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in here!"
She was standing by the robot alcove. New Bob stood against the back, powered down.
"What is this?" she asked.
"That's New Bob." He suddenly realized why she was upset again. "Oh, it's not what you think--"
"Why didn't you mention you had another bot? Didn't you think it might help us?"
"Not really. New Bob is a pretty recent model, and the license fee is metered by computation cycles. My dad would have a fit if I used New Bob." He had found that out the first time he took the ship out. "I never even think of him."
"You idiot. How many nodes?" She found the activation bar and switched the machine on.
"Four, but--"
She turned a withering look on him and he trailed off. This might cut into his allowance if the bill ran too high. The weekend was working out horribly. Yesterday's sex was a distant memory.
She eased her expression again. "Look, I can still use your help. Why don't we work together and figure this out?"
He wanted to help her out, he really did, but he just couldn't right now. He didn't care anymore. His plans had all gone for nothing. All he wanted to do was go lay down on the hammock, which he did without turning back to see her reaction. * * *
Late the next morning, Jim woke up feeling very refreshed. The pneumatic tent bed was much better than the common room couch. He also clung to a sense of accomplishment from yesterday. He had set the tent up all on his own and started a campfire. This despite Nancy's continued refusal to let him use Old Bob.
Late in the evening, she had come out to take a break. She sat down by the fire and even complimented him on the work he had done. It seemed like a come-on, but she reacted negatively when he invited her into the tent. She had stormed back into the ship and slammed the hatch shut.
He rolled over on the bed, stretching and thinking maybe he should try to help again. If they did get out of here, it would be embarrassing to admit that Nancy had done all of the