Sometimes Moments (Sometimes Moments, #1)(62)

Madilynne leant forward, and Peyton met her eyes. “Unlike Jay or Graham, I approve of Callum. You never have to explain yourself to any of us,” Madilynne softly said. Then she got up from the chair and walked out the door.

Peyton’s eyes locked with Jay’s. She expected him to turn and follow Madilynne out of the hotel. But Jay took a step into her office. And then another, continuing until he was standing in front of her.

“I’m sorry to do this to you, Peyton. But you need a little perspective,” Jay said. Hate laced in his voice.

Peyton’s eyebrows furrowed. “What do you—”

Jay interrupted her by pulling out a folded bundle of papers and dropping it on her desk. Confused, Peyton picked up the papers and opened it. Her heart sank the moment she looked at what was written.

Termination of Contract for Breach.

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 f*cking 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 f*cking 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.





Sitting 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.