Begin Again novel Chapter 121

Eden had just returned from the breakroom with a steaming cup of tea—her last for the day—ready to wind down for the afternoon when her office phone rang.

After listening for a moment or two at the voice on the other end of the line, she placed the phone back on its stand.

She took several shaky breaths to calm herself before she dashed out of her office.

Their meeting was bound to happen at some point; she didn't expect it to be so soon, though.

How could she possibly look at Liam now when she couldn't even remember a large part of Friday night?

She knew she had drunk-called him at some point during her alcohol-fueled binge. A quick check of her call records, while she sipped on Brenda's hangover cure sometime after midday on Saturday, had confirmed that much.

As she weaved through the hallways, Eden tried yet again to access what seemed to be her permanently deleted memories. But the only things her foggy mind came up with were Aleksei, the one half of the Russian mob, her subsequent fight with Liam and her first kamikaze shot in two years.

After that, her mind was a total blank. It was almost as if Frankenstein had reached deep inside her head and wiped her brain clean.

"There you are, Ms McBride!" Gibby said as she rushed to her side and hooked their arms, surprising Eden with the gesture. This was probably as close to affection she'd ever get from the older woman.

"Mr Anderson's waiting for you." She continued as she walked her to their boss's office. "He's just returned from Port Alfred, and he's clearly exhausted from dealing with the investigators, so I don't think this will take long at all. He needs to head home and get some rest."

Eden nodded because she didn't know what else to say.

"Go on." Gibby showed her in and shut the door behind her.

Liam stood in front of the window, gazing at the view beyond, his hair burning bright in the fading sunset.

He wore a short-sleeved white cotton t-shirt, the fabric straining over his ridiculous muscles, his biceps screaming at her to come and touch them.

Surely it's a crime for him to expose his guns like that.

How did HR even let him get inside the building looking so devilishly tempting?

But that wasn't even half of it.

The way his faded, slim-fit ripped jeans sat on his butt had to be another violation of the company's dress code.

The Vans on his feet and the sports jacket draped neatly over the backrest of his executive chair were the only sensible things about his outfit.

For a craziest, briefest moment, Eden was so tempted to run up to him and throw her arms around his waist.

She wanted so much to rest her head on his back and listen to the reassuring sounds of his heartbeat.

She wanted to hold him and ask him about his trip and the fire at their shipping depot.

But what right did she have to act like a concerned girlfriend when he'd hired her for one reason and one reason only?

And boy, did she fail terribly at that one job!

Her heart still ached at the abrupt way he'd told her he doesn't need her help anymore.

Liam turned from the window, eyebrows arched and a small smirk on his lips.

Aware that she's shamelessly staring, Eden picked up her jaw from the floor, convinced she would need tons of tissues to wipe off her drool.

"Enjoying it?" He asked, his tone dripping with amusement.

Eden narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him. Was he low key flirting with her?

His voice and the ghost of a smile dancing on his lips said he was, but his stormy eyes betrayed nothing.

No way he's flirting. Eden mentally shook herself and shifted her gaze to the daunting stack of files and reports of different colours and thickness piled high on his desk.

Either he was the worst slacker in the world, or his job was way too demanding because his desk was always a mess.

"—Ms McBride?"

She snapped her attention back to him; apparently, he was still waiting for a response to his vague question.

"Enjoying what, Sir?" Eden asked, praying her cheeks and ears were not as red as they felt.

"The view. You were watching it so intently," Liam said as he stuffed his hands in his jeans and leaned on the glass, eye-fucking her the whole time as his gaze travelled down her body, lingering on all the places he'd caressed and kissed that one steamy night at the penthouse.

It was hard to believe it was just a little over two weeks ago.

She trembled, her breath catching in her throat, at the memory of his hands on her bare thighs, and his tongue deep in her core, doing stuff to her—

Wear something appropriate?

Why?

"I'm sorry," she cleared her throat. "I'm not sure why you're sending a car."

"Fashion Week," Liam nodded at the envelope in her hands. "Anderson Logistics is invited. You're coming as my date."

Eden laughed, relief rushing through her body. "That's what this is?"

Liam frowned at her. "What did you think it is?"

"A warning for Friday night or a pink slip since you don't need me anymore," she smiled impishly.

"Is that why you looked like your puppy just died?" He asked, his mouth curling into a smile, and Eden wanted to drown in it.

He should smile more. He wore it so well.

"I don't have a puppy," she blurted out.

"Not the point," Liam shot back and sat on the edge of his desk. "But you will sign that warning for flirting with Aleksei Ivanov right under my nose, and of course, for getting blind drunk."

"I did not flirt with Aleksei," she rolled her eyes heavenward. "And I did not get blind drunk. I don't drink, remember?"

"Oh yeah?" He chuckled, his booming laugh resounding through the office, and at that moment, everything was perfect, and Eden was happy to see him so relaxed.

"Since you were so sober and very much sane, then remind me what you said to me in the car when I took you home?"

Eden blanched, wincing at her foggy memory.

"You don't remember, do you?" Liam carried on as he picked up the Rubik's Cube and began turning the tiles. "Well, Princess, you told me I'm the love of your life, and you asked me to marry you."

"I did not!" She shook her head in denial, but she knew there's a very real chance she'd professed her undying love and proposed to him.

"Sure you did! And I said yes. So you'll have to put a ring on it soon." He burst into peals of laughter again, waving his left hand at her, and Eden relaxed a little when she realised he's only toying with her.

"You almost had me there for a second." She sighed.