LOGINShare
137|Hindsight Is Always 20/20
Last Updated:
2021-06-19 19:30:45Cheerful and chatty by nature, both James and Steven were unusually quiet on the drive back to his place, and Liam wasn't exactly in the mood to figure out the reason behind their long faces.
He had a pretty good idea, though.
Both men were less than thrilled with the way he'd handled his confrontation with Eden earlier.
They'd be glad to know it made three of them. But he'd carry all the regrets.
Liam didn't want to admit it, but Linda was right about everything. He should have given himself time to process and accept his new reality instead of rushing to Eden's place like a mad man.
And he certainly should have given her time to acknowledge her mistakes.
But now that he'd already backed them both into a corner and he saw no other way out. The only way to go now was forward.
He laughed—but it sounded like a snort more than anything— when he remembered a bumper sticker he once saw on an old pickup truck, proclaiming hindsight i
Related chapters
Begin Again 138|With Every Breath In Me
"Is it true Aiden McBride is your son?" Lois got straight to the heart of their visit as soon as they were all arranged around the fireplace in his living room. "How do you know about that?" Liam groaned and buried his face in his hands, already dreading the unavoidable inquisition from his parents. "James," Clarke replied. "You forget he reports to me." Right, Liam seethed. He should fire the whole lot of them and get his own people. "So?" Lois leaned forward, her eyes shining with hope and expectation. "He is," Liam admitted. "Has it been confirmed?" His father asked, a deep frown creasing his forehead. "Yes, it was." "Unbelievable," Lois burst into tears, and Clarke held her while she sniffled, and his sisters threw mildly unimpressed looks in his direction. Her eyes still moist, her nose red and blotchy, his mother stirred to life again with endless questions and demands. "Where is he? I want to see him. I w
Last Updated : 2021-06-19Begin Again 139|Cold War
Their cold war lasted three days. It would have carried on longer if Eden didn't decide to grow a pair and confront Liam. After wearing the tiles thin with all her pacing outside his office, she finally plucked up the courage and knocked on his door. She knew he was free. He'd cancelled his 11:00 AM and offered no reason. Of course, since he's the boss, she never asked because she was already skating on thin ice as it was. She waited exactly two minutes to be invited inside. Liam's disembodied voice drifting from the other side of the door sent an exhilarated spark up her spine, and she closed her eyes, remembering all the blissful moments he'd said her name, the way he'd touched and kissed her. God, she craved his kisses as much as she missed the way he called her 'Princess'. "Keep it together," she told herself. Getting distracted when she was so close to an important negotiation wasn't the smartest of ideas. She needed all her wits
Last Updated : 2021-06-19Begin Again 140|Choose The Extreme
Eden spent a restless night, imagining every possible scenario, her mind already inside the plush offices of Thomas Blaine Inc. By the time 5:00 AM rolled around, she was highly agitated. The longer she went through her morning routine and tried to pretend it was just like any other normal Wednesday morning, the harder it became to resist the urge to pack Aiden up and make a run for it. Liam would hunt her down for sure, but if she left now, she'd have a three-hour head start. She strolled to Brenda's room while she brushed her teeth and stared at Aiden, still sleeping peacefully in his cot. She could totally pull it off. She won'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 dropping to her feet as 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 k
Last Updated : 2021-06-19Begin Again 141|Chicken
"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 the end of the table where Liam sat, 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
Last Updated : 2021-06-19Begin Again 142|Like A Good Dog
If George was mildly puzzled before, he was now downright confounded as they all sat in numb disbelief and watched the negotiations that should have been over in under forty-five minutes reach a screeching end before they'd even begun. Liam was equally shocked. He really wasn't expecting Eden to take it all the way. She sipped her drink and swiped and tapped on her phone while his legal team sputtered in their seats, demanding to know if she understood the terms of the agreement. "Yes," she replied, barely looking up from her glass, making it known loud and clear who was in charge. If he wasn't so furious with her, Liam would have reached for her and kissed her senseless, and maybe fucked her right there on the table too, because her composure, her level-headedness at a time when she should have been an emotional mess, was a huge turn-on for him. George tried to take control of the meeting once more as he addressed Eden again in a much firmer
