Page 13 of Flowers Near Me
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
A GODDESS IN THE MAKING
PERSEPHONE
T he Underworld Unlimited business floors were strikingly similar to Demeter’s Bounty’s. Both buildings boasted sprawling square footage with private offices lining the walls, conference rooms in a range of sizes, and open workspaces next to water and coffee stations. Most importantly, both were aboveground , high in the mid to upper floors of their respective skyscrapers.
“Here’s your executive suite.” Charon pushed a set of frosted glass double doors open, revealing a spacious workspace that was twice the size of Persephone’s office back at DB.
Charon pointed towards the kitchenette. “Stocked mini pantry and espresso station over there.” Tapping a screen on the wall, she instructed, “You can control everything from the room’s temperature, to the lighting, and even the shade level of your windows on this panel here.” Charon swiped an on-screen lever and the floor-to-ceiling windows dimmed.
Persephone stepped behind the corner desk, admiring the large screens and brand-new laptop sitting on the marble desktop. She ran a finger across the floral notebooks stacked on a nearby shelf.
“Bit excessive for a spokesperson, don’t you think?”
Charon laughed as if Persephone had made a joke.
Hades knocked once on the door, drawing their attention before stepping in to join Persephone and Charon. “How do you like your office?”
Deadpanned, she replied, “It’s sufficient.” She snuck a wink at Charon who returned the gesture with a lopsided grin and exited her office.
Hades threw Persephone an amused look, clearly not buying her feigned nonchalance. “You know, if you like it here, you can stay as long as you’d like.”
“What do you mean?”
Hades walked to the windows and looked out over the city. “After your current contract expires. If you wanted to stay on with Underworld Unlimited, you could.”
What was he trying to do? There was no way he actually wanted her to stay with Underworld Unlimited. Maybe this was his way of getting her to drop her guard. “I didn’t apply to work here, remember? You bought the patent rights of an app that I was supposed to acquire.”
He sat in a chair on the other side of her desk. “You didn’t need to apply. Your work speaks for itself, and I don’t let talent go to waste. So why wouldn’t I want the best?”
Nothing stroked Persephone’s ego like a compliment to her professional prowess. If Hades were a mortal executive paying her tribute, she’d be melting. Especially with how good he looked in that suit. And if she had to guess, this office was meant for a C-suite partner and not just any Underworld executive. The gesture was incredibly flattering, and Fates , it was making her soften towards him.
“I think whoever this office belongs to will want it back after I’m gone.” She distracted herself with her phone in an attempt to shake off these unwanted feelings of appreciation.
Hades stood with a smile. “Come on. Allow me to introduce you to the team.” Holding the door open, he waited for Persephone to walk through.
It felt incredible to be back in an office building, meeting a new team of marketers and developers. Hades personally introduced her to each employee, remarking how lucky they were to have someone of her caliber join the app’s launch. She held back her smile, not wanting to seem too eager—or let Hades see she was happy and think he had something to do with it.
“Think about all that she’s done in the e-commerce sector and imagine what she’ll do here,” said Hades to the fresh-faced communications team gathered around long conference table.
Expecting to see eye-rolls and hear muffled scoffs, she almost stumbled in place next to Hades when the group smiled back at her.
Later, when she was walking back to her new office alone, a woman around the same age as her stopped her, whispering, “I shouldn’t admit this, but I use your new grocery delivery service all the time. I love it.” Her eyes darted past Persephone.
“Glad to hear it,” said Persephone who smiled as the woman rushed off.
She settled into her cushioned desk chair, powered on her new laptop and started the initial setup. After a few minutes logging into her email, calendar, and shared drive, Hades entered.
“You look right at home here, Sephy.” There he was, using her nickname again. Had it been some other handsome man saying it, she’d think it cute for someone to give it a try and not be afraid to flirt with her.
“When we’re in the office, you should call me Persephone.”
He let the doors close behind him, stalked towards her and leaned to sit on the side of her desk. “Why? Do you not like it?”
Was that any of his business? Even if they would be faking a relationship soon, he didn’t need to be so over the top with the endearments. “Only a small group of people call me it and not a single one of them has ever tricked me into working for them.”
