Page 5 of Flowers Near Me

CHAPTER FIVE

MOM’S NOT HAPPY

PERSEPHONE

T he device in Persephone’s hand burned with unleashed fury. She looked at her sister, hoping for some inspiration for what to do, some sign that this was all a dream, but for once her sister looked as gobsmacked as she felt. Persephone’s throat went dry.

Please don’t be real.

Her phone buzzed impatiently, and she sucked in a breath before answering the call. “Hi, Mom. Are you in on Laura and Peter’s joke, too?” Fates, let this be a nightmare that I wake up from.

“ What ?” Demeter screamed. “I swear on Zeus’ chariot… Is this a joke? Is this your surprise?”

Her mom sounded crazed. Now Persephone was hot despite her short sleeves and silk shorts. Could her mom’s power reach her over the phone? She didn’t think so, but the terror flooding her veins made her consider the possibility.

“What’s going on, Persephone? I have every god and goddess sending me messages with their condolences and surprise. What did you sign with Underworld Unlimited?”

Sweat beaded on Persephone’s brow and palms as she stood up from her chair and muted the call.

With as threatening a voice as she could muster, Persephone said, “Tell me the truth, Laura. Is this an elaborate joke?”

“Definitely not a joke.” Laura held Persephone’s gaze. A stone sat on her chest.

Persephone unmuted the call. “Mom, let me talk. I didn’t sign anything related to Underworld Unlimited. I signed a partner and rep agreement for a new app. Our lawyers checked into their funding, and I met with the developer tonight. There’s no way?—”

“You signed before consulting me? Why would you do that? What were you thinking? Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” Her mom’s seething tone made her dizzy.

Persephone closed her eyes and slowed her breath, waiting for her thumping pulse to quiet. “I just told you that the lawyers researched it. They gave me the go ahead. I don’t know how Hades finagled this. Underworld Unlimited was never a part of my agreement with Eurydice.” The last part sat like cotton in her mouth. How could she have made a mistake like this one?

There was a brief quiet on her mom’s end until her sigh broke the spell. “The damage is done whether you like it or not. People are saying you’ve jumped ship to Underworld. How can I justify your position to the board now? They were already wary after you went public as my daughter.”

Persephone felt the anger rising in her veins. “That wasn’t my choice to announce our relationship and I’m not jumping ship,” Persephone hissed as she braced her damp back against the kitchen wall.

Her mom asked, “How selfish can you be?”

Persephone took a deep breath and rubbed her forehead. “I won’t go through with any of this. I’m calling it off with the developer once we hang up.”

“At this point, I don’t care what you do.”

The dismissal in her mom’s tone triggered a rush of adrenaline. She fought it off with another slow inhale.

“You and I both know that’s not true. I’ll fix this. Yes, the press is alarming, but nothing we can’t navigate. I’m sure Hermes is scrambling as we speak to draft my public statement refuting Hades’ claims.”

“Don’t put out a statement until I’ve talked with our lawyers and PR team. And send me that Fates-damned contract immediately.” Demeter yelled the last bit.

“I’ll do that right now, but I’m putting you on speaker so I can open my email.”

“Just send it,” Demeter snapped.

Standing nearby, Laura rolled her eyes, muttering typical under her breath.

Persephone opened her email. To her horror, her inbox had exploded with a slew of unread emails from Underworld Unlimited. Each one with attachments and subjects starting with “Please sign and return ASAP.”

Poor Hermes. If her assistant had already caught wind of this disaster, then he was probably pacing around his loft, yanking his curly hair. For his sake, she hoped he hadn’t checked her email after work.

“Alright… I just emailed you and your PA.”

“Got it. Don’t talk to anyone until I call you back. You know how Hades is with contracts. If you make any more mistakes, it could cost us every cent we’ve earned this year in profits.”

The racing of her heart threatened to cut off her voice, but she managed a reply. “Of course. Keep me posted on what the team says.”

Persephone ended the call, silenced her phone, and wiped the sweat from her brow. Laura squeezed her shoulder. “Don’t worry. If anyone can fix this, it’s you. Plus, Mom won’t stay mad at you for long.”

She doubted her mom’s rage would subside soon, but she appreciated Laura’s confidence. There had to be a way to get out of this mess, she just needed to figure it out.