I'm Afraid I Won't Be Able to Leave

Chapter 243: Chapter 243: Terminating the Cooperation with the Peyton Group

Phoebe Peyton couldn’t take it anymore. She immediately called Morgan Sterling. ”I need to see the news tomorrow morning! If you drag this out any longer, those two will get back together!”

Morgan Sterling tsked. He didn’t know why she was suddenly acting so crazy, but he figured the groundwork had been laid. He replied lazily, ”Got it. Just wait for tomorrow morning. But tell your reporters from Kingsford to go back. Don’t let them get involved.”

”I know!”

Phoebe Peyton angrily hung up. She had no intention of sending the reporters away. She didn’t just want this to blow up in Riverfall; she wanted it to blow up in Kingsford, too.

’Leah Sinclair, just you wait. Once your secrets are exposed, let’s see how you can still show your face around Asher!’ Phoebe Peyton gripped the steering wheel, muttering viciously to herself.

The next day, Leah Sinclair left the house with dark circles under her eyes again. She ran into Asher Keating at the door and glared at him angrily. Asher tsked inwardly. ’At least Leah is showing some emotion toward me. Even a glare is better than no reaction at all.’

He planned to redouble his efforts today. He had to get his wife back home, no matter what. If he didn’t, he was afraid Leah Sinclair would wake up tomorrow looking like she belonged in a zoo.

Just as he got in the car, a call came from Edward Yates, his tone urgent. ”President Keating, the news about Miss Grant at Azure Bay has been leaked. The other party was well-prepared this time. They laid the groundwork with anonymous posts beforehand, but since no names were mentioned, we didn’t notice.”

”This morning, someone suddenly figured it out, and it blew up. We tried to suppress it immediately, but some of it was unstoppable. The old photos, the contract—everything was released. There are traces of it all over the internet.”

Asher Keating’s eyes turned cold in an instant. ”Keep suppressing the news. Release the story about Derek’s company imploding. Put the photo of Morgan Sterling at the grand opening ribbon-cutting for the new Derek company front and center. Re-release the old story about Madeline Sterling. Morgan Sterling seems to have forgotten what his dear sister has done.”

”Understood. I’ll arrange it right away.”

”Also, prepare the contract to terminate our partnership with the Peyton Group.”

”President Keating, are you... really terminating it? If we do this, our losses will be significant.”

Edward Yates hesitated. Asher Keating had already asked him to prepare the termination contract a couple of days ago. They had estimated that if the partnership was terminated, not only would all the money the Keating had already invested be lost, but they would also have to pay compensation to the Peyton Group. All told, it was a substantial sum.

”Just prepare it. I’ll go talk to them.”

Asher Keating knew it wasn’t the right time to propose termination. The overseas warehouse project, from its construction timeline to securing various domestic and international certifications, required a significant investment of both manpower and financial resources.

That’s why he planned to have a serious talk with Phoebe Peyton. She had crossed the line too many times. If it were just a simple partnership, he wouldn’t mind. But with her ulterior motives mixed in, it was unacceptable.

Most importantly, he didn’t want to see Leah Sinclair hurting.

Leah Sinclair went to the Peyton Group building today. Phoebe Peyton had previously suggested that she wanted a better view from the meeting room and asked if it could be changed to have a full wall of floor-to-ceiling windows.

But that would require altering the wall structure, which needed to be discussed with the construction team. Since Juanita Coleman and the others were busy with their own tasks, she had come by herself.

”Manager Grant, we can make the change, but I don’t think it’s necessary. Look, this meeting room is already south-facing, so the lighting is great. Standing here right now, don’t you think it’s bright enough? Besides, to make the change, we’d have to tear down the wall. Wouldn’t that just extend the construction schedule?”

The construction worker thought the request was a bit superfluous. Leah Sinclair walked around the meeting room and agreed that changing the entire wall wasn’t necessary. If they wanted better lighting, knocking out just a small section would probably be enough.

She took photos and notes, then said to the worker, ”I’ll go back and discuss this further with President Peyton’s side.”

”What needs to be discussed?”

Liam Peyton’s smiling voice came from the doorway. Leah Sinclair turned to see him already walking in, having thoughtfully put on a hard hat.

Leah Sinclair smiled. ”Wynn, what are you doing here?”

”I happened to be in the area for business and thought I’d come up to take a look. What did you just say needed to be discussed?”

Leah Sinclair explained Phoebe Peyton’s request and the construction team’s suggestions. The worker also gave Liam Peyton a tour of the meeting room.

Liam Peyton listened and nodded. ”It really isn’t necessary.”

”Wynn, if you still want better lighting, look. We could just modify this area down here a bit and replace the glass. That should be enough.”

Leah Sinclair crouched on the floor, gesturing to Liam Peyton to show him the position and size, then asked the construction worker, ”Engineer Lawson, the spot I’m pointing to should work, right?”

”Yes, yes, Manager Grant is right. This way, we save both time and money, wouldn’t we?”

Liam Peyton looked at Leah Sinclair, who was crouching on the floor and looking up at him. She wore a hard hat, and her beautiful eyes were crystal clear. There she was, squatting right by his legs.

For some reason, he was reminded of the gorgeous and adorable Ragdoll cat his mother kept at home.

Liam Peyton couldn’t help but smile. Leah Sinclair asked, a little puzzled, ”What are you smiling at?”

”Nothing.”

Leah Sinclair stood up. Just now, while she was gesturing at the wall, some dust had gotten into her eye. She started rubbing it uncomfortably, but no matter how much she rubbed, she could still feel the foreign object.

Seeing her actions, Liam Peyton asked, ”Did something get in your eye?”

”Yeah, and I can’t get it out.” Leah Sinclair’s eye was completely red, and she could barely keep it open.

”Let me take a look.”

As he spoke, Liam Peyton reached out to help her. Leah Sinclair shook her head. ”No, it’s fine. It’ll be okay if I just keep it closed for a bit.”

”It’ll be uncomfortable if you don’t get it out. Let me see. Don’t move.”

Liam Peyton frowned, took two steps closer, and reached his hand toward Leah Sinclair’s eye.

”Brother, what are you two doing?”

Phoebe Peyton’s voice suddenly rang out. Leah Sinclair whipped her head around to see Phoebe standing there with a shocked expression. Beside her was Asher Keating, his cool gaze fixed on her and Liam Peyton.

When Leah Sinclair saw him, she rushed to explain, ”I—I got something in my eye. Wynn was trying to help me get it out.”

Liam Peyton pulled his hand back, a little surprised. ”President Keating, what brings you here with Phoebe?”

Phoebe Peyton jumped in to say, ”Asher and I were just discussing the overseas warehouse. After we finished, he said he wanted to see Leah Grant. I was thinking of checking how the new office smell was airing out, so we came together.”

Asher Keating walked over. Leah Sinclair’s eye was very red, and she was blinking hard, tears streaming down. He gently lifted her chin and looked closely at her eye, removing a small speck. Only then did Leah Sinclair feel relief.

His face was very close. Looking at his handsome features, Leah Sinclair inexplicably blushed and didn’t know where to look. A hint of a smile touched Asher Keating’s eyes.

After he was done, Asher Keating finally looked at Liam Peyton. ”President Peyton, what a coincidence to see you here as well.”