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65|Wellness Check
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2021-06-19 18:21:17Mystified by the last three minutes, Liam watched Eden dash off.
One second she's crying buckets on his chest and the next she's babbling all kinds of strange things about Laura.
He stared at the emergency exit she'd just slipped through, debating whether to follow her or not.
She's clearly distraught, but as her least favourite person in the world at the moment he should just let her be.
Shrugging his broad shoulders, Liam turned to the bar, where a bottle of something—cognac, maybe bourbon—with his name on it, waited for him.
But he paused when panic stirred in the pit of his stomach, threatening to suffocate him.
"Fucking hell," he groaned.
She wouldn't.
But this is Eden. Anything's possible with her, especially in the emotional state she's in.
Without putting any more thought into it, Liam ran after her, bolting through the emergency exit and up the stairs.
By the time he reached the rooftop, he was
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"Why are you standing there?" "Just," Liam said and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Don't tell me you're afraid of heights?" Eden tilted her head slightly as she gawked at him. "I'm not!" He's definitely not afraid of heights, but if he came any closer, he didn't think he could stick to the boundaries she'd set. She'd made it very clear in his office he shouldn't kiss, touch or hold her in any way, and he's trying very hard to respect her wishes. So he stayed right where he was, rooted to his spot a few feet behind her. "Tsk tsk tsk," she laughed mockingly. "The mighty Mr Anderson is afraid of something." "I'm not afraid of anything!" Liam lied for the second time that evening. There's a lot he's terrified of, and Eden is high up there on the list. He was so afraid of losing his heart to her, terrified she'll take it and vanish again and leave him far worse off than he was when she disappeared two years ago.
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The minute she was alone again on the rooftop, Eden burst into tears and cried harder than she has in a while, the howling wind and the constant stream of cars ten stories below drowning out her loud, heart-wrenching sobs. She'd told Liam she wanted to be alone, but the truth is she would gladly take his company any day over this feeling of aloneness gnawing at her heart. "Pull yourself together," Eden told herself over and over. But she couldn't. She didn't know how to. She's twenty-six, with a baby of her own, and her parents' divorce shouldn't affect her so much. But it did, and in ways she'd never have imagined or would ever wish on anyone. Maybe it was the suddenness of it all or the complete randomness, but her parents' announcement had devastated her world beyond measure and shattered all the illusions she'd had about love and relationships and family. Yes, her family was dysfunctional at the very least. But, there was a sense of safety
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"Laura Stone is such a media whore," Lydia announced as she held up her phone. "You searched for her? Why?" Eden asked, wishing she hadn't mentioned the other woman."Well knowing you, you weren't going to stalk her!" Lydia smirked and pointed at herself proudly. "So, I— your trusted FBI agent—will do all the internet stalking for you, and dig up every piece of dirt on her. You're welcome!""Thanks!" Eden said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. But she took the phone from her friend and scrolled through Laura's gallery on her social media page. Her heart broke anew when she came across a few photos of the other woman posing with Liam's sisters at various social events. She sighed sadly as she gave the phone back to Lydia. Laura was clearly close to Liam's family, seeing she's so buddy-buddy with his sisters."She's got quite a profile," Cassandra murmured as she looked through her phone. "She's twenty-eight and an attorney at Hayes and Jon
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Liam was in his living room, destroying his cousins in a heated round of F1 2020 when his head of security called. He paused the game and grabbed his phone from the coffee table. "Dude, that's such a pussy-ass move!" Matthew barked from behind him. "It would be if I was losing," Liam smirked over his shoulder. "I have to take this." "Anderson," he breathed into the phone as he stepped onto the patio. "Sir, Paradise is home," James said on his end. "I'm sorry, paradise what?" Liam asked, puzzled by the other man's announcement. "Paradise," James murmured. "That's the code name for the Missus. Since her name's Eden, which means paradise, the guys thought it's a great code name for her. What do you think?" After the long evening he's had, Liam wasn't in the mood for the other man's theatrics. He gripped the phone tightly in his hand and breathed in slowly as he mentally counted to ten. Confident that he can speak w
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"So, who's it for?" Matthew asked as Liam returned the vase inside the box and reached for the painting. It was an impressionist print and nothing to write home about, at least not for the price he'd paid. The only reason he'd shelled out a small fortune for it was the artist had recently died in a car crash following a drug-fuelled joy ride on the N1 highway. For some warped reason, the art world thought his works were worth far more now that he's dead than when he was still alive. "Yeah, you're bringing out the big guns. I'm guessing it's for a woman!" Julian got straight to the point. "Please tell me it's not for Laura!" Matthew said and chugged his beer. "You just escaped with your life. I beg you, don't go back there." "It's for Eden!" "The same Eden you hate?" Julian's eyes sparkled with amusement. "Shut up! I didn't say I hate her," Liam scoffed. "It's my apology." "For what?" "The cookie incident," Liam replied
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A gentle tap on the door pulled Liam away from his laptop, and he was surprised when Eden walked in with a file in her hand. He didn't expect to see her before the marketing meeting after lunch, and he certainly didn't think she would ever want to come to his office again willingly, given their last showdown in this very room. This sudden turn of events pleased him greatly. He gawked at her openly, taking in every little thing about her, from her side-swept hair to the black knee-length dress and matching pumps she wore. Was she always so pretty, or did it happen overnight? Was that even possible? Good grief, why was he even noticing how pretty she is when he should still be annoyed with her? "Mr Anderson," Eden said from the door, and he waved her over. "What can I do for you?" Liam asked softly, praying he doesn't say something stupid to mess up this golden opportunity. Now's his chance to make things right wi
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[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
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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.
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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
