As the four of us stood under the beautiful, fragrant pink roses, I looked over the bay below us and wondered if the mystery of Allegra Cadwell’s disappearance would ever be solved. Perhaps one day, we would finally know the truth of what happened to her. But until then, we all had each other.
I looked over at Peyton. Her eyes were shining with emotion as she stared down at a blooming flower. “How are you feeling?” I asked, slipping my hand into hers.
She nodded. “Fine. This….” She waved her hand around at the garden. “This is a good step.”
“I was just thinking the same thing.”
She gave me a watery smile. “I know everything that went down this year was horrible. But I think it made us all realize something positive in the end.”
I tilted my head to the side. “Yeah?”
“When Allegra first went missing, there was obviously all the uproar about it, but my family never actually spoke about it all that much. To each other, I mean. Dad was always closed off, even though I knew it still affected him. Mom was better, but she still didn’t talk about it much. If ever. And I think that didn’t help matters. But now.…” Her voice trailed off for a moment as she collected her thoughts. “Now I think it’s easier for us to talk about it all. After going through all this shit, it’s made us realize it helps to be more open with each other instead of keeping it all bottled up. It brought us closer, in a really weird way.”
I smiled, glad that Peyton and her parents had managed to find something positive in all the awful things that had been stirred up courtesy of DeeDee and Andreas’ dastardly plan. “So you’re all going to be okay?” I asked gently, squeezing her hand.
She lifted her chin to look right into my eyes, her own brimming with a mixture of hope and resilience. Then she nodded. “Yeah,” she said with a small smile. “We’re going to be okay.”
Epilogue - Peyton
Eighteen months later
“God, it’s good to be home.”
I took in a deep breath as I stared around the Mirabella lobby. It was eight o’clock at night, but it was still bustling with activity—tourists wandering around to check out the architecture or the new casino on the premises, bellboys carrying luggage for guests who were checking in or out, and others who simply came to the hotel for a nice dinner at one of its many eateries.
Kade raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t enjoy our vacation?”
I turned to him and smiled. “Of course I did! I loved it. It’s just always nice to come home, that’s all.”
“I get you. And there’s only so much surf and sun we can take,” he said with a wink. “Not to mention all the cameras there.”
I laughed. “True. But hey, at least the cameras weren’t there for us for once.”
We’d just returned from a one week trip to Hawaii. After working on my website almost nonstop for the last year and a half, I was in need of a nice getaway, and Kade had well and truly delivered with an amazing stay at his parents’ new resort.
After a lot of soul searching, Gabrielle and Glenn had finally realized they were thinking too small. They’d always had all these dreams of being one of the biggest hoteliers in the country, so why keep their focus on our city only? All it did was create problems and drama when they decided to go a little too hard on the competition (like their awful spying plan from two years ago), and they’d finally realized around a year ago that it wasn’t the right path for them.
And so they’d gone big. They’d opened up two new resorts in other states within the space of six months, and they were planning a whole lot more spread across the country within the next few years. The Hawaii resort was their newest accomplishment, and with that one, they’d gone even bigger.
Hence the aforementioned cameras…
Due to Gabrielle’s love of reality TV and Glenn’s love of extra attention for their businesses, the Pierces had come up with an idea to pitch to a TV network, and now they were featured on their very own renovation reality show: Five Star Fixer-Upper.
Over the last year, Five Star Fixer-Upper had showed the process of an old building on the Hawaiian coast being renovated into a stunning Pierce resort, and as per any other reality TV show, it also featured a ton of drama between the renovation workers and new resort employees (and Kade’s parents, of course). The show had been doing very well, and the network had ordered a second season already.
Kade once confided in me that he thought a hotel reality show was a totally gauche ‘new money’ thing to do, but I thought it actually suited his parents quite well. Their style was bold, garish and daring (who else would spy on their competitors the way they once did, after all?) and this new show of theirs was simply the icing on the cake.
I’d come to know them quite well in the last year or so, and I’d also come to love them and their style. It hadn’t been easy, but we made it work, and I’d forgiven them for their previous antics involving my family’s business. They’d apologized and made an effort to make amends with me and my parents since then, so I figured the right thing to do was forgive and forget.
There were a few people in my life who I hadn’t forgiven, though—like DeeDee and Andreas. Their case had finally been tried about eight months ago, and as we all predicted, they were sentenced to lengthy prison stays. The thought of them spending the next several years locked away made me very happy, although DeeDee technically got what she wanted in the end. She had fame and notoriety now, and people would always remember her name.
I tried to forget it as much as possible, though.
I’d also tried to forget the Mirabella’s old head of accounting as much as possible—Robert Silver. As if we hadn’t had enough drama surrounding us two years ago, he’d joined the fray with his own brand of bullshit: embezzling money from the Mirabella. Until Kade began to suspect him and alerted my father, Robert had skimmed a cool $3.5 million from the hotel profits.
He was now sitting pretty in the same prison as Andreas. Asshole.
“Are you okay, Pey?” Kade asked, staring down at me. Concern flashed in his eyes.
