11. Angie

11

ANGIE

" O nce I tell her this morning, my mother will insist on holding the tail tying ceremony this evening," Tuvid said as we walked out to my car. The staff would be arriving soon, and I wanted to go home, take a nap, shower, and then get back to work. He wanted to start looking into possible suspects related to my keg-napping.

"What does that entail?" I snickered. "Tail. Entail ."

He grinned, and I adored how gorgeous he was with his fangs gleaming in the early morning sunlight. "You don't have a tail."

"No," I breathed, peering back at my butt.

He coiled his up to lightly tap that very area. I'd noticed his tail when I met him. It was hard to miss something like that. It was about the thickness of my forearm where it projected from his butt, and it tapered to a tip much like a cartoon devil's at the end.

"We'll improvise with your tail," he said .

"I'm picturing a strap-on." I snickered again. "We'll strap it on in the back, however."

"What's a strap-on?"

I didn't see anyone around, but you never knew when a gargoyle might be lurking, ready to ruin someone's reputation for doing or saying something naughty. So, I stopped beside my car and curled my finger his way, urging him to lower his head while I whispered the explanation in his ear.

His laughter snorted out. "Ha ha. I like that. We can stop by the general store in the monster mini mall and pick up a tail for you. Once monsters began dating humans, they started carrying things like that just in case."

"Can I have a red tail?"

"Not deep blue?"

"Deep blue's quite nice, but red . . ."

"We'll see what they have."

"And then we can tie them together." I frowned. "I assume that's what the ceremony entails. How long will they remain tied?"

"For three days, though few carry that tradition to this extreme."

The last thing I needed to do was top a fake engagement with a fake tail tying. His mother would never awaken from her faint. "We don't live together."

"Which will make tied tails tricky."

"If a gargoyle's reputation can be ruined by spending the night locked in a cooler with someone, wouldn't staying together make things worse? "

"Once our tails are officially tied, it's expected we'll share a bed."

"Who's going to know?" I squinted up at him, shading my eyes with my palm.

"Anyone who sees me flying around without you by my side."

Something gargoyles did a lot at night. I'd seen them around.

But what was the solution to this dilemma?

I might be adding a complication here, but I couldn't hold the words back. "Why don't you move in with me during the tail-tied period?"

His eyes widened. "You wouldn't need to do anything like that."

"No one would know if we're tied together or not if we're inside my house. We can untie our tails and still maintain the ruse. I can sleep on the sofa, and we can retire our tails in the morning."

"This would work well." Leaning against my car beside me, he frowned. "I'll take the sofa, however."

"It's small. You're big."

"Still."

I placed my fists on my hips. "Still."

"Well talk about it later, but I'll take you up on your offer to stay with you. However, I need to investigate. You need to work. Do you have suggestions for how we can remain tied during the day and get both jobs done?"

"As I said, I have an amazing manager. I'm sure we can figure this out."

"Alright. Should I meet you back here in a few hours? "

"Yeah, sure." I got inside my car and drove home, where I collapsed on my bed, sleeping for about an hour before I got up and showered, returning to my microbrewery in fresh clothing.

Tuvid flew down, landing beside my car after I'd pulled it into my spot.

"I've got a few leads already," he said, scrolling through his phone. "Competitors who appear desperate to win the brew-off prize."

"You're fast. Once we're inside, we can go through them together."

We entered the building and crossed the tasting room. Inside the main room, people worked, crafting the beer my community loved. We worked with distributors to stock beer throughout New England, and I was hoping to slowly expand into other states soon.

Everything was tied up in winning that contest, which I couldn't do without my special stout.

Inside my office, we settled back in our chairs, and I opened my mouth to speak, but someone knocked on the door.

Jasper Blane, my uncle's old business partner, poked his head through the opening, his eyes widening when he saw Tuvid sitting in the chair opposite me. While monsters were everywhere now, I could understand his amazement. Tuvid was spectacular with his big wings tucked against his spine and his deep blue skin. His fangs only added to the stunning image he presented. He was dressed in a light blue t-shirt that highlighted his delicious muscles and went well with his skin color. He wore plain jeans with his tail poking out the back. Was there anyone more gorgeous than this guy?

"Do you have a minute to talk?" Jasper asked, stepping inside.

"Sure." I waved to the other chair in my office placed left near the right wall.

He gingerly perched on the edge, sending a frown Tuvid's way. "I'd like to speak with Angie alone, please."

"This is my fiancé," I said with a smile. Funny how nice it sounded to announce it like that. "Anything you want to say to me you can say with him here."

"Fiancé?" Jasper's scowl deepened. "Surely you don't intend to get married."

"Why not?" My smile held true, though this man had irritated me from the moment I met him. I was glad when my uncle bought him out, and I didn't need to do whatever silly thing he asked of me.

I'd been a regular employee back then, just like every other, and while there was no task I wasn't willing to do if asked, I did draw the line at attending brew functions as his sidepiece, something he'd asked me to do three times before I brought it up to my uncle.

"Because." Jasper said lamely. "But I didn't come here to discuss this with you."

"That's good, because our engagement isn't open to discussion," I said brightly.

Tuvid watched Jasper, and there was no mistaking the steely look in his eyes. "Do you want to speak with him?" he asked me. "Or do you want him to leave immediately?"

"Well . . ." I'd prefer he left, but I had told him he could have a seat, and I'd urged him to talk. "It's okay." For now.

"I came with a higher offer," Jasper said.

"I've told you numerous times, I'm not interested in selling the microbrewery," I said with a sigh. "If that's the only reason you came here, you can leave."

Tuvid stood. "Allow me to escort you to your vehicle," he bit out.

I suspected he'd not only do that, but he'd also remain in the parking lot until Jasper left the property.

Jasper's scowl deepened. "You haven't even heard the offer."

"I don't need to. I'm not interested in selling, and even if your buyers offer five billion dollars, you won't change my mind."

Jasper rose and braced his palms on the side of the desk, a growl ripping up his throat. "You need to sell. You have no idea what you're doing, what this offer could mean for—"

"For you?" I rose and strode over to the wall, lifting my uncle's prize samurai sword off its mount, brandishing it in Jasper's face. "I believe it's past time you left. Please don't come back."

Gulping, he reeled back before the tip of the sword could slice the tip of his nose, something I'd done after the third time he propositioned me. He was well aware I was on the fencing team in high school and that I sparred regularly with a few friends, though I wouldn't use this sword for anything like that. This was a treasure, something my uncle picked up when he was overseas. I'd never risk tarnishing it by stabbing Jasper in the heart .

Tuvid latched onto Jasper's arm and hauled him toward the door.

"Unhand me," Jasper snapped, yanking his arm away. But he left with Tuvid, and if I was lucky, this would be the last time I'd see him inside this office. He didn't miss sending me a parting shot as Tuvid moved him out into the hall. "You're going to regret this."

"How clichéd," I called after him.

The door closed, and I huffed. After returning my precious sword to its hanger on the wall, I dropped down onto my chair again. I propped my elbows on the desk and laid my face in my palms, only lifting my head when Tuvid returned.

He settled in his chair and nodded slowly. "Jasper has just moved to the top of my list of suspects."