A Taste of Sin

by Mason, Connie

  “And you look handsome as always.”

  He offered her his arm. “Shall we go?”

  “If we must, my lord.”

  A crush of carriages was lined up before the Dempseys’ townhouse on King Street off fashionable St. James Square. The marquess’s carriage waited in line to discharge its passengers. When their turn came, Sinjun and Christy descended and entered the mansion. They left their wraps with a maid and joined the procession upstairs to the ballroom.

  “Derby, quite a crush, what?” a man standing on the stair above them said. “I told Huxley we should have gone to Boodles instead.”

  “No women at Boodles,” Huxley said. “Besides, as I told Ashford, the food is better here.”

  “Indeed,” Sinjun acknowledged.

  Both men were staring intently at Christy, obviously waiting for an introduction. When none was forthcoming, Huxley said, “Gossip has it your wife is in town. Did you know someone has placed a wager on the betting books at White’s concerning that very subject? There’s even a wager that you got an heir on your wife.”

  “The devil you say!”

  “Aye, ‘tis true. Some of the wagers are quite hefty.”

  Amusement colored Sinjun’s words. “And how did you bet, Huxley?”

  Huxley grinned at Christy. “Lord Sin bringing his wife to London? Never. As for begetting an heir with a savage Scotswoman, it sounded too farfetched to me. Lord Sin has a reputation to uphold, after all. I went with the odds.”

  “I say old man, are you going to introduce us to your latest paramour?” Ashford asked. “She looks familiar. Do I know her?”

  “Indeed you do not,” Sinjun insisted in a voice that brooked no argument. “Gentlemen, permit me to introduce my wife, Lady Derby. I hope you didn’t wager too steeply for I do indeed have an heir. His name is Niall, and he’s all of six months old. A handsome little fellow if I do say so myself. My dear, these two somewhat addled gentlemen are Lord Huxley and Lord Ashford.”

  Both men had the presence of mind to murmur appropriate greetings and bow over Christy’s hand. They appeared enormously relieved when they reached the entrance to the ballroom, where they could hurry off.

  “That enlightening bit of information will spread like wildfire in less time than it will take us to make our way to the buffet table,” Sinjun said.

  Why did he sound so pleased? “Is that what you wanted?”

  “‘Tis time my wife was introduced to London society. Besides, I am inordinately proud of my Soon they were besieged by people, all insisting on being introduced to Lord Derby’s wife. Christy’s head was in a tizzy—so many faces, so many names. She knew some of the ladies present must have been intimately involved with Sinjun at one time or another, for their smug smiles suggested more than friendship.

  During the course of the night she danced with Sinjun and several of his friends, smiling until she thought her face would crack. When Lord Huxley tended to hold her too close during one of the dances, Sinjun was suddenly beside her, dragging her from Huxley’s arms into his own. From then on he rarely allowed her out of his sight.

  Sinjun found it difficult to remain civil to the gossipmongers and others he had once called friends. They prodded and probed and insinuated until he could stand it no longer. The last straw came when Lady Alice, on the arm of her latest lover, intercepted them and asked Christy point-blank if she intended to overlook her husband’s infidelities during her stay in London.

  He almost laughed aloud when Christy said, “I intend to overlook anything that poses no threat to me.

  He dragged her off to save her from Alice’s venom, but in truth he suspected she could hold her own with anyone. She was, after all, the Macdonald chieftain, laird of the clan.

  “Where are we going?” Christy asked when Sinjun suddenly pulled her from the ballroom and down the stairs.

  “Home,” Sinjun said curtly. All the men slavering over her had driven him to distraction. The ton’s interest in his wife annoyed him excessively. “Wait here while I summon the coachman.”

  Christy was standing at the door when Sinjun returned a short time later with the coach. He handed her inside, closed the door, and rapped on the roof to signal the driver. Wheels spun and the coach rattled off down the street.

  “I’ve waited all night for this,” Sinjun growled as he pulled her roughly into his arms. “You’re mine, Christy Macdonald, don’t ever forget it, no matter how much the ton fawns over you, and tonight I’m going to prove it.”

