Sinjin

by J. A. Templeton

  Now he knew the truth. She had been fucking that scoundrel all along. How dare she humiliate him in such a way!

  Well, in two days’ time, they would be heading for Rose Alley, far away from the threat the other man presented. The moment the marriage vows had been read, he would get Katelyn with child, and she would be content to live a quiet life with just him and his sister in the country.

  Katelyn would no longer visit her sister or aunt, or her bitch of a neglectful mother for that matter. Her mother should have never allowed Katelyn to act as chaperone to Marilyn to begin with.

  He shook with fury.

  She would have to settle into the docile life of a married woman. Indeed, she would play the perfect hostess to his friends and associates. She would be seen and not heard.

  Ronald looked in the mirror and fussed with what little hair remained. He was not a handsome man, but he was extremely wealthy and titled, and never at a loss for female attention, much to his sister’s dismay. Meredith hated the interest other women paid him.

  Ronald started down the hall toward Katelyn’s chamber, and he nearly missed his step when the door opened and Sinjin Rayborne appeared. He looked disheveled, his shirt haphazardly pushed into his pants, his hair ruffled—as though someone had ran her fingers through it.

  A feminine hand pulled him back in, and Sinjin’s laughter was like a knife in Ronald’s heart.

  He backtracked to his room, stepped out onto a balcony, and caught his breath. To learn by way of his servant that his fiancée was being unfaithful was bad enough, but to see it with his own eyes was even more gutting.

  His trembling hands gripped the iron balcony. How tempted he was to have a drink in order to calm his nerves.

  Once he had his emotions under control, he started back toward Katelyn’s room, avoiding eye contact with a plain young woman and her escort. Perhaps he should have married someone plain, someone whom other men would not desire the way they desired Katelyn?

  Someone who resembled Meredith, his faithful, loyal Meredith. He would hate to hear what she had to say about the circumstances he now found himself in.

  He came to Katelyn’s door and opened it without knocking.

  Katelyn sat at the vanity, brushing out her hair. She whipped around, her eyes wide. “Ronald, what are you doing?” she asked, alarm in her voice.

  He glanced at the rumpled bedding, at the thin chemise, at the red, swollen lips. “I’ve come to see what you are up to, Katelyn.”

  She stood slowly, setting the brush aside. “I just woke from a nap.”

  “A nap?” He pursed his lips. She did not even blink an eye, but he sensed her nervousness, noted the way her throat convulsed as she swallowed hard. His gaze shifted from her innocent face, the beautiful features, to her long, statuesque body. The curve of her breasts and rose-colored nipples was evident through the thin material of the chemise, and he could even see the shadow of auburn hair that covered her sex.

  He walked toward her, and the closer he came, the angrier he became. How dare she make a fool of him—he, the man who had paid a small fortune for her hand?

  “Yes, a nap.” She must have sensed his fury because she took a quick step back, knocking the vanity against the wall and causing a bottle of perfume to fall off the ledge and onto the floor.

  Stopping inches from her, he noted she had to bend her head back to look up at him. When their gazes met and held, he recognized fear in those green depths.

  Good, let her fear him. She should fear him!

  He reached for her, pulled her close, and lifted her chemise with one hand. “You are no doubt still wet from him, aren’t you, you whore?”

  She wrenched away from him, pulling her chemise down. “How dare you!”

  Katelyn’s heart hammered in her chest. She saw the rage in Ronald’s eyes and knew she was in trouble.

  “Do you deny it?” he asked, a nerve pulsing in his jaw.

  “No,” she said, shocked by her bravery. She was tired of pretending. She was in love with Sinjin and she didn’t care who knew it, especially the man before her.

  He slapped her so hard she tasted blood, but she refused to cry out.

  “You slut! Did you think I wouldn’t find out?” His fingers slid around her arm and squeezed tight, his nails digging into her skin. His hand moved to her throat. She tried to scream, but his fingers squeezed tight and she started choking. “Do you like that?” he asked, his voice deadly calm.

