CHAPTER 1Out of the Blue

MILES OF DUSTY Mexican roads were getting monotonous. The love of my life, Martin Crowley, was just a few days into his monthly buying trip for his new company, Architectural Products Marketing (APM), and was sourcing exquisitely handcrafted tiles, carved stone, marble, ceramics, furnishings, and other architectural pieces from dozens of out-of-the-way factories and quarries in the countryside. The plan was to bring them back to sell to designers and architects building beautiful homes for the millionaires and billionaires living in Beverly Hills and along California’s Gold Coast. APM’s customers loved his unique and refined taste, and he was doing a roaring trade.

Martin knew exactly where to find the best artisans in ...

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