Chapter - 44 Trapped with him...

"Show me around." said Liam still holding Eva's elbow.

Eva looked at him in horror and then at her new colleagues whose eyes had become focused on her. What would they think about this, she worried.

Liam turned his head a little and said in an authoritative tone.

"Alex, go and see what deal Mr Hudson has to offer. If it doesn't suit you then we'll find some other publishing firm."

"Alright." said Alex.

"I am sure you will like this place, Mr Richardson." Mr Hudson interrupted quickly. "Mr Alex, please come to my office and we can talk there."

With that they both left.

Liam now looked at the spectators who were still watching them and raising his brow he said," I hope you guys have some work to do."

"Ah, yes. Yes, sir." Sara apologized and everyone went back to their respective tables and cabins and buried their heads in files.

'Good to see that it isn't just me who feels intimidated by him.'

"Let's go now." said Liam as he starting started pulling her along with him.

"But we are going in the wrong direction. It's just the lift there." Eva protested but the man made no visible effort of stopping or changing his direction.

"So what? I want to start inspecting the lift first." said Liam ignoring all her protests.

Was he always this crazy, Eva wondered.

They entered the lift and Eva pulled her hand away from his hold. The lift doors closed and he was now standing in the centre with his hands into the pockets of his trousers looking so at peace just like a predator who roamed fearlessly in his jungle while Eva shifted to a corner feeling like a small prey who'd do anything in her power just to avoid this predator's gaze.

Even though she hadn't seen him for two whole weeks but all the cells in her body came to life just at the moment he had touched her elbow. She could still feel his touch there. She lowered her head and looked down training her eyes to look at the floor. However it was as if they move of their own accord just to get a glimpse of the man whom she had missed during these past few days.

He was wearing a dark grey suit, white shirt and a black tie. Something tingled in her heart.

'Why does he have to look so handsome every freaking time I see him?'

She closed her eyes to block any sight of him but that only made it worse because her brain started bringing up the images of the kisses they had shared.

Suddenly lift made some noise and stopped. She opened her eyes and realised that they were stuck between the two floors. She pressed few buttons to try her luck and get out of this small box as quickly as possible but nothing made the lift move even by a centimetre. The brooding presence of a heart throbbingly handsome male behind her wasn't helping either.

"Is someone there?" she tried to call for help.

" I don't think anyone will ever get to hear your voice. So save your energy." Liam sails calmly.

Eva was annoyed now. At what exactly she had no idea. Was it the stupid lift which had decided to trap her with the man who didn't even trust her or was it the arrogant man himself who was the reason of her irritation.

Pursing her lips she turned around ready to spout some really angry words at this arrogant jerk who always seems to think so highly of himself but the moment she saw his face the words deserted her. Like they always did in his presence. It was as if his blue green gaze had hypnotized her. She couldn't pull her eyes off him.

He smirked. "How are you doing, Miss Rose?" he asked.

Her name on his lips sounded like music to her ears. She hadn't realised how much she had missed his voice and his intimidating yet godly aura.

"I- I am fine." she tried to sound honest.

"Really?" he said raising a haughty brow.

Oh how much she hated that are arrogant brow. But there was no where she could possibly go. Her back touched the closed lift doors as she just stood there seeing him walking towards her oh so slowly.

"Didn't you miss me, Miss Rose?" he asked stopping right in front of her.

She lowered her head to avoid looking at those intimidating eyes.

"W- Why would I miss you?" she said as her heart mocked her for lying.

A tendril escaped to her face and Liam slowly tucked it behind her ear.

"Because I missed you, Ms Evangeline Rose." he said in a soft voice.

Her eyes shot up to look into those beautiful blue green orbs.

Did she hear it right or was it her imagination playing tricks on her, she wondered.

He was standing so close to her that she could feel the heat of his body.

"Wh- What?" it was the only word her lost brain could manage to find.

Liam pulled her from her waist. His one arm around her waist and with the free hand he pulled her chin making her look into his eyes. His gaze focused on her lips and that made her heart beat loudly. She could hear her heart beating and the blood rushing to her face.

"I don't like repeating but I'll say it again for you." he said while slowly rubbing her chin with his thumb.

"I missed you, Miss Rose. I missed everything about you. The coffee that you used to make, your shy smiles, the innocent looks that you used to give me every now and then, your beautiful eyes and even your wild imagination." He smiled looking at her as he continued," And I missed this smart and sweet mouth of yours."

And with that his mouth covered hers. She had no idea how long that kiss lasted and even though she had no experience in love before she tried her best to reciprocate. She submitted to his kiss. She had missed him too.

When he let her go they both were panting. He cupped her face and asked, "Why did you leave?"

"You don't trust me."

