The Chosen Sin Read Free Page B

one of the many other events that could befall a wet-behind-the-ears patroller in the barely settled Angel System?
    Even after all these years, she intrigued him. When he’d discovered Daria was the agent selected for this assignment, he’d convinced the Council that he was the man to play her counterpart. He was still working out the why of that in his mind.
    When they’d both been patrollers, he’d tried his best to protect her. Maybe a part of him felt like that job wasn’t finished yet, although he knew what Daria would do if she ever found out he thought she needed protection. He’d be divested of his balls in about two seconds flat.
    When they’d both worked at patrol headquarters, he had been desperate to get her into bed, but she’d only wanted Christopher Sante and had rejected all Alejandro’s advances.
    In the end, seduction hadn’t been necessary. His efforts at consolation after Sante had done his number on her had turned into much more. He and Daria had their night together seven years ago and Alejandro had always thought that’d be the end of it. Until now.
    Daria mounted her dune bike and started it. The shiny silver and black vehicle roared to life and then settled down to a kittenish purr. She reached for the helmet hooked behind her seat and pulled it on.
    She shot him a look of impatience through the shaded visor. “Let’s go. I want to get this thing over with.” Almost imperceptibly, she shivered.
    Alejandro knew it was probably because she was contemplating the Choosing that was to come. He could smell the little spike of fear in her even from a distance.
    She shouldn’t be doing this. She didn’t want it and she wasn’t ready for it.
    He walked over and took his place on his own dune bike, the wide, silver machine that could speed over the heated sand of Darpong like a jet-powered cloud.
    Before starting his bike, Alejandro studied her. Small lines of displeasure creased the skin between her midnight blue eyes. She’d set her shoulders, and every muscle in her body looked stiff. “How long has it been, Daria?”
    She rolled her eyes. “How long for what?”
    â€œSince you’ve been laid. You’re a little bit on the cranky side.”
    â€œShut up, Alejandro. Let’s get going.”
    â€œA good three years, I’d say.”
    â€œWhy do men always think every little thing revolves around them? My mood doesn’t have anything to do with men or my sex life.”
    He put his helmet on, laid his thumb flat onto the starter, and revved his bike to life. “Sure, Daria,” he shot back once his bike’s engine had quieted. “Whatever you say.”
    â€œAlejandro—”
    He kicked the throttle in and took off fast. His bike sped off over the stretch of desert. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Daria coming up right beside him.
    They sped over the sand at a rate that made speech impossible. It snatched their words straight from their lungs and scattered them to the wind. That was probably a good thing, considering the looks of death Daria shot him.
    His bike hovered about three feet off the ground and clung to the contours of the sand dunes. Alejandro angled the bike toward his temporary abode deep in the desert. It wasn’t very far from their final destination, the lair of the Shining Way.
    Alejandro turned his head to watch her. Her hands were curled tight on the handles of her bike, her pulser tucked securely in the holster around her waist. He let his gaze travel down her shapely legs, clad in snug-fitting cream-colored pants. His body tightened at the sight of her, and he shook his head at the realization.
    She still affected him.
    Even after all these years. Of all the women he’d ever known, she was the one who had touched him the most. She’d always been tough, and he’d admired that in her, but she hadn’t always been this hard . He remembered how