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96|Aleksei Ivanov
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2024-10-29 19:42:56Sometime after lunch Friday afternoon, Eden picked up her phone and called Brenda to remind her she would be home late because of the team outing with the other assistants.
As usual, the nanny had no issues watching Aiden after hours, and they spent a few more minutes chatting about their plans for the afternoon.
Brenda wanted to hit the rooftop market for some fruit and vegetables, and Eden was more than happy for her to take Aiden. She had meant to take him to the flea market, but somehow her home improvements and playdates with Isaac and Zoe always seemed to eat up her weekends.
"Thanks, Brenda. Give him a big smooch for me," Eden smiled and hung up.
Now that she knew Aiden had an eventful afternoon planned as well, she could at least pretend to be excited about a drinking fest that didn't include Liam.
When she left at 04:30 PM, the other ladies were still dolling themselves up in the bathroom. They tried to get her to join in, but Eden de
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White-hot relief surged through Eden's body at the sound of Liam's voice. "Anderson!" Aleksei turned to Liam and held out his hand for a handshake. Liam ignored it and clenched his jaw. "Ivanov." "Fancy seeing you here," Aleksei carried on, sizing Liam up. "Not sure why you seem surprised," Liam drawled softly, but his face hardened, and his eyes stayed on Eden. "Didn't you pick the venue for this month's game?" "Well, you know what I mean," Aleksei shrugged. "No, I don't," Liam said, finally peeling his gaze from her. "What are you doing up here anyway? I thought the game is in the basement?" Eden's head shot up at his words, and she stared at the two men, amazed by this new piece of information. She didn't even know Crush has a basement. What else went on down there besides round-robin poker tournaments for billionaires? She was suddenly curious about Liam's extracurricular activities. "I saw something
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"Are you drunk?" Liam clutched the phone tightly in his hand and shook his head in disbelief as he checked his watch. Two hours. That's how long it's been since he left Eden in the VIP booth, and in that short two hours, she had somehow managed to get shitfaced, even when he told her she shouldn't, even after he had begged her not to be reckless. Now more than ever, Liam was convinced Eden's sole purpose on earth was to torture and torment him. "Why don't you like me?" She asked again, her sobs drowning out her words, and at that moment, with his heart aching at the sound of her tears, he forgot all his anger. "Where are you? I'm coming there right now." His voice was much gentler as he sighed into the phone. "Please like me." Eden hiccuped softly on her end. "I like you so much it hurts. So please like me." Her pleas left him stunned for words. How she could think he doesn't like her when
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Liam called Eden as he made his way upstairs and was mighty relieved when Clara picked up. "Where is she?" He demanded. "She's right here, sir; I was about to call a cab for her." "No need, I'll take her home," he said. "Meet me outside; I'll bring the car around." Five minutes later, he pulled up in his Lamborghini, parking as close to the entrance as possible where Clara was doing her best to prop up a blind drunk Eden. Liam stormed out of the car and approached them, scowling at his assistant before picking Eden up and placing her in the front seat. He dumped her bag and shoes in the back and returned to the sidewalk to wait with Clara. "Jeff's almost here," she said, a wide, drunken smile flickering on her lips as she held on to the street lamp. "I'll be okay, so you can go ahead and take Ms McBride home, sir." "And leave you on your own? As wasted as you are?" Liam asked, crossing his arms. Trying to talk sense int
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Eden raced back inside the building, planning to sneak in and out of Liam's office to grab her phone. She knocked once and eased inside when she didn't get an answer. Her heart splintered in two when she found Liam on the couch, cradling his face in his hands, his shoulders sagged in defeat. He turned when he heard the door close softly behind her, his gaze darkening when their eyes locked. "I forgot my phone," Eden explained, lingering just inside, feeling like she'd intruded on a private moment. "It's here." Liam held it up in the air, and she dashed over to grab it. When she tried to reach for it, though, he grabbed her instead, and she clumsily fell on his lap. "Mr Anderson," she cried breathlessly, startled by his swift move. "Liam," he groaned, his lips hovering so close to hers she could smell the bourbon on his breath. "Liam," she said, matching his quiet tone. "I don't think I should be here." "
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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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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
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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
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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