He sighed. "Ok. I know we had that argument but who allowed you to leave. If I'd had any idea that you would do something like that then I would have called and stopped Alex beforehand."

"I'm glad you won the deal, Mr Richardson but -"

Her words were cut off by another kiss. "You should leave this place quickly because it's affecting your memory too. I had told you to call me Liam and not Mr Richardson."

Yeah, he had said that when they were going to meet his grandmother as a couple...a fake couple, she corrected herself.

"We aren't a couple anymore and now we don't even have any work relations, Mr Richardson so -"

He kissed her again.

"Will you please stop it!" she was getting annoyed now because his each and every kiss was breaking her resolve to stay away from him. He would never be hers and she knew it.

"Maybe if you call me Liam then we can have a good conversation but if you insisted on calling me Mr Richardson then we can spend the rest of our life here in this left kissing each other." he said giving that wolfish grin as he continued, "And I am quite happy with both these options."

Eva looked at him. Speechless. This was flirty Liam Richardson and she had missed him too.

As the meaning of his words sank in her, she blushed but now wasn't the time to get carried away by such emotions, she reminded herself.

"I - look .." she was at a loss. Her words had completely abandoned her and she had no idea from where to start.

"Hmm... I am watching." said Liam smiling at her nervousness.

'Devil! He knows the effect he has on me.' She took a deep breath so as to calm her nerves a little but even that didn't help today because her nostrils got filled with his colongue and a musky male scent that solely belonged to him.

"Say what you were saying. I'm listening and watching too." he said slowly touching her face with his fingers.

" I will if you stop distracting me like this!" she said the words before she could stop them and he chuckled.

"Alright." his hands dropped from her face and now both his hands rested on her waist as if spanning them.

She was no longer sure if moving his hand from one part of her body to the other had lessen her nervousness even a little but maybe this was the last time she was seeing him so she'll just cherish this last feeling of his touch, she decided.

"First, I really didn't talk about that deal to Jack. I have no idea where those photos came from but trust me it wasn't like what you thought." she looked at him nervously not sure if he would believe her this time.

He looked at her and smiled.

"I know now." he gently touched his forehead to hers as he continued, "I am sorry."

Was he really, Eva wondered.

He took a deep breath before resuming to his earlier position and said, "It was all Louisa's doing."

"What?" Eva's eyes widened in shock.

"But why would she do something like that?"

"The way you had helped me out of her clutches, announcing me as your boyfriend," he smiled as he remembered that moment from the party. Even his eyes were laughing at the memory.

"Well she just couldn't take it and she chose to use this trick." the warm and smiling look from his eyes now got replaced by something else.

Eva had no idea what to say now. She had never thought that the other girl would go to such lengths.

He gently caressed her cheek as he continued, "Don't worry, she will never bother you ever again. I have warned her that if she appeared anywhere near you she will lose her family business."

"That... that sounds more like a threat actually." so far she had just imagined this man giving threats to people but she had never thought that he would threaten someone for her. She didn't want to admit but the feeling that he acted protective of her was just too good to ignore.

"So?" Liam looked at her as if expecting something.

"So?"she was confused.

"So that now we have talked about this issue come back to your position as my assistant." he said.

"I wasn't your assistant. I was Ale-"

"If I say you are mine then YOU ARE MINE." he stressed on the last three words.

"I can't return." Eva was adamant.

"Why?" she could see the anger behind his beautiful eyes.

"Yo- your grandmother now believes in our facade and Louisa is out of the way. Now that I have left, you can act as heartbroken guy who needs time to tend to his wounded heart. So you don't need me anymore now."

"And what if I say that I still need you."

"And why would you need me now? Your goal is accomplished and- and it's time for me to leave." she said lowering her head. Too nervous to even meet his gaze.

" I don't remember giving you the permission to leave."

"I have left already. My resignation letter has been accepted and -"

"And that letter of yours was torn into tiny pieces before finding its place in the dustbin."

"Even then I have already left." Eva protested.

Liam held her by her arms so that she look into his eyes.

"Ms Evangeline Rose, it's I, Liam Richardson, who makes the final decisions. You gave your resignation letter to Alex and not me."

"Then I will give you one as soon as we get out of here and-"

"And I'll tear that too."

"Do you even realise how stupid this conversation is sounding now?" Eva was frustrated. The guy was just not ready to give up.

"Probably because you are acting stupid. So stop being stubborn as a mule and come back now."

" I can't."

"And why's that?"

"Because... because two people can't work together if they don't trust each other."

"I trust you. Ok? I even apologized to you and I never apologize to anyone but you are the first so come back now."

"No."

"Where's the problem now? Huh?" he asked getting impatient. This girl was really heaven sent just to drive him crazy.

"You. You are the problem." said Eva finally.

Special thanks to "mayrieham" who named this chapter. 🥰