Sometimes Moments (31 page)

She inhaled and exhaled, but no air reached her lungs. As her eyes scanned the paper, she felt every painful throb of her heart.

Then her eyes landed on a sentence she never thought she’d ever read.

Please take notice of the intended termination of the business relationship between The Spencer-Dayle and Daylesford Pub.

“You’re terminating our business relationship?” Peyton asked, utterly shocked.

Failure to carry out contractual obligations.

She couldn’t look away from the letter. The Spencer-Dayle heavily used their relationship with the pub to generate more visitors. Without the pub, it would financially and reputably cost the hotel. The pub tours of the area included Jay’s and the tour included lunch at The Spencer-Dayle. If her hotel had any chance of surviving she would have to focus on what made money—weddings.

“Yes. It’s the
only
way.”

Peyton stood up and stared at the man she had once called a friend. “Only way?”

“This isn’t you, Peyton. It’s a small goddamn town. We know what you’ve done with him. We’ve all seen it. You’re better than that. You let him touch you? He broke your fucking heart! It’s the town or Callum. You can’t have both!” Jay roared. So much anger filled his voice.

“No,” she bit back. “This is more personal for you. This is about you and Callum.”

“You’re acting like a love-struck teenager. Don’t you see how your actions reflect on all of us? If this hotel fails because of you and your foolish heart, we all go down with it. Terminating the contract means that what happens only affects your hotel. It’s the town or Callum, Peyton. Or better yet, it’s your parents’ hotel or him,” Jay said. His body was strung up tight, and she saw the vein in his neck sticking out.

Peyton flinched, dropped the letter onto her desk, and blinked. “This is all about you, Jay. No one sees this the way you do. You’re being ridiculous.”

“I’m being ridiculous?” Jay hissed. “I’m not the one
fucking
someone who’ll toss me aside. He ain’t ever staying for you.”

Peyton swallowed hard, hoping it would numb the heated pain in her chest. Jay was her friend. At least she’d thought he was.

“He’ll never love you. I was here for you when he wasn’t. You should have loved
me
, Peyton.”

She picked up the termination letter, held it tight, and looked at Jay. The anger and hate in his eyes were ugly on him. Right now, he wasn’t the person she had once adored.

“I can’t love a man who will selfishly hurt me, Jay. I could never love you,” she said without hesitation.

Jay winced. “You’re a hypocrite! You love Callum and he has hurt you.”

Peyton shook her head. “But Callum would never damage my livelihood. This hotel is my life. He would never do anything to jeopardise its survival. You, Jay... You are a selfish man.”

“Then you’re gonna wanna hope he sticks by you when this place dies,” Jay said with so much disgust that it made her sick. Then he stormed out of her office and the hotel, the slammed door echoing throughout the entire building.

Peyton sank down onto the chair and stared at the letter in her hand. Her head spun at the sight of it. The Spencer-Dayle embodied local partnerships and produce. If it lost all these businesses, it lost its image.

She hoped Jay’s decision wouldn’t rub off on the rest of the town businesses.

S
itting at her desk, Peyton looked at the termination letter from the pub. The letter never suggested arbitration, just straight termination. It had been just over half an hour since Jay dropped the notice in front of her, now she held and stared at it. So much hate ran through her veins. If she wanted to play unfair, she could have dragged Daisy into it, but she hadn’t.

The town or Callum…

That’s what Jay wanted. In his eyes, she had betrayed him and the town. He was punishing her more than the hotel. The hotel happened to be in the crossfire. Without the pub, she wouldn’t be able to keep the hotel running after the wedding. The Spencer-Dayle pub had been the hotel’s biggest business partnership other than the Scott lavender farm.

There would be no negotiation, and right now, the hotel would be out of business by the end of the month if other businesses followed Jay’s actions. Nothing she had saved up for could pull The Spencer-Dayle out of that. Finding businesses outside of town would be difficult. Most of the towns that surrounded Daylesford had their own community business relationships.

Peyton sighed and covered her face with her hands. “What the hell do I do?” she asked herself, hoping to come up with an answer.

“You stand tall and show him that
he
needs the hotel, not the other way round.”

Peyton looked up to see Jenny standing at the door with her arms crossed over her chest.

“You know how important the pub is,” Peyton said, holding the termination paper up to her.

“Yes, but you have still have one of the most important businesses that still believes in you. And sometimes, Peyton, that’s all it takes. Just one,” Jenny said.

“Jenny, this is where, as your friend, I tell you to take the Hyatt position. I can’t keep this place alive for much longer. I have enough to pay everyone severance pay…unless I find a new owner and negotiate them keeping the same staff,” Peyton said, placing the letter on the desk and shaking her head.