He smirked. There was playfulness in his tone as he asked, “Really? Not even your mother?”
Persephone stared back at him, sitting up straight in her chair. The god was imposing with his dark suit and tall frame, but his relaxed shoulders and gentle expression put her at ease.
He lifted his hands in surrender. “Fine. I’ll stop using it in the office. It can be our special thing when it’s just the two of us.”
No. He was insufferable. Unfortunately, he was pleasant to look at. It’d be easier to stand firm in her distaste if he was ugly. Right now, her stomach did flips as his gray eyes bore into hers. To have someone look at her as if she were a work of art was thrilling. Too bad it was him.
“Did you need something from me?” She meant to busy herself with emails, but her treacherous laptop was still loading an update.
Adjusting his cuffs, he said, “I’ll make this quick. I have to go across town this afternoon for a meeting, but I’ll see you for dinner tonight at the apartment. Try not to miss me too much.” He stood, tapping two fingers on the edge of her desk.
“I’ll see you later then.”
Although Persephone appreciated the office tour Hades and Charon had given her, she wanted to walk around on her own and get a real sense of the space. DB had been her stomping grounds from early childhood and she could navigate its halls with her eyes closed. She needed to learn the ins and outs of her new jail. But if she was being honest, she hadn’t seen Eurydice yet and wanted to have a word with the developer.
When she considered Eurydice’s situation, she’d be a liar to say she wouldn’t have done the same thing. To have two executives dedicated to the successful rollout of your app was a once-in-lifetime opportunity. You had to take every advantage you could to get a leg up in the tech industry. Olympus had mega stars—gods for Fate’s sake. But that didn’t diminish the lingering frustration Persephone felt at Eurydice’s two-timing antics.
A little lost in her thoughts, Persephone grinned when she caught Eurydice filling her mug with coffee at the beverage station.
She inched closer, careful not to make a sound until she was within arm’s length. “Well, look who it is. Good morning, Eurydice.”
Eurydice whipped around, sputtering a polite, “Good morning, Miss Ioulo.”
Persephone hummed a laugh. “Given that you’ve bested me and I already gave you permission to call me Persephone, I’d say we’re past formalities. How are you?”
“I’m well. And you?” The lost look on Eurydice’s face made Persephone feel a little bad about ambushing her.
“I’ve been better, but I shouldn’t complain.” Persephone paused, gathering her thoughts. She needed to clear the air and not toy with the young woman like her mom would. Fates, her mom would have this poor girl sweating bullets if she’d tried to trick Demeter.
“Eurydice, I don’t like that you hid the patent ownership from me, but…” She softened the look on her face, hoping to convey sincerity. “Had I been in your situation, I would’ve done the same thing and held out for the best deal.”
Eurydice sucked in a breath. “Really?”
Persephone nodded. “It was opportunistic, but that’s what it takes to be successful in Olympus.” Shrugging, she continued, saying, “And it would’ve been foolhardy for you to try to convince me to work with Hades, so I can’t blame you for not saying anything to me. But I hope that moving forward, you’ll trust me enough to share all of your hopes for the app. I meant it when I said that your tech is impressive and that you’ve got a bright future ahead. I think Flowers Near Me is clever and I’m proud to be associated with it.”
“Thank you. This means a lot.” Eurydice gave a restrained smile.
“I mean it. I’m here to do a good job and promote this app with everything I’ve got.” And somehow get it away from Hades’ hands. She kept that last part to herself. “Let’s get this out of its beta version and ready for the masses. No hard feelings, okay?”
Eurydice nodded. “Thanks, Persephone.”
Persephone smiled. “I’ll see you around.” With a parting wink, she turned and headed back to her new office.
Hecate’s long black hair glinted purple where the light hit it as she walked into Persephone’s office. Her sleeveless wrap dress cascaded into a flowing skirt that ended mid-calf and displayed her heeled gladiator sandals. Persephone stood to greet her.
“Nice to see you again, Persephone.” Hecate pulled Persephone towards her and placed a light kiss on each cheek.
