Page 9 of Fake It For Glory

I groaned and shook my head. I heard her hesitation. “What now?”

“I think you should consider something I know you don’t want to think about,” she said. “You need to impress the world.”

“I thought I did that.”

She slowly shook her head. “No, you need to impress them. You need to win people over. Right now, you come off very, um, clinical.”

“Clinical?”

“You speak geek.”

I rolled my eyes at Hattie’s words, but deep down, I knew she was right. I had spent so much time focusing on the technical aspects of my AI that I had forgotten about the human element. I needed to find a way to connect with people on a more personal level if I wanted to win them over.

“So, what do you suggest?” I asked, looking at Hattie expectantly.

“Well, for starters, you could use a makeover,” she said matter-of-factly.

“A makeover? Seriously?” I raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

“Yes.”

I smoothed down my suit jacket. I wasn’t arrogant, but I also didn’t think I was barking up the ugly tree. Plenty of women found me attractive. Hell, it was one of my greatest problems. I truly needed a stick to beat them off with. They could come on pretty damn strong at times.

But Hattie was right. At least partly. I did need to impress the world, but a makeover was not going to do it. I needed to connect with people on a deeper, emotional level. I needed to show them that my AI was not just a technological marvel, but something that could change their lives for the better. I needed to tell a story.

“What did you have in mind?” I asked with a sigh.

“You know I love you, right?” she said.

That was code for she was going to be very blunt. She was going to cut my heart out without even trying in the way only a family member could without getting their ass chewed out.

“Just say it,” I said. “Your words are just words. That’s the benefit of being me. I don’t care. I grew a thick skin a long time ago.”

“You’re unlikeable.”

“Ouch,” I complained, slapping a hand to my chest. I knew it was going to be brutal, but I may have underestimated just how brutal.

“I like you. I love you. You’re my big brother. I’m saying people that don’t know you have a hard time relating to you. Yes, you’re smarter than ninety-nine percent of the world and you’re more handsome than at least eighty percent. That’s what makes you difficult to like.”

I frowned with confusion. “That’s dumb. People shouldn’t care about what I look like. I’m selling tech, not me.”

“I know,” she said, nodding with a gentle smile. “But there’s more to it than that. You’re not very approachable either.”

“Again, that’s dumb,” I said. “No one has to like me. They just need to like my tech. If they want the fluffy stuff, they can talk to you or Carl. I’ve got a whole team of PR professionals that can handle that kind of thing. I don’t have to be anyone’s best friend. I just have to churn out a really good product that works as promised.”

“It wouldn’t hurt for you to clean up your image a bit,” she said.

“My image is fine,” I said. “I’m scandal free.”

“You’re a bit of a cold fish,” she said. “You’re this guy that’s all about your tech. Not just any tech. You’re putting out stuff that’s going to change the world. You’re breaching the barrier of the human mind and you’re doing it on your own, like a lone wolf.”

“I am a lone wolf,” I said.

“You’re kind of a jerk,” she said, lowering her eyes. “I mean it. You’re a real dick. You don’t have anything to do with people. You just work on your tech and work on your tech and work on your tech. I love you but that’s because I know you. You tend to be standoffish and people see you as a cyborg. They need to see you as a real human that cares about the future of the human race. Right now, it’s easy for people to assume you’re all about getting rich by replacing humans with robots. You have to humanize yourself. You’re all about your work.”

“That’s life,” I said. “Some of us are dedicated and others aren’t. I’m dedicated. That’s what it takes. That’s why I’m successful.”

“You don’t have any friends,” she said. “You don’t have anyone you can talk to. You don’t talk to anyone.”