Page 27 of Beauty and Her Beasts (Dirty Paranormal Fairytale Haremlan 1)

Candelabras and sconces remained cold and unused.

The air was chillier in this part of the castle, and darker. The windows that filled the rest of the castle were boarded up in the east wing, making seeing difficult. Shadows stretched and moved, and my eyes played tricks on my mind.

It had been some time since this side of the castle had seen an ounce of love or warmth. I wondered why this was closed off from the rest of the place. There wasn’t anything that stood out to me outside of what a good polishing or dusting could take care of.

A little love was all this area needed.

Just when I thought I had lost all sight of King, I saw a dim flicker of a candle traveling along the second floor just past the stairs that arched upward from the bottom floor. My purpose was renewed, and I charged forward, chasing after the only hint of King’s location.

I was out of breath by the time I found him. He sat in a darkened room, silent and not moving. When I entered the room, it was hard to tell a shadow from him. Then he opened his eyes and they were a furious yellow again.

“You don’t belong here,” he said.

I sucked in a breath and fought against the initial hurt his words cut with. Then my anger bled over, and I snapped, “Yeah well, that’s getting rectified. I’m leaving.”

“What?” he asked. Shock filled his question.

“Before I left, I wanted to find out if you knew about Gunnar and Declan’s little plan, and just what your involvement was before I left.”

“What are you talking about? This is what you followed me for?” he asked. “To a place I have said was completely off-limits?”

I shrugged. “Yes or no. Were you aware of the plan?”

“I have no idea what you are talking about,” he said. “Now, leave me.”

“No. I demand to know the truth.” I stood my ground, head held high. “I have a right to know.”

“You don’t have a right to be here in the east wing. Leave,” he said.

I had a death wish. Rather, I wasn’t taking no for an answer. “Declan and Gunnar brought me here for you. Apparently to make you snap out of your self-pity.”

He growled low. “Please, stop. Go.”

I stepped forward. “You’re telling me you really had no idea?”

“Damn it, woman, no.” His words echoed against the walls of the room we were in. “I’m giving you one last warning to leave. I won’t be held responsible for what happens to you next.”

“What are you going to do? Frighten me to death?” I asked. “You know what? Fine. Goodbye. Good luck with your business and finding a replacement.”

I turned around and headed for the warmer side of the hotel. I was perfectly capable of knowing when I wasn’t going to get anywhere, and this was one of those times. I was far better off just packing up my things and leaving.

“Wait,” King’s voice pleaded just before I stepped into the hall, where things were only a hint brighter. His hand wrapped around my arm, tugging me back toward him.

“For what?” I asked.

“Don’t leave. Stay with me,” he said.

There was something in his voice that tugged at my heart. Sure, I was fully aware that I was playing right into Declan’s and Gunnar’s plan, but I didn’t care. Not about them. And certainly not about their plan. There was a spark of something between King and I long before I knew of the plan.

There was also a spark between me and each of them, but I couldn’t bring myself to focus on that. It would only make me angry again.

I turned and faced the terrifying, glowing, yellow eyes.

He removed his hand and struck a match. Within moments, candles burned with soft orange light, filling a small radius around King. He took a seat on a small divan. He patted the space next to him. “Join me?”

I nodded and went to take a seat next to him. “You know you really need to work on your mood swings.”

He chuckled. “Maybe.”

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