Read Online A Taste of Sin by Connie Mason - Free Book Online Page A

Sinjun ordered the coach bearing the Derby coat of arms to be brought around. He wanted everything to be perfect for his first public appearance with his new mistress. As the coachman drove him to Belgrave Square, Sinjun was already wishing the evening over. He couldn’t wait to have Flora’s sweet body all to himself.
    For tonight’s outing Christy chose a gown fashioned of gold tissue, deliberately shunning dampened gauze, which many of the other ladies would be wearing. The gown, fitted at the waist, had drop sleeves that bared her shoulders and allowed a tempting peek at the creamy tops of her breasts. A hooped petticoat worn beneath her gown added fullness to the skirt. Christy had never worn anything so fine and thought the coin well spent. At home her usual attire consisted of the Macdonald plaid and homespun.
    “Yer a vision,” Margot sighed, putting the final touches on Christy’s hair. “Yer sure to dazzle that scoundrel ye married. Make him fall in love with ye, Christy. ‘Twould serve the devil right.”
    “I don’t want Sinjun’s love,” Christy argued. “Just his bairn.”
    Margot sent her a sharp look. “Just make sure ye dinna fall in love with him, lass.”
    “Fear not, Margot. My heart is well guarded against the likes of men like Lord Sin.”
    Margot left shortly afterward to await Sinjun’s arrival. When Christy heard the rumble of Sinjun’s voice below stairs a short time later, her heart did a curious flip-flop. She had anticipated his arrival all day, and now that the moment had come she felt all aflutter with excitement. She wasn’t supposed to feel anything for Sinjun, she berated herself. The rake had tupped half the women in London without a thought for the wife he had deserted.
    Then the door opened and Margot stepped inside the room. “He’s here, Christy. Are ye ready?”
    Christy dragged in a sustaining breath and nodded as she moved past Margot into the hall. She saw Sinjun waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs, looking so breathtakingly handsome she forgot to breathe. She saw the swift appraisal and fierce look of desire that hardened his face and knew she pleased him. When his sensual mouth curved into a smile, she renewed her vow to harden her heart against him lest she lose it.
    Apparently not content to wait for her at the bottom of the stairs, Sinjun sprinted halfway up to meet her. He offered his arm, and they descended together. When they reached the bottom, Christy gave a squeal of surprise when he pulled her into his arms and kissed her soundly. After thoroughly exploring her mouth, he set her away from him and gave her a cheeky grin.
    “Sorry, sweetheart, I couldn’t wait. I’ve been thinking about kissing you all day.” He threaded her arm in his. “Do you have a wrap?”
    Margot appeared from the dark reaches of the house with a fringed shawl and half mask. Sinjun draped the shawl over her shoulders and handed her the mask. Then he ushered her to his carriage and handed her inside. He sat beside her, so close that his masculine scent enveloped her in a sensual haze. She sniffed appreciatively of his cologne and that underlying musky odor she remembered so well from the previous night, and knew it would linger in her memory long after they parted.
    “You look good enough to eat,” Sinjun whispered, pulling her into the curve of his body. “Tonight I’m going to taste you all over. You’re the most tempting morsel I’ve ever had the privilege to meet, sweet Flora. I predict a long and mutually satisfying association.”
    “Until I return to Cornwall,” Christy reminded him. “I cannot stay in town forever. My … husband expects me back home.”
    “Aye, with a babe in your belly. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” he murmured, brushing his lips against her cheek.
    Christy offered no response. Fortunately there was no need, for the coach had pulled up in line to let them out at the Ravensdales’ spacious town-house. Christy put on