  The door flew open and Aunt Lillith stood on the threshold, her eyes wide.

  * * *

  “Move away from Katelyn this instant, or so help me God, I shall bring this entire household down around us,” Aunt Lillith said, reaching for the door she had just closed. “And if I do—you will have a lot of explaining to do, my lord.”

  Ronald looked over his shoulder at her, the crazed look that had been there moments before replaced with shock that this was actually happening. He quickly moved to stand between Katelyn and her aunt.

  “If you do, be sure to tell everyone the truth of what she has done.”

  “Which is?” Lillith asked, taking a step closer.

  “Your niece has been fucking Sinjin Rayborne.”

  Lillith’s expression did not change, which told him she was not at all shocked by the news. “My niece has fallen in love with another man, which does not give you the right to abuse her.”

  “She has admitted to sleeping with him. My footman heard them as well, so there is no denying it.”

  “You have had your man watching her?” Lillith’s voice rose with every syllable.

  “Yes, and with good reason. I suspected the affair.”

  “So therefore you believe it is your right to abuse Katelyn?”

  “She is my betrothed.”

  Aunt Lillith’s eyes widened. “You offend me on every level, my lord. Get out of this room this instant before I throw you out myself.”

  Katelyn took the opportunity to slide away from Ronald. She took her robe off the back of the chair and wrapped it tight about her waist.

  Ronald straightened his jacket and lifted his chin high. “We are leaving immediately. My footman is already en route to Rose Alley to see that all the arrangements are made, and that the priest will be available to marry us.”

  “I will not marry you,” Katelyn said. “I do not love you, and I never have.”

  Aunt Lillith took Katelyn’s hand and squeezed it tight. “There, you have it—Katelyn no longer wishes to marry you.”

  “The marriage contract has been signed, and monies exchanged.”

  “I will return the funds you gave to my sister, with interest, of course,” Lillith said, matter-of-factly.

  “I don’t want your money.”

  Lillith cleared her throat. “I shall double what you paid for your trouble. Certainly that is more than fair.”

  “Are you deaf? I do not want your money, Lady Nordland,” he said with a snarl. “I will have Katelyn, and that is the end of the matter.”

  “My hearing is perfect, my lord.” Lillith took a step closer to Ronald. “The wedding is off. I shall see that the funds my sister took from you are repaid in full. Do not try and contact my niece in any way.” She turned on her heel and opened the door wide. “Good day, my lord.”

  Ronald didn’t budge. “If Katelyn does not marry me…I shall let everyone know of Marilyn’s true parentage.”

  Lillith swallowed hard and slowly closed the door.

  “My sister’s true parentage—whatever do you mean?” Katelyn asked, not liking the expression on her aunt’s face one bit.

  “Your sister is only your half-sister,” Ronald said, looking pleased. “You see, during your parents’ marriage, your whore of a mother slept with a servant, a lowly groomsman, who just so happens to be Marilyn’s father.”

  “That is a lie,” Katelyn said, but she could tell by her aunt’s expression that it must be true.

  “Ask your mother if you don’t take my word for it,” Ronald murm
ured. “In fact, ask your aunt.”

  Katelyn’s stomach tightened. She didn’t have to ask Lillith. Her silence said everything. “You cannot prove it.”

  Ronald laughed, a taunting sound that grated Katelyn’s nerves. “Your mother confirmed the information herself not two months ago when the marriage contract was signed. She does have a weakness for wine, does she not?”

  Katelyn felt the blood drain from her face. Her mother was loud and unusually talkative when she had more than a drink or two.

  “When your father was alive, he told me the story, and I never repeated it to anyone or brought it up, because I knew from the moment I saw you that I wanted you as my bride. That is why I have kept the information quiet for all this time. When I saw you again after all these years, after your father’s passing, I wanted to know what skeletons might be lurking in your family’s closet, so I asked your mother—assuring her all along that it would make no difference in my decision to marry you.” He pulled a kerchief from his waistcoat pocket and wiped the sweat off his brow. “So, you see, I must insist you become my wife, or I will tell the world what a whore your mother is, and that your sister is not a lord’s daughter at all, but the by-blow of a lowly servant. A bastard!”

