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She discovered the man’s name was Tobias Waite, and she assumed it was his wife, Margo, to whom Ellie had spoken. He filled them in about how they had planned a small pre-opening for a few guests this week, which made Peyton and Declan lucky they were there to take them in.
When Tobias began asking questions that any reasonable person would ask, Peyton found herself left to her own devices.
“What on Earth were you doing out in this mess?”
What was she going to say?
I’m transporting a prisoner to Washington, D.C., and it made me nervous, so I wanted to get him off my hands as quickly as possible because he also makes my skin heat up, and subconsciously, I knew the weather was going to turn, but I thought I could beat it.
Instead, she fumbled through some mumbled responses and was glad when she heard a female voice interrupt her half-assed answers.
“Tobias, don’t keep them standing around while you lecture them. Bring them into the lounge so they can warm up.”
And that must be Margo, the wife. Peyton listened to her teasing her husband about lecturing them in a good-natured way.
Tobias’ dark, handsome features were perfectly complemented by his wife’s stunning hazel eyes and shoulder-length blond hair. It was also clear that the two of them were crazy about each other.
With her teeth chattering less, Peyton swept her gaze across the lounge and was able to appreciate the warm splendor of the room. Hardwood floors, a mesmerizing crackling fire, and a Christmas tree, probably eight to nine feet in height, and with the rest of the area decorated with pine boughs and fairy lights, lent to the cozy holiday atmosphere. From the cathedral ceiling hung a magnificent chandelier. Peyton did a double take on the chandelier… were those...
Margo interrupted her focus on the elaborate lighting by handing her a cup of hot chocolate. After thanking their host, Peyton didn’t hesitate to take a sip.
The last time she had taken a sip of hot chocolate, life had been completely different. The fact that it had only been a little over an hour ago made it harder to believe.
“Ellie told me about your situation,” Margo said, “and we were happy to make a place for you. I’m afraid she didn’t tell us much about you, though…”
"I'm Peyton Adams. This is my husband, Declan... Adams.”
She wasn’t going to win any Oscars here, and she tried to ignore Declan’s soft chuckle.Declan Adams—shecould already hear the grin in his voice when he teased her about it.
She almost said she would pay for her own stay when Declan, charming as ever, offered to foot the bill. But they were supposed to be married, and that kind of thing would maybe draw more suspicion on them if they didn’t already come across as suspicious enough. And when the name on his card said Foster, if that’s the name he was using presently, he’d have to tell him he took her surname when theymarried.
The situation was becoming a series of unfortunate mistakes.
But luckily, Margo insisted no payment was necessary since they had run a contest for the pre-opening event, and they were now just going to consider her and Declan surprise winners.
Yay for us. Not.
They both thanked Tobias and Margo for their kindness, although she doubted paying for their stay would have made a dent in Declan’s bank balance. Rumors circulated that he was worth close to a few billion dollars. Although she knew most of that money came from him also being a private contractor for various organizations, good and bad.
While the government had him on their most wanted list, they weren’t morally above going through a series of ironclad contacts to hire Declan Foster for near-impossible missions. That just added to the enigma of the man himself.
"We have a cabin out back prepared for you with the heat up nice and high,” Margo said. “Iamafraid you’ll have to go back out in the snow, but it’s a very short walk, I promise. But…”
A sudden hint of tension filled the air.
“What my wife is hesitating to ask about is... how do you know Ellie?”
“How?” Peyton frowned. “She's my best friend."
“I think what Tobias is asking, kitten,” Declan said, then slipped his arm around her waist and drew her body closer to his as if he owned her, “is whether we're into kink or not. We both are."
Peyton’s expression was so stunned that she thought she would never recover.
A kink resort?
Her friend had sent her to a kink resort to take shelter from the storm with an assassin on her ass. Granted, she believed Declan was an FBI agent, but still. She was going to killEllie for not warning her, at least. Also, obviously, Ellie’s main concern was getting them off the road, so that made her easily forgiven.
In hindsight, Peyton realized what an incredible rookie mistake she had made. In her haste to get him off her hands, she ended up trapping herself in his company even longer and worse, in an unknown territory.
