Page 61 of Begin Again, Part 2

The meeting, three days in the making, was over. And Eden was dismissed. But she wouldn't go away quietly. She lingered for a minute, maybe two, longer than she should have, asking, "Is there no way we can talk? Just the two of us?"

Liam remained silent as he flipped through a proposal.

Wow, Eden thought. Silence was still a response. And a powerful one at that.

She straightened her shoulders, fixed her dress, and tucked her hair behind her ear before seeing herself out. She prayed she wouldn't trip on her feet, and her tears wouldn't betray her and fall before she was out of his presence.

Back in her middle of nowhere office, she sat in numb shock, replaying their conversation. She was still staring into space when Clara stopped by to drop off Liam's travel schedule for his overseas trip.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" Eden asked.

"Pack his luggage and make sure his travel documents are in order, I guess?" Clara said.

"Why?"

Her friend shrugged. "You're in charge of his wardrobe, aren't you?"

Of course, Eden smiled when she remembered his words when he took her back from Matthew's area. It was hard to believe it was just a fortnight ago. How quickly life and things changed.

"He'll fly out straight after the charity benefit, so you should be ready by then. I've checked his passport. It's still valid." Clara carried on, oblivious to her stunned state.

"When is the benefit?"

Clara paused, the small frown on her forehead deepening. "This Friday."

Eden smiled sadly. In four days, Liam would fly out of the country after a charity benefit she didn't even know about because he hadn't said anything to her, and he'd be gone for three weeks. She was clearly still sitting with his old schedule. In her copy, there was no charity benefit anywhere. If it wasn't for Clara, she wouldn't even know about the event.

"Are you his plus one?" Eden asked and held her breath. Clara never attended work events with Liam. That was her job. But she was fishing, trying to figure out if he'd already replaced her.

"No, I thought you were?"

"Nope. He didn't ask me," Eden said, relieved and sad at the same time.

"I'm sure he will," Clara said and excused herself. She had to follow up with the legal team on the finalised LUSSO contract.

Alone again, Eden looked through her stationery box and fished out Gibby's journal. She pored over the former assistant's detailed notes, familiarising herself with Liam's travel protocols and procedures. This would be her first time managing his travel plans, and she couldn't help but be grateful for the notes, because failure to execute her one job was not an option, especially when she was still in the dog box.

She was still reading the notes when her inbox chimed, alerting her of an email from Thomas Blaine Inc., a powerhouse law firm representing only the ultra-wealthy. She read the terse instructions over and over, unable to process the words swimming in front of her eyes. Her presence was required tomorrow at 07:00 AM sharp. A George Whitman urged her to bring her legal team to what he promised would be a mutually beneficial discussion.

Eden slammed her laptop shut and burst into maniacal laughter. She didn't even have a lawyer, so how was she supposed to come up with a whole team in less than—she checked the time on her phone—24 hours?

She looked up and smiled sadly when her gaze clashed with Liam's through the glass wall, wishing he hadn't done this.

Eden spent a restless night, imagining every possible scenario, her mind already inside the plush offices of Thomas Blaine Inc.

By the time the clock hit 5:00 AM, she was highly agitated. The longer she went through her morning routine and tried to pretend it was like any other normal Wednesday morning, the harder it got to resist the urge to pack Aiden up and make a run for it. Liam would hunt her down for sure, but she'd have a three-hour head start if she left now.

She strolled into Brenda's room while she brushed her teeth, and stared at Aiden, still sleeping peacefully in his cot. She could totally pull it off if she didn't take a lot of stuff. Just an overnight bag and—

Her phone pinged in her room, and she went to get it. Her heart dropped when she read Liam's short but firm text. 'Don't even think about it.'

Was he psychic? How did he know she was thinking of skipping town? Did he know her so well? What did it even matter?

While she was still trying to come up with a response, he sent a follow-up message, demanding a new photo of his son and Brenda's phone number. She ignored his photo request because she'd already sent him all thousand photos and videos of Aiden. But she sent him the nanny's contact details without asking him why he needed them. The less she said to him, the better.

She threw the phone on the bed and stepped inside the bathroom to take the longest shower in history, in a vain attempt to delay the inevitable. By the time she headed out, dressed in a Marc Jacobs black power suit, one she'd recently invested in despite her bank account's complaints, she was a bundle of nerves, ready to barf all over her fancy shoes.

She called her father on her way to the business district.

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