Jenny leaned in close. “We’re going to be okay. You’re overthinking this. None of us will be here without you running this place, Peyton. Our loyalty is to you. If only Jay knew the importance of loyalty... Then he would never have done this to you. Talk of what he’s done is starting to travel around town. The next move is yours. Whatever you do, we support you. As long as you’re here, Peyton, we will be here.”

Jenny’s support had Peyton’s tears forming. “I let you all down. I’m so sorry.”

“You didn’t, Peyton. Listen to me,” Jenny said as she took her hands. “We didn’t think we’d have jobs after your parents died. With the state you were in, we were sure that was it of this place. But you fought hard—not because of Jay, but because you had people who love you and support you.”

Peyton smiled. She would figure out a way through this. She didn’t need the pub. She would just find a new partnership, even if that meant outside of town.

“And I know Callum would support you. He may not have physically been here, but I know he would have been by your side. The way he looked at you when you were teenagers… A love like that doesn’t go away in time. You’ve never been alone, Peyton. We’ve been here. We will always be here. No matter your choice, we will support you. You come first to us—then the hotel. Realise that order. I may not be your mother, but I see you as my daughter and I will always treat you like one. I’ve never tried to replace your mother. She was a wonderful woman. But I have tried to be the maternal figure you needed all these years.”

Peyton removed her hands from Jenny’s and quickly wiped away the tears that were running down her cheeks. “Thank you, Jenny. I promise I will do everything in my power to make this hotel succeed. Not only for my parents, but for all of us. For everyone who believes in The Spencer-Dayle.”

Jenny stood up and brushed the tear that had escaped away. “I’ll always be proud of you, Peyton.”

“Thanks, Jenny. For being here when you could have easily left,” Peyton said and picked up the pub’s letter.

“I wanted to watch you grow and make this place beautiful. I owed it to your parents to be the one to do it when they couldn’t,” Jenny said before she walked out of the office and the bell rang to signal she’d left the hotel.

The moment Peyton was alone, she reached for the closest pen and read through the termination contract between The Spencer-Dayle and Daylesford Pub. There was no need to contact the hotel’s lawyer. She didn’t want to go into arbitration or court over it. Jay was not only terminating the relationship between their businesses, but also their friendship.

Peyton looked through the pages to see that the hotel hadn’t fulfilled its obligations in providing a reputable image for both organisations. She shook her head and placed the tip of the ballpoint on the paper. Then she took a deep breath and signed
Peyton Spencer
on the dotted line and added the date.

Peyton stood at the door of the pub. Her heart was beating so fast and hard that she was scared it would force itself out of her chest. But she needed to do this. She needed to prove just what she was capable of as a business owner. This wasn’t a game. This was her hotel’s future that Jay had meddled with. If he was upset with her being with Callum, then he needed to take it out on her, not the hotel. But he had known it would hurt and that was why he had done it.

You can do this, Peyton.

She placed her hand on the door and pushed it open. The loud pub quietened the moment she took three steps inside. Countless pairs of eyes were on her, but she ignored them. Instead, she locked eyes with Jay.

He looked surprised to see her. Whispers could be heard around her, but Peyton tuned them out as she walked towards the counter.

“Mads isn’t here. She just left with her folks,” he said, wiping down the wood counter.

Before Peyton could say anything, Jay’s father walked from the door to behind the counter, holding a clipboard.

“Jay, where are the invoices from today’s del— Oh, hello, Peyton.” He smiled.

Peyton looked at him, wondering why he was being so sweet to her. He sounded genuine, considering that now the hotel and pub were no longer associated with each other.

To be nice, Peyton gave him a tight smile and said, “Hello, Mr Preston.”

“What the hell do you want?” Jay growled, annoyed.

Mr Preston dropped the clipboard on the counter with a bang. “I didn’t raise you to speak to women like that, Jayden. You apologise to Miss Peyton.”

Jay let out a short laugh. “I ain’t apologising to her. I will never apologise to an ungrateful bitch.”

And there was the truth. Peyton wouldn’t challenge him. Reaching into her back pocket, she pulled out the letter. She saw the startled look on Mr Preston’s face as his jaw dropped. Turning her attention towards Jay, she saw him eyeing the paper.

Ignoring the painful blows from his words, Peyton placed the termination notice on the counter and said, “It’s signed and dated. I’ve emailed a copy to my lawyer.”

Mr Preston picked up the letter and quickly read it. The moment he reached the last page, he winced. “Peyton, I had no idea he was doing this. Please retract this.”