  Sinjun had never looked more like Lord Sin than he did at this moment. He was the most exciting man she had ever known. Her body ached for his touch, her heart pined for his love.

  Chapter 16

  Christy’s last remaining thoughts fled as Sinjun plucked her from the seat and settled her on his lap. His hands seemed to be everywhere. Beneath her skirts, skimming her legs, touching her intimately in places that set her blood afire.

  “Too … many clothes,” he muttered. “Can’t get them … off … I need to…”

  “Sinjun! We can’t. The driver.”

  He appeared not to hear. “Need to … bury myself … inside you.”

  His hot looks and arousing words were doing strange things to her insides. She shoved her skirts down, but he yanked them back up. Then he grasped her waist and lifted her astride him. She felt his thick shaft slide inside her, and a moan slipped past her lips. She hadn’t even been aware that he’d unfastened his breeches. Then all thought ceased as he began to thrust and withdraw, piercing her deeply as he grasped her hips, adjusting her to the heavy thrust and drag of his shaft.

  A startling heat swept through her as he pulled down the bodice of her dress, freeing her breasts to his mouth. He suckled her nipples, first one then the other, eliciting a ragged sigh from her. When he pressed his hand between their bodies and massaged the hard little button protecting the entrance of her sex, shivery heat roared through her and a raging current carried her upward. Her climax seemed to go on forever, so volatile she wasn’t aware of Sinjun’s shout as he released his seed inside her. She was aware of nothing but unspeakable pleasure. Then he lifted her away and pulled down her skirts.

  “We’re nearly home,” he whispered.

  “Oh, God, what will the coachman think of me, of us?”

  “We’re married, for God’s sake. He’ll just think the ton are strange people who prefer a coach to a bed, if he thinks anything at all.”

  The coach ground to a halt, and Christy gave a little cry of distress as she pulled her bodice firmly in place and smoothed her skirts down. Before she was ready, the door opened and the coachman pulled the steps down. Sinjun descended first and lifted Christy down. Christy averted her face away from the coachman as she hurried up the front stairs. She gave a sigh of relief when Sinjun fitted the key in the lock and ushered her inside.

  Christy hurried off to check on Niall, ashamed of the way she had responded to Sinjun. Had she no pride, no shame? He was using her and she knew it. Unfortunately love made one do foolish things.

  Sinjun, wearing nothing but a silk robe, was waiting in her chamber when she entered.

  “Undress,” he ordered crisply as he shrugged out of the robe.

  Christy stared at him. “You’re insatiable.”

  “Are you complaining?”

  “There were dozens of women at the ball tonight. Did none of them spark your interest?”

  The look he gave her was fiercely possessive, wildly passionate. “Aye. One did. She’s standing before me, wearing too many clothes.”

  The rest of the night passed in a sensual blur. Sinjun’s ravenous kisses were just a prelude to the splendor that followed. Their naked bodies mated, clung, exploded in unmatched passion two more times before the sun peeped through the curtains. Christy was sleeping soundly when Sinjun left her bed.

  She awoke hours later to the sound of loud voices in the foyer. She made a quick toilette, but by the time she fed Niall and descended the stairs, the visitors she ha
d heard had moved into the study. She approached the door and reached for the knob. The door was ajar. She paused with her hand on the knob when she heard her name mentioned.

  “Is it true, Sinjun? I just returned to Town and happened to stop in at White’s. Gossip has it that you’re living in connubial bliss with your wife. What in bloody hell is going on?”

  “If you’d stay in town longer than a fortnight you’d know what was going on, Julian,” Sinjun retorted.

  “What is Christy Macdonald doing in London?” Julian demanded to know. “She was the one who wanted the annulment.”

  “There was no annulment. I never filed the document.”

  “You deserve better than Christy,” a female voice interjected.

  Sinjun’s sister, Christy thought, recognizing the voice.

  “There’s something neither of you are aware of,” Sinjun retorted.

  “I saw Christy several weeks ago,” Emma revealed. “I warned her to stay away from you. I told her she’d only hurt you again.”

  “You saw her?” Sinjun asked, astounded. “When? Where? Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “She was working as a seamstress in a shop I often frequent. You can be sure I had the owner discharge her straightaway. I didn’t tell you because I thought you were better off not knowing.”

  “And so he was,” Christy said as she pushed open the door and walked into the room. “I had no intention of telling Sinjun I was in London.”

  Julian stepped forward. “We met once, Lady Christy, under quite different circumstances. We were all under the misapprehension that you were Lady Flora, Sinjun’s mistress of the moment.”

  Guilt rode Christy. Julian’s stern features and censuring words lent her little comfort She knew immediately that Julian was not a man to cross. “I apologize for that.”

  “Indeed. I feel there’s an explanation for all this confusion but I vow I cannot think of one. I’d like to think the death of your child affected your sanity in some way, and that you finally came to your senses. Have you come to London to ask Sinjun’s forgiveness?”

  “How dare she!” Emma charged. “Sinjun owes her nothing after the way she hurt him. She doesn’t deserve to be pardoned.”

  Christy winced. Emma’s words hurt.

  “Would you care to explain, Christy?” Sinjun asked.

  “Would you believe me?”

  “No, but they might.”

  “Then I have nothing to say. If you’ll excuse me, I have duties elsewhere.”

  “Nay, stay here.” He strode to the door. “Don’t any of you leave until I return.”

  “What in the world,” Emma said, sending Christy a disgruntled look. “I don’t know why he puts up with you.”

  “That’s enough, Emma,” Julian chided. “Obviously there are circumstances neither of us are aware of.”

  Niall, Christy thought with despair. They don’t know about my bairn. When they found out, they would hate her as much as Sinjun did.

  When Sinjun returned a few minutes later with Niall in his arms, a hush fell over the room. Emma was the first to speak.

  “Sinjun, that’s a baby!”

  “Aye, my son. His name is Niall. He’s six months old.”

  Julian sent Christy a look so filled with reproach that she had to look away. “Is that the same baby you were told had died at birth?”

  “As you can see, he’s very much alive,” Sinjun said.

  Her violet eyes ripe with resentment, Emma rounded on Christy. “Oh, no, how could you lie to my brother about a child’s life?” She reached for Niall, and Sinjun placed him into her arms. “He’s adorable,” she crooned, gazing lovingly into his tiny face. “He’s the picture of you, Sinjun. You must love him a great deal or you wouldn’t allow his mother into your home.”

  Sinjun sent Christy a look that sent despair racing through her. He would never forgive her, but if she ever doubted his love for his son, his words soon set her straight. “I adore Niall. I didn’t think it possible to love another human being the way I love my son.”

  Christy flinched. She knew Sinjun didn’t love her, but did he have to rub it in?

  “So where do you go from here?” the ever practical Julian asked. “I heard you introduced your wife to society last night. Does that mean you intend to have a real marriage?”

  “Christy will return to Scotland soon,” Sinjun exclaimed.

  “You’ll never take Niall away from me, Sinjun,” Christy vowed. “He’s all I have.”

  “Oh, look,” Emma said, clearly enthralled by her nephew. “He’s fallen asleep.”

  “I’ll take him up to his room,” Sinjun said, holding out his arms.

  “Let me,” Emma implored. “He’s so sweet.”

  “I’ll show you the way,” Christy offered, eager to escape the censure clearly visible in Julian’s hard gaze.

  Christy preceded Emma up the stairs. When she reached Niall’s room, she opened the door and followed Emma inside. Emma placed the lad carefully in his bed, then turned to Christy, her dark gaze probing relentlessly for the secrets Christy had tried to conceal.

  “I don’t think you’ve told us everything,” she said quietly. “Sometimes another woman sees things men don’t. You love Sinjun. I can tell by the way you look at him. What haven’t you told us, Christy? When I look into your eyes I see pain and disappointment, and … aye, fear. Who do you fear?”

  Was she that obvious? “You’re very astute for one so young.”

  “I’m nineteen,” Emma replied. “My brothers, like all men, can be dunces at times. I’ve changed my mind about you. I think you need a friend. At first I was too angry to realize there was more involved here than met the eye. I hope you’ll trust me enough to confide in me.”

