Chapter 4 #4
If she married Lord Sin, they could go home safely.
Like it or not, she would submit to this marriage and trust in the Lord above to see her through it and to know what was best. Surely, it must be His will, otherwise they would have succeeded by now and been on their way home. This day had been an omen and Callie believed whole-heartedly in omens.
Tomorrow Lord Sin would be her husband.
She watched Sin mount his horse. He slid gracefully into the saddle like the born warrior he was and sat proudly on the back of his horse with his long hair shining in the daylight.
He was a fine sight to be sure—handsome, strong.
The kind of man a woman dreamed about at night and hoped to see just once in the flesh.
And he could be hers...
The hand he extended to her was both powerful and tender. He might not be her first choice for husband, but there was kindness in him. Fairness too.
If only he were of Scot’s blood.
Still, there were far worse men to be married to.
“Milord?” she asked as he settled her before him. “What will you do to my people when you take me home?”
Sin clenched his teeth at her question. The very idea of returning to Scotland made him ill. If he had his way about it, he’d never again venture there.
Of course, he did have his brothers there and while he was with her, he would make a point of seeing them. They alone made the idea of leaving England tolerable.
“I will ensure Henry’s peace is kept,” he told her. “So long as your men refrain from raiding his people, I will do naught.” What Sin didn’t tell her was that he intended to find the so-called Raider, put an end to the man’s mischief, then get himself out of their marriage as quickly as possible.
But even as the thought swept through his mind, he became aware of the woman before him. The way she smelled and felt in his arms. She was warm and soft, a gentle balm to soothe him.
He’d never held a woman like this. Never even dared hope for any kind of comfort in his life.
Comfort. He sneered at the word. Comfort was for weak-minded fools. He didn’t need it and he damn sure didn’t want it.
He would do what he had to for Henry’s peace and then he would be back to fulfill his oath of loyalty. That was his life and he had no desire for it to change. He had fought too long and hard for his peace of mind to let this little bit of baggage in his lap come along and rattle him.
“So,” he said quietly as he looked down at her. She had her head tilted to study his hands. “You’re going through with this marriage, then?”
She glanced at him over her shoulder and he caught a whiff of her light lavender scent. The smell of her stirred him furiously. Worse, his arms were pressed against her rib cage and her red lips were parted just enough to where he could easily claim her mouth for a passionate kiss.
The thought fired his body even more. The devil preserve him, he wanted this woman in a way most desperate.
She stared at his lips as if she felt the heat between them. As if she, too, were dreaming of the kiss he longed to give her.
“I see no way to avoid it,” she said quietly. “Do you?”
He smiled at the hopeful note in her voice. “Nay, lady, I don’t. But I am working on it.”
The smile on her face bedazzled him. “In that case, good luck. I wish you much success.”
Sin shook his head at her. She was a rare treat. One he would love to take a bite of and see if she were as saucy in his mouth as she was in his lap.
Strangely enough, he couldn’t resist teasing her. “Should I be offended?”
Callie bit her lower lip. He was jesting with her. The light in his eyes said as much. Charmed by his uncharacteristic behavior, she teased back. “Nay, no offense intended. You’re actually very nice when you’re not trying to be scary.”
“Nice?” he asked in disbelief. “That is probably the only title no one has ever heaped upon my head.”
“No one?”
“No one.”
Callie pulled back to look up at him. “It must frighten you then, to know I know the truth of you when no one else does.”
Lord Sin arched a brow at her. “Who says that is the truth of me?”
“I do and unless you have a horn to pull out and show me otherwise, I shall never believe anything else of you.”
Sin cleared his throat at her words. The woman need do nothing more than glance down and she would see proof enough of a horn that desired mightily to be naughty with the nymph in his lap.
Oh, the spirit of this wench and the education he would kill to give her. He could just imagine her lying naked in his arms, her breasts pressed up against him. The taste of her flesh on his tongue.
She was a temptress without equal.
“Tell me,” he whispered, “why it is you, alone, hold no fear of me?”
“I can’t imagine. Surely, I am foolish. Aelfa assures me you eat small children every morn to break your fast. Do you?”
“Nay, I find them to be too harsh on the belly. All that moving around once they’re swallowed. Not worth the effort really.”
She laughed, and it was a truly enchanting sound. This had to be the most peculiar conversation he’d ever had in his life.
