Maxim Read Online Free Page A

on coming over to help her pick out her outfit. She seemed to have forgotten this was just a fake date. It wouldn’t have been so bad if it was just Maya, but she had insisted on bringing Zara and Sersan. At least Isis was away with Torch, basking in their new love for one another. She had never been close to Gana or Roxy, so it didn’t bother her that they hadn’t come. She followed her friends to the door.
    “Are you sure you don’t want me to help you with your hair?” Maya asked, hesitating in the doorway.
    “I’m sure. I’m just going to pull it up in a ponytail.” This wasn’t a fancy dinner or she would have had Maya help her with some kind of hairstyle. She was keeping it simple tonight.
    “Good luck. I want the full details tomorrow.”
    Alona rolled her eyes. “Maya, you do realize this is a fake date, right?”
    “Oh sure, but you never know.” Maya waved goodbye at a stunned Alona.
    She hadn’t been nervous until Maya made that last comment. What if Maxim kissed her? Was she supposed to kiss him? She had forgotten to get those details from Nigel. She closed the door and sighed. This was going to be a long night.
    *****
    “I do not need your help, Zen.” Maxim watched helplessly, wearing nothing but a towel around his waist, as Zen walked in and out of his closet, bringing out different clothes and laying them in piles on his bed.
    “I am going to be a good friend and help you pick out your clothes for tonight.”
    “I thought that only women did that sort of thing.” Maxim watched in fascination as Zen color matched outfits he deemed worthy. What was the criteria he went by? Maybe he could create a template based on a sorting diagram.
    “Hey, don’t insult me. I am just doing want the GCFA wants me to do to help you out.” Zen picked up a pair of old jeans and growled in displeasure. Then he threw them in the trashcan.
    “Hey, those are mine!” Maxim reached for the discarded jeans. “I thought you were supposed to help me with my strength problems.”
    “Rage and Hammer will handle that. I’m here to help you with your dating skills,” Zen informed him proudly.
    “I will repeat myself here: I do not need your help.”
    “How many women have you dated since you were converted into a droid halfise?”
    Maxim didn’t bother to answer him. There hadn’t been too many. It never got serious, because they always expected him to act like a normal man, but he wasn’t normal. His silence was answer enough for Zen.
    “See, you need my expertise. It just so happens that Maya texted me what Alona will be wearing so I can match you in something complimentary.”
    “Is that necessary? Color matching?” Maxim checked with his IO chip, but there was no program uploaded for dating or for color matching.
    “It will look good for the pictures the paparazzi will take tonight.” Zen pulled out a pair of dark blue jeans and a white dress shirt. “Wear this.”
    “Fine. Will you leave now?” Maxim was beginning to feel something unwelcome: nervousness. This really was his first date. What did one do on a first date?
    “Not yet. We need to go over Date Etiquette 101 first.”
    “What the hell is that?” Maxim felt himself getting angry. That was another emotion he rarely allowed himself to feel.
    “First and foremost, be a gentleman. When you see her, compliment her. Something simple like, she looks beautiful. Open doors for her and allow her to enter first. For appearances sake, you should pay for the meals, but the GCFA will reimburse you. Hold her hand to help her in and out of shuttles.”
    “We aren’t leaving the ship for the date, so there will be no shuttles.”
    Zen rolled his eyes. “You have ten dates with her. There is bound to be a shuttle involved at some point. But let’s focus on tonight. Hold open the doors, pull out her chair for her, and then kiss her when you say goodnight.”
    “Kiss her? Nigel didn’t say anything about kissing her.” An image of him leaning