Page 40 of Flowers Near Me

CHAPTER FORTY

LOVE IN BLOOM AND STONE

HADES

H e’d postponed their trip until he knew Persephone had fully recovered. After seeing her thrive in Flower Near Me ’s final promotions, he felt confident she was hale and whole.

The gala was only a few days away, but there were still a few things left to do before he and Sephy would leave for their getaway. Inside the gala’s event space, Hades marveled at the vines cascaded over the balcony, nearly touching the floor of the three-story domed conservatory. Dozens of staff navigated carts around marble pillars, like ants building a marvel for their queen, all in preparation for the massive gala.

Tomorrow, Sephy would join Hades for their first genuine date—a weekend getaway to one of his favorite secluded properties. The thought consumed him, but his little goddess was shooting daggers his way from across the bustling room. He hadn’t gotten a moment with her since they’d arrived at the gala’s location to finish preparations for the event. Even when they moved from the conservatory to the greenhouse to finalize seating arrangements, Sephy had stuck close to Hermes.

After a painful hour, Poseidon relented to Zeus and Hades’ plans and stormed off, citing another meeting that Hades was certain didn’t exist. If the timing wasn’t suspicious enough, his brooding assistant’s surprised reaction confirmed his theory. He’d met Vanth—the man Hecate said would be a good match for Charon—earlier that morning. The poor psychopomp had a long road ahead of him, given that Sephy and his assistant barely looked Vanth’s direction.

With a few parting words to Zeus, Hades made his way towards Sephy. Hermes gave him one look, then flitted off.

“Good time catching up?” he asked Sephy.

“Very enlightening. Sounds like you had him pay my mom a visit to correct bad behavior.” She held his gaze, and his heart dropped.

In the chaos of her magic-induced illness and the subsequent months, he’d forgotten to tell Sephy about her mom’s involvement with the app’s virus. “He told you about the ‘snake bite.’”

She slowly crossed her arms. “Strange hearing it from him and not you, though.”

He looked away, unable to hold her stare. “I should’ve told you when I found out, but at the time I needed to know you didn’t have a hand in it as well.”

She sighed. “I would’ve preferred to hear about it from you and not Hermes.”

“That’s fair.” Guilt gnawed at him but dissipated when the lines between her brows faded.

Smirking, Sephy asked, “Are your brothers happy now that they get to sit with all their friends?”

Purring a light laugh, Hades stood next to his little goddess and placed his hand on her back. The warm silk of her shirt brought images of the sleep sets he’d requested Charon pack for Sephy for their trip. Better if she wears nothing at all.

“Yes, every child’s got their assigned seat. Though we might need Charon to write Poseidon’s name in giant, glittering letters—just to keep him from causing a tidal wave. Maybe his new assistant can help.”

Sephy’s head swiveled to him faster than Cerberus to spilled ambrosia. “What do you know about Vanth? He seemed very curious about Charon.”

He met her gaze, a grin blooming on his face. “You noticed his interest too. Hecate speaks well of him. Maybe I should ask Charon to look into him?”

“Sounds like I need to reach out to my private investigator.” Sephy pulled her phone from her skirt. He imagined sliding his fingers into her pocket and pulling her against him.

“Who’s your PI, Sephy?”

“Laura. No one can find skeletons in the closet faster than a motivated sibling.”

He laughed, knowing he could never trust Poseidon to help him research anyone. Zeus… maybe? “I’ll take your word for it. Let me know what she finds. I’m not too bad of a detective when I need to be.”

Sephy typed a message, then pocketed her phone. Smiling at Hades, she asked, “So, our trip starts tomorrow. Will you tell me where we’re going?”

“Want to bargain for the information?” He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her to his side.

“Hm. Depends. What do you want?”

He leaned down an inch from her ear and whispered, “Don’t tempt me, love. I’ve got a trove of fantasies to choose from.” Goosebumps covered her soft neck.

Still tucked in his arm, she scrutinized his face. She dragged her knuckle down the center of his shirt. “Don’t start something you won’t finish, Hades. It wasn’t me who asked to stop back at the apartment.”

His insides went molten. “Patience, Sephy. We’ll have all weekend to pick back up where we started.”

