Sometimes, Forever (Sometimes Moments #2) (5 page)

C
ooper glanced down at the crate of lavender and paused his steps. Tucking the wooden box to his side, he pulled out the clipboard to find that this was his last delivery. He’d spent most of his morning delivering orders throughout town. It wasn’t hard. In fact, he quite liked it. With Graham away, it was a little nerve-wracking to be in charge, but Cooper’s boss had made sure that the only thing he had to do was make sure the sprinklers were working, the fences remained secure, and the orders were taken care of. So far, no problems. Though, Cooper had only been in charge for one day. But so far, so good. There were some staff at the farm today. Besides the truck drivers that would deliver throughout Victoria and interstate for the week, the other employees included the intern from the high school, Roy, who maintained the lavender, and Trent, who operated a lot of the machinery. They had listened to every instruction Cooper had given them. They were good people.

Today, he had decided to walk his deliveries to the customers. He had driven the farm’s ute to town and then went on foot, always coming back to the ute to pick up the next order. It took longer, but with the slow workday, he liked it. He enjoyed taking in the town and meeting the people of Daylesford. His sister, Margot, had been wrong. He was not bored.

As he made it up the small hill to the lake, Cooper held the crate properly. As he headed down the path, he noticed someone sitting on a bench underneath a willow tree. Cooper squinted his eyes, just able to see her light brown hair from where he stood. He knew who it was. It was the Spencer-Reid’s owner.

Peyton Spencer.

The same woman he had not stopped thinking about in the day since he had met her.

He couldn’t help it.

Every time he thought he had managed to stop, he’d remember the glimmer in her light blue eyes and that laugh of hers.

Memories that caused his heart to immediately thump and clench.

Unusual sensations he had not felt until he had met her.

Cooper shook his head, hoping that it would dull the warmth in his chest. Like yesterday, he had no idea how any of it, his immediate feelings for her, made sense. But it did, and his feet seemed to understand as he made his way towards her. When he was within a visible distance, he noticed her staring out at the lake. Upon reaching the bench, Cooper craned his head in the direction of where she focused.

It was the pier.

The same pier he had noticed every time he came into town.

The same pier that remained empty.

He’d never seen a single person on it, which he found odd. From that pier alone, you could see the beauty of Peyton’s hotel, the boathouse, and the forest.

“Morning,” Peyton said in a soft voice.

Cooper turned his attention back on her to see the smile on her face. “Morning. Need some company?”

He could just imagine Margot laughing at his attempt at small talk. Truth be told, he wasn’t great at it. For the last few years, he hadn’t needed to be an expert at it. Most of his friends were now in serious relationships or married. He was the last single man in their group of friends. Though it had been some time since he last spoke to James, Ash, and Chris, he knew they didn’t have to call each other every day to still be mates.

Peyton had tilted her head up at him and blinked several times before she said, “Sure.”

Mrs Green would have to wait. This moment with Peyton would mean a lot more than delivering the crate of lavender to the craft and hobby store. He was ahead of schedule, so he could spare some minutes with the hotel owner.

“Are you done with your deliveries for today?” she asked.

Cooper sat on the bench with Peyton and set the crate to his left. He let out an exhale and faced her. “I just have one left.”

She peered over and took in the wooden box. Then she smiled and sat back against the bench. “Mrs Green’s craft and hobby store is next?”

“How’d you know that?”

She laughed and Cooper flinched, taking in that sweet sound.

Goddamn, that laugh!

It was true.

He could fall in love with that laugh every time he heard it. It still had the same effect on his heart’s beats and his lungs’ ability to take in air.

There was something about Peyton Spencer that he just didn’t understand.

It was more than just the fact she was beautiful.

It was that laugh. And it was the way her eyes glimmered and hid so much of her.

Peyton raised her brow. “It’s a small town. There are not a whole lot of businesses. So only the art store, the beauticians, the bakery, and my hotel order crates. The beauticians normally have their deliveries on Thursdays. The bakery needs their order by five a.m., and my hotel requires more than just one crate. So the only other business is the art store.”

“You’re amazing,” he breathed.

Crap.

I just said she’s amazing.

I meant it.

But crap.

She shook her head with a grin on her lips. “I’m not. Plus, Graham’s my best friend, so I know his schedule. I also saw Mrs Green’s name on the clipboard.”

“Oh. So how—”

The ringing of her phone had his mouth closing. Peyton gave him an apologetic smile as she pulled her phone out of the pocket of her light pink floral dress. Then she let out a sigh. “That’s Jenny, my manager. You’ve probably already met her. I’d better get back.”

“I’ll walk you—”

The shake of her head had him stopping. Then she got off the bench and looked down at him. She had breathed out and glanced back out at the lake before her eyes were on him.

“Stay. Take a moment out of your day to sit here and take in the lake. Appreciate this one moment. It’s mine and Graham’s favourite spot. Many moments happened on this bench and around this lake. If you don’t stop to take them in, you’ll miss them.”

Appreciate this one moment …

Cooper had no idea what to say. All he did was nod, and she rewarded him with one of her beautiful smiles. Peyton was passionate about moments. It had him curious.

“I will,” he agreed.

“I’ll see you later, Cooper,” she said as she brushed her hair behind her ear with one hand and held the phone in the other.

“Yeah.”

Then he watched Peyton spin around, her floral dress twisting perfectly around her body as she walked away. She had made it several steps before she stopped and pivoted, facing him.

She had that glimmer back in her eyes. It spoke of determination and realisation. Cooper watched her chest rise as she breathed in deeply and then exhaled.

“Cooper?”

He held his breath.

His heart felt as if it had stopped mid-beat.

“Yes, Peyton?”

“You should stop by the hotel later … after you’ve delivered Mrs Green’s order and finished what you had planned for this afternoon. The hotel serves the best tea in town.”

“The best tea in town?”

She shrugged. “I’m a little biased. But we’ve won awards. Our desserts … now that, you have to try for yourself. You’ll see I’m not being biased.”

“I’ll try to stop by,” he said, knowing full well he’d be there.

When he had finished delivering Mrs Green’s order, it was one in the afternoon. She had him help her with one of her faulty shelves. She was too sweet to turn away. Her husband had left her for a younger woman in the city two years ago. That was when she decided to open her art store with her settlement money and stay in Daylesford. Mrs Green was beautiful for her age, hardly any wrinkles for a woman in her mid-fifties. Though she was hurt, she was not bitter. She found peace and love in her shop, and Cooper hadn’t judged her. There was no need to because, through her hardships, she had found success. When her ex-husband returned after realising his mistake, she had kicked him to the curb. And that caused Cooper to smile as he twisted the screwdriver into the new screw going into the faulty shelf.

It hadn’t been a long walk back to the Spencer-Reid. It was now warmer than it had been when he had sat with Peyton on the bench. But the wind was nice and cool. Weather-wise, it was a perfect day. Scenery-wise, it was absolute perfection. He understood why people like Mrs Green stayed, and why Mads’ father continued to be mayor.

Daylesford was beautiful.

And Peyton’s hotel was the jewel of its beauty.

Cooper set his hand on the handle and took a deep breath. He couldn’t walk into her hotel thinking more than he should.
Platonic.
He would walk through those doors with the intention of being her friend. With a nod, Cooper pulled the door open and entered the hotel. It was stunning. Yesterday, he hadn’t taken in its beauty. He had been determined to deliver Mads’ order for Peyton. To his left was a sitting room with large windows overlooking the lake. And on his right was a smaller, more intimate area with armchairs by the windows and a hallway that led farther into the hotel. On the wall were black frames with Polaroids nestled inside. He couldn’t see who was in the pictures, but they appeared to be different. He would look at them later. Right now, he wanted to see Peyton and take her up on her offer of tea.

As he focused on the front desk, he found Peyton and Jenny, the woman he had delivered the hotel’s previous orders to, talking. Jenny glanced up, noticed him, and gave him a smile. He gave her his own to be polite. In the times he had met Jenny, she had been nothing but sweet to him. But he didn’t keep his eyes on the manager’s grin. Instead, he watched as Peyton stared at a Polaroid, smiled, and then put it into a black frame.

“Peyton, we have a visitor,” Jenny said, loud enough for Cooper to hear.

She glanced up from what she was doing and her eyes locked with Cooper. Her shoulders fell as she set the frame down.

“You’re here,” she said, sounding surprised.

“I had to try the best tea in town,” Cooper noted as he made his way towards the desk.

“Of course, he did,” Jenny teased.

“Jenny!” Peyton said, trying to hide her humour.

The manager rolled her eyes. “It was nice to see you again, Cooper. I’ll go get the kitchen staff to brew some tea for you. Peyton, I’ll finish up what you’re doing here.”

Peyton nodded and then took a step to his left. “All right.”

Jenny left them at the front desk within seconds.

“Your hotel is beautiful,” he commented.

Her eyes twinkled with a layer of proudness. It was what she liked to hear. “Thank you. Trust me; it was not easy getting this place to where it is right now. Tea won’t be long. I know the best place to sit. Follow me.”

And he did.

Peyton had taken him into the spacious sitting room and towards two chairs by the large floor-to-ceiling windows. The sight was beautiful. The windows gave him breathtaking views of the lake, and it was stunning.

“I was told that was my reaction when I first saw them put in. Amazing, huh?”

“No words,” he breathed.

She sat down on the cream seat and gazed out the window with a faint smile on her lips as if she were remembering something. Then her eyes found him, staring at her.

“What?”

Cooper took in her cheeks, her cute nose, the curve of her lips, and then her eyes. His shoulders fell as if a heavy burden was lifted, and then he shook his head. “Nothing,” he said as he took the seat in front of her.

They did nothing but stare at each other, as if they were both trying to figure out what the other was thinking. The way she looked at him had Cooper intrigued.

What did she see in him?

What was it that warranted the softening of her eyes?

“Can I ask you something?” he asked.

Peyton’s eyelids fluttered. “Okay,” she replied, slightly on edge. He heard her nerves cause the imbalance of her once sure sounding voice.

He took a deep breath. “Those photos on the wall … Who are they of?”

The relief that had succumbed her face was vivid. And that only piqued his interest.

“They’re moments.”

“Moments?”

She nodded. “Yes. Moments. They are moments of my guests and staff’s lives. It’s something we do here at the Spencer-Reid. Each guest who wants to gets to use a Polaroid camera throughout their stay. We only ask that they let us keep one moment to add to the wall. One moment that they’ll look back on. And if they do decide to come back, they can search through all those moments to find theirs.”

“Wow,” he said softly, completely taken aback. “That’s incred—”

Cooper’s work phone was like a siren. The sound startled them both. If it had been his old job, he’d have ignored it. But Graham had trusted him to take care of his business, and Cooper couldn’t let him down.

“I’m-I’m sorry,” he mumbled as he retrieved his phone from his shirt pocket.

She smiled. “Don’t be.”

His shoulders sagged in disappointment when he saw Trent’s name on the screen. Sliding his thumb across the screen, Cooper answered the call.

“Trent, is everything okay?” he asked, concerned.

“I’m real sorry to call ya, Coop. Reckon you could come back to the farm? One of the sprinklers just shit itself. We need ya back,” Trent said, the apologetic tone was loud in Cooper’s ear.

“All right, I’m on my way. Try to get the water shut off from that valve. I won’t be long.” He didn’t wait for a reply as he hung up and gave Peyton an expression he hoped emanated his sadness of their time ending for the day. “I’m sorry, Peyton. I have to go.”