  “You would want me even though I have given myself to another man?” Katelyn asked, incredulous.

  He flinched as though she had slapped him. His jaw tightened. “And I can forgive you that atrocity…this one time, but never again, my dear. You will wear a chastity belt if need be, but no one will touch you, save me.”

  Katelyn could only imagine the hell he would put her through if she was forced to marry him.

  “And what will you do if she does not marry you, aside from telling the world the secret?” Aunt Lillith asked.

  “I will tell everyone who will listen that Marilyn is a bastard and that Katelyn is Sinjin Rayborne’s mistress. A whore like her mother—and her sister—and the family name will be forever ruined. Even you with your titles, status, and great wealth will have to fight to save your position in Society, and I know how highly you regard your reputation.”

  Lillith lifted her chin and straightened her shoulders. “I do not take kindly to threats, my lord.”

  His lips thinned. “This is no threat. It is a promise. Either Katelyn marries me, or I shall tell the world about your family.”

  “Every family has secrets,” Lillith said, a strange tone to her voice.

  Katelyn’s legs suddenly felt too weak to hold her. As much as she detested Lord Balliford, she knew she would marry him rather than ruin Marilyn and the rest of her family.

  Aunt Lillith opened the door. “Lord Balliford, I would ask that you leave so that my niece may have time to consider her options.”

  His gaze shifted between them. “I would think there would be nothing to consider.”

  “You have already abused her. I see the bruises forming near her eye and the marks around her neck. I am not opposed to telling everyone what you have done.”

  His lips quirked. “Do you threaten me, Lady Nordland?”

  “I have dealt with men like you before, my lord. Do not think to bully me, for I will not have it.”

  His gaze shifted to Katelyn. “I suggest you think long and hard about your answer, my dear. Your family’s future is at stake. I shall return to my chamber and give you the opportunity to consider your options—or lack thereof.” His gaze shifted over Katelyn. “And for God’s sake, freshen up. You reek of his cologne.”

  “I shall meet you downstairs in one hour with my niece’s answer,” Aunt Lillith remarked.

  “You truly are a bitch. I can see why your husband preferred others to you.”

  Aunt Lillith opened her mouth but closed it just as quickly.

  He walked out of the chamber, and Lillith shut the door firmly behind him.

  “Aunt Lillith—I am so sorry.”

  “Do not apologize. None of this is your fault.”

  “What will I do? I cannot have him telling everyone about Marilyn’s true parentage.”

  “Nor can you marry that monster.”

  “But if I don’t marry him, he will try and destroy us. I know him and what he is capable of.”

  Aunt Lillith sat down in the nearest chair and ran a hand down her face. “I am so angry with your mother, forever shirking her duty to you and Marilyn. Had she only been honest with us from the very beginning, none of this would have happened. I would have gladly paid off your father’s debts and given you and your sister the coming out you both deserved. We would have never found ourselves in such a position.”

  “But you heard Ronald. He said Father told him the truth years ago.”

  “Yes, and he filed the information away to use against us at a later date.” She shook her head. “Of all the nerve!”

  “Poor, poor Marilyn. She will be devastated if she discovers the truth.”

  “But you cannot make it right by marrying Ronald, because knowing him, he will hold the information and use it against you every chance he gets. Life as his wife would be intolerable, Katie. You would be in purgatory forever. Why should you be held accountable for the sins of your parents?” She took a deep breath, released it. “We will be honest with Marilyn and tell her the truth before someone else does. Also, tell your mother you know what she has done, and that she must be the one to pay the price. If the tables were turned, I would rather be a social pariah than know my niece is married to an intolerable man who beats her—because heed my words, he will beat and rape you if you were to marry him.”

  Katelyn glanced at her reflection in the mirror. A red mark in the shape of a handprint already showed on her pale skin, and her eye had started to swell. By this evening, a bruise will have formed, and everyone will know that something grim had transpired.

