Page 153 of Begin Again, Part 1

"No." Eden shook her head. "I'm Matthew's assistant. You gave me away, remember?"

Of course, he remembered. It was one of the stupidest, impulsive decisions he'd ever made, along with this firing Lucy, it seemed.

"I reassigned you," he corrected her.

"Same difference." Eden balled her hands into fists, her upper lip quivering. "You have no idea how you've just messed things up for me again!"

"Eden—" Liam reached for her, but she backed away from him, putting up her hands. "I didn't do this as your boss. I did this as your man. What kind of man would I be if I allowed someone to hurt you? How the hell am I supposed to feel knowing you don't feel safe here?"

"My man wouldn't use his authority to settle personal scores," she whispered. "My man won't fight my battles for me because he knows I'm strong and capable of handling shit on my own. If you care about me, you'll take back your decision."

Liam gawked at her, baffled by the notion that she thought she could negotiate with him and change his mind.

"No!" he said firmly. His decision was final. Bending to Eden's will or anyone else's, for that matter, would be a sign of weakness.

"I'll never ask anything of you after this, please?" she pleaded, the tears she'd been trying to contain finally breaking through, and Liam's heart ached. He wanted to reach up and brush them away. He wanted to hold her in his arms and comfort her. But he'd promised himself he'd follow her lead. He'd wait for her to come to him because he couldn't afford to scare her off. So he stayed where he was and forced himself to keep his hands at his sides, even though he was itching to gather her in his embrace.

"Why is it so damn important to let her get away with her shit?" he asked when the lump in his throat had melted away.

Eden brushed her tears away quickly, but her eyes remained moist. "She's a single mom. I couldn't live with myself knowing I'm responsible for taking away her paycheque."

They fell silent, both staring at the other, waiting to see who'd break first. Liam knew it would be him the longer her tears stained her cheeks. Turning away from her, he shot out a frustrated growl and reached for his office phone to call his assistant.

Gibby answered promptly. "Yes, Mr Anderson?"

He breathed in sharply, unable to believe he'd given in to Eden's demands. Was this the beginning of his end? How much more would he do for her? How many more times would he have to give in to her and bend to her will? "Tell Ms Edison she can stay."

"She'll be so relieved."

With his back still turned to her, Liam hung up the phone and stared blindly at the view beyond, properly pissed off at himself for caring enough to back down.

"It's done," he said, without turning to look at her.

He heard her footsteps and expected his office door to bang shut a moment later. But he was surprised and tremendously relieved when he felt Eden's arms wrap around his waist.

"Thank you," she said, resting her face on his back. "Thank you so much!"

Liam stood still, terrified to breathe, every part of his body aching for her. Being so close to her was torture, and he knew he should push her away, let her go. But when she tried to move away, he couldn't. He held her in place, covering her small hands with his large ones.

"Stay here until you stop crying," he said, turning slightly to look at her.

"I'm okay now. I need to get back to work." Eden tried to wriggle away, but he held on firmly.

"I'm not okay," he whispered as he turned around and yanked her in his arms.

She licked her lips anxiously, her eyes wide with surprise. "Mr Anderson."

"I'm not okay when you keep crying," he said, searching her face.

"I—Uh—" Whatever she wanted to say remained a mystery as he brought their lips together in a fiery kiss.

Three days, Liam thought as he pulled her close, his hands in her hair, his tongue, and lips demanding all of her. Three days of not seeing her were enough to drive him to madness. He couldn't imagine a lifetime without her. He scooped her up and placed her on the edge of his desk.

"God, Princess," he groaned on her neck, getting high on her floral scent. He wanted it everywhere. He greedily took her lips again. She tasted like mint and the honeyed tea she'd drank at some point before she stormed into his office. He realised that at that moment, as his hands wandered all over her body, touching every inch of exposed skin he could find, it was the best taste in the world.

"Liam!" Like the gentle caress of a summer's rain, his name on her lips was enough to make him lose all control. He kissed her harder, cupping her pert breasts in his hands, her nipples tautening at his touch.

"I could take you right now," he said. "On this desk. I could have all of you."

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