Beauty and the Beast (Demon Tales 1) by Kerrianne Coombes Page A

their bag.
    Sam looked down at his arm and nodded.
“Thank you, Princess.” Sam stood up. His superior height obviously
intimidated Cally, because she took a step back—closer to Brigg.
Triumph burst inside Brigg’s chest and he placed a hand on her back
to walk her around the watchful Demon.
    “You know, Princess, my castle isn’t far
from here. If you like, I could take you there—get you washed and
cleaned, and then have one of my drivers deliver you back to you
castle?” The Ram Demon stood in the gap in the rock where the
tunnel door was hidden, and flicked his eyes from her face to where
Brigg had his hand on her back.
    He felt her tense under his grip. She turned
and looked up. “Um?” She searched his face with her bright blue
eyes. Worry bled into her features and Brigg wondered what she was
thinking. “What do you think, Brigg?” she asked.
    Brigg fought to hold back the growl. Let
her out of my sight? No way! But then, wasn’t that what he
wanted? For her to be delivered back to her castle—to her family?
Yes, but he wanted to be the one to take her. It had crossed his
mind that this princess might actually be the way to get his curse
lifted. Deliver the princess back to the queen, and in a fit of
gratitude she would lift his curse. That, and the fact that he
wasn’t quite ready to part with her yet, there was still the little
issue of her potentially being his mate.
    “You stay with me, Cally.” Her eyes went
wide, but he didn’t see any of the denial he expected. She just
watched him and gave a small nod.
    “You don’t have to do that, Brigg, I can
take her from here.” Sam sputtered, and Brigg turned to see the
demon shaking his head.
    “I finish what I started,” Brigg replied,
hoping that he didn’t sound too possessive. He still had his palm
on her back, and for some reason he didn’t want to move it—not when
there was another male nearby. Sam watched him carefully, confusion
carving a deep furrow in his brow.
    “Okay. Why don’t you both come back to my
castle, and then we can decide from there. Besides, your brother’s
visiting me tomorrow.” She looked tired. The bruises on her neck
had gone dark and she had dark patches under her eyes. It wasn’t
often that Brigg felt sympathy, but as he stared down at Cally he
felt the uncomfortable emotion tug at his heart.
    “Okay, Sam. Where is your castle?”
    “Just the other side of the trees.” Sam
pointed westward and Brigg nodded. He gave Cally a little push in
that direction and they began to follow the Ram. Cally looked over
her shoulder at him, and Brigg saw a strangely unsettling
expression in her eyes.
    “What are you thinking, Princess?”
    “Why would you not hand me over?” A frown
folded her face and Brigg saw confusion fill up her eyes. He ground
his teeth against the bullet-to-the-brain bolt of pain her words
caused. God, she didn’t want to be with him. Would she rather he
send her along with the Ram Demon—a stranger—than stay with him?
The idea of her walking away with Sam stung like a snake bite. He
didn’t want her going off with another male, especially a male with
eyes that wandered over Cally hungrily—as Sam’s had.
    “Because I finish what I start, just like I
said,” he replied, wincing at how pathetic a reply it was. She
frowned and then he felt the need to say more. “Because I don’t
know this Demon. Nor what his motives are.” There. That sounded
much more reasonable.
    “Oh. So you wanted to protect me?” She
asked. Brigg scowled.
    “I finish what I start.” And yes, I want
to protect you … Cally watched him for a moment, and he could
tell that what he said was not what she had wanted to hear, but
there was no way he would admit his weakness to her. No way.
    She was a means to get his curse lifted,
nothing more.
    Yeah, right. You are fucked, Brigg.
     
    * * * *
     
    Cally stumbled over the many broken branches
that littered the forest floor. The wood was eerily silent and