Page 7 of Earned Husband

“Yeah, why?”

“So I can find you when you disappear.”

I chuckled but didn’t argue, already in awe of the place even as we walked in. The sheer scale of the market was stunning. Rows upon rows of flowers stretched out underneath industrial lighting, their colors popping against the gray walls.

On every inhale, I caught the scent of greenery, damp earth, and thousands of blooms at various stages of their journey from bud to arrangement. I practically squealed as we strolled down the first aisle, grabbing my brother’s arm as I glanced up at him.

“This is exactly what I was hoping for.”

Khaled laughed. “I was wondering how long it was going to take you to say that.”

We were absorbed into a crowd of wedding planners, florists, and buyers as we headed further in. They moved through the aisles discussing quantities and delivery schedules while workers loaded carts and pallets, but I was interested in entirely different things.

To me, it was all about variety and availability, growing regions and seasonality. I literally stopped to smell the roses—and many other flowers—and chatted to the vendors about their products.

“We drive this up from down south,” one older woman told me. “It’s difficult to source these from anywhere else.”

Another vendor explained their experimental cultivars while a young man enthusiastically walked me through the native plants, herbs, and greenery. Less than twenty minutes into our visit, I was already carrying a ridiculous collection of samples of sprigs and blooms.

Khaled eyed the growing bouquet suspiciously. “You’re not going to be able to carry everything, if you keep going at this rate.”

“I’ll make it work,” I said, shrugging him off as a pale pink blossom caught my attention. I bent closer, rubbing one petal lightly between my fingers before lifting it to my nose and inhaling its fresh, subtle scent.

It wouldn’t be particularly useful on its own, but it would be potentially interesting paired with citrus, cedar, or amber. My mind began building the combinations without me even giving it any conscious thought as I held the blossom out toward Khaled.

“What if you paired this with something like orange blossom?” I asked. “It could work, right?”

He took it from me, his eyes sliding shut as he inhaled the scent. “Nah, it’s too soft.”

“It wouldn’t be if the base was strong enough.”

He shook his head. “I still think you’d lose it after a few hours.”

“Only if you didn’t use the right fixative,” I argued lightly, plucking the blossom from between his fingertips and adding it to my growing stash. “I’m telling you, with the correct formula, that will be a winner.”

“I don’t doubt it,” he said, smiling as we continued deeper into the market. “You could turn fresh cow droppings into an award winning scent if you wanted to.”

“That’s already a thing.” I smirked at him. “Look it up. I kid you not. Someone has already done it.”

He groaned. “I was trying to give you a compliment.”

“Yes, but knowledge and facts are better.” I flashed him a sweet smile and took off again, hearing his laughter ringing out behind me.

Once he caught up again, we stopped periodically to speak with growers and suppliers, but eventually, the crowds thinned out and the decorative displays disappeared, the warehouse becoming more industrial.

Loading bays lined one side of the building. Trucks were being packed with boxes destined for florists, wholesalers, and retailers across the country. The scent of flowers lingered here too, but it mingled with cardboard and machine oil, and I crinkled my nose, but Khaled just kept walking.

Once we found a quieter corner, he sat down on a bench and brought his onyx eyes up to mine. “So, uh, there’s something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about.”

I sat down next to him, my heart starting to gallop in my chest. “What’s that?”

He inhaled a deep breath. “I might’ve found a connection who can help us get the ball rolling on a local production facility.”

My eyes widened as I stared at him. “Seriously?”

“Seriously.” He nodded, leaning back against the bench as his gaze drifted around the warehouse. “Don’t get too excited yet, but this could be it, Deja.”

Despite what he’d just said, a smile started spreading on my lips and excitement sparked through my veins. “That would be amazing. Any sort of space your connection could offer us would be perfect. A perfumery doesn’t need to be large. At this point, I’d take a conference room over nothing.”