Five Dates with the Billionaire - Alyssa J. Montgomery Page 0,20
to lie to everyone in her life who’d asked her anything about her past. It’d never become any easier for her to perpetuate the lies. Somehow, the thought of lying to Connor was even worse than it had been when she’d trotted out her FBI-invented background to anyone else.
‘My parents died when I was young. I have no siblings.’
There. Done.
‘I’m sorry to hear that.’ He leaned a little closer as he rested his arms on the table. ‘How old were you?’
‘Er… almost sixteen.’ The lingering taste of the lovely Italian food turned pasty in her mouth and her tongue felt heavy and unwilling to articulate any more speech.
‘How did they die?’
‘Plane crash.’
His voice softened. ‘There’s no good age to lose your parents. I was six when my parents died. Were your parents travelling for work?’
‘No. They were going to holiday in Australia and the plane crashed over India. I would’ve gone with them, but it was school term so I stayed with a friend.’
This was why she avoided forming relationships.
How could she ever have a proper friendship, let alone a relationship, when the person she was with would never know who she really was and what she’d been through?
How could she ever hope to build a happy future on a past built on secrets and lies?
If she ever had a serious relationship, her partner would surely feel betrayed, disillusioned and maybe even embittered if he ever discovered Mia wasn’t the person she claimed to be.
‘It must’ve been tough on you. Who took care of you when they died?’
‘A family friend.’ At least that was the truth.
As part of the witness protection program, the FBI had been planning to relocate her to another part of the US. But her grandmother had intervened right before she’d died and asked Stanley to use his MI5 connections to bring Mia to London.
Stanley had met her at Heathrow, taken her to a safe house and it was there she’d met Violet. It’d all been top secret and they’d supported her tirelessly as she’d worked to rid herself of her American accent, had facial surgery and orthodontic work to alter her appearance, and tutored her endlessly about her false background.
Connor could never know.
Nobody could ever know.
If anyone found out it could put both them and Mia in terrible danger.
‘It was a traumatic time for me,’ she said. ‘I still don’t like to talk about it.’
His gaze searched her face for a moment before he said, ‘Of course. I understand. Even though I thought I’d buried my grief, I remembered today how agonized I was to learn of my father’s death and how helpless I’d felt as a kid that I could do nothing to help my mother as she fought for her life in intensive care after the crash.’
He’d been battling more emotions than his concern over Violet, then.
‘Violet has mentioned your parents’ accident.’ Their personal tragedies created a connection between them—even though Mia hadn’t been able to share the true heart-wrenching details of her past.
A connection based on a lie is no connection at all, Mia.
The voice of her conscience felt like a stone dropping into the pit of her stomach.
Don’t get caught up in your own fantasy.
This is not a date.
The truth was hard to swallow but had to be faced. Connor was only here because of Violet’s emotional blackmail and she needed to remember it.
Chapter Eight
When their dinner plates were cleared away, Connor took a long sip of his wine. ‘One more course and we’re through our first date. I’ll be the first to admit it’s been an enjoyable evening.’
His attention was drawn to Mia’s cheeks dimpling as she teased, ‘As long as you’re the first to admit it, I don’t mind being the second.’
God but she really was gorgeous.
Even when she’d appeared and descended the staircase as a vision in red, he’d had no idea how enjoyable the evening would be—how much they’d connect on an intellectual level and how easