite stamina and a newly discovered addiction to her complete undoing.

She liked it, maybe a little too much.

The moment the elevator doors hissed open to the house, the quiet, luxurious isolation of the apartment suddenly felt like a beautifully decorated trap.

Adonis stepped out of the elevator, he turned toward her, the blue in his eyes already beginning to flicker with a dangerous, molten gold.

“The mission was a success,” Adonis rumbled, his voice dropping an octave into that velvety, lethal purr. “And now, Kitty… I believe there was a prior agreement regarding my compensation.”

Panic, laced heavily with an undeniable, fluttering heat, seized Nikki’s chest. She needed to sleep, or she was going to disintegrate.

“Right!” Nikki squeaked, her voice entirely too high.

Before he could reach for her, Nikki bolted. She spun on her heel and practically sprinted down the hallway.

“Nikki!” Adonis called out, his heavy boots thudding behind her in immediate pursuit.

She reached her bedroom, threw herself inside, and slammed the heavy oak door shut, instantly hitting the electronic lock pad.

She backed away from the door, her chest heaving as she clamped a hand over her mouth.

A second later, Adonis stopped on the other side. The heavy, imposing silence of his presence radiated through the wood.

“Kitty,” Adonis’s voice came through the door, smooth, dark, and laced with a terrifying patience. “Open the door. You explicitly stated I would receive my reward.”

“I’m tired!” Nikki called back, feigning a massive, theatrical yawn. “I’m so exhausted, Adonis! The children took all my energy! I’ll… I’ll give it to you tomorrow! I promise!”

She didn’t even fucking do anything!

“My processing core does not accept deferred payments for contracted services,” Adonis countered smoothly. “Open the door.”

“I’m already asleep!” Nikki lied flawlessly. “Goodnight, General!”

Adonis was quiet.

Nikki held her breath, staring at the digital lock, half-expecting the God of War to simply punch his fist through the reinforced oak and drag her to bed. The tension stretched, thick and agonizing.

But he didn’t break the door. He didn’t override the lock.

After a long, agonizing minute of silence, she heard the heavy, slow thud, thud, thud of his boots turning around and walking away down the corridor, retreating to another part of the penthouse.

Nikki let out a massive, shaky exhale, her knees going weak as she slid down the back of the door to sit on the plush carpet. She clutched her racing, hammering heart, a flushed, helpless smile spreading across her face.

“God help me,” Nikki sighed into the quiet room. “He is becoming more alluring as time goes by.”

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