Crush was hopping when Liam finally made it there almost an hour later.
There were people everywhere, grinding and stepping on each other. Liam was glad his cousins had a VIP booth. He couldn't handle all the rowdiness tonight.
"You made it!" Julian hiccupped over the loud music; his speech already slurred as he stood and hugged him, almost toppling him over.
"Easy buddy." Liam pushed him back on the sectional couch and turned to Matthew. "How much did he drink?"
"All those," his cousin pointed at a line of empty shot glasses lined up on the bright yellow cube.
"What happened?" Liam asked as a scantily dressed waitress appeared at his side. He ordered the most expensive bottle of bourbon. After the hellish day, no, few weeks he's had he deserved every drop.
"He got dumped," Matthew said. "She left him for a wealthier, older man."
"Ouch!" Liam touched his heart dramatically and rolled his eyes heavenward.
"How's the old man?"
Liam filled him in on his hospital visit with his father as he scanned the crowd.
There she is, he thought excitedly, his heart soaring to life as he caught sight of a petite brunette swaying her hips on the dance floor.
"I think that's her," Liam pointed at the brown-haired girl in the crowd. But when she turned to her friends, he saw it's not Eden. Disappointed, he slumped back in his chair and sighed, "scratch that, it's not."
"You can't tell me you're still looking for her?" Julian surged to life beside him and sat up.
Yes, he was still searching for Eden. He'll never stop looking for her. He wanted his shirt back, and he needed to return her panties. While he's at it, maybe get some answers too. He’d asked his security detail to look for her discreetly and bring her to him. But so far their search had been fruitless and made especially hard because other than her first name and her description, they had nothing else to go by.
As much as his life had changed drastically over the past few weeks, one thing hadn't changed: his fascination with Eden. It was starting to border on obsession the longer he searched for her and didn't find her.
"You need to move on–" Matthew said, pausing when the waitress returned with the bourbon and a tray of snacks.
“Is there anything else you need?” She asked as she picked up the empty glasses. Her question was directed at Liam but her gaze never left Matthew’s face. His cousin waved her off with his killer smile and a flick of his wrist.
Alone again, Liam poured a shot and gulped it down swiftly, enjoying the smooth way it rushed down his throat and warmed his chest.
"As I was saying," Matthew continued as Liam poured all of them another round of shots. "That woman can very well become your white whale if you keep this up. Let her go. Move on."
"I'll move on once I get all my answers," he promised and raised his glass. That's all he wanted, answers. Was he not good enough for her? Why did she run off without even putting on her underwear? The idea that he didn't meet her expectations in bed terrified him. No woman had ever complained before. He may be many things, but a selfish lover was not one of them. Granted, they were all meaningless hookups, but he wanted the experience for both parties to be memorable with very few regrets.
He had plenty of regrets after Eden.
"What is about her that's got you so hooked?"
Julian's question startled him, but he took a moment to think it over anyway.
If he was ‘hooked’ like his cousin suggested, it would explain why he couldn't move on from her, and his obsessive need to find her, but–
No way, Liam shook his head, horrified by the direction his thoughts were taking. Eden was a five at best in looks and wealth and maybe intellect. He could do so much better. He’d done so much better in the past.
"I am not 'hooked' on her," he insisted, hating that the notion had even come up. "She's not even my type!"
"'T'is true!" Julian belched on his shoulder, spraying a cloud of alcohol fumes on his face as he wrapped his arms around him. "But what is your type?"
"Yeah, you don't have a type," Matthew agreed and tipped his glass at Liam mockingly. "You screw anything that moves, and you leave them as soon as you can!"
"That's not true!"
"How else do you think you earned your infamous moniker?"
"Don't remind me," Liam grumbled. The tabloids dubbed him the 'Three Months Prince' after they noticed a pattern with his love life. His relationships never seemed to last longer than three months. What the gossip rags failed to mention though was that it wasn't always his fault. Life happened, he'd get busy with tournaments and training and things would eventually fizzle out.
"Well at least you earned yourself a spot in the Business Insider with your exec shakeup," Matthew smirked. "The old man can't complain about your scandals anymore."
Liam shrugged and gulped down his drink. His decision to disband the executive committee was so radical it earned him the coveted Business Insider cover and legendary status overnight. He thought his father would be chuffed. But when Senior read the article, he lost his head. Clarke only wanted him to take over the company and not change the status quo completely.
Liam’s gaze drifted back to the dance floor, clashing with the girl he mistook for Eden earlier. She smiled and batted her eyes in his direction. He ignored her. He had no intention of wasting his evening flirting with anyone, especially when he knew it wasn't going to go anywhere.
Matthew yawned and stretched and decided to call it a night before they even finished half the bottle. He had a meeting with a potential client, a small scale eCommerce outfit needing their shipping expertise.
Liam helped him get Julian into his car and carried on his way.
