Begin Again novel Chapter 42

Eden reported for her official first day as Liam's assistant very early as instructed. He expected her at 6:00 AM she was there at 5:00 AM.

After her customary stop at Ted and Jim's post at the entrance and they exchanged pleasantries, she headed straight to the CEO's floor. Now that she had her access card, she didn't have to deal with the five Sandys at reception.

The place was still empty, no one around yet to welcome her, so she mindlessly wandered the hallways, looking for her office.

Liam and the two other executives, Julian and Matthew Anderson—she assumed were relatives of his—had the biggest offices. The smaller ones belonged to their army of assistants, but none of the doors had her name.

She stopped at the reception area and pulled out her phone to call Gibby, but she was distracted by Brenda's text, updating her of their plans for the day.

Aiden was still sleeping, and they had an exciting day planned with a trip to the park two blocks away from her place.

Eden liked the sound of their little adventure, but a lot could go wrong if they weren't careful.

She called Brenda, and the sitter answered on the third ring as she slurped her tea and munched on something.

"Sorry, Eden, you caught me mid-bite." She chuckled on her end.

"Please, don't mind me. I'm just checking in," Eden said.

They spent a few minutes discussing their plans for the day, and she reiterated her list of all the things Aiden could and couldn't do.

"Please, Brenda, he cannot eat anything from anyone. He can't have nuts, raw or otherwise." She reminded the sitter.

"I've already packed away the EpiPen in his bag, don't worry. I've got this!" Brenda assured her before they hung up.

Eden liked the other woman's confidence, but she couldn't stop worrying.

When she first introduced Aiden to solids, she was terrified out of her head as she'd watched him wheeze and struggle to breathe. Thank heavens, one of Grammy's neighbours was a doctor. Within minutes he had her son's breathing under control, and they'd raced him to the hospital to get him checked out, and that's when she learned about his nut allergy—

The sound of the elevator sliding open startled Eden out of her worry and she looked up just in time to see Liam stroll out of the lift.

He looked like he walked straight out of a Dunhill ad in his black suit and white shirt, his silver cufflinks gleaming under the lights. On any other day, if he didn't hate her so much, and she didn't find him terrifying for her sanity, she would have gladly wrapped herself around him, and purred like a kitten at his feet.

She didn't understand how anyone could look this good and so fresh at the crack of dawn, especially when he'd spent the night partying at Crush and doing Lord knows what with his blond date afterwards.

"Good morning, Mr Anderson," she smiled and waved. "I'm here bright and early as you've requested. How can I serve you, sir?"

"Ms McBride," he nodded curtly at her, his eyes as cold as ice as he walked past her, dazzling her with the faint whiff of his powerful scent—a perfect blend of minty soap and his outrageously expensive woody cologne.

Jesus, she sighed softly. Surely it's a crime for a man to smell this good. How was she supposed to concentrate, let alone serve him coffee and print his documents when his mere scent made her want to climb him like a tree?

"Focus," she muttered under her breath, forcing all her wild thoughts out of her head. Going down this road won't serve her well. She must remember he's married, always.

"Mr Anderson, is there anything I can do for you?" Eden ran after him, trying to keep up with his long stride. She was about to slip into his office when he slammed the door in her face.

What the hell, she thought angrily. She was happy slumming it from one paycheck to the next; she didn't ask to be here. Since he wanted her here, the least he can do is be nice.

She glared at his door, seething at his rude reception. She wanted to bang her fists on the smooth dark wood and demand he let her in. But she'd play right into his hands if she lost her cool.

She brought up her hand to knock, but the door flew open before she could, and she found herself staring at the icebergs in his eyes, his irritation crystal clear.

"Mr Anderson, I don't know where my office is. I looked, but I couldn't find my name on any of the doors," She said breathlessly and looked away from the rip current in his eyes sucking her in, choosing instead to zone in on his Adam's apple and the tiny cut underneath his chin. She assumed he must have nicked himself when shaving and she wanted so much to kiss it better and put a band-aid on it.

The second the thought crossed her mind, she stepped back from him.

You hate him, remember, she screamed silently. You don't find him attractive at all.