Tempting Sin

Snowy

"Let's not talk about bad things. It won't help," he suggested hoarsely, battling with his indecent urges as she felt his scar. He was already starved, and she was not making it any easier. Why did she have to tempt him like this when she had no intention of satisfying his desire?

"Are you uncomfortable sharing?" she asked, ready to drop the topic if it made him uncomfortable. Who could know this feeling better than her.

"My past is uglier than my scars, Butterfly. I am not sure your fragile heart would be able to endure my sob story," he warned her, adopting a playful tone in the end. His lips twitched into a smile as she responded with a snort.

"I endure you every day, I can endure anything," she deadpanned, causing Sin to chuckle. His woman had just roasted him.

"I thought you could only roast food," he commented. Nivi tensed up, afraid she had offended him. His hold reassuringly tightened around her, silently conveying he wasn't angry.

His voice took a serious note as he continued, "She found out about Mikhail somehow and sent her men to kill him. But before they could get to him, I shot all her men dead. That was, perhaps, my first time defying her. In response, she punished me by slicing my chest open with a searing dagger."

Nivi wasn't surprised, only sad. He was an evil monster, no doubt, but the world was never fair to him either.

"Does Mikhail know about it?" she asked, her finger still lingering on the scar.

"No," he answered.

"And this one?" she asked, moving to another scar that marked his lower left abdomen. He clenched his jaw, suppressing his impulses.

"Viviana had baked cupcakes for her sons. I ate one of them as I was hungry," he told her. With every story of his torture, her heart turned heavy, sinking deeper into the sorrow. She counted scars on his front. There were more than thirty scars, overlapping each other. And she had a hunch that they all had some traumatic stories lying beneath them. A lone tear escaped her eye as a wave of anguish overwhelmed her heart. She cried for the boy who was tortured just for existing. He was just a boy who knew nothing about the world and they killed him.

"Stop," he urged in a strangled voice, seizing her wrist. His body had begun to respond to her touch. She tensed up, worrying she had hurt him.

"Stop, princess, or I won't be able to," he implored, breathing hotly against her face. There was only so much he could control. He didn't have it in him to resist her, not when she was so close, caressing him so intimately. She thankfully understood his struggle and withdrew her hand.

"I am sorry," she mumbled, scooting away. But before she could create distance between them, he stopped her. He drew her back into his chest. Staying away from her was just as difficult as restraining himself from loving her.

............

Nivi was surprised to see Mikhail following Sin inside.

"Mikhail," she called in disbelief.

"Hello, Mrs. Volkov," Mikhail greeted her politely with a warm smile.

"Hello," Nivi responded, still reeling from the surprise. She, then, shot a perplexed glance at Sin. He was standing beside her with an unreadable expression.

"He'll have dinner with us tonight," Sin informed her. Nivi gaped at him in disbelief. Ignoring her look of shock, Sin made his way towards their room.

"Shocked? Me too," Mikhail remarked, drawing her attention to him. Slipping his hands in his pockets, he drew nearer.

"You won't believe it, but I am very happy to see you," Nivi responded, backing away slightly to keep a safe distance between them. The last thing she wanted was for Sin to misread the circumstances and beat the shit out of Mikhail again. He paused in his track, sensing her hesitation.