  “You love someone else, Katelyn, and you have given yourself to that man. You need not apologize for it.”

  “I could not help myself, Aunt Lillith. Sinjin makes me so happy.”

  “Which is exactly why we must find Marilyn and speak with her before Ronald does.”

  “Speak with me about what?”

  Aunt Lillith jumped at the sound of Marilyn’s voice.

  Marilyn shut the door behind her and glanced from Katelyn to Aunt Lillith and back again. “What is wrong?”

  Katelyn and Lillith shared a look, and Katelyn nodded. “Go ahead, tell her.”

  Lillith cleared her throat. “My dear, there is no easy way for me to say this, so I shall just come out with it. You and Katelyn have different fathers.”

  Marilyn’s eyes widened, and she folded her hands in front of her and was silent for a few minutes. Taking a deep breath, she released it. “Well…that explains a lot, doesn’t it?”

  Katelyn had expected a completely different response.

  “Father always treated us differently. I never sensed any affection from him, and didn’t you ever wonder why he had little patience with me?”

  “I am sorry, Marilyn.” Katelyn walked toward her and gave her a hug.

  “So who is my father?”

  Lillith cleared her throat. “He was a servant who worked for your family many years ago. Understandingly, he was sent away shortly after the truth was discovered.”

  “A servant?” Marilyn stepped away from Katelyn, went to the window, and looked out. “Why tell me now?”

  “Because your sister has fallen in love with Sinjin Rayborne and wishes to call off her wedding, and Lord Balliford knows the truth of your parentage and is threatening to use the information if Katelyn does not marry him.”

  Marilyn shook her head and turned to Katelyn. “And you would marry Balliford so he will remain quiet.”

  Katelyn nodded. “Yes, I would.”

  The sides of Marilyn’s mouth lifted, but the smile did not reach her eyes. “You are very kind, Kate—but I honestly do not care what anyone thinks of me. Indeed, perhaps now I will not have to worry about Mother pushing me into a marriage with the likes of Lord Balliford, becau
se no titled man will want me.” For the first time in days she laughed, and Aunt Lillith smiled.

  “There you have it, Katelyn. I will speak with Lord Balliford and tell him that the marriage is off for good. I want the two of you to prepare for tonight’s festivities. No matter what happens, you will hold your heads high.”

  Relief washed over Katelyn in waves.

  20

  Katelyn had never been so happy in all her life. Ronald had left Claymoore Hall, and Sinjin’s mother had given him her approval to marry her.

  She could not believe her good fortune. Thank God she had come to the party, and had met the man who had changed her life so completely. Sinjin Rayborne, thirteenth viscount of Mawbry, was going to be her husband. They would have a houseful of children, and life as she knew it would be heaven on earth.

  Oh happy day!

  If only Marilyn could find such happiness. Her poor sister had taken the news that she was not their father’s legitimate daughter surprisingly well. She had made mention to Katelyn before they came downstairs that she had always wondered, given the fact that their father had red hair, their mother blonde, and Marilyn’s hair was so dark.

  Marilyn came up from behind Katelyn and hugged her tight. “You are positively glowing, dear sister.”

  “I am happy.”

  “I can tell.” Marilyn’s blue eyes sparkled.

  “How are you?”

  “Wonderful, now that I know you will no longer be marrying that old sod. Instead, you shall be Lady Mawbry.” She gave a shiver. “What a difference a few days can make.”

  “I hope that you will find someone you truly love, Marilyn.”

  “Perhaps I shall find such a person in London.”

  “London?”

  “Yes, Aunt Lillith says I can stay with her this summer.”

  “And will you?”

  “Yes, most definitely. I hadn’t realized how very much I missed her until she arrived at Claymoore Hall.”

  Lillith extracted herself from one of the other chaperones and handed them each a glass of punch. “That woman can talk your ear off if you allow her to.” Her eyes widened. “I thought I would never get away.”