She pushed a stray piece of copper hair back beneath her veil. “Does anyone other than me know you can be playful?”
Sin scoffed. “Playful? Milady, your fire is missing a few logs if you think that of me.”
“More’s the pity then.”
“How so?”
“We all need to play from time to time. Is that not right, Simon?”
Sin glanced to see Simon eavesdropping. The man nodded. “Indeed it is, milady. But I can attest, Sin has never known a moment’s worth of it. Not even as a child.”
A deep frown crossed her brow as she regarded Sin. “Is that true?”
“Not entirely. I did have a few years of fun with my brothers and a moment or two with Simon in our youth.”
Her frown lightened, putting a sudden glow into her light green eyes. “You have brothers?”
“Aye. I had four of them.”
“Had?”
“One died a few years back.”
The joy left her face and to his amazement, she gently patted his arm in sympathy. “I’m very sorry for the loss. You must miss him much.”
In truth, he did. Though he hadn’t seen Kieran since Kieran was Jamie’s age, Sin still held fond memories of his younger brother.
The knowledge that his brothers had all been home and were being cared for was the only thing that had made his hell bearable growing up.
As he had suffered at the hands of Harold and the others, he had reminded himself that if not for him, one of his brothers would have been tortured in his place.
Better he should be beaten and humiliated than any of them. They were good, decent men and they deserved only the best life could provide for them.
“We have a brother, too,” Jamie said. “Dermot the doormat.”
“Jamie!” Caledonia snapped. “He would have your head for that.”
“It’s better than what he calls me.”
“Your older brother?” Sin asked her.
“Nay. I am the eldest.”
He nodded. “That explains much.”
“Much of what?”
“The way you treat Jamie. The way you’re so determined to get home even when you know you stand no chance.”
Callie frowned at him as she gained an insight of her own. “You are the eldest?”
He gave a subtle nod.
They reined to a stop just before the stable. Simon slid down with Jamie while Sin helped her down.
“Simon, can you see her back to her room without—”
Simon cleared his throat loudly. “Remember, there will be no mentioning of that.”
Sin smiled wryly. “Fine. Can you get her back without any more of that-which-will-remain-unmentioned happening again. Or do I need to hire a bodyguard for you as well?”
Callie bit her lip impishly. “We will play nicely with Simon, won’t we, Jamie?’
“If you say so, Callie.”
She watched as Sin left them. Then, she reached for Jamie’s hand and walked back to the castle with Simon by her side. “Simon, how long have you known Lord Sin?”
“He was nine when King Stephen sent him to foster with my stepfather.”
So, he had known him for quite some time. That was good. Mayhap this knight could help her better understand the man who would be her husband.
As they entered the castle, Jamie pulled away from her and bounded up the stairs ahead of them.
“Know you why he is so sad?” she asked.
Simon gave her a suspicious stare. “How did you—”
“His eyes. He hides it well, but every now and again I see it.”
Simon took a deep breath as they climbed the dark stairs. A muscle worked in his jaw as if he were warring within himself on whether or not he should tell her anything about his friend. Finally, he spoke. “He has many reasons, milady.”
“Such as?”
“I was just a boy when Sin was brought to us, but I remember that night vividly. King Stephen’s men had been unkind to him on his long journey to our home and when he entered the great hall, his eyes were blackened from punches.
His nose was still bleeding and his lips and jaw swollen.
It looked as if they had dragged him the whole way to Ravenswood over the roughest roads they could find.
“They had shackled him in irons about his neck and hands. Still, he stood erect and faced Harold of Ravenswood with a strength and dignity few men possessed. The old earl was renowned only for his cruelty and love of all things brutal, and as such even the stoutest of heart was known to grow a bit pale when they looked upon him. And yet here was a boy who stood without flinching. One who met the earl with his lips curled and his eyes narrowed in hatred. Harold asked him how it came to be that he held such courage before him.”
Simon dropped his voice and whispered in her ear so that Jamie wouldn’t overhear his words. “Sin said he was hell-spawned from the loins of a whore and sired by a heartless bastard.”
She sucked her breath in at such horrendous words. She could barely imagine a child saying such.
“He told Harold that he had no soul and there was nothing Harold could ever do to hurt him.” His eyes bleak, Simon sighed. “All I can say to that is that Harold took up that challenge and did everything he could to make Sin bow down to him in fear.”