Page 139 of Begin Again, Part 2

Most of the general workers had already gone home, and other than the bartender and a few waitstaff, the place was empty. No surprises there. Liam figured if Aleksei planned to off him, he wanted no witnesses.

"I'm great, thanks, James," he said as he sat in the leather club chair and pulled out his laptop to get some work done.

By 4:55 PM, the head of security and his team had already done a sweep of the place, and Liam was almost finished with the proposal for one of the largest big pharma companies in the country and halfway through his first drink.

James wasn't the only one with trust issues. Not even five minutes after he declared the lounge safe, Aleksei showed up with an impressive number of guards.

"Well, well," he drawled as he shrugged out of his coat and threw it at one of his men. "If I knew you were so eager to see me, I would have moved up our date, Anderson."

"Shut the fuck up, Ivanov," Liam barked, called one of the waiters over and ordered a bottle of bourbon. If he had to be in the man's company and hand over twenty percent of his money, he preferred to do it drunk.

Not one to be outshone, Aleksei ordered the most expensive bottle of cognac and pulled out a Cuban cigar.

"Now..." He stuck the cigar in his mouth and rubbed his hands together. "Where is the delectable Ms McBride? I was hoping you'd bring her. It's always such a delight to see her."

"Leave her out of this," Liam growled, a muscle twitching in his clenched jaw as he gazed forlornly at the track beyond the pane. His heart squeezed in his chest when memories of the countless days spent here stirred to life. Some of his best and worst days had played out right here. His dreams had begun and ended here, too.

"It hurts, doesn't it?" Aleksei poured himself a shot. The waiter had dropped off their drinks while Liam was lost in thought.

"What?" he asked, feigning ignorance as he reached for his bottle. He'd never admit it, especially to Aleksei. But yes, even though he knew that coming back here would hurt, he never expected the pain to be so complete, so crippling.

"Being back here." Aleksei tipped his glass in Liam's direction and swallowed down his drink. "The same way it hurt when you stole my money, Anderson."

"I didn't steal shit from you."

"LUSSO was mine!"

"You went after my trucks!" Liam roared. "You killed my drivers, and your reckless actions changed the lives of three families."

"We had nothing to do with that fire and your trucks."

"Fuck you!" Liam barked. "If we're going to be business partners, the least you can do is be honest with me."

His future partner nodded, but refused to say any more on the trucks. Instead, he changed the subject, "Did you like the gift I sent with your woman? I have two more where it came from, and I'm sure you can figure out the initials on those."

The Russian was trying to goad him by bringing Eden up again, so Liam pulled his glass closer and took a long sip, willing himself not to lose his shit.

Aleksei carried on, undeterred by his silence. "I'm guessing that's why you're here. Because your kitten got spooked, and I have your fucking attention now?"

Liam reached inside his messenger bag. When he looked up, he found himself staring down the barrel of Aleksei's gun, while James and his men were caught in a tense standoff with Ivanov's goons, their weapons drawn and aimed at each other.

Liam held his breath, a thin line of sweat trickling down the side of his face. This was a major plot twist in the already shitty script that was his day. None of them should have been carrying any guns. They were supposed to have left them at the security checkpoint at the entrance.

"What are you doing? What's the meaning of this?" Liam asked. Despite being shit scared, his voice was steady as a rock. He knew Aleksei would have his brains splattered on the window before he could even blink if he made any sudden movement.

Still pointing his gun at him, Aleksei shrieked, "No, what the fuck are you doing, Anderson? What's inside the bag?"

Liam held out his hands to show him he meant no harm. "Put that shit away before it goes off. I'm not armed. You can search my bag if you don't believe me. What the hell is this?"

"But your men are armed," Aleksei retorted. "How am I supposed to trust you when you bring armed guards to our first date?"

His patience running out fast, Liam scoffed. "Are you insane? I'm not the one holding a gun. Your guards are armed too. Drop that shit, or I'm out of here, and I'm taking your share of LUSSO with me."

Like he hoped it would, his threat worked. Nothing excited Aleksei more than the prospect of money made through shady means. He nodded and signalled at his guys to stand down. James and his men also withdrew from the fight. But both sides lingered nearby. They wanted no repeats. Liam released a long, staggering breath and collapsed in his seat, his mind struggling to keep up with his racing heart.

As he sat there, contemplating drinking the entire bottle of bourbon in one go, he finally understood why Julian and his father had told him to stay away from LUSSO. The Ivanovs were crazy bastards through and through, and this was exactly why giving them twenty percent was a terrible idea.

"Woo me!" Aleksei clapped his hands in anticipation, the look in his eyes crazier than ever. Liam didn't mind it, though. He was glad the bastard wasn't pointing a gun at him anymore. He liked the idea of returning to Eden and their son in one piece. With shaky hands, he pulled out a white envelope and shoved it at the other man. "My offer."

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