Page 62 of Begin Again, Part 2

"Edie, is everything okay?" Steve sounded wide awake and alert even though it was just after 6:15 AM. He always was, at this time of the morning. Both her parents were morning people. A fine trait Eden never inherited from them.

"Dad, I'm about to close the most important deal of my life, and I'm shit scared," she admitted tearfully.

"What kind of deal, honey?"

"I can't get into it right now, but I don't know what to do. I was supposed to bring legal counsel, but the only lawyer I know is out of town, working a divorce case—" She would have babbled on, but her father gently cut in.

"Edie, listen to me, slow breaths, slow breaths, honey," he coached her on his end, and she found herself following his instructions and forcing her lungs to take in one breath at a time.

"Do you need me to come with you? You know I'm a hell of a negotiator," Steve said with no hint of arrogance in his voice. He was simply stating facts, and Eden smiled a little because that was exactly why she called him. His economics lectures didn't get packed to capacity because of his good looks and charisma. But as much as she'd love to have him in the room, fighting alongside her, expecting him to make it across town in less than thirty minutes was a bit of an ask, especially when traffic was starting to build up.

"That's okay, Dad, the meeting is in half an hour," Eden replied, feeling much better already. Before her relationship with her parents went to shit, she was much closer to him, and she didn't realise how much she missed him until now.

"Listen to me, kid," Steve said firmly. "When you go in there, keep a cool head and a tight lid on your emotions."

"Okay." Eden nodded as if he could see her. It sounded simple enough. Check her emotions at the door and pray Liam wouldn't goad her into losing her cool.

"Remember the chicken tactic?" Steve asked.

She did, but vaguely.

"If there's more than one option," he continued with his quick refresher, and Eden was grateful. "You always choose the extreme to force the other party to back down and re-evaluate their demands."

"But what if it costs me everything, Dad? What if they don't back down?"

"They wouldn't bring it to the table for no reason. If there is one, then half your battle is won," Steve assured her.

Eden hung up from her father, feeling more rattled than before she called him. She wasn't sure about his strategy, but with no lawyer on her side, she had no choice but to wing it and rely on her father's crash course.

Blaine On 1, the fifty-story building housing the thousands of high-profile lawyers pandering to the upper echelons of society, was as imposing as Eden imagined. And the smell of old and new money hit her as soon as she stepped inside the all-glass structure. A paralegal with no court experience but enough confidence to win even the toughest case met her in the lobby. Half-hearted introductions were made. Sincerity wasn't needed since they'd never see each other again. But in the five minutes it took to whisk Eden to the top floor, Cindy filled her in on the day's proceedings. Depending on how quickly they reached an agreement, the whole thing would be over in forty-five minutes, or it could last the whole day if she proved to be a formidable negotiator. But one thing was certain, by the time she left—however late—there would be an agreement in place.

Eden was ready to throw up from anxiety when Cindy ushered her inside the elegantly-decked out corner boardroom on the 50th floor. Three people, two men and one woman, presumably all lawyers, sat on one side of the long, black table, lined with important-looking documents and refreshments. A clean-shaven Liam, looking sinful in his black three-piece suit, had arranged himself at the back of the room, away from all the fanfare.

It was just after 7:00 AM, but he was already nursing a glass of cognac in his hand, and a still full bottle of Hennessy sat in front of him.

All four pairs of eyes turned to her when she shut the door behind her.

"George Whitman." A bespectacled, overweight, silver-haired man in an ill-fitting but expensive suit stood up, extended his sweaty palm and smiled at her. "Is your legal team on the way, Ms McBride?"

"No." Eden shook his hand firmly and walked to Liam's end of the table, took an empty glass and poured herself a shot, stunning everyone with her boldness.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Liam cast a hush over the room with his loud growl, and for the longest minute in history, Whitman, and his team looked painfully uncomfortable.

"Don't start with me, Liam. You summoned me here bright and early. I didn't even have time to eat. I'm hungry as fuck, so just don't!" she warned him softly as she took her glass back to her seat and sat down across from Whitman.

His colleagues exchanged bewildered looks, and he was equally ill at ease as he took off his glasses and set them down.

"Ms McBride, in my email, I stated you should bring—" he began.

Eden switched him off with a small wave of her hand as she sipped her drink. It went down smoothly, warming her up nice and good. When she took her second sip, she finally understood the difference between cheap and expensive alcohol. She could get used to this outrageously expensive cognac.

"I know what your email said, Mr Whitman," she said, placing her glass in front of her. "If you wanted me to have legal counsel, you wouldn't have sent me an email at the eleventh hour, summoning me to your premises with little preparation on my part."

"If you need time..."

Eden held up her hand. "I've robbed Mr Anderson of too much time with his son. There can be no more delays. Let's get started."

George and his army looked unsure as they all traded anxious looks before turning to Liam for guidance. He remained impassive and gave no direction on how they should proceed.

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