Georgia had seen a lot of demons in her life, but she’d never met one remotely as terrifying as the prince.
He was covered in reddish-black scales, black horns curving from his skull in an imposing arc, and his eyes were black as empty voids. But more than anything, it was the sheer size of him that had her struggling to control her panic.
He had to be more than eight feet tall with the muscular build to match, and the odd hum of power that seemed to vibrate off him made her hairs stand on end. It was like being in the presence of a nuclear bomb—with a temper.
Georgia stared mutely up at the giant demon, too terrified to move or get off the floor, but the prince didn’t return her gaze. Muttering under his breath, he fished out a phone from his pocket and began… texting? Georgia glanced at the device, startled by the sight of the modern gadget in the giant monster’s huge hands. If he’d looked even slightly less menacing, it would have been an amusing juxtaposition.
This was supposed to be her savior? Georgia swallowed thickly as she watched the behemoth. The hairs on her body still stood on end from the sensation of his breath against her skin when he’d sniffed her. She had absolutely no doubt that if this monster decided to rape her, she’d not survive it.
The prince finished his text and shoved his phone back in his pocket before he finally rounded on her again.
She shrank back against the carpet on instinct when those void-like eyes landed on her, her breath hitching in her throat. “D-don’t hurt me.”
She didn’t know why the ridiculous plea bubbled past her lips—he was a demon, and as far as she knew, hurting people was the entire purpose of their existence.
The prince arced both eye-ridges. “Don’t hurt you?” He snorted, and she could have sworn exasperation flicked across his harrowing features. He opened his mouth as if to say more, but seemed to think better of it. With a deep sigh, he rubbed a clawed hand over his face and sank into a crouch several feet from where she was huddled. “You have nothing to fear, little one. Nothing bad will happen to you.”
Georgia eyed him suspiciously. His voice had changed pitch entirely, the gruff boom of it now sweetly cajoling. He sounded exactly like she did when trying to lure her mom’s cat into his carrier for a vet visit.
“Then let me go,” she said, tipping her chin up in an attempt to project strength she didn’t feel.
He huffed another breath. “I would love to. But I can’t. Thank your friend who dropped you off in my lap. I certainly plan to, if he ever has the bright idea to cross my path again.” His voice had lost some of its dulcet tones to an acrid note.
Was he… annoyed at her presence? She blinked, the small burst of injustice that the giant monster who had her in his claws seemed inconvenienced at her plight gave way to a burst of wild hope.
“No one… No one has to know. I won’t tell anyone, and I’m sure Irral is long gone.”
The prince stared blankly at her for several seconds before he raised his hand to rub at the bridge of his nose. “No one has to know?” he parroted. “You don’t know what you are, do you?”
Georgia hesitated, that uncomfortable word Jimmy and his bodyguards had called her echoing in her mind. There was no way she was saying that out loud. She didn’t need the giant monster getting any ideas that she was on board with its implications.
“Right. Of course the prick didn’t explain anything. Why would he, when he could just drop you off on my doorstep?” The demon drew in another deep breath. “You see us for what we really are, yes? Horns, fangs, claws, et cetera?”
She nodded, eyes darting to the black, curved horns atop his head.
“Women who can see through our human disguise are rare. You’re what we would call… compatible. We value your companionship immensely.” He gave her a tight smile that did nothing to quell her unease. “And for that reason, it is my duty to protect you. There are those that would do you harm for what you are to us. So no. I cannot let you leave.”
Right. Companionship. Georgia narrowed her eyes at the prince. Even if she hadn’t experienced exactly what kind of companionship his kind was interested in, it was pretty obvious that he was glossing over some major details.
“I’ll take my chances. I’ve managed on my own so far.”
The demon’s smile tightened until scary-looking fangs popped out from below his lips. If it was meant as a comforting gesture, it wholly missed the mark. “You’ve been lucky. You won’t continue to be so. My men are loyal and will keep your presence in my domain a secret for as long as I request it. The scumbag who brought you to me? Less likely. And the second word gets out about you, darling, you’ll be hunted down like a single rabbit by a pack of hungry jackals.”
Georgia swallowed, instinctively cringing away from his menacing words. “I…” Her protest died before she’d voiced it. She knew exactly what Jimmy would do to her if he found her again. The demon prince was the singularly most terrifying creature she’d ever laid eyes on, and he was most definitely not being forthright about his plans for her, but… He might still be better than the alternative. Irral had certainly believed so, or he wouldn’t have risked his superior’s wrath to bring her here.
Defeat slumped her shoulders and pressed down on the knot of guilt and despair that had festered in her stomach since her mother had told her that Larry was dying. She had failed them both. And Mike. And for what? A more comfortable cage?
The tears came unbidden and without warning. Grief cracked through her esophagus and up her windpipe, releasing through her throat in loud, ugly sobs.
“What are you doing?” The demon croaked, the sound of alarm in his voice making it pitch. “Stop that!”
Through the tears blurring her vision, she saw his terrifying face pull into a look of pure panic. It seemed so completely out of place on his brutal features, she would have laughed if she’d been capable of feeling anything but heartbreak.
“Stop it!” His voice was a more appropriate, commanding boom this time, but it did nothing to quiet her sobs.
The demon growled under his breath, his fangs showing once more before he crossed the space between them and reached for her.
Georgia yelped, fear spiking through her sadness, but she didn’t manage to flinch away before he dropped to his knees and bulky arms closed around her body and pulled her onto his lap.
