Braden by Allyson James Read Free Book Online

pissed off about something. Patrollers
always did.
    The stranger took his ident card from his pocket and handed
it over. The woman shoved the strip into her handheld, touched the screen and
scowled. “Justin? That’s your name?”
    “Ever since they hauled my baby ass out of the vat.”
    “It says here that you were shipped off planet twenty-five
years ago.”
    “I know that. No law that a Shareem can’t come back to Bor Narga, is there? I checked.”
    She gave him a suspicious stare. “Why did you come back?”
    Justin shrugged. “I have my reasons.” None of which I’m
telling you.
    The patroller punched a few things into her handheld before
it spit out the ident card again. “I’m calling this in,” she said, handing the
strip to him. “A Shareem returning to Bor Narga on purpose can’t be up to any
good.”
    “You just keep on believing that, sweetheart.”
    Justin tucked his ident card into his pocket, swirled his
sun-blocking robes over his shoulders and strode away.
    Fucking patrollers. They hadn’t changed a bit.
    Just as Justin stepped out of the spaceport, the sandstorm
alert went off. He and everyone else turned around and went right back into the
building.
    Heavy steel doors slammed behind them and, a few seconds
later, the spaceport shook with screaming wind. Sand hit the doors and the
shielded ceiling with hurricane force.
    Justin breathed a sigh as he leaned against a wall to wait it
out.
    Home, sweet home.
    * * * * *
    Judith’s bar had mostly emptied before the sandstorm hit,
leaving Elisa, Braden and Judith alone. Judith locked down the storm doors and
went upstairs to make sure everything was secure up there.
    Elisa watched a tiny wave of sand seep in under the door,
but other than that, the building seemed sturdy. She had her breath mask just
in case, but a sandstorm could strip the flesh from a person’s body within
seconds.
    “Are you sure this place is airtight?” Elisa asked.
    “As airtight as any bar in the slums can be,” Braden said.
“Don’t fret, love. Judith keeps her place up to code. She knows people.”
    The wind pounded at the walls and sand slapped at the storm
shielding over the tiny windows.
    Braden’s arm still lay across the back of her chair.
“Consider this quiet time to answer my question about your celibacy. No one
here but us. Judith is giving us space.”
    “It’s personal,” Elisa said.
    “Damn right it’s personal. Tell you what. If you answer a
personal question for me, I’ll answer one for you.”
    “One that’s not in a database?”
    He considered. “Sure.”
    Elisa let out her breath and nodded. “Then that sounds
equitable.”
    “ Equitable .” Braden laughed, the sound grating like
the sand. “Oh, baby, I love the way you talk. Do you ever say wherewithal ?”
    “Sometimes.”
    “I knew it.” Braden took another swallow of ale and pushed
the glass aside. “Now tell me. Why celibacy?”
    Elisa had her pat answer ready. Because I believe in the
Way. I believe in ridding the intellect of the anchor of bodily pleasures.
    But for some reason, she wanted to tell Braden, if no one
else in her life, the truth.
    “To get out of a bad marriage,” she said.
    Braden blinked. “What? No shit.”
    “No.” She gave him a little smile. “I wasn’t married yet.
Engaged. Officially. It was an arranged marriage. I was fine with it, because I
wanted to do my duty and provide an heir for the family.”
    It was every highborn woman’s lot to provide an heir to take
over the family wealth. Morgan had been the perfect male for the job—right
lineage, right social circle, right friends, right everything.
    “So what happened?” Braden asked.
    “He was pleasant enough during the courtship and the
contract meetings. Escorted me to society functions, helped my mother, made
himself agreeable to my friends. Everyone liked him.”
    “But…”
    Elisa laughed a little. “Once all the contracts were signed
he turned into the most self-centered and