Page 126 of Begin Again, Part 2

"They're Aiden's. We couldn't come empty-handed," Holly explained.

"Thank you," Eden said. She looked drained again, the circles under her eyes darker than before. And Liam wondered if she was still feeling under the weather.

"You're welcome," his little sister carried on as she took a quick selfie with his son. "I admit I didn't like the thought of being an aunt at first, but after meeting Aiden, I think I don't mind babysitting."

"No thanks." Liam quickly shot down her offer. "He has a nanny, and don't you dare think about posting his photos anywhere!"

Holly waved him off with a flick of her wrist. "Lighten up. It's for my private collection."

Two minutes into meeting his grandparents and aunts for the first time, Aiden began to fuss, and Eden quickly swooped in and took him from Lois.

"I'm sorry," she apologised. "He's still feeling cranky from the medication. I'll settle him down for the afternoon."

"No need." Clarke brushed her off and promptly took him from her.

Liam expected Aiden to scream his head off since he was fearful of strangers. But he was surprised and mildly intrigued when his son smiled sweetly at Clarke and touched his stubbled cheek, chuckling as he pulled his hand away. He did this a few times, where he'd touch his father's chin and jaw only to pull away, and each time Clarke would growl at him, pretending to be a monster. "You don't like your grandpa's beard?"

"No," Aiden shook his head and laughed.

Dave came in then and called them to the patio for a late lunch.

Chapter

Thirty-Nine

MAKE ROOM FOR ME

The lunch was going well until it wasn't. The topic that sparked Eden's discontent was the engagement party she didn't even know about until Holly brought it up when she asked about the guest list and invitations. Willow, too, wanted to know if they'd set the date and if she and Liam planned to wear matching outfits for their big day.

So while Liam's sisters chatted away and planned her entire engagement party in between mouthfuls of pasta primavera and red wine, her anxiety shot up to such unhealthy levels she mentally muted everyone out.

Sure, her mother had said something about a summer wedding, and when Liam mentioned losing his inheritance if she didn't marry him in six months, she thought he was joking. But now, with all these plans being made on the fly, it was becoming clear the joke was on her, and the wedding she hadn't agreed to, was a go.

Eden carefully placed her fork and napkin beside her plate, and scratched her hands listlessly. The tingling sensation worsened the longer she listened to Holly, Willow and Lois plot out her future.

"You've been very quiet." Liam reached for her hand. "Are you okay?"

"I'm great," she lied and made the mistake of glancing at him. Her heart did cartwheels in her chest when she caught the look in his eyes. It was so tender, so pure, it blew her breath away.

Would it be such a bad thing? She wondered as she held his gaze. Would marrying him be such a terrible thing? She'd never loved any man as much as she loved Liam, and he said he loved her. But Simon had said those same words to her for years, and then four weeks before she was supposed to slip into her fairy tale wedding dress, he'd crushed her heart to dust when he announced he didn't love her anymore and hadn't for a while. Eden had asked him how long a 'while' was, and it wasn't until his response that she finally understood that 'a while' had different meanings for everyone.

For Simon, a 'while' was ten weeks before he plucked up the nerve to tell her it was over.

It turned out that while she was eyeballs deep in final wedding preparations, Simon was falling in love with one of her good friends. A ten-week affair was all it took to destroy the happily ever after Eden had foolishly believed in for four years. What if Liam woke up four weeks before their wedding and realised he didn't love her anymore and hadn't for a while? What then? Could she live through the heartbreak again? It took her a long time to get to where she trusted Liam enough to want to cohabit with him. She'd lose her mind if she had to go through that same crushing feeling of failure that had buried her in a hole so deep she had to use everything in her to dig herself out—

"Stop doing that." Liam leaned closer, intruding on her thoughts with his low drawl as he reached for her hand again. "You'll peel off your skin if you keep it up."

"Sorry." Eden gave him a wan smile. She hadn't even noticed she was scratching her hands again until he brought it up. The engagement plans raged on until she couldn't sit still anymore. She excused herself when she noticed Aiden had fallen asleep in Clarke's arms.

"Why are you hiding in here?" Brenda asked when she walked into the nursery and found her sitting in the rocking chair, watching Aiden sleep.

"I'm not."

Brenda chuckled, leaning on the door frame. "You could have fooled me."

"I just needed a moment. Liam's family is so..." Eden's voice trailed off as she clasped her hands on her lap.

"Intense?" Brenda offered.

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