Page 78 of The Match
“So, as you know, I’m in a similar business as you—”
“Only bigger and far more successful,” Isabeau finished with a wink.
I smiled with my whole heart. I tried to gauge which one Zachary resembled most, but the truth was, neither of them reminded me of him.
“It’s doing very well, thanks. But your shop is amazing.”
“Oh, we do well. Then again, we only started this so our old bones wouldn’t rot at home,” Isabeau said. “We found out we quite like it.”
“Right now, I’m only selling my merchandise online, but I’d like to put them it stores as well. I can send you a pitch to give you an idea of how it would benefit us both.”
Isabeau waved her hand. “Darling girl, we’ve been in business far too long. We were chefs prior to this little operation and very much involved in strategic decisions regarding the restaurant. We don’t need a pitch, just some prices so we can figure out what we need to order. But for now, tell us what you have in mind.”
“I’d like to put my best-selling items in the store. They would complement your brand because I use natural products as well. I’m a firm believer in plants and their restorative powers.”
Both women looked at each other and then back at me. “Go on,” Celine encouraged.
“Some descriptions of the products take a bit of an esoteric angle. People seem to enjoy that.”
“That fits right in with our philosophy,” Isabeau said.
“I thought so too. You’d be the very first store in the Quarter to have my products.”
Celine sighed. “Maybe it’ll help a bit and make other stores trust the Deveraux name again if we merchandise a few of your items.”
I stopped looking around the store. These two were so thoughtful, and I appreciated their support. “It probably would help. But if you find that it tarnishes your brand in any way, please don’t hesitate to tell me, and I’ll take them off your shelves, of course.”
“Girl, we can handle anything that comes our way,” Isabeau said, making me smile.
“You’ve had to deal with the fallout from your brothers’ wrongdoings, and that’s not fair. I have to admit that, for a while, I thought your father was in on it too,” Celine said.
I bristled. “Oh no. My father is an honest man.”
She nodded. “We know that now.”
“May I ask what changed your minds?” I asked.
Celine laughed. Isabeau simply said, “We have our ways of finding out everything going on in the city.”
“I don’t doubt that,” I said. “Do you have any questions? If you’re open to it, I’m more than happy to include your products in our online shop. It’s doing very well. We drive a lot of traffic to it daily.”
Celine waved her hand. “We have enough on our hands with the demand we get from people who walk into our store. We couldn’t keep up with more. We’re happy with what we have.”
“Well, if that changes, just let me know. I’ll send you a spreadsheet with prices, and then just let me know what you need. Do you have an email address I should forward it to?”
“Of course. We’re old, not decrepit,” Isabeau replied, and I winced.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you. My mom, for example, doesn’t like emails at all.”
“We do. Now, as a token of good faith, I would like to gift you one of our fragrances,” Isabeau said.
I smiled, surprised by the gesture. “That’s kind of you. I’d love one. I still can’t believe that I’ve never been in here. How does it work? Do you need any information from me to make a custom one?”
“As it happens, we already made one,” Celine said. Her voice was a bit different from before, but I couldn’t tell why.
“Perfect.”
“And do tell us if it doesn’t work, okay? Then we’ll call you back here and do some proper legwork.”