I smiled. “Yeah. I was just thinking about some stuff. You know I suffer from Resting Bitch Face when I think.”
He chuckled. “Right. Oh, there’s our luggage.”
One of the Mirabella’s new bellboys—who Kade actually managed when he wasn’t on vacation with me—had been tasked with fetching our luggage from the car, and he was wheeling it over to us on a trolley right now.
“Thanks, Brandon,” Kade said, slipping him some cash as a tip when he arrived. “How have things been with the relief manager while I’ve been gone?”
As he and the bellboy chatted about their work, I pulled out my cell phone and frowned as I saw that I had no new messages. I’d texted Bianca hours ago, and she hadn’t replied yet. That wasn’t like her. Not only was she now one of my closest friends, she’d also worked with me on my website since its inception, so she was always texting me with ideas.
Seeing as she’d always wanted to be a chef, she helped create and test healthy new recipes for the food section of the site, and she’d been thrilled to eventually make enough extra money to afford a proper culinary school, which she attended when she wasn’t working on the site or doing maid shifts here at the hotel. Like she told me in the past, it was important to her that she make her own money, so I was happy that the part-time work on my website had given her an opportunity to do that. Plus, she got a lot of experience in the kitchen, which she loved.
Kade glanced at me after telling Brandon where to go with our suitcases. “Okay, now you’re definitely frowning. What’s up?”
“I’m a bit worried. Bianca hasn’t replied to me for hours, and she was meant to text me a photo of this new turkey burrito bowl she made for the site.”
Kade smiled. “We’re still technically on vacation for the rest of today. You shouldn’t be worrying about work.”
I sighed. “I know, but it’s just not like her to stop responding for so long.”
; “Maybe she had an extended shift here at the hotel?”
“Maybe. But it’s not just her. Mom and Dad aren’t replying to me either, and neither is Serena. It’s like everyone simultaneously decided today was ‘Ignore Peyton Day’.”
“You worry too much. I’m sure everything’s fine. Not everyone is glued to their iPhone like you,” he said, ruffling my hair. “They’ll all get back to you eventually. Let’s just go and enjoy our dinner.”
I smiled and straightened my shoulders. “Okay. You’re right.”
“I always am.”
I stuck my tongue out. “I wouldn’t go that far….”
He chuckled and took my hand, leading me over to the Glass Lounge in long strides. For some reason, the usually-packed restaurant was shrouded in darkness, save for one table over by the picture window on the side, which was lit by several candles.
“What’s going on?” I asked as we stepped inside.
Kade patted me on the ass, making me giggle. “I booked out the entire restaurant for tonight. Just for us.”
My eyes widened. “You did?”
“Yup. I figured we needed an amazing dinner to end our vacation properly. And I also figured we should do it by candlelight for two reasons. One, the view of the marina is fucking amazing when we look at it like this...”
He paused, and I nodded. “It is. I’ve never seen it like this.”
The enormous picture window lent an incredible view of the marina below. It was dotted with hundreds of little lights from all the boats and yachts out there, and they all glittered like golden stars on the silvery ocean. With our surroundings nearly devoid of light, everything about the view seemed ten times brighter and ten times more magnificent.
“What’s the second reason?” I asked, my eyebrows knitted curiously.
Kade smiled and led me over to the candlelit table. He explained his reasoning as he pulled out a chair for me. “I thought it might remind you of something,” he said, gesturing to the flickering candles on the middle of the table. There was a little platter of chocolate-covered strawberries sitting near them.
“Our first date!” I said, clapping my hands together. Then I leaned back and sighed happily as the memories flooded back in, clear as day. “All the candles, and the gorgeous view of the water… it was amazing.”
“It was. I figured I’d recreate it with less sand.”
My eyes crinkled around the sides as I smiled. “And less public nudity?”
“Shh. That’s our little secret,” he said with a wink. “Anyway, have a strawberry while we wait. The chef is in the back preparing all of your favorite foods.”
I reached across the table for a strawberry. “This is amazing. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” he replied as I popped the berry in my mouth. “Do you want some champagne?”
I finished chewing and swallowed, then replied with a sly smile and a nod. “Of course. I seem to remember having quite a bit of that down at the beach that night as well.”
“Can you grab the bottle? They left it on your side in the bucket.”
I looked around to see a champagne bucket sitting on a silver stand behind me. “Oh, there it is,” I said, turning to grab it. “Ooh, this is my favorite kind! I love—”
My words died on my lips as I turned back around. Kade wasn’t in his chair anymore. He was right beside mine on one knee, holding a sparkling diamond ring.
“Kade,” I said with a gasp. “What are you…”
He held up one hand, grinning. “Can I talk first?”
I nodded vehemently, tears of joy already springing to my eyes.
“Peyton,” he began. “We first met when you tripped and nearly fell over in the lobby, right here in the Mirabella. Back then, I told you that I wouldn’t always be here to catch you. But I was wrong, and that’s not true. I am here, and I’ll always be here to catch you when you fall. I’ll always be here to hold you, protect you… and love you.”