Last Updated : 2021-06-19Begin Again 143|Played Me
"How did it go, sir?" Both James and Steven asked when he slid in the car. "You and the missus made up? Will she and the baby move in?" "She played me!" Liam grunted as he loosened his tie and yanked it off his neck. "She fucking backed me into a corner, and one of those idiots in there thought I'd struck gold with a custody agreement I didn't even want. I wanted her to come home! I wanted her and our son home with me. What am I supposed to do now with Aiden on my own?" "Ask the missus for forgiveness?" Steven offered his two cents, and James quickly shook his head to shut him up. "Why must I always ask for forgiveness? Why should I beg for forgiveness when Eden lied to me and kept my child away from me? When do I get my apology?" All thoughts of finding a way to move forward were momentarily forgotten as Liam fumed in his seat and racked his brain, trying to understand how their meeting had turned into such a circus. "She's apologised, Sir,"
Last Updated : 2021-06-19Begin Again 144|Let Him Stew A Little
A half-hour trip to get to work ended up taking two hours because of a horrific car crash on the R51. By the time Eden made it to the office, she was hangry and royally pissed off from being caught in bumper-to-bumper traffic for so long. She'd barely sat down when Clara came to deliver some much needed good news. Liam had decided to take the day off. Eden smiled but didn't ask for details. Still fuming from his stunt with his attorneys, she didn't care and wasn't in the least curious as to why he'd suddenly decided he needed a break. But Clara was very curious, and she made it known as she traipsed up and down in front of her desk. "I wonder what's wrong with the Dragon? Aren't you worried?" No, she was not. So, she ignored her because she knew she's fishing and trying to sniff out the reason behind Liam's sudden absence from the office. Out of all the women on the 36th floor, Clara's gossip radar was the strongest, and right now, her suspici
Last Updated : 2021-06-19Begin Again 145|So Far Out
Her friends were at her work in twenty minutes, and Eden had to go through the trouble of signing them in because they insisted on seeing her posh office. They all forgot their anger at Liam the moment they stepped inside. Lydia immediately ran for her fancy chair while Cassandra and Sienna gawked at the vase and the painting. "I thought you gave them back?" Sienna threw her an accusing look. Eden held up her hands and shrugged. "I did, but the stuff was here when I came in." She called Rise and ordered some chai lattes and croissants and asked one of the waitresses to bring them up, and within ten minutes, their morning snack was laid out on her desk, and they huddled around to stuff their faces. "Look at you, Ms Fancy Pants," Sienna drawled as she gave her a big back squeeze. "I'm so proud of you, Edie. You've done well for yourself." "Have I, though?" Eden asked as the three of them crammed themselves on her couch because Ly
Last Updated : 2021-06-19
Latest chapter
Begin Again 196|We'll Always Be Together
[Six Months Later]... After months of preparations, Eden's weeklong exhibition at Fugue was a smashing success. She even managed to sell two of her paintings. But with all the smiling and pandering she had done to Rock Castle's uber-rich, she would not have expected anything less. So when Saturday rolled around, the only thing she wanted to do was to crash on the couch and put up her feet. Not a lot for a girl to ask. But she wasn't destined to enjoy the little things in life. Having tried every trick in the book to get her to give up her spot on the couch and leave the house with him, Liam finally let the cat out of the bag. Her friends had tasked him with the sacred job of dropping her off at Heat for a surprise baby shower. Eden didn't want to go anywhere, but she would never hear the end of it if she didn't show up. So she threw on a pair of black leggings—the only thing in her closet that still fit her— and Liam's denim
Begin Again 195|Begin Again
As Liam watched Eden slowly make her way to him, he was overcome with emotion. The whole day he had tried to keep it together, and he had lost track of the number of times his cousins had had to stop him from running to her guest suite to see her. And now that she was here, and they were so close to the start of their next chapter, hard as he tried to blink away his tears, Liam couldn't. He choked back a sob, unable to believe how lucky he was. He had never seen that many brides before, but Eden took the number one spot from the few that he had. She looked incredible in her dress, a vision of grace and elegance and beauty, exactly how he imagined a real-life princess would look. But then again, she was his Princess, his hell, his paradise, and her slow progress down the aisle wasn't working for him. He crossed the room in few quick strides, and in a heartbeat, he had her in his embrace as he kissed her fiercely, much to everyone's surprise and cheers.
