Eden sat at the breakfast counter, staring at the baby monitor in front of her and cradling a cup of tea in her hands when Liam walked into the penthouse.
"Why aren't you sleeping?" He asked as he closed the door behind him and turned on the security system. "I told Dave and the housekeepers to help you settle in for the night."
"They tried." She replied. "But I wanted to wait for you—So we can talk."
She looked lucid and sounded calm, and it made Liam very nervous.
"Right now?" He asked, his eyes wandering to the clock in the living room.
It was 10:15 PM and a bit late for a serious chat.
"Yeah," Eden smiled. "No better time than the present, right?"
Liam's gut clenched, and the alarm bells in his head went off at her tone. He didn't like it at all, and he didn't like seeing her so subdued.
Where was his sassy Princess, the woman who constantly pushed his buttons and tested his last resolve?
He wanted to see th
Liam was in such a hurry to get the hell out of the kitchen and leave all the tension behind he had completely forgotten this was his first real meeting with Aiden. Now, as he hovered on the threshold, anxious out of his wits, he realised how unprepared he was for this moment. So for a brief minute or two, while he plucked up the courage to meet his son, Liam was only too happy to just stand there with one foot in the door and watch his Aiden babble away at the plushy in his hands. But then his son looked up from the toy and gazed at him with the same denim blue eyes they shared, and all the air left Liam's lungs. "Hello," Aiden cried in his baby voice and waved his tiny hand in his direction. Liam stood dead still as love, unlike anything he had ever known, filled his heart to the brim, rendering him weak, and he wondered if it was possible to fall in love with the same person twice, especially one so tiny. "Hi," he smiled, his rubber
Eden was not lying when she said she couldn't cook, and Liam couldn't understand how she managed to ruin his chicken soup. It was too watery, too salty, and the meat was too mushy. But he wolfed it down with a lot of enthusiasm. "How is it?" She asked eagerly, their anger temporarily on hold while they filled their stomachs and prepared for a possible round two of their Battle Royale. Liam stared glumly at his half-full bowl, thinking of the best way to tell her it's shit. But when he looked up and found her looking at him with those wondrous eyes of hers, he didn't have the heart to crush her spirit. "It's great," he lied. "I love it." And that was his biggest mistake. Eden was only too happy to dole out more of the soup. "Eat, have some more." "Okay," Liam croaked as he forced himself to swallow it down. They slipped into silence for a while as they both watched Aiden play with the PAW Patrol plushy they'd brought back from Forre
"We should talk about the custody agreement." "I'll sign anything you want me to sign," Eden said as she threw on a sleepshirt and pulled back her hair in a ponytail. "I don't want you to sign anything," Liam tugged her in his arms and held her. "I told George and his team to hold off on everything." "Why?" She asked and squirmed out his grasp. "Isn't it obvious?" He asked and crossed his arms. "I was angry and not thinking straight." "Where do you keep the toothpaste?" He pointed at the top drawer on the cabinet under the sink, and he watched her feel around inside it with her hands, squinting the whole time. "Why are you squinting?" He asked. "I can't see very well without my glasses," she replied. "Things are a bit fuzzy." Of course, Liam thought as he kissed her nose and pulled out the toothpaste. He spread it on her toothbrush and handed it to her. "Thanks," she murmured and turned to the sink to br
"When did you start seeing a therapist?" Lois didn't even give him a chance to answer her first question before she fired her next. And Liam just stood there in the middle of his kitchen, wondering how things had gone so horribly wrong so quickly. He knew it was bound to happen someday, and in a way, had tried to prepare himself for this eventuality. But he never expected his secret to come out just when everything in his life seemed to be spinning out of control. He'd barely begun to deal with Aleksei's threat, was still recovering from Eden's deception, and now this shit with a possible breach in Linda's office— "Son? Are you there? Say something! When did you start seeing a shrink?" Clarke broke through his thoughts with demands of his own. "Two years ago," Liam replied as he sat down at the breakfast counter and absently massaged his temple. "Sweet Jesus," Lois burst into tears. "I knew it. I knew everything was too much for you. W
Liam called his PR team as soon as he hung up from his parents and summoned them to the penthouse. He'd have to meet with them after the board meeting at 10:00 AM. It was still way too early to call Linda. She didn't start seeing patients before eight. But it didn't stop him from calling her cellphone. "Really, Liam, couldn't this wait until I get to the office at least?" She sounded hopping mad. Not an unreasonable reaction considering most people hate being bombarded with demands and questions first thing in the morning. And that's exactly what he did the minute she picked up. "No, Linda, it couldn't wait!" He snapped right back at her. "Now, was there a security breach at your office or what? Were your patient files compromised in any way? Was my file compromised?" There was a long pause on his therapist's end, and Liam could almost see the cogs in her overworked brain moving very slowly. "Linda!" He growled, demanding some reaction
Eden was jolted out of her long dreamless sleep by the unrelenting heat splashing through the windows. For a head-splitting second, she lay comatose on her back, staring at the ceiling, thinking about last night, afraid to even move because even the slightest movement left her feeling sore and tender. There was a reason she ran to the Blue Mountains and hung on to her panties for two years. That reason was now 37 000 feet in the air, somewhere halfway across the world, sipping fancy cognac in his private jet. "Whee!" Eden squealed like a little girl as she flung the covers over her face when she remembered her very long chat with Liam and all the unholy things they'd done afterwards. When he said he didn't think he could trust her anymore, she was convinced it was pretty much game over for
"Can someone tell me what the hell is going on? I went to bed last night with the man of my dreams only to wake up this morning alone and horny as fuck, and the world's gone crazy!" She shrieked as soon as their lines connected. "It's not about to get any better!" Lydia had to douse her with a healthy dose of reality. "Congrats bitch! You've made it on the front cover of all the major tabloids! You are officially famous!" "No!" Eden shook her head. There's no way she's on the news. She hadn't done anything newsworthy. "Yes!" Sienna chimed in. "The whole world is in a tizz. Everyone wants to know the identity of the woman Liam left the Convention Centre with last night!" "Your photo is splashed all over the tabloids, and you guys broke the internet twice this morning!" Cassandra delivered the final blow. "Gosh no!" Eden sank back on the bed, her legs feeling wobbly like jelly. "This is not happening! How did this happen?" "Well, I'm gue
Hard as Liam tried to force himself to read Clara's agenda notes for the board meeting, he couldn't. So while he drank his second or maybe third espresso, he mindlessly browsed the net, searching for nearby outdoorsy places. The local zoo seemed to be a huge hit with young parents living the suburban dream. Liam thought it was too basic, though. He wanted his first-ever outing with his new family to be memorable. The botanical gardens were also high on the list of places to see. But in a couple of weeks, the company's family fun day would be held there. So, that venue, too, was out. "You disappoint me, internet!" Liam rubbed his chin thoughtfully and contemplated going down the rabbit hole again. He almost lost himself in it earlier while he searched for the source of the leak, and he really didn't want to go down that road again. The lure of the internet was too strong, though. He clicked several links and wasted fifteen long minutes sighing in frust
[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
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.
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
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
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—"
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
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
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
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