Grayson Pierce and Eloise Caldwell novel Chapter 46

Chapter 46

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Juliette froze. ‘Who says moms with kids can’t get a guy? Well, here’s living proof. Too bad he’s just a player,’ she thought.

Juliette had heard Eloise complain about Beckett’s womanizing more than once.

“Relax. What’s the big deal? If he confesses, just shut him down and go about your business. Beckett’s a flirt. Who knows if he’s even serious? Don’t waste your energy on him,” Juliette said.

Eloise sat up, tugging the blanket higher to wrap herself up. “Juliette, you have no idea. Beckett’s actually serious this time.

“He invited us to dinner, asking me to bring Noah so he could build a bond with him. He even said we’ll be a family someday, so we should start getting close now.”

Juliette waved it off. “Why bother with him? Just ignore whatever he does.”

“But he’s my boss. He’s always around. I can’t just pretend he doesn’t exist,” Eloise said.

“True, you’ve got a point. There’s no way to avoid talking to him Juliette admitted.

Eloise traced the pattern on her blanket. “It’s just so awkward. I don’t know how I’m supposed to work with him after this. So I started thinking about quitting.”

Juliette became serious. “If you’re going to quit, at least line something else up first. You can’t just resign and hope for the best.”

Eloise had a son to support. Juliette could lend Eloise money, bu she knew Eloise wouldn’t take it.

When Eloise was pregnant with Noah, she worked right up until she was about to give birth, just to save up more for her kid.

She pushed back her maternity leave in order to use all of it after Noah was born. Once her maternity leave was up, she went back to work and hired a nanny.

Only days later, Eloise discovered the nanny was mistreating Noth. The nanny would often leave Noah home all by himself and head out for card games. Little Noah cried until his voice went hoarse.

The nanny was downright malicious. She knew Eloise had set up cameras, so she purposely shoved Noah’s crib into a corner where the cameras couldn’t catch it.

Eloise couldn’t rest easy, so she took leave from work and hurried home, only to find Noah crying hysterically.

Eloise was shaking with rage and heartbreak when she held Noal. Later, she called Juliette and cried so hard she could barely speak.

When the nanny finally came back, she walked in chatting on her phone, loudly bragging about how much she’d won playing cards.

Eloise fired the nanny on the spot. But she still needed to work, so she hired another nanny.

That one was even worse. She secretly fed Noah sleeping pills so he’d sleep all day while she lay on the couch scrolling her phone and chatting.

When Eloise found out, she gave the nanny a good slap. The nanny started making a scene, but Eloise called the police without hesitation, and the nanny was arrested.

Thankfully, Noah was fine after the checkup. Eloise discovered it just in time, only days after the nanny started. But the experience with those nannies haunted Eloise.

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Chapter 46

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After thinking it over, Eloise chose to quit her job and take care of Noah herself. That meant no income. They lived off savings, scraping by carefully.

But Eloise stayed positive. She never once complained about how tough things were. Even when things were at their worst, she never asked Juliette for a dime.

Juliette was worried about Eloise, so she kept telling Eloise to let her know if anything was needed. But Eloise always said everything was fine.

Juliette tried sending Eloise money a few times, but except for the birthday money she gave Noah, Eloise refused to take a single cent.

Thinking about everything Eloise had been through over the years, Juliette felt another pang of sympathy for her.

Even though she knew Eloise would never accept her help, Juliete still said, “If you really want to quit, you know I’ll always be here for you. I’ll support you and I’ll make sure you and Noah are taken care of.”

Eloise was so touched her voice caught in her throat. She knew Juliette was kind and truly cared for her.

“Thank you, Juliette. I’ll think about it. Honestly, Beckett’s so unpredictable. He could wake up tomorrow and be onto something else,” Eloise said.

“Just let me know when you’ve decided. If you’re job hunting, I can connect you with some people,” Juliette said.

“Okay, Juliette,” Eloise replied.

After hanging up, Eloise sat there for a while, lost in thought. She set her phone on the nightstand, turned off the light, and went to sleep.

That night, Eloise had a dream. In her dream, Beckett was laughing at her.

“Ms. Caldwell, did I scare you? I was just messing with you. You actually believed me? What? Do I look like the type to get married? Come on, don’t be ridiculous,” he said.

Eloise was relieved that she didn’t have to quit her job. But her relief was short-lived. Grayson came into the dream. He seized her by the throat and shook her violently, his eyes full of menace.

“Eloise, how dare you secretly give birth to my child? You think you can just have a Pierce family kid without my permission? From now on, Noah belongs to me.

“You’re out of his life for good. I won’t let you see Noah, not ever Grayson roared.

Eloise jolted awake, her heart pounding in her chest. After catching her breath, she grabbed her phone and lit up the screen. It was only four in the morning.

She got out of bed, poured herself a glass of water, and drank it slowly to calm down. She wanted Noah to feel a fat but she was scared Grayson might take him away. Her heart was

knots.

After finishing her water, Eloise was wide awake. There was no way she could get back to sleep now. So she fired up hei laptop and started browsing job listings.

She still wasn’t sure if she was going to quit, but it never hurt to get a head start.

At six, she threw on her workout gear and went downstairs for a un

When she came back, Noah was still asleep. She washed up, inade two croissants, cut some fruit, and warmed his milk before waking him. Only then did she go to wake Noah.

After breakfast, she took Noah to preschool before heading off to work herself.

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Chapter 46

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When she got to the office, Eloise took the elevator upstairs. Her herves were on edge the whole ride. She didn’t know if Beckett had arrived yet.

When she got off the elevator on the seventeenth floor, Felice and Bertha were already there. The three of them exchanged quick hellos and dove right into their own work.

At nine o’clock, Beckett showed up on the seventeenth floor. Felice and Bertha stood up to greet him. Eloise did the same.

Beckett walked right up to Eloise and stood there for a beat. Eloise kept her gaze glued to her desk, not even daring to meet his eyes.

Only when she heard the door shut did she finally exhale and slump back into her chair. Felice shot Eloise a curious look.

Eloise didn’t even notice. “Felice, could you make an iced latte for Mr. Hayes and take it in?” she said.

Then Eloise handed a file to Bertha. “Bertha, please take this to Mr. Hayes’s office.”

Felice and Bertha were both surprised. These kinds of tasks were always Eloise’s job. Beckett didn’t trust them. He’d always hand everything off to Eloise. They hardly got to go into his office.

ever

But since Eloise outranked them, when she gave instructions, they just did what she said.

When Beckett saw it was Felice and Bertha coming in instead of Eloise, his brows knit for a moment.

Feeling the icy tension in the office, the two assistants dropped off the items and left quickly.

Eloise kept her head down, organizing materials for the upcoming meeting. Then Cyrus’s secretary walked in.

“Ms. Caldwell, Mr. Cyrus Hayes has reassigned you to the chairman’s secretariat. Please pack up your things and move over now,” the secretary announced.

“This is so sudden. I didn’t get any heads-up at all. Does Beckett know about this? Why didn’t he mention anything to me?’ Eloise wondered, her thoughts racing.

“She’s not going anywhere,” Beckett’s voice cut through the room sharp and commanding. He walked out of his office, his face stormy and dark.

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