Page 11 (1/2)

"How thoroughly disgusting," she murmured

"Yes"

"What did she do?"

"Nothing What could she do, after all, against a giant snake?"

"Well, surely she--"

He cocked a stern eyebrow at her "Are you going to keep interrupting ether as if to quell a s her apple He felt war here with her and bantering A ot all his cares, all his sins, all the butchery he had yet to do

He took a breath and shook the thoughts away "Angelica’s flock of goats began disappearing one by one, and she was at her wit’s end True, she lived alone, but sooner or later the king’s steould cooats, and then hoould she explain their depleted numbers?" He paused to take a sip of wine

Her straight, sole the apple with a small knife and fork He could tell by the pinch of her brow that she wanted to object to Angelica’s lack of fortitude

He hid a sht, a poor peddler wo at the stick shack’s door She displayed her wares: soelica took pity on the woman ‘I haven’t a coin to oat’s lad enough to elica, ‘Since you have a kind heart, I’ll give you a bit of advice: If you capture the skin of a snake, you’ll have power over the creature You’ll hold his very life in your hands’ And with that, the old peddler hobbled away before Angelica could ask herher apple and was looking at him skeptically Simon raised his eyebrows, sipped the wine, and waited

She broke "The old peddler woman just appeared out of the blue?"

"Yes"

"Just like that?"

"Why not?"

"So fashioned as you tell it" She sighed and shook her head "Go on"

"You’re sure?" he enquired gravely

She gave hi brows

He cleared his throat to cover a laugh "That very night, Angelica crept to the cave She watched as the giant serpent slithered from the dark recesses at the back of the cavern It circled the blue-flamed fire slowly, and then there appeared the nude silver-haired reat snakeskin lay at the e could leave her, she leaped forward and snatched the skin in her ar slowly to savor the flavor

He looked up to see Miss Craddock-Hayes staring incredulously at him "Well?"

He blinked innocently "Well what?"

"Stop teasing me," she enunciated distinctly "What happened?"

His cock jue formed in his demonic brain of Miss Craddock-Hayes stretched nude upon a bed, his tongue teasing her nipples Christ

Sielica had the Serpent Prince in her power, of course She ran to the fire in the brazier, intending to throw the snakeskin into the blaze and thus destroy the creature, but his words stopped her ‘Please, fair maiden Please, spare me my life’ And she noticed for the first time that he wore a chain--"

She snorted

"With a s from it," he finished in a rush "What?"

"He was a snake before," she said with exaggerated patience "With no shoulders How could he have worn a necklace?"

"A chain Males don’t wear necklaces"

She merely stared at him in patent disbelief

"He was enchanted," he stated "It stayed on"

She started to roll her eyes, but then caught herself "And did Angelica spare his life?"

"Of course" Sis always do, whether the creature deserves it or not"

She carefully set aside what remained of her apple and wiped her hands "But ouldn’t the snake be deserving of salvation?"

"Because he was a snake A thing of darkness and evil"