Begin Again

3|Walk Of Shame

Eden awakened with a start. For a frightening moment, she didn't know where she was until she turned and saw a naked Liam sprawled beside her. Even in his flaccid state, he was impressive. And even when she knew she shouldn't, she still craved him. Thinking about last night and everything they'd done left her breathless. She stretched and yawned, amazed at how every part of her body ached with the slightest movements. Even the places she didn't think should be, were oddly alive. But as ravished as she felt, she had to scram before Liam woke up. The last thing she wanted was an awkward chat about her temporary lapse in judgement.

She said a small prayer of thanks when she saw her phone and glasses on the nightstand. She snapped them on and sprung out of bed, wrestling with the shaking ground when her feet touched the floor. She closed her eyes and counted backwards from ten. When she opened them again, the room had stopped moving, and she didn't feel dizzy anymore.

She sighed in frustration as she scanned the room for her clothes. But her dress was gone. The disappearance of her underwear was another mystery she didn't have time to solve.

She threw on Liam's denim shirt before she grabbed her phone and ran from his room with her stilettos in her hands.

Her trench lay in a miserable heap at the foot of the stairs. Funny, she didn't remember Liam taking it off. He must have, though. The same way he took off the rest of her clothes. She trembled at the memory of every little thing he'd done to her. Every kiss. Every touch. Every thrust.

"Focus!" Eden scolded herself as she threw on her coat and hopped into her shoes. As thrilling as last night was, it was over. She had to put Liam behind her.

At the front door, she ran straight into the butler and the housekeepers as they reported for duty. Confronted with the business of making small talk with strangers, for a frightening second, Eden didn't know what to say.

Thankfully, the butler took control of the conversation. "Stephen will drive you home, Miss—?"

"That's okay. I'll call an Uber." Eden ignored his attempts at an introduction. This was the reason she'd held on to her panties for twenty-four years and stayed away from hook-ups. The drama of trying to make a dignified exit.

"It can't come in here," one of the housekeepers announced.

Of course. How could she forget? Since it was a private estate, unless the residents cleared it with security, no one could drive in willy-nilly. The rules in the Hills were very different.

"Please don't worry, we take Mr Anderson's guests home all the time."

If Dave meant to reassure her, his words had the opposite effect.

Faced with her new, harsh reality, Eden was suddenly furious with herself for letting alcohol get to her head. Her only comfort was the bit of common sense they still had last night. They used protection. She saw the shiny foil wrappers on the floor when she ran out of Liam's fancy bedroom. The last thing she needed was to catch funny diseases.

"—Miss?"

Eden pushed aside her shame-fuelled thoughts long enough to grimace at the butler. She'd missed half of what he'd said.

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" she asked, wondering how she was so polite and calm after the worst mistake of her life.

"Would you like some breakfast before you go?"

Dumbfounded by his question, Eden stared at him. Was this also part of the Liam experience, a hearty breakfast before her walk-of-shame, to lessen the sting of being a one-night stand?

She wondered how many guests like her Liam had. It was becoming clear that this was something he did all the time, brought random women home, and made them his butler's problem as soon as he got tired of them.

"No, thank you," she said, her face taut with anger. She wanted to run to the safety of her cramped apartment and gorge herself sick with food.

"Very well then." Dave opened the front door and showed her to the stately Lexus waiting in the driveway. Eden jumped in the back and slid lower, wishing she could melt into the plush leather seats.

"Where to Miss?" Stephen asked, catching her gaze in the mirror.

Eden wanted to yell anywhere but there. But it wasn't the man's fault. Neither was it Liam's. Even when she knew she'd regret it in the morning, she willingly jumped into his bed.

"So?" Stephen's bushy eyebrows fused in a tight frown.

"The nearest bus stop is fine," she decided. She'd take an Uber from there. She couldn't allow the driver to know where she lived in case his boss got any funny ideas.