Page 32 of Lavender and Honey

As I approached Elias's booth, I felt a flutter of nervous excitement in my stomach. His warm smile and the genuine happiness in his voice at seeing me made my heart skip a beat.

"Good morning, Elias," I said softly, clutching my sketchbook to my chest like a shield. "Thank you for inviting me."

Elias's honey-warm scent washed over me as I drew closer, comforting and familiar. "Of course! I'm so excited to hear your ideas," he said enthusiastically. "Here, I've set up a little space for us to work."

He gestured to a small table tucked behind his booth, away from the main flow of customers. Two chairs were arranged cozily, with a thermos and two mugs waiting.

"I brought some tea," Elias explained, his hazel eyes twinkling. "I have been experimenting with tea leaves since you seem to love tea so much.” I blinked at this, not expecting him to go out of the way to make something just because I enjoyed it.

“I also made some fresh scones this morning or we can cut one of the breads and have it with one of the preserves?” Elias said, as he went to a small basket and pulled out a bag of scones.

“I thought we might want something to nibble on while we work." Elias rushed out, a hint of nervousness in his voice.

I felt a warmth bloom in my chest at his thoughtfulness. "That's very kind of you, thank you," I murmured, settling into one of the chairs.

“I didn’t expect you to make homemade tea. Will you be selling those too?” I asked, genuinely curious.

Elias's eyes lit up at my question. "I've been thinking about it, actually. It's still in the experimental stage, but I'd love to offer some tea blends in the future. Maybe even incorporate them into the seasonal gift boxes we're planning."

"This is a blend I created with autumn in mind," he explained, handing me a mug. "It has notes of cinnamon, apple, and a hint of vanilla." Elias explained, pouring steaming tea into two mugs. The rich, fragrant aroma filled the air between us.

I took the mug gratefully, inhaling deeply. The scent was comforting and complex, perfectly capturing the essence of fall. As I took a sip, the flavors bloomed on my tongue— warm cinnamon, crisp apple, and a subtle sweetness from the vanilla. It was perfectly balanced, not too spicy or overly sweet.

"Elias, this is delicious," I said softly, genuine appreciation in my voice. "You really have a talent for creating flavors that work well together."

A pleased blush colored Elias's cheeks at my words. "Thank you, Lydia. I'm so glad you like it. I was hoping it might inspire some ideas for our autumn gift box."

I nodded, setting down my mug and opening my sketchbook. "Actually, I've been working on some concepts," I admitted, feeling a flutter of nervousness in my stomach. "Would you like to see?"

Elias's eyes lit up with excitement.

"I'd love to see your concepts," Elias said eagerly, leaning in closer. His honey-warm scent wrapped around me, a comforting presence as I flipped open my sketchbook.

I took a deep breath, steadying my nerves before turning to the pages with my seasonal gift box designs. "I sketched out some ideas for each season," I explained softly, laying the book on the table between us. "They're just rough concepts, of course."

“I thought we could start with something like this for each season. If you don’t like anything just tell me and I can tweak it or draw something on your ideas.” I told him, pushing the sketchbook across the table so he could see.

Elias's eyes widened as he took in the detailed drawings. His fingers hovered over the pages, tracing the lines of the intricately carved boxes and the carefully arranged preserves within. "Lydia," he breathed, his voice filled with awe, "these are incredible."

I felt a blush creep up my cheeks at his praise. "They're just ideas.” They would probably need some editing before they were made into a final product, but I thought it was a good start.

Elias was looking at the pages, his eyes going over the full page, “You even wrote suggestions on flavors?”

My face heated up at this, “I don’t know anything about making things like you do, but I just put some ideas down. You can ignore them. My brain wouldn’t leave me alone till I wrote them down... ” I trailed off at the end, embarrassed that maybe I was overstepping.

Elias's eyes softened as he looked up at me, a warm smile spreading across his face. "Lydia, please don't apologize. These ideas are wonderful! I love that you've put so much thought into this."

“I love how you've matched the flavors to the seasons and the box designs." He pointed to the autumn box sketch. "A spiced pumpkin butter would be perfect in this amber-stained box with the leaf carvings. And for winter, the mulled wine jelly in the frosted snowflake box? It's brilliant." Elias told me warmly, his gaze almost burning into me with a look I hadn’t seen on his face before.

I felt a wave of relief wash over me at his words. "Really? You don't think I was overstepping?"

Elias shook his head emphatically. "Not at all! This is exactly the kind of collaboration I was hoping for. Your mind is a wonderous thing…we definitely can create something truly special from this."

He turned back to the sketches, his finger tracing the intricate carvings I'd drawn on the winter box. "And Finn will love these designs for the woodwork. The snowflakes for winter, the cherry blossoms for spring... it's perfect."

I felt a warmth bloom in my chest at Elias's enthusiasm. It had been so long since I'd shared my art with anyone, let alone had it received with such genuine appreciation. "I'm glad you like them," I said softly, a small smile tugging at my lips.

Elias beamed at me, his honey-warm scent spiking with excitement. "Like them? Lydia, I love them. These designs are exactly what I had in mind, but even better than I could have imagined."

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