“Right,” she snorted as she picked up her purse.
“I don’t see what the big deal here is,” he went on. “It’s a few tweaks and a tree, for crying out loud!”
“Not to me!” she countered. “Don’t you get it? You gave me your word on this! How many times did I ask about the plans, huh? How many?” Before he could reply, she was already speaking again. “And not once did you mention anything changing! You just let me believe that everything was fine.” Her shoulders sagged as she looked at him sadly. “You lied to my face, Ryder. Repeatedly.”
Ryder hated when people doubted him, but he hated it even more that she did. After everything they’d shared and everything they’d been building together, for her to think so little of him was beyond hurtful and insulting.
It gutted him.
As she started walking down the stairs to the front door, he followed. “When you’re done having a hissy fit and prepared to have an adult conversation about this, let me know,” he said.
Her only response was to slam the door behind her.
Fine, he thought. Let her go and calm down. He was trying to put out too many fires to be able to deal with her being hysterical and unreasonable. Raking his hand through his hair, he heaved out a sigh and walked back up to the kitchen.
“Okay, where were we?” he asked as if nothing happened. “What time is your meeting tomorrow?”
Jake looked at him as if he were crazy and Austin looked ready to punch him. “What?”
“Are you seriously just going to let her leave like that?” Austin demanded.
“She’s upset. Nothing I’m going to say is going to calm her down right now so…it’s better this way. Let’s figure this stuff out and by then she’ll hopefully be willing to have a rational conversation.” He motioned to the tablet. “Can we use your plans or should I go and grab mine?”
“Ryder,” Jake began cautiously. “Can I offer you a little advice?”
He wanted to say no, but nodded instead.
“It sounded like Peyton had a point. You kept pertinent information from her after promising she’d have more than just a small say in this project. I’m sure you think I don’t know what I’m talking about, but believe me, I do. I made a similar mistake with Mallory when we first got back together. Misunderstandings can kill a relationship.”
“Yeah,” Austin agreed. “And if that didn’t do it, talking to her like she was a child you were reprimanding certainly will. Jeez, man, what were you thinking?”
It would have been easy to argue but…they were right. He knew he was wrong about not sharing the changes with her, but he wasn’t wrong about her reaction to it and nothing either of them said was going to change his mind on it–which is exactly what he told them.
“It’s your funeral,” Austin murmured.
“So…wait. The restaurant–the single standing structure–that’s Peyton’s?” Jake asked.
“No, it’s mine, but I told her I’d build the restaurant she was planning on for the property.”
“When was Peyton going to buy that property?”
Beside them, Austin groaned. “She’d been planning on it for over a year and then Ryder swooped in and stole it out from under her.”
“Hey! I didn’t steal it from anyone!” he argued.
“Like that matters right now,” Austin said, his tone dripping sarcasm. “The fact is you got the property and she didn’t and then you made some sort of cockamamie deal where you promised to use her plans and then didn’t.”
“Yeah, but…”
“And,” Austin went on, “you neglected to tell me any of that. Peyton and I had talked about her plans for the restaurant and if you would have mentioned even once that these were her plans, I would have gone to her directly and saved your sorry ass.”
“My ass isn’t…”
“It’s sorry,” Jake chimed in. “Trust me.”
“Well…shit.” Sighing, he sat in one of the kitchen chairs. “I’m not used to having to take anyone else into consideration–not in business and not in my personal life. I honestly didn’t think any of this was a big deal. It was a couple of walls…a tree…”
“And turning the building, and changing the size of a deck, and…”
“Okay, I get it!” he snapped. “So now what do I do?”
Both Jake and Austin looked at each other before Jake spoke. “She is going to need some time to cool off because she is definitely mad at you. But don’t give her too long.”
“And please leave me out of it,” Austin added. “The two of you are exhausting.”
Jake ignored that statement and tried to focus on the business at hand. “As for what we’re here for, I honestly don’t think there’s anything else you can offer that Austin and I haven’t thought of. Do you trust us to talk to the town planners and try to come up with a solution?”
He hated not being involved, but Jake was right. This was totally out of his hands. Nodding, he said, “Yeah. I trust you both. Just let me know how it goes.”
They said their goodbyes and once he was alone, Ryder walked out onto the back deck and stared out at the ocean and wondered how his day had gone so horribly out of control.
Didn’t Peyton trust him to make the right decisions for her and the restaurant? Didn’t she realize his success rate with all the businesses he’d invested in? Why would she take this so personally? Maybe she was just naturally untrusting, or maybe it was because…
Then it hit him–he’d never had the contracts drawn up. They kept negotiating in the weeks following the initial discussion and then…then their relationship changed.
Shit.
“Well, I know what I have to do right now,” he muttered as he pulled out his phone to call his attorney. It was important for Peyton to know she could trust him and if that meant a signed contract and a promise to include her in any and all discussions moving forward for the restaurant, then so be it.
So much for love, he thought, and it left him struggling with relief for not saying he loved her and disappointment because he was obviously the only one who felt that way. All this time he kept telling himself she was different–that she wasn’t with him because of his last name or for his money–but clearly he was wrong.
And he wouldn’t make the same mistake again.
12
“I can’t believe you’re here.”
“Well…believe it.”
“I mean…what were you thinking? This is totally unlike you!”
It was after midnight and Peyton was putting her feet up on her sister’s couch after over seven hours of driving. “We talked about this when I called to tell you I was on my way. I just needed to get away for a few days. You’ve been begging me to come and visit and here I am. Can’t you just let it go at that?”
“Absolutely not! I mean…look at you! You’re nearly delirious from driving for so long and I can’t believe you just left the café on such short notice!”