Page 43 of Begin Again, Part 2

"Answer me," she pressed. She had to know, even if the truth would kill her. She had to know if he took other women there.

"I've already told you when I bought the penthouse. And you know damn well you're the only woman I've ever taken there. Where the hell is this coming from?" he asked, his lips pressed into a thin line, the veins on his neck pulsing so hard Eden thought they'd pop at any moment. "You went to the bathroom, and you came back with all these questions? What the hell happened in there?"

She stared at him for a long time before she sagged back in her seat, releasing a shaky breath, furious with herself for allowing Laura to mess with her head. But—

"Did you ever consider getting a vasectomy?"

A small muscle twitched in Liam's jaw as he stared straight ahead and ignored her question.

He fired terse instructions at his driver, effectively changing their plans for the night. "Take us to Forrest Creek!"

"Did you?" Eden pushed a little more, refusing to let it go even when common sense told her to back off because she already knew the answer. But she had to hear from him how much he hated kids. "Did you plan to get a vasectomy?"

"You spoke to Laura," he said as rage, unlike anything she'd ever seen before, roared to life in his eyes. "You allowed Laura to get into your head. I can't do this anymore, Eden. I told you she means nothing to me. What the hell do you want me to do or say to show you I don't care about her? She's jealous and will try every little damn thing in her power to come between us. Why can't you see that?"

"Answer me!" Tears welled up in Eden's eyes, her upper lip quivering. Of course, she knew Laura was messing with her. But still, there had to be some element of truth in what she said. Why would Liam keep skirting around the issue if there wasn't?

"What does it matter if I considered a vasectomy or not?" he roared at her, stunning his driver and his head of security in the front.

It mattered because everything—the plans she'd been slowly making, the custody agreement, her chat with him tonight to break the news, his first meeting with Aiden—depended on his response.

"Did you?"

"Yes," he replied, undoing all the plans she'd been making with his single-word answer.

She thought she could handle the truth. But she couldn't. Her heartbreak hit her like a punch in the gut, and she burst into uncontrollable tears, her body shaking from her violent sobs.

Chapter

Sixteen

TRUTH IS PERMANENT AND FIXED

Liam was neck-deep in reports and proposals when Clara knocked and came in with a tray of refreshments and his head of security in tow. She set his afternoon snack on his desk and excused herself, but not before reminding him he had a 3:00 PM meeting with Matthew and the marketing team.

"The report you asked for on Ms McBride and her son," James said when they were alone, handing him a brown A4 envelope.

"You took your time." Liam reached for his espresso and motioned at him to sit on the couch.

"Ms McBride keeps her son out of the spotlight, and other than her Instagram, she has no other social media accounts. We had to do a bit of surveillance," James explained why it took his team a little over a week to compile the report.

"What did you find?" Liam asked, his fingers already ripping through the envelope. Within seconds, he came face to face with the truth as he pulled out a single page summary of Eden's past relationships, along with a paternity report and birth certificate, all held together by a flimsy paper clip.

Liam looked through Eden's dating history first and frowned at how short it was. Only two names, his and Simon Saunders, the man she came close to marrying.

At that moment, he felt like a train had ploughed into him, as the realisation hit him like a ton of bricks. There was no need for him to look at the paternity report, birth certificate, or even the photographs still nestled inside the envelope.

"He's mine," he announced, his voice sounding strangely hollow, like it came from somewhere else.

James nodded. "Congratulations, sir! All the information points to you being the father."

Even though he already knew—had always suspected Aiden was his—but, for that stunning moment, Liam couldn't process the other man's words. Yet, they were the only thing he heard over the roar of his pulse thundering in his ears.

"Oh, God!" he groaned in that same voice that belonged to someone else as he moved away from his desk. The room swayed in front of him, and he thought he would pass out.

Focus, he told himself as he tried to train his gaze on something solid. His head of security seemed to be the only steady point in the room, and he zoned in on him.

"Mr Anderson, are you okay?" James asked, concern flickering in his eyes.

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