Begin Again novel Chapter 173

"George Whitman—" A bespectacled, overweight, silver-haired man in an ill-fitting but expensive suit stood up, extended his sweaty palm and smiled at her. "—Is your legal team on the way, Ms McBride?"

"No," Eden shook his hand firmly and walked to the end of the table where Liam sat, took an empty glass and poured herself a shot, stunning everyone with her boldness.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Liam cast a hush over the room with his loud growl, and for the longest minute in history, Whitman and his team looked painfully uncomfortable.

"Don't start with me, Liam! You summoned me here bright and early. I didn't even have time to eat. I'm hungry as fuck, so just don't!" She warned him softly as she took her glass back to her seat and sat down across from Whitman.

His colleagues exchanged bewildered looks, and he was equally ill at ease as he took off his glasses and set them down.

"Ms McBride, in my email, I stated you should bring—" He began.

Eden, though, switched him off with a small wave of her hand and a smile as she sipped her drink. It went down smoothly, warming her up nice and good. When she took her second sip, she understood, at last, the difference between cheap and expensive alcohol.

She could get used to this outrageously expensive cognac.

"I know what your email said, Mr Whitman," she said and placed her glass in front of her. "If you wanted me to have legal counsel, you wouldn't have sent me an email at the eleventh hour, summoning me to your premises with very little preparation on my part."

"If you need time—"

Eden held up her hand. "I've robbed Mr Anderson of too much time with his son. There can be no more delays. Let's get started."

George and his army looked unsure for a minute or so as they all traded anxious looks before they turned to Liam for guidance. He remained impassive and offered no direction in terms of how they should proceed.

"Very well then," George cleared his throat and slid two folders in front of her and explained each contract at length.

Eden's eyes almost fell off their sockets when she saw the child support offer along with the proposed backdated payout for the past two years.

With just a few strokes of a pen and her squiggly signature, she'd become an instant millionaire, and she'd be able to do so much with her windfall.

Cassandra would never have to worry about finding investors for her cooking studio again.

She could also easily fund the podcast or talk show Sienna's been dreaming of.

Brenda's mom, too, could get a new wheelchair and the best physiotherapist.

Eden paused and looked at Whitman and back at the document again.

They were so determined to get her to roll over they'd thrown in a whole lot of other extras to sweeten the deal.

Just for being Aiden's mother, she'd get a shiny new car every two years or choose one from Liam's fleet of cars. A real estate agent would hunt down the perfect mansion for her in Glen Eagles. She'd also have use of the Andersons' private jet and vacation homes all over the world whenever she wanted. In addition to her ridiculous monthly allowance, she'd have a personal shopper and access to all the clothing boutiques on 9th Street. To top it all off, she'd have power of attorney over Aiden's shares at Anderson Logistics.

Eden read and reread both offers, barely understanding some of the legal jargon designed to confuse the crap out of her. At that moment, she desperately wished she'd brought Isaac along because a lot of what she'd gone over sounded too good to be true, and she was sure there was a catch somewhere.

But she'd be an idiot not to sign.

"Pen?" She held out her hand at last and snapped her fingers.

A silver Parker appeared out of thin air, and she took it and scribbled on the document and passed it back to Whitman.

The old geezer took one look at the terms and frowned. "What's the meaning of this?"

The second offer was just as insane.

She'd have to hand Aiden over to Liam permanently, and she could only have visitation. She'd robbed him of two years, but he was determined to get what was due to him tenfold. He wanted a lifetime.

She laughed, realising how right her father was. It was a classic game of chicken.

Liam was trying to force her to chicken out and give him what he wanted by proposing extreme measures. He wanted her and Aiden to move in with him. But she couldn't. Not when there was so much resentment between them. They'd only destroy each other, and she would never allow her son to witness all that ugliness.

Eden had never felt backed into a corner as she did then.

She looked at Liam now and held his gaze, her heart smashing to shards the longer she drowned in the ocean in his eyes.

For the longest time, everyone held their breaths, afraid to move an inch as their silent battle carried on.

A solitary tear slid down her cheek, and she wiped it off impatiently, devastated beyond belief that everything had come down to this bitter fight.

"I wish you hadn't done this," she whispered.

"I wish you hadn't kept my son from me," he whispered back. His words gutted her more than any punch in the stomach ever would.

"Very well then," Eden nodded.

He'd pushed her over the cliff, and she had no choice but to jump. And since she was unwilling to back down, then she'd take it all the way and gamble with everything she had like her father said she should and pray it would tip the scales in her favour.

"I'll go with this one." She tapped the document giving Liam full custody of Aiden.