Page 138 of Begin Again, Part 1

Lydia wasn't sold. "Edie, I'm damn good at makeup tutorials and brand reviews. Shipping boxes and hard hats are not good for my look."

"So it's a no?' Eden asked. Liam would be so crushed. He was set on Lydia.

"Is it important to you?"

Not really. But it was important to Liam. She knew he wasn't the board's favourite, despite the company's growth since he took the helm. If he managed to attract the untapped market of young entrepreneurs and startups, he'd secure his place at the table.

"Yeah," she said. "It would mean a lot to me if you met the marketing team. I'm not saying take the offer. Just listen to them."

"Argh!" Lydia made a face. "You want Liam's dick so bad."

"Shut up!" Eden ruffled her hair.

"Just do it, Lyd!" Cassandra chimed in. "It's just a meeting."

"And I've never known you to say no to money," Sienna added.

"Guys, it's boxes and hard hats!" Lydia shuddered in disgust.

"I'd even put the box over my head for all the millions they'll offer you," Cassandra said. "I'd kill to have someone invest in my studio."

"Still struggling to get investors?" Eden asked as they all sat down and hugged her.

As always, Cassandra shrugged off their concern.

Not for the first time since her friend's financial struggles came up, Eden wondered how deep a hole she was in.

"I'll think about it," Lydia said, changing the subject because they could all see how uncomfortable Cassandra was. "I'll think about the meeting."

"Thanks." Eden grinned, relieved she was one step closer to completing the one task Liam had assigned her. She hugged her friends and set off, thinking about Cassandra and her financial woes as she and Aiden slowly trudged home.

The outing had tired her son out. He passed out soon after she fed and bathed him. But she spent a long time tossing and turning in her bed, wondering what fresh hell awaited her in the morning and whether Lucy would attack her again.

Chapter

Forty-Five

UNDER HIS SKIN

Liam rolled up his sleeves and threw off his tie as he scanned the bar. He sighed loudly, disappointed he was still out of bourbon and whiskey. Gibby and Clara hadn't had a chance to stock up.

But, he decided, any alcohol would do at this point after the hellish day he had. So he pulled out two six-packs of beers and took them back to the couch.

Glaring at the wrinkled blazer beside him, he opened one of the cans, thinking back to his conversation with Gibby when they were still trying to get Eden to sign with the company. He'd laughed off her comment then, but he now understood what she meant about his assistant being his second wife. If their intense fight was a prelude to marital bliss, Liam wanted no part of it. It wasn't for the faint of heart, and as Laura said, he didn't have a heart. Maybe a life of loneliness and alcoholism was the only thing on the cards for him, and as he brought the ice-cold liquid to his lips, he realised he was okay with that.

He was on his sixth, maybe a seventh beer—he'd lost count—and still licking his wounds from his battle with Eden when his cousins stopped by just after 9:00 PM.

"Dude, what the hell are you sitting in the dark for?" Julian flipped the switch, instantly bathing the office in a warm glow.

"Did you cancel your afternoon meetings just to drink?" Matthew demanded, his mouth set in a thin line, the look in his eyes crystal clear. He was deeply disappointed with his poor life choices.

"I had a fucking rough day, okay? I deserve a day off." Liam stretched out his numb body on the couch, making sure to take up all the room so his cousins would get the hint and leave him alone. He was in a foul mood, and the last thing he wanted was company.

"We heard." Julian clapped his hands, rocking on the balls of his feet. "Want to talk about it?"

Liam shook his head. He didn't want to talk. He didn't want to think either. But if the brothers had their way, he would be doing both in no time.

Yawning loudly, he draped his arm over his face to block the light. It was great for ambience, not so much for the dull, throbbing ache behind his eyelids.

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