Chapter 293

Elain enjoyed the warm morning sun as she strode up the pavement. Lucien had been called away by his father just after breakfast, and she had decided that it was the perfect time to head back into the city on her own. She had stopped at the small bakery she had found the last time she had come this way and now she had a small packet full of sweet pastries in her hand as she walked toward the garden she had found.

It wasn't the garden that Elain was truly after. She had wanted to find Sheera's flower shop, and she had figured that her best bet would likely be to work from the garden as she had been told that the shop was in the area. Elain was confident that once she was at the gardens, she would be able to find the shop. So, as she walked, she kept an eye out for any signage or hints that there would be a flower shop nearby.

She hadn't seen any clues by the time she reached the garden, but she headed down a nearby street all the same. There were a lot of tiny gorgeous windows of shops that caught her eye, and Elain made a note to come back this way when she had the time to peruse them a little better. Not that she didn't actually have the time now, but she knew that if she got too distracted in those shops that she would be caught up for quite a while and if she even then found Sheera's shop before lunch, it would be well after the warm pastries in the packet she held had gone cold.

It took Elain another twenty or so minutes to find the place and she stopped to smile at the hand painted sign out the front. Sheera's Sunshine Stems. "Cute." Elain murmured, reaching for the door and pushing it open. A slight tinkle from a bell attached to the top of the door announced her arrival, but Elain could see nobody inside. She moved further into he shop, her eyes flicking from one side of the room to the other, trying to take in all the colours and blooms that filled nearly every inch of the place.

"I will be right out." A familiar voice called from somewhere Elain could not see, and she made her way through the store to where she imagined a counter would be toward the back. Having found it, Elain waited, her eyes sweeping the shop again. There looked to be many flowers here which she didn't recognise, and she found herself focusing on a delicate little red one at the end of the counter. Elain moved toward it, her eyes momentarily flicking toward the door behind the counter that evidently led toward the back of the shop, and where she was assuming Sheera was currently.

With still no sign of the other female, Elain returned her attentions to the red flower, reaching out to touch the petals gently. They felt like velvet and she smiled, looking at the variegated leaves of the plant. If she had have seen this one when compiling her book, it would have most definitely been included.

"Elain."

Elain looked up and around when Sheera's voice sounded closer, and she found golden eyes on her from where the faerie stood in the doorway behind the counter. There was surprise on Sheera's face, but it gave way to happiness as she smiled in greeting at Elain. "You found the shop, then."

"It would appear I have." Elain moved along the counter then until she was closer to Sheera and she smiled again at her. "I thought you might have time for a snack…" she held up the packet full of pastries, pleased that there was still a pleasant warm aroma coming from within. She could tell that Sheera was able to smell it too when the other faerie smiled more widely.

"I always have time for snacks." Sheera gestured for Elain to follow her around the counter and toward the front of the shop. Just inside some of the large windows were a few tables and chairs, and Sheera directed Elain to take up a seat at one.

"Do… you serve food here?" Elain asked, thinking that this almost looked like a small café.

"Oh, no." Sheera replied, "Sometimes there are those who just like to come in and sit among the flowers while they make their selections… also it serves to give some ideas that they could use for their own gardens or whatever spaces they are trying to work with…"

"You are giving me ideas…" Elain admitted, looking at the tables and chairs and thinking about the styles she might get for the garden connected to the room she shared with Lucien. "I have a private garden which I am currently working on…" She set the packet of pastries in the middle of the table and tore it open to allow them both access to the deliciousness within.

"Glad to help." Sheera said with a smile, reaching for one of the pastries. Elain eyed her for a moment, thinking.

"Would you, perhaps…" she began, picking up a pastry of her own, "be interested in coming and having a look? You could tell me what you think, give me suggestions… I…" Elain smiled, her eyes going back to the red flower on the counter, "I'm not overly familiar with Day Court flowers and I don't really know what thrives here…"

"Of course." Sheera smiled, "I would be honoured to do that…"

"Oh, you don't' have to be honoured…" Elain murmured, feeling heat rise in her cheeks. "I… I'm not asking as… I don't know.. the mate of the Heir to the Court or anything… Just… as a friend…"

Sheera's smile was genuine and it grew wider. "Yes." She said, "And I would be honoured to be your friend."