Total pages in book: 64
Estimated words: 60905 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 305(@200wpm)___ 244(@250wpm)___ 203(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 60905 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 305(@200wpm)___ 244(@250wpm)___ 203(@300wpm)
But that wouldn’t be the case today.
4
LILA
Brad was waiting for us in the hallway. He smiled as we approached, rapping twice on the sturdy door before opening it and ushering us inside.
His partner got to his feet as we stepped inside the room. I gawked for a moment as I looked up at his tall form. Was the entire company made up of hot nerds? This one had no-nonsense gray eyes and full lips that were pressed together in a stern line. Despite his rather tense posture, his hair was one hundred percent hippie. Dark brown strands were pulled back into a low ponytail at the back of his neck, and a long beard completely obscured his neck and jawline.
He had on a pale blue button-down shirt that was tight enough to show the contours of his muscles. Evidently, these men hadn’t gotten the message that tech geeks were supposed to be thin and scrawny.
“I’m Lila.” Despite my awe at his looks, my voice was strong and steady. I was in work mode now.
“Colton Douglas.” He had a slight accent, possibly Scottish? It wasn’t hard to understand him, though. Maybe he’d moved here when he was a child.
“Hi, Colton.” If I’d known there were tech start-ups full of men like these, I might have done something different with my computer science degree.
“And this is Ms. James’s assistant.” Brad’s voice sailed over my head, and I looked around to see him give a meaningful stare at his partner.
“Penny,” I supplied, in case he’d forgotten her name.
“Nice to meet you.” Colton gave Penny a warm smile, but then he looked back at Brad.
I couldn’t help examining every aspect of the sleek room, even though It was time to get our equipment set up. Normally, I shot livestreams myself and Penny filmed, edited, and produced the longer videos that were prerecorded. But this was a special event today.
Grinning, I allowed myself to zero in on the reason why. “Is that it?” I’d spotted the gleaming black chair the second I’d walked in, but I hadn’t wanted to be rude and skip the introductions.
“In the flesh, so to speak,” Brad said. “Ladies, I present to you the Massage-Mate 3000.”
“Why 3000?” Penny asked as she stared at the stainless steel and black leather.
“Because it took us 3000 tries to get it right,” Brad said with a warm chuckle.
I walked over and ran my finger over the chair’s arm. Though I was a fan of any kind of technology that made people’s lives better, the kind I liked most was the tech that could make you feel better. Physically better, that was.
At my apartment, I had at least three different massagers, designed for feet, hands, and lower back. None of them looked anywhere near as high tech as this chair did, though.
My fingers glided up the smooth leather until I reached the headrest. It looked as if it could give way, allowing a person to lean their head back. The whole chair looked like it reclined, even though it was nowhere near as bulky as those coin-operated massage chairs they used to have at shopping malls when I was a kid.
Curious, I moved to the side of the chair. A black curtain was directly behind it, stretching from wall to wall. I reached toward a slit in the black fabric.
Then Colton was at my side. His strong fingers grasped my arm and pulled it back. “I’m afraid I can’t let you back there, Ms. James. As we told you, this is only a prototype. Certain aspects of the mechanics and the compartment that houses them are unfinished.” His accent seemed a bit stronger—as was his grip on me.
His explanation made sense, but somehow, I got the impression that wasn’t the only reason he didn’t want me to look behind the curtain.
Brad seemed to sense my concern, because he winked at me. “We also want to make sure you’re not a corporate spy.”
It was impossible not to return his grin. The man could probably make people smile at a funeral. Well, at least the women. Penny gave a small laugh, and he turned his megawatt smile on her. If it wasn’t for that overgrown mustache and the thick glasses, he could’ve been a model.
“Let me tell you more about the tech,” he said, motioning Penny and me over to the computer station. “Unlike a regular massage chair, we don’t rely on rollers inside the cushions. We wanted to create an experience as authentic as possible. That’s why we made this.”
He gave me a hand—literally. Except for the fact that it was plastic, it looked like a real skeleton hand. I lifted the fingers, and the joints at the knuckles moved. It worked like a person’s hand would.
“The real thing is made of sturdier materials than that, obviously,” Colton said. “But don’t worry, it won’t hurt you. It’ll be completely covered.” He gave me what looked to be an ordinary leather glove, and I slid the plastic hand into it. Then I rubbed it gently across my forearm. It didn’t quite feel like the touch of an actual person, but it was close.