Begin Again 194|First Day Of The Rest Of Your Life
Wedding fever hit town as soon as the press release about Eden and Liam's impending nuptials went out. For days the announcement, posted on Anderson Logistics website and all the company's socials, was the number #1 trending topic on all social media platforms. The internet was in disbelief. Thousands of Liam's adoring fans couldn't accept that the day they had dreaded was finally upon them, and the Three-Month Prince was officially off the market. Well, almost off the market. Like most people who have an unhealthy obsession with their idols, they had to share their outrage and sadness with strangers on the internet. Overnight, Eden became the villainess, the woman who had ruined all their fantasies, and they couldn't understand why, out of all the beauties in the universe ready to fall at his feet, Liam would choose her. She had to have used some kind of witchcraft or love spell on him, they said. And when Sienna's exposé on t
Begin Again 193|Something About Almost Dying
Liam headed straight to his study as soon as they got home and spent almost an hour on the phone with his father. Like he'd expected, Clarke was against the meeting and even more disturbed when he brought up the idea of dropping the charges. "Are you insane?" His father barked on his end, and if they were in the same room, Liam knew he would have likely throttled him. "We almost lost you. You almost died! How can you even think about this?" "What other choice do I have, Dad? He's watching Eden. We're getting married in three weeks. I don't want to keep looking over my shoulder. What kind of life will that be for Eden and our children?" "James told you there's a way to handle this. Aleksei and his brother are dogs. They should be put down." "And what will that make us?" Liam asked sadly. "I didn't call to ask for your permission. I was simply informing you the meeting with Andrei is happening." He clicked off before his father could pus
Begin Again 192|Finish Strong
The botanical gardens were in the northern part of Rock Castle, and on a good day, it would have taken them under ten minutes to get there from Van Holt Industries. But, it took them almost twice as long because, by the time they left the doctor's rooms, every man and his dog was out and about, running their morning errands. By the time they arrived, the place was almost packed to capacity. Everywhere they turned, they were greeted by people on their picnic blankets with their wicker baskets; others were on camping chairs under big shady umbrellas, already sipping beers and turning sausages and steaks on their braai stands even though it wasn't even 10:00 AM yet. "Look at this place," Eden murmured, her eyes flitting everywhere. "We can't let Aiden out of our sight. I don't want a repeat of the aquarium. What if Aleksei is here?" "He's in jail, remember?" Liam reminded her as he lifted her chin. "He can't hurt us." "But his brother is around—"
Begin Again 191|Too Many Expectations
Liam never thought he'd survive two weeks in hospital. But he did. With lots of patience, tons of reports and proposals to keep him sane and an endless supply of meds to ease his pain. Before he knew it, the dreaded family fun day, months in the making, finally snuck upon them. However, Anderson Logistics' big day coincided with his hospital release and their first check-up with Dr Emily. Eden was highly strung, anxious out of her wits when she came to pick him up. "There's so much to do today," she wrung her hands as they watched James scoop Aiden up and grab Liam's travel bag. It was amazing how much stuff he had managed to collect over the past couple of weeks. His duffel bag was now heavier than it was when Eden first dropped it off. "Tell me what's wrong," Liam said as he wheeled himself around the room and paused in front of her. He didn't need the wheelchair now, but he found it very comfortable, way better than sitting on the stiff bed. "So, what's wrong?" he pulled her do
Begin Again 190|We Don't Kill People
The thought of spending an indefinite amount of time in the hospital did not please Liam at all, so as soon as they returned to his ward after their brisk walk, he tried every trick in the book to get Eden to speak to the doctors and get them to discharge him. But she refused to do his dirty work, much to his dismay. He thought she would want him home as soon as possible. "Whose side are you on?" He glared at her. "Yours, of course. I don't want to take any chances, you know," she said as she helped him up on the bed. Their son was now sitting on the floor, craning his neck at the blank TV screen in the corner and sipping his boxed juice. Liam had never met a kid who loved TV as much as Aiden, and he wondered if it was normal. Maybe spending all that time with Brenda during the day wasn't such a good thing. Maybe he needed to start going to school to get his mind stimulated. "I'm someone's fiancée now, you know, and I need the groom pr
Begin Again 189|It Will Always Be Yes
Later that evening, when Eden walked into Liam's ward with Aiden in her arms, she was surprised to find him clean-shaven and fully clothed in joggers, sneakers and a hoodie as if he was ready to go somewhere. "Dad!" Aiden shrieked with joy as soon as he saw his father rolling around the room in a wheelchair. Liam roared right back at him, his voice thundering through the room as he opened his arms. "Kool-Aid!" Eden set their son down, and he ran to his father. Liam scooped him up despite his visible agony but yelped out in pain when he tried to throw him up in the air. Eden was instantly at his side, worry dancing in her eyes, the travel bag in her hands falling at her feet with a dull thud. Aiden, too, look just as concerned. "I'm okay," Liam assured them, but the anguish on his face told a different story. "Why are you even out of bed?" Eden scolded him, much to Aiden's disapproval. "Mom, no!" He shook his hea
Begin Again 188|A Lifetime Of Kisses
Eden looked up, startled out of her mind to see his eyes were open. "Liam!" She was instantly on her feet and kissing him on the lips as she sobbed so loud she thought she'd wake the patients in the neighbouring rooms. "Oh my God, it's true. You're awake! I was starting to think they lied." "If you keep crying, I might just pass out again!" He growled and patted the empty spot on the bed. "Come here!" She sank beside him, and he drew her closer and placed his hand on her tummy. "How's my little warrior?" Eden burst into tears again at his words. "You heard everything I said that night?" "Of course I did," he smiled tearfully as well. "I may have been dying, but I'm not deaf, you know." "And you're not angry?" "Why would I be angry?" Liam asked. "Because you just found out about Aiden and now—" "Now our family will be complete," he pulled her down, and she nestled in his arms, careful not to touch his wound. "I l
