Page 4 of Stolen

“Your cousin isn’t much of a talker, huh?” Leo joked. “Feels like he’s taking that whole strong, silent thing to heart.”

“He’s a smart guy.” I shrugged. “He learned a long time ago that he’s not much of a people person. Really only opens up when he has something to say.”

I nodded toward the main hall. “You ready to give me that tour?”

Leo smiled before he took a few steps in front of me. “First stop? The Lodge Lobby. Look to your left, look to your right. There’s lobby everywhere.”

I playfully rolled my eyes. “Got it. Anything else you want me to see in here?”

“Did you see the water station? The coffee?” Leo grinned as he walked to the next room. As I followed behind him, I noticed that this room looked a lot like the lobby, but a whole lot bigger. There were separate seating areas, complete with cushions and upscale couches. There were also two brick fireplaces on different sides of the room, giving the place a bit of a rustic feel despite its luxurious interior.

“Who needs two lobbies?” I wondered, out loud.

“Three.”

“What?”

“And we’re walking,” Leo said, as he headed into another room. When I got there, I took a quick look around, and couldn’t help but shake my head.

Leo was right.

There were three lobbies. This one had seating areas, a huge flatscreen TV, and a separate section that looked like it was for having meals and dining in. While I was used to providing high-end experiences for my own clientele at Wild Woods, I wasn’t quite used to this. This was the kind of service providedto millionaires, maybe billionaires, the kind of people who expected the world and had enough money to pay for it, too.

“This feels like overkill.”

“Not if you’re dealing with divas.”

“What?”

“Let’s say you have two or three actors staying here on their downtime from filming a TV show,” Leo continued. “Sure, the whole place is private suites, but what happens when they leave their rooms? They still don’t want to see each other. So, three lobbies ensures their assistants can spread the word about which one they’re in and keep the peace.”

“Damn.” I scoffed. “You really have to think about stuff like that?”

“If you don’t, things could end in disaster.” Leo shrugged. “It’s not a big deal. It’s like juggling. Once you get used to it, it’s all just a bunch of balls in the air.”

Leo laughed at his own joke. “You like that one? My old mentor used to say it all the time?—”

“We should check out the rest of the grounds.”

“Yep. You got it.” Leo nodded before he started walking again. Soon, we were standing inside an indoor gym, complete with an indoor pool. “What do you think? Pretty nice, right? I wanted to pick a place that the guys could still work out at their usual level.”

“Very nice,” I agreed, taking in the room. “Everything looks like it’s in working order. Which is good for staying in shape, but not necessarily useful in a storm.”

“It’s good for keeping your mind off being stuck in a storm?”

“True.” I looked over at Leo, who seemed pleased with my response. “Keeping yourself busy is important when it comes to staving off anxiety.”

Leo slightly smiled. “All right. I think I know what you really want to see.”

“A cabinet stocked with canned goods?”

“Something like that, sure.”

Leoand I were on the second floor of the lodge, standing in the middle of the kitchen. He was holding open the fridge door, listing off different things as he found them. As he spoke, I took it upon myself to search through the cabinets, ensuring there was even more food than he was mentioning.

“Honestly? I think we’re good when it comes to the whole snowed in thing.” He sighed with relief. “Whoever stocked this place really stocked it up good. Not to mention the restaurant, which probably has its own kitchen, too?—”

“There’s a restaurant? On site?”

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