Liam's night wasn't about to get any better. He found Laura waiting in his living room. "What are you doing here?" He demanded as he dumped his messenger bag on the couch and threw off his jacket. He was planning to go over the dozens of reports waiting for him and prepare for an out of town meeting. "I missed you, Li." She pouted as she pranced to him and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head on his back. They were ‘on’ again it seemed, Liam thought. After being ‘over’ for four months. He couldn't remember what ticked her off the last time. But he was pretty sure it was his fault. It was always his fault. "I have to work tonight," Liam pushed her hands away and turned to the stairs. He had to be upfront with her; there could be no misunderstandings and unnecessary expectations. "I have to work every night from now. If you thought I didn't have time for you before, I sure as hell won't have any now." "I know," she cried as she ra
After weeks of constant puking and generally feeling miserable, Eden plucked up the nerve to make a doctor's appointment. The receptionist was super nice, and she pencilled her in for 12:30 PM. Eden was happy with her time slot, even more grateful that the doctor was on the 4th floor of Van Holt Industries, her new place of employment where she’s been working as a junior Personal Assistant to the Marketing Director for almost three months. Her employer’s owned the building since the dawn of time, but only occupied the top fifteen floors. The bottom five were rented out to various businesses, with the ground floor serving as a mini shopping mall with all the different stores, coffee shops and restaurants. The wide choice of food was Eden's only comfort about the job she hated. There was nothing wrong with being an assistant to be fair, but it wasn't a job Eden saw herself doing for the rest of her life. The constant running of errands, typing u
Eden returned to her desk ten minutes later with a script in her hand and a dazed look in her eyes, her mind racing chaotically. She was going to be a Mom. She was carrying Liam Anderson's child, former motorsport racer now CEO of one of the biggest logistics companies in Rock Union. A married CEO. She'd obsessed over him those first few weeks after their encounter, consumed every little tabloid story she could find on him. There were plenty. But nothing about his marriage. She figured he'd managed to keep that part of his life very private. When it became clear, with each passing day, that she was nothing but a hookup where Liam was concerned, she'd firmly put him out of her mind. But now she had a part of him growing inside her– "Are you okay?" Lucia, the other junior assistant she worked closely with, asked when Eden sat down. She nodded and hastily stuffed her scan and prenatal vitamins script in her bag. She didn't want anyone at work to know she's expec
It took Eden fifteen minutes to get to her parents' penthouse. She knew they were both livid judging from the cold, silent way they regarded her when she came in. Both, professors at Rock Union University, prided themselves on being rational, thinking people who used words instead of fists, and the quieter and calmer the tone, the better. "I'm sorry you found out the way you did," Eden apologised as soon as she sat in the loveseat facing the endless pool on the deck. "Is it Simon's?" Erica McBride asked in her breathy voice, hope lighting up her small face. Eden always thought she'd easily be the prettiest woman in the room if she could smile more. She had the same slanted brown eyes like her. Her olive skin was smooth and ageless, thanks to the copious amounts of skincare products lining her vanity station in her enormous walk-in closet upstairs. Her brown hair was always kept in a chic bob, and she wore very little makeup. But she was still striking
[Two Years Later]... Eden's friends were already waiting to welcome her home when she pulled into the driveway of the single-story bungalow on Alice Lane, a quiet suburban street six blocks away from her old apartment in Forrest Creek. The 'sold' sign propped on the front lawn filled Eden with pride. She'd done it, bought her first home. It was small. Only two bedrooms. But since it was on a corner lot, she had a bit of extra yard space. With a growing, rumbustious little boy, she'd need plenty of yard space. She turned to check on Aiden sleeping in his car seat in the back. Her heart swelled with a love so intense she thought it would burst and shatter in her chest in a kaleidoscope of fragments. He was the love of her life, the light that had pulled her out of her darkest days. The moment she knew of his existence, she began to live and breathe for him. Eden unsnapped her seatbelt and pushed out of her Toyota Prius. Her friends ran to her wh
Tired of entertaining himself, her son ran up to her, and Eden spent a few minutes throwing him up in the air and making aeroplane sounds as they zoomed around the room. By the time she set him down, she was out of breath and a little tired. She looked through the bag for his toys, but Aiden picked a book instead. Sienna and Lydia read it to him while she and Cassandra went through the house, checking what needs to be done. The kitchen was their first stop. The cabinets were old, but Cassandra thought they could do them up by repainting them. They'd leave the top ones white and paint the bottoms powder blue to go with the fitted gas cooktop. Grammy’s vintage fridge would fit in nicely too to complete the farmhouse look. Eden wasn't too concerned about the open plan living room. Her new three-seater would arrive in a few days. She'd hit the rooftop flea market at the weekend for a coffee table and a couple of armchairs, she could always refurbish them the way
Liam sat in his therapist's office in downtown Rock Castle, and seriously contemplated his relationship with her. It was clear, after two years and endless therapy sessions, they'd exhausted all options."You said you could fix me," he reminded her as he watched a guy tee off on the rooftop of the building across. His posture and the way he held the golf club was all wrong, and Liam had an uncontrollable urge to fly through the window and show him how it's done. Golf wasn't a sport you played half-assed. Your form has to be perfect; otherwise, you were ruining the classic image of the game."Liam, we've talked about this," Linda said patiently in her monotone voice. It helped calm restless, agitated patients most days. He was agitated and restless today. But no amount of coddling from her could soothe him.He reluctantly returned his attention to the room.Dr Linda Swartz did not believe in a life of excess. It showed in the minimalist, monochrome way she
"Mr Anderson, I think we should look at the résumés today," Mrs Gibson, or Gibby as Liam affectionately called her, smiled as he jumped in the backseat with her. She was his father's assistant, but when his old man retired two years ago, he inherited her along with his big shoes."Do we have to?" Liam pinched the bridge of his nose, a futile attempt to drive away his looming headache. He didn't want another assistant, but Gibby had stayed on six months past her retirement date. She couldn't postpone her move to the coast any longer."Yes we do, darling," she patted his hand in a motherly fashion and handed him the stack of files.He looked through the first ten, his hope diminishing fast the further down the thick pile he went.He sat up straight at candidate #21, his palms sweating buckets and his heart racing in his chest as he stared at Eden McBride's photograph attached to her CV.Two years of searching for her. Who would have tho