Eyes unblinking and lips parted, Sephy’s face blushed in a delightful pink hue.

Using his power to deepen his voice, Hades added, “You know, that first time we really kissed and I heard your little moans, it seemed like the right time to get you to agree to marry me. Didn’t want to waste the opportunity when I had you pliant and needy.” He trailed his fingers down the back of her arm. “Besides… there’s no world where our first time together happens on a couch. You should expect more from your lover.”

He pressed a gentle kiss to her flushed cheek, then strode away towards nothing, going nowhere. He’d been careful ever since she’d returned to the apartment after her magic sickness, to not push anything too far physically—at least not until their getaway. The want inside him had nearly killed him. But this was not the moment to stir the longing, yet he’d managed to fuel the flames higher. After months of careful planning, trying to win her heart, now he was close to convincing her to marry him . It’d been agony to wait.

Hades portaled to the guest bedroom he’d been staying in since Sephy had started staying in his private suite. Ripping a pillow from the bed, he slammed it to his face and screamed. Cerberus bounded through the door and nudged at his feet. Laughing to himself, he tossed the pillow on the bed and bent down to pet Cerberus. Whenever he removed his hand, Cerberus huffed and poked him with his nose. After a few minutes of trying to satisfy the fluffy beast, Hades stood up and adjusted his jacket.

Cracking his neck, he took a deep breath, then portaled back to Sephy, still standing in the large hall of the botanical garden’s central building.

“Sorry, little goddess. Did I miss anything?”

Her eyes traced up and down his body. “Where did you go in such a hurry?”

He smirked. “Just headed off to scream into a pillow as one does.” He hoped his wink was convincing. She cut right through his defenses unlike any other—immortal or otherwise—had.

“You’re funny.” She turned back to watch the flurry of staff moving carts and boxes.

The familiar clack of sandals on the tiled floor caught his attention. Hecate approached, giving Sephy a squeeze on her delicate arm.

“Hades, are you ready to go through the decor?” Hecate gestured towards a wire archway covered in flowers.

“What else is needed? The building already looks fit for a gala.” Sephy looked between him and Hecate.

He turned to Sephy. “Just some final touches I need Hecate to make. Please excuse us.”

“No worries,” Sephy said with a polite smile and gave him a quick kiss.

Scanning the room for Charon, he sent a pulse of power her way. With a stack of garment boxes in her arms, Charon met his eyes. He casually dipped his head, gesturing at Sephy.

“Persephone,” Charon called out. “Could you join the marketing team as they get some photos of the setup?”

Once Sephy was out of earshot, Hecate asked, “So these enchanted vines… you want me to charm them so that whenever Sephy is near, they’ll bloom?”

“Precisely.”

“Show me which ones to enchant.”

They toured through the building, Hades pointing to green vines being hung with tiny solar-powered lights attached to them. Buds dotted the twisting stems. He doubted Sephy understood the depth of her influence on plants, but he knew.

With the Underworld Unlimited event planning machine in full force, Hades snuck off to a shop back in the ironworks district of Olympus. Hephaestus’ workshop had a large ‘closed’ sign across the door, but Hades portaled through anyway.

“Hades, I’m almost finished,” Hephaestus greeted him. The god bent over a workbench, working his hands around a small piece of jewelry.

“Good.” Hades leaned on a glass counter and unbuttoned the top of his dress shirt.

“Yours is finished if you want to see it. Over there.” Hephaestus motioned a fist behind him to a black metal box sitting on the desk.

Pushing through the gate between the displays, Hades picked up the box. Inside, a wide wedding band of obsidian sat tied to a velvet pillow. Removing the satin string, he pinched the ring between his fingers and squinted at the stamped design adorning it. “Well done, Hephaestus. They look just like her poppies.”

Hephaestus grunted and stood up. Cradling three small rings, he held them out to Hades. “Check out hers.”

Each one had a white gold band with melanite in the center. The largest band boasted the widest polished gemstone.

Untying a thick, charcoal stained apron, Hephaestus asked, “Why does she want three rings for her ring finger?”

Hades released a low sigh. “She doesn’t. I wanted a ring to be seen on each part so everyone knows she’s taken.” He gave Hephaestus a smirk.

Hephaestus’ jaw ticked. “I can understand that.”