  Christy truly did need a friend, someone besides Effie, who tended to mink the worst of Sinjun because he was English. But trusting Emma was no easy task. If Sinjun had refused to listen to her explanation, why would Emma believe her? She had done nothing to earn the trust of Sinjun or his family.

  “What is it, Christy? I know something is bothering you. There has to be a good reason why you told Sinjun his son hadn’t lived past birth.”

  Worn down by Emma’s persistence and needing desperately to unburden herself, Christy motioned Emma away from Mall’s bed. “Come into my room. I don’t want to awaken Niall.”

  Seated next to Emma on the bed, Christy stared down at her hands and said, “I told Sinjun that our bairn had died to save his life.”

  Emma’s eyes narrowed, apparently unconvinced. “Sinjun’s life was in danger? How is it he didn’t know?”

  “While Sinjun was in London for Sir Oswald’s trial, Calum Cameron threatened Sinjun’s life should he return to Glenmoor. Calum wanted me for himself, or rather, he wanted the power that belonged to me. He thought he could have what he wanted by killing Sinjun and marrying me. I did what I had to in order to keep Sinjun from returning to the Highlands.”

  “So you wrote him a letter telling him you wanted to wed Calum Cameron.”

  “Aye, but I wasn’t certain that would be enough to keep him away. Then I remembered the writ of annulment Sinjun had brought to Glenmoor for my signature, and I tried to convince Calum that once the annulment was signed and sent back to Sinjun, he would dissolve our marriage, leaving me free to marry Calum.”

  “Did Calum believe you?”

  “No. Then I suggested that I tell Sinjun our bairn had died at birth, for then there was no reason for him to return to the Highlands.”

  “It worked,” Emma said softly. “He was devastated. The child you carried meant a great deal to him. I never thought I’d see the day Sinjun would willingly retire Lord Sin, but I swear he would have, had your letter not arrived. Why did you come to London?”

  “Calum was becoming impatient. Assuming that my marriage was no longer valid, he intended to force me into a handfast marriage and send Niall away to be raised by strangers. I couldn’t allow that. God must have heard my prayers, for Calum was
wounded in a raid shortly before the ceremony. I fled to London while he was recovering from his wounds.

  “I knew Sinjun would hate me if he discovered I’d lied about Niall, so I tried to keep out of his way. Then you told me about Sinjun’s race toward self-destruction and I had to see him, to learn for myself what my lies had wrought.” She flushed and looked away, recalling the night Sinjun had discovered her identity. “Unfortunately he saw through my disguise and eventually learned about Niall. He hates me. He wants to take Niall away from me,” she said on a sob.

  “Did you explain all this to Sinjun?”

  Christy gave a bitter laugh. “He refuses to listen to my explanation. Lord knows I tried.”

  “I’ll tell him,” Emma said. “He’ll believe me.”

  “No! Promise you will say nothing about what we discussed here. Sinjun needs to hear this from me. I want him to believe me, to trust me. If he doesn’t have faith in me, then we have no future.”

  Emma took her hand. “You love him very much, don’t you?”

  “Is it that obvious?”

  'To me it is.”

  “Have you ever been in love, Lady Emma?”

  “You’re my sister-in-law, please call me Emma. And no, I’ve never been in love. Perhaps I will never marry. I compare all men with my brothers, and they don’t measure up. Men my age are too immature, and those older are usually looking for a drudge for their motherless children or a brood mare to give them an heir. Some are only interested in my fortune.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “I’m not,” Emma said brightly. “Maybe someday I’ll find the right man. Is there anything I can do to help you and Sinjun?”

  “Thank you, but no. Just unburdening myself has helped. Until Sinjun is ready to hear my explanation, there is nothing anyone can do.”

  Emma looked pointedly at the bed, her eyebrow arched inquisitively.

  Christy flushed clear down to her toes. “I’m good enough for that. He just can’t seem to forgive the lies and deception that have plagued our association from the beginning. I know I was wrong and pray that one day he will forgive me.”