Page 139 of Begin Again, Part 1

He didn't want to, would have preferred not to think about Eden after their mother of a fight, but he couldn't help but wonder about the welt under her eye. It must have been a hell of a slap she took for her bruise like that. He'd tried the whole day to ignore it, but now, numbed by beers he wouldn't normally drink, he had no choice but to acknowledge the harsh truth and confront the cold fury burning hot in his veins. Lucy hurt Eden. She'd slapped her so hard that she left a mark on her face. Nobody touched what was his and got away with it. Eden was his. She might not know it yet, or may not be ready to submit to him, but she belonged to him. And nobody was allowed to hurt her.

"Did you fire your assistant yet?" He turned his head slightly to look at Matthew, clenching his jaw as he glowered at him. "I hope you did. What she did is unacceptable."

His cousin matched his scowl. "HR handled it. Don't get involved. It's over."

No, Liam shook his head. It wasn't over. The only marks on Eden would be from him, evidence and imprints of his insatiable hunger for her. Nobody was allowed to touch her, especially in such a violent manner.

"I don't give a shit about a piece of paper from Zara. I want Lucy gone. If you can't handle this shit, I'll do it myself. She not only attacked Eden, but faked her injuries too. Show her the door, or I will. I won't tolerate that kind of behaviour!"

For once, Julian tried to be the voice of reason. "Liam, think of the backlash Eden will get. Let this shit go."

Matthew was quick to agree with his brother. "Yeah, what Lucy did is unacceptable, and I'll chat with her, but if you run interference, you'll only make things worse for Eden."

"Are you both choosing not to hear me? Lucy hurt Eden. I won't have that. Nobody is allowed to touch her." Liam shook his head, his face warm from all the rage he was trying to rein in. But the brothers were pissing him off, and he was very close to going nuclear on them.

"Everyone already thinks she's getting special treatment because you're sleeping with her." Julian tried again to get through to him. "You can't get involved in this."

"I am not sleeping with her!" Liam growled at his cousins. "She got the job because she deserves it."

Sure, they were intimate last night, but he hadn't fucked her yet. So the accusations in the chat weren't exactly true and somewhat baseless.

"Maybe not yet," Julian said. "But we all know why you hired her, and a little discretion would have served you well. Now you've made Eden a target of all your fucking groupies."

Liam didn't have a comeback. Julian was right. He should have been discreet and done a better job of handling his feelings for Eden. Feelings he still didn't understand and was yet to confront. Feelings he had no business having because Eden only had one job.

Christ, how the hell did he get here? How did he get caught up in office gossip? He wasn't that guy. He didn't do office relationships. At least he never used to until Eden.

He sat up, startling the brothers as he threw on his shoes and blazer. He had to check on Eden and make sure she was okay, and her face didn't swell up.

"Where are you going?" Julian asked.

"To Paradise." Liam belched and hiccupped his way to the door. "Get it, Eden, Paradise? She's my hell and paradise, and nobody touches her!"

Julian ran in front of him and held out his arms, blocking his path. "I'm usually the last person to say no to bad ideas, but this is a terrible idea."

"Move!" Liam tried to shove him aside, but he misjudged his strength and sobriety, almost losing his balance as he swayed on his feet.

"Easy there." Matthew caught him before he fell and dragged him back to the couch. "Just how much did you drink?"

"Not a lot." He proudly pointed at the beer cans littering the floor.

"Jesus, Liam! Get a grip on yourself. You can't allow Eden to get under your skin like this."

"The past two nights were so perfect." Liam hiccupped. "I did everything right, and she was happy. God, I was happy too. For the first time in two years, I was fucking happy. What if she doesn't return to work tomorrow, and I never get to feel that kind of happiness again? What if she takes off again? I have to see her and convince her she can't run again."

Matthew shook him roughly. "Pull yourself together."

"But I have to apologise to her."

"Didn't you already?" Julian asked. "I thought the vase and the painting were a sure thing. What happened?"

"She returned them. Said she doesn't want them." Liam belched in his hands. "Why doesn't she want them? I chose them myself. I put thought and care into it. I didn't ask Gibby to do it like I normally do with everyone else. Why didn't she take them?"

"That makes no sense." Julian was just as bewildered that their over-the-top romantic gesture didn't work.

"I told you to return all that shit." Matthew smirked, his face glowing with an 'I told you so' look.

"I have to go to her and give her the tickets to Fashion Week." Liam tried to sit up again.

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