Page 21 of Monsters, Vows, and Growls
When the cold began to settle deep into our joints, I rose, shook out the ache, and padded back toward the line of trees where I had left my clothes. It was time to go back to work.
Smoke & Emberwas shaping up nicely. The dark browns and lighter beiges Ella had picked gave the restaurant a homey feeling, while at the same time making it look classy. Made it look like a place a man could take his wife for an anniversary and still not feel out of sorts himself. The dark tiles Ella picked looked like the forest floor; it could have overwhelmed the place with darkness, but the lighter furnishings and lighting broke the shadows off enough to make it look intimate, not oppressive.
My crew was in full swing when I entered. Loud music blared from a boom speaker, trying hard to compete with the sound of a nail gun, a tile cutter, and a chainsaw. After the stillness of the forest, the noise was especially overpowering to my sensitive ears. A headache was unavoidable.
"Hey, boss," Adam yelled. Adam was my superintendent and a gargoyle, who didn't care for his human form too much. He abhorred touch, and his human emotions were too much for him. He preferred to stay in his gargoyle form.
"Hey Adam, how are we coming along?" I shook his cold, stony hand.
"Good, the bathrooms are done, want to see?"
I didn’t. I wanted to get the hell away from all the noise. But I put on my game face, nodded, and followed him. In front of the bathrooms stood a wooden divider wall, designed to mimic the look of a forest outhouse. When Ella first brought it up, I thought she was out of her mind. Who would want to feel like they were using a public restroom in the woods? In arestaurant?
Now, though—I could see the vision. The first strands of faux ivy had been draped over the beams, adding to the illusion of being tucked deep in the forest.
This place might not appeal to humans in the traditional sense, but shifters? Shifters would love it. I was sure of it. It gave just the right sense of exclusivity without the stuffy feel of luxury.
Inside, the bathroom looked nothing like a restroom. It felt like a clearing in the woods—dim lighting, reclaimed wood walls, soft pine scent in the air. The stalls were framed with rough-hewn logs, the sinks carved from smooth river stone. Faux ivy hung from the beams, and soft forest sounds played from hidden speakers—birdsong, rustling leaves, the occasional distant owl.
Ella had somehow made it feel… natural. Private. Safe.
Shifters would eat this up. It wasn’t about showing off. It was about creating a space that made people feel like they belonged.
And damn if she hadn’t nailed it.
There was no denying she was an excellent chef, but I saw her potential as a decorator, as well. Just the right kind of person I needed for my various projects. So far, I hadn't found a single person to decorate the spec houses the way I envisioned them.
"It's perfect," I nodded at Adam.
His rough hand moved over the wide-mouthed faucet. "I don't know who you hired for this, but he or she is a genius."
I couldn’t have agreed more. Now I just needed to find out if Ella would be open to the idea of a side job. She probably had enough work to do with her restaurants, but I wasn't above begging if I had to.
As if thinking about her had conjured her up, she was standing right in the middle of the restaurant when Adam and I left the bathroom. She looked good. Too good. Blonde hair up in one of those messy buns she always wore when she meant business, cheeks a little flushed, fingers dusted with something—plaster maybe, or flour. Hell if I knew. She always made a mess look like art. Thorne stirred immediately.Ugh. She’s here. Again. In the middle of a half-finished construction zone. One loose tile, and she’ll twist an ankle. Or slip. Or trip over her own damn bootlaces. Clumsy human. You should’ve made her wear a hard hat.
You don't like her, remember? I silently reminded him.
I don’t. But if she falls, I swear I’m eating Adam.
I sighed, already bracing myself. “Ella, what a nice surprise,” I said, stepping toward her. I didn’t touch her—still keeping to her rules, her pace—but God, I wanted to. Just a hand on her waist. Just for a moment.
Adam squinted at her, his rocky brows rising slightly. “This your secret weapon?”
“She’s the designer of the bathrooms,” I confirmed.
He nodded slowly, tilting his head in that way he did when he was sizing someone up. “That so? I don’t usually notice thingslike sinks and… foliage, but that setup made me rethink a few centuries of aesthetic standards.”
For a moment, Ella looked thrown off, but she caught herself and smiled politely. “Thanks, I think.”
Adam’s stony features didn’t shift, but he leaned in just enough to drop his voice a note. “You do interior design on the side? Might have a few clients that could use that kind of eye.”
Thorne snarled so loudly in my head, I staggered.Oh hell no. That’s your woman, Patrick. Your woman. You let Gargoyle Ken try to poach her with compliments about sinks? What’s next, a date to the quarry?!
He’s being nice,I muttered inwardly. Back off.
Nice? He just mentally measured her for a wedding dress made of stone dust and bad decisions.
Adam glanced at me. “You good?”