“I know,” I murmured, staring right into his eyes.
“I want to make you mine. Officially. I want the whole world to know we belong to each other. Will you marry me?”
"Yes!” I cried. "Of course I will!"
He slid the ring onto my finger, the beautiful diamond sparkling on my hand as it drew the light from the candles around us. Then he grinned widely and stood up, lifting me off my chair and into his arms.
I felt giddy with joy as he spun me around. My life couldn’t be more perfect right now. When Kade and I first met, everything was crazy, and we went through a hell of a lot. I’d survived having my heart shattered and then put back together again, not to mention all the other harrowing drama, but I was still in one piece with Kade by my side.
We’d both changed due to everything we’d experienced together, and that was a good thing. Kade had gone from an aimless rich kid to a man who was able to stand on his own two feet and support himself with his very own fledgling management career. As for me, I’d figured out what I really wanted to do with myself, and my lifestyle website was getting more and more views with every day that passed.
Everything was amazing.
I couldn’t stop the jaw-breaking grin from crossing my face as Kade put me down and tilted my chin up to meet his. Then we kissed, and it seemed like an eternity went by with us lost in each other’s lips, lost in our embrace.
When Kade finally drew back, he stared down at me with pure love radiating from his gaze. “There’s something I have to tell you,” he said.
I raised my eyebrows. “What is it?”
“I made a promise to you a long time ago, to never keep anything from you ever again. Total honesty.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Well, there is one thing I’ve been keeping from you. And I have to tell you now.”
I pressed my lips into a thin line as he spoke. Then I put my head down as I replied. “I knew it,” I said softly. “I knew it was too good to be true.”
He held up his palms, his eyes widening slightly. “Peyton, I…”
I jerked my head back up with a cheeky smile as I reached forward and ruffled his hair. “I knew these were plugs. No one’s hair is that thick and perfect. How much longer did you think you could keep it from me?”
He grinned widely as he realized I’d tricked him. “You little minx. I’ll have you know, your future husband’s hair is all real. Every last strand.”
“I know. I’m just teasing.” I tilted my head to the side. “So what’s this thing you’ve been keeping from me? I know it’s nothing bad, or I wouldn’t have just agreed to marry you, silly. I trust you! You know that.”
He nodded and smiled. “I do. You’re just such a damn good actress,” he said. “Anyway, the thing I was keeping from you…well, you have to see it for yourself.” He clicked his fingers together and raised his voice. “C’mon, everybody!”
The Glass Lounge’s lights suddenly clicked on, and I gasped as a crowd of people began to pour out from the passageway which led to the kitchen, all holding glasses of champagne or small platters of food.
“She said yes!” Kade announced to a resounding cheer.
I stared around in stunned silence. Everyone was here. My family and friends, Kade’s family and friends, and even our favorite Mirabella staff members. They were all here in the Glass Lounge to celebrate with us, and now that the lights were on, I could see that a large portion of the restaurant had been decorated with silver streamers and balloons.
Bianca and Serena waved to me with cheeky grins as they put two trays of canapés down on a nearby table, and I laughed and turned back to Kade. “So you planned a surprise engagement party,” I said, almost unable to believe he’d pulled this off.
He winked. “I did.”
“That explains why no one was texting me back. They were all helping set it up, right?”
“Yep. They weren’t ignoring you on purpose.”
I playfully poked him in the chest. “You’re very brave, mister.”
“Ho
w so?” he asked, lifting an eyebrow.
“What if I said no when you proposed? How awkward would that be, with everyone here to see it?”
“I knew you wouldn’t say no.”
I laughed. “You’re so cocky.”
“But you love it.”
“I know. I just agreed to marry it.”
I looked around at the impromptu engagement party again, and I squealed as I noticed yet another surprise. My Uncle Warren (or War as he preferred to be called) was here, eyeing up Serena as she chatted to Bianca and Tristan.
War was my mother’s younger brother, and he was always off traveling or engaging in some sort of affair or wild adventure. It was amazing that Kade had managed to rope him into attending this party, seeing as he was almost never in town.
“You even got my Uncle War to show up!” I said, turning back to Kade with wide eyes. “God, you thought of everything and everyone!”
He smiled. “Well, I had to. I wanted everyone here. All our friends and family.”
I shook my head slowly. “I can’t believe how perfect this is,” I said. “You’re the best.”
“Glad to hear it,” he said with a grin. “Oh, good, someone finally turned the music on.”
A romantic song had just begun to play over the restaurant’s sound system, and Kade slipped his arms around my waist, pulling me into a slow dance. We swayed together for what felt like forever, smiling and watching as everyone we loved enjoyed the party.
Several people came up to congratulate us, including our parents, but then we were alone again, free to enjoy another dance as a newly-engaged couple.
I looked up at Kade as I wrapped my arms around him again. “You know, now that we’re going to get married, we should probably get around to officially moving in together,” I said.
“I’m always in your suite anyway,” he replied with a twinkle in his eye. “So I practically live with you already.”
Suite Hearts (Hot Hotel Nights Book 1) Page 28
