Page 53 of Mister Stark

But we didn’t need Dylan to know that.

I grabbed the phone from Daxon’s hands and wobbled it. It made the screen fuzzy and our image unrecognizable. Daxon reached for it, but I fought him off.

“D-Dylan you... Breaking up...” I faked as the phone shook and I tried to wrap this horror show up. “We’ve got.... Go now... Bye.”

I hit the end button before he could speak another word. We needed to keep this trip positive and Daxon just about ruined it. This entire situation had a bad ending written all over it and didn’t need his truth leaking through now. The sooner this was over, the better for us all.

“What the hell was that all about, Celeste?” Daxon growled and grabbed his phone from my hands.

“We don’t need you sneaking the truth in there. We need to fake it until we make it. Got it?” I snapped and pointed my index finger at him.

“You surprise me every day, princess.” Daxon smirked as he looked at my finger and back at my face with enlightenment.

I cleared my throat. “Good, now let’s go find our ride and get this show on the road.”

I turned my back to him and felt his eyes on my backside. It blazed with heat and sizzled through my clothes. It travelled over my skin and left me bare. Naked for only him as I shivered under his stare, but didn’t dare look back. I’d be lost in him, and I needed to stay focused. He could do me in and I knew it. I needed to make it out of this in one piece.

We got off the plane and went down the steps. A long limousine was on the airport tarmac and I knew it was our ride out of here. Our luxurious ride into the mountains was all set up by my future father-in-law’s son. A getaway for two meant to bring us closer when we should be further apart. But fate had other plans.

I slide into the limousine and let the leather seat form to my backside. The smooth leather was a relief from the airplane seats. First class was lavish, but I hated the seats. There was only so much comfort someone could create on an aircraft. A smaller object up against gravity and an entire sky.

I closed my eyes to relax my mind and could hear Daxon talk to the driver with directions. I left him in charge of everything because I didn’t want to be here, but someone had to be in on the plan. Someone had to know Dylan’s instructions on how this would play out. He organized it after all and we just had to follow his plan. Follow through until it was all over and we could get back to our lives.

I felt him sit down on the seat beside me and heard his door slam shut. The trunk opened and weighed down a bit with the rest of our luggage, but soon closed shut. I blew out a breath and heard the engine come to life. I just had to tell myself this would all be over soon, but I knew I lied to myself. Everything about this was one big fat fake, and I was stuck right in the middle of it. Right along with my fiancé’s father.

***

ITENSELY PEERED OUTthe window as the limousine climbed the mountain side carefully. It took extra precaution, and the driver informed us of the narrow roadway before we hit it. I had a good view of the steep decline down the side of the mountain from my side of the limousine, but it wreaked havoc on my nerves.

“Why the hell did he have to pick a death trap?” I mumbled with unease as the limousine climbed higher and I played with my hands in my lap.

Daxon looked over at me and smugly smiled. “He’s your fiancé.”

“And he’s your son.” I snapped and returned the sarcasm.

He huffed, and I knew I had made my point. I expected him to argue with me as per usual, but he kept his mouth shut. It surprised me and I wanted to tease the issue just to get on his nerves. But I let it go. I took pride in the fact I had made him speechless for just this once.

Even though the view made me uneasy, the scenery was beautiful. It captivated me as we rode higher up the mountain and the snow lightly dusted the ground. But as we went higher, it got thicker on the landscape.

It blanketed the terrain, and everything was white. There was an odd color here and there, with the grey sky high above. Snow didn’t drop from the sky, but it appeared it could open up at any moment. And from the way it looked, it would produce a heavy snowfall.

Soon the road stopped its continuous curve and straightened up into a line. We headed into a thick forest of trees covered with snow everywhere I looked. There wasn’t a single vehicle in sight for miles, and it was very secluded. Just like Dylan had promised, and my stomach knotted at the thought. I knew it would be just the two of us, but figured there would be someone way out here. Dylan wasn’t fucking around and he wanted us to focus with no other distractions. In any ideal dysfunctional relationship, this would make sense, but to add the pent-up sexual tension. It called for an avalanche down the rocky mountainside.

It was a very clear day for such a cloudy one as the limousine turned left and onto a single paved road. Up ahead, my eyes caught sight of a beautiful cabin right in the woods. The wooden log structure was stunning and vast, with enormous windows. It was an expensive appearance for a cabin in the woods and not all what I expected.

A small barn was off to the side of it and it made my mind turn as to what was inside. It wasn’t like a usual farm barn, but sturdier. It was hardy and ready for the colder weather. The identical cabin next to it had no windows.

The limousine pulled up out front and put on the brakes as it gave my head a slight jerk. The driver opened Daxon’s door and went to retrieve our luggage from the trunk. I was about to open my door when Daxon opened it for me and ushered me out of the vehicle.

The driver placed our luggage by the front door while I admired the structure’s beauty. It was even more fabulous up close. Even though I hate the thought of spending one moment here with this egotistical asshole, I could get used to the seclusion.

I wandered over towards the luggage to get my stuff and heard the limousine pull away. My eyes narrowed as I looked towards three items and something was missing. There was my carry on, Daxon’s carry on, and his luggage.

But where was mine?

“Um, where’s all my stuff?” I asked as I pointed towards the pile and put my other hand on my hip.

“Yes, about that...” Daxon breathed as he took his carry on and unhooked the handle for his luggage. “We ran into a bit of a problem.”

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