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stirred him furiously. His arms were pressed against her rib cage and her red lips were parted just enough
so that 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 was
as saucy in his mouth as she was in his lap.
Strangely enough, he couldn't resist playing with her. "Should I be offended?"
Callie bit her lower lip. He was teasing 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 frightening."
"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 scare 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 no more than glance down and she would see
proof enough of a horn that desired only 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?"
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"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 over 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 and decent, and they
deserved only the best that 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."
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"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. "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 mention ofthat ."
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 over whether or not he should tell her anything about his friend. Finally he spoke.
"He has many reasons, milady."
"Such as?"
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"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 fewmen 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 in her breath 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."
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