Or that she’d lose it to Ryder.
With a nervous smile, Jenna said, “In some ways, you could say he’s a little like your great-grandfather! He’s really investing in the town!”
That was it. It was more than she could bear. And as she jumped to her feet, Peyton didn’t care how crazy she sounded. “Ryder Ashford is nothing like my great-grandfather! Nothing! Ezekiel Coleman never would have sneaked around to make a deal!”
“Peyton, I…”
“I need to go,” she murmured, scooping up her folder and purse. “I just…” She was out of Jenna’s office and out the main door without looking back. Jenna called out to her but Peyton was too distraught to respond. Out in her car, she tossed her things onto the floor and was out of the parking lot without even paying attention to her surroundings. It was a miracle she didn’t hit anything.
As she drove across town, all she knew was that she was going to go home and scream and cry and potentially break things. It was so unfair and really, what she wanted to do was confront Ryder and demand that he back out of the deal.
After she yelled at him for destroying her dream.
That’s when an idea came to her.
Peyton had no idea where the man worked or how to find him on her own, but her cousin would.
Her tires screeched as she made a hasty U-turn, but she didn’t care. Now that she had a destination and a possible chance to vent all of her frustrations, it didn’t matter how she got there. Hopefully Austin would be in the office and not on a job site, but she'd deal with that when she actually got to the office.
Ten minutes later, she smiled when she spotted his truck.
Storming through the doors, she spotted him sitting at his desk and walked directly toward him. He saw her coming and smiled. As she got closer, he must have noticed how furious she looked and instantly sobered. Austin stood and walked to his door and closed it as soon as Peyton was inside.
“Hey,” he said softly, calmly. “This is a surprise. Everything okay?”
“No, Austin, everything is most definitely not okay,” she snapped.
“Um…”
Throwing her purse on the nearest chair, she rounded on him. “Do you know what today was supposed to be?”
He took a nervous step back. “Uh, no…”
“Today was supposed to be the day that I finally bought the property over near Main and Channel! And do you know what happened when I went to Jenna Walsh’s office?” she asked, but didn’t wait for him to answer. “I was told the property sold this morning. This morning, Austin! And do you know who bought it?”
Silently, he shook his head.
“Your friend Ryder Ashford! I lost my damn dream because of your stupid, egotistical, condescending friend, Mr. Moneybags! Do you have any idea how I feel right now?”
“I’m kind of getting an idea…” he murmured as he went to sit behind his desk.
Slamming her fist down on the desk, she leaned in close. “I have been working on plans for that property for a year, Austin! A year! And you knew that! How could you let him swoop in and steal it out from under me?”
Eyes wide, he stared up at her. “How could I?” he repeated. “Peyton, believe it or not, Ryder doesn’t discuss his business with me or what he plans to buy and where. I mean, we talk about stuff but he doesn’t consult me first.” With a sympathetic smile, he motioned for her to sit. “I know you’re disappointed and I am so sorry that this happened, but…maybe this just wasn’t meant to be.”
She was going to strangle him.
“Now…hear me out,” he quickly said, obviously sensing her murderous intent. “There are plenty of buildings around town that need to be rehabbed that we can make work. You pick the building and I’ll do all the planning for it to your specifications. I promise.”
With a weary sigh, she shook her head. “You don’t get it. That property was important to me. It had everything I wanted–the location, the mature trees, just…everything. In my mind, when I envisioned my restaurant, that’s where it was. None of the vacant buildings around town have that kind of landscape potential, and the renovations we’d have to do to make it exactly what I want are just too much.” Tears threatened to fall again. “Are you sure you can’t talk to Ryder about this? Maybe convince him to find some other piece of property…?”
“Pey, it’s not my place to tell him how to run his business. We haven’t spoken recently and it’s not like he would look to me for business advice.”
There was a knock on the door and before Austin could say anything it swung open and in walked Peyton’s worst nightmare.
He didn’t spot her–he was focused on Austin. “Hey, sorry to show up unannounced but I just sealed the deal on a sweet little piece of property and you know you’re my go-to guy for advice on the town and what it needs,” Ryder said as he reached out and shook Austin’s hand.
“Um, Ryder, this really isn’t a good time…”
“I know, I know, I should have called first, but things sort of snowballed and I have a ton of ideas but wanted to run them by you first. I trust you to advise me on what I need to be doing here in Magnolia.”
She was going to murder them both, she thought.
Austin nervously glanced her way and that’s when Ryder noticed her. He smiled as he held out his hand to her. “Peyton Bishop! What a nice surprise. Did you get my flowers this morning?”
Slowly, she got to her feet. Austin said her name softly–warning her–but she’d deal with him later. Right now, there was only one enemy she could deal with, and that was Ryder.
“Do you know what you can do with your flowers?” she said menacingly. “You can take them and shove them right up your ass!”
To his credit, Ryder’s initial reaction was a raised eyebrow.
“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” she went on, thankful to be able to unload directly on him now. “You just swooped into our town and you’re trying to change everything! You think you can just go wherever you want and throw your money around to get what you want. Well…newsflash, buddy! We don’t want you changing things! Magnolia Sound was doing just fine before you came along!”
Ryder glanced briefly at Austin before giving her his full attention. “I’m afraid you have me at a bit of a disadvantage, sweetheart,” he began calmly. “What is it exactly that has you all riled up?”
“Oh, no…” Austin mumbled.
“Did you seriously just call me sweetheart?” she asked through clenched teeth.
“Um…”
“You really shouldn’t have done that,” Austin said quietly, shaking his head.
Peyton stepped in close and had to look up because he was that much taller than her before poking him in the chest. “Do you even care who you step on to get what you want? Have you ever once considered that someone other than you has dreams?”
“Peyton,” he interrupted. “What is this…?”
“That property you bought this morning was supposed to be mine!” she shouted. “I’ve had plans for it for over a year and today was the day I was finally able to go in and give Jenna a check!” Stepping away from him, she looked at him with disgust. “That was supposed to be the site of my own restaurant! Not one that I inherited, not one that I helped rehab, but one of my very own. And now, thanks to you, that’s all gone!”