“Likewise. It’s always good to see you.” Persephone had fond childhood memories of Hecate coming to visit Demeter’s estate. The goddess always made a point to exchange pleasantries with her.
“Did you know that Hades claims you’re his COO.”
Hecate laughed. “His COO? For fuck’s sake. He needs to stop using that joke.”
“So, you’re not?” She needed to know.
“Fates no. I only do freelance consulting for his team. I work with your mom too, but I doubt she told you I’m on her staff.”
Persephone huffed a laugh. “Good point.”
“Well, he asked me to take you to lunch because he wants me help you feel more at home at Underworld Unlimited,” said Hecate. “I say we can use it as an excuse to get you out of the office for several hours every day.”
This was good. Hecate was stuck between Demeter and Hades too, so she could understand Persephone’s situation, but unlike Persephone, Hecate was powerful and could offer protection that Persephone couldn’t give herself.
Hecate used her powers to portal them both to a bistro sandwiched between a packing and shipping store and a plain office building. The outdoor sitting area was in an alleyway behind the tiny restaurant with olive and oak trees and small tables placed under the canopy of leaves. A tiny forest within the city. Such a welcome sight.
Hecate swiped lip gloss over her pursed lips. “Have you been here before?”
“No. I haven’t been to many parts of the city.”
“Right. You’ve lived on the estate. I’m sure you miss it.” Hecate poured two cups of tea, then waved her hand over the hot drinks.
“It’s beautiful there, as you know. Lush. Orderly. Quiet. Everything that Demeter wants it to be. Olympus has its charms, too. My sister’s lived here since her residency.”
“Yes, I’ve met Laura a few times. She’s brilliant. Great sense of humor.” Hecate brought the teacup to her mouth.
Mirroring Hecate, Persephone took a sip. A burst of lemony rosemary and honey swept over her tongue, sending a soothing warmth through Persephone’s chest as she swallowed.
“What kind of tea is this?”
“Green tea that I doctored just a little.” Hecate winked and took a long sip.
Magic, of course.
“It’s perfect. I like to think I can make a good cup, but this is special.”
“I’ll show you. It’s not hard.”
Persephone gestured her cup at Hecate. “For you, I’m sure it’s second nature, but I don’t have powers like you or my mom.”
Hecate shook her head. “Yours haven’t fully emerged yet. This will be easy once it does.”
“Why haven’t they already?” It wasn’t as if she hadn’t tried many times before. If she could portal instantaneously from one place to another, she’d have no reason to take transportation or walk everywhere.
“It might be waiting for a certain event.”
What Hecate said sounded reasonable. If anyone would understand the quirks of magic, it was her. “Like what? I’m well past puberty and young adulthood. I’ve tried to conjure things but stopped because it never works.”
Hecate shrugged. “Magic is fickle. Have you been reaching for it recently?”
“Not really. I tried it a few nights ago, but it was weak.”
With a delicate movement, Hecate set her tea on the table, then interlaced her fingers on her lap. “You know… I’ve known of your origin since the beginning.”
Persephone stared at Hecate. Of course she had known she was Demeter’s daughter when most of Olympus only knew of Laura, but the ominous way she said your origin raised the hairs on the back of her neck.
“I didn’t just help your mom find the field of poppies you were made from, you know. I enchanted them myself.” Hecate wiggled her fingers.
With a hand pressed to her lips, Persephone regarded her with a new interest. “Why didn’t my mom tell me you helped create me?”
Hecate’s lined eyes softened. “I don’t think Demeter likes the idea of sharing you with anyone.”
How true.
Hecate ran her fingers through her hair. “You were never mine and your mother needed you. Laura was so much like her father even as a small child. Demeter was desperate for a daughter that was all her own.”
She wasn’t sure what to make of that. Her mom’s love was fierce and more isolating than she’d realized. Perhaps her mom’s recent avoidance was simply an attempt to give Persephone space to grow. Learning Hecate’s involvement was a welcome revelation, but she really wished her mom was here with her and Hecate. “So, if you enchanted the poppies…”
“Then you absolutely have power. My magic.”
Butterflies in her stomach, Persephone sat straighter in her seat. Maybe she didn’t need to be a goddess to be powerful.