Begin Again novel Chapter 117

White-hot relief surged through Eden's body at the sound of Liam's voice.

"Anderson!" Aleksei turned to Liam and held out his hand for a handshake.

Liam ignored it and clenched his jaw. "Ivanov."

"Fancy seeing you here," Aleksei carried on, sizing Liam up.

"Not sure why you seem surprised," Liam drawled softly, but his face hardened, and his eyes stayed on Eden. "Didn't you pick the venue for this month's game?"

"Well, you know what I mean," Aleksei shrugged.

"No, I don't," Liam said, finally peeling his gaze from her. "What are you doing up here anyway? I thought the game is in the basement?"

Eden's head shot up at his words, and she stared at the two men, amazed by this new piece of information. She didn't even know Crush has a basement.

What else went on down there besides round-robin poker tournaments for billionaires?

She was suddenly curious about Liam's extracurricular activities.

"I saw something I like, and I had to check it out," Aleksei announced, winking at her.

A low growl rumbled from deep within Liam's chest and his scowl hardened. "Move along, Ivanov. There's nothing for you here."

"Oh, but there is."

"Don't make me repeat myself," Liam warned him softly.

"Why don't we ask the little lady what she wants?"

Eden wanted no part of this pissing contest. But the man's condescending tone rubbed her all kinds of the wrong way. She couldn't sit still.

"I don't know what century you're from, Mr Ivanov," she said with a calmness she didn't feel, her voice steadier than her insides shaking from her anger. "But in this century, you don't call a grown woman' little lady'. And I'd like to be left alone."

"I'm sorry I offended you," Aleksei bowed his head shamefully. "It wasn't my intention."

Eden dismissed his apology with a careless shrug. "I'm sure your game is about to start. You both should head down."

"Go ahead," Liam jerked his head at the other man. "I'll come down soon. I need to talk to my assistant."

"Whatever floats your boat, Anderson." Aleksei smiled and winked at Eden one last time before he vanished from the booth.

"Are you okay?" Liam asked when they were alone. "Did he do anything to you?"

"I'm fine, thank you, Mr Anderson," she nodded quickly.

"Where are the others?" He demanded, his tone suddenly harsh. "Why are you alone?"

"I—I don't know—" She stammered, stunned by the anger in his voice.

"And why the hell would you even entertain Ivanov? Don't you know who he is? Don't you know how dangerous he is?" Liam lost his shit all over her.

But Eden wouldn't sit back and take it. She dished some of her own, her sharp tone matching his. "Well, I'm not the one playing poker with him now, am I?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You know he's dangerous, yet here you are. If anyone is in any danger, it's you!"

"I can take care of myself!"

"And I can't?" Eden asked.

"You damn well can't. Eden, these guys don't fuck around. I've got too much shit on my plate right now; the last thing I need is to worry about your safety, too!" He roared at her.

"I'm not your concern, Mr Anderson. There's no need for you to worry about me!" She snapped back at him, unable to believe the sexist nonsense coming out of his mouth. She was so furious her whole body was shaking. But more than anything, she was deeply disappointed at his assumption that just because she's a woman, she can't take care of herself and needs a man's—his— protection.

José and two waitresses she had seen countless times in the past showed up with trays of complimentary drinks and snacks.

Fuming beyond belief over her confrontation with Liam, Eden reached for her first kamikaze shot in two years. Within minutes, the vodka was working its magic and doing a fantastic job of cooling her anger and numbing her frayed nerves.

By the time she had her third drink, she was floating on air and not a care in the world as she told Lucy exactly what she thought of her.

Her rant—whose focus had now turned to Liam and his tyrannical ways—continued over her fourth and fifth drink.

When she tried to order her sixth cocktail, Clara nicely asked her to calm the fuck down and behave herself, or they'd have to call a cab for her and send her home before the party had even begun.

Eden passed out on the couch and fell into a dreamless nap at some point while they were all in the middle of planning Gibby's farewell party, waking up almost an hour later to a slight headache, pounding music and drunken bodies strewn all over the booth.

Clara and two other ladies were still somewhat sober, watching over the shit-faced troop of assistants.

"You okay?" She asked, her speech heavily slurred, but the tall, fancy cocktail glass of something pink and syrupy remained steady in her hand.

"I need the bathroom," Eden announced, her own words sounding like a jumbled up mess as she burped a putrid cloud of alcohol fumes in the other woman's direction.

"I'll be back." She hiccupped as she stepped over expensive shoes and bags and stumbled out of the booth, taking her phone with her.

She doubled over the toilet bowl as soon as she shut her cubicle, and for five minutes straight, retched her guts out.

Even when her stomach was all emptied, Eden refused to leave the bathroom because it was so much quieter and cooler in here.

She wiped her mouth, flushed the toilet, and rested her pounding head on the cool metal wall.

Without thinking too much about the numerous reasons why she shouldn't or the consequences of her impulsive action, she picked up her phone from the floor and called her baby's father.

He answered on the third ring. "Eden?"

"Why don't you like me?" She demanded as soon as she heard his voice, hiccuping and sobbing into the phone. "Is there no chance at all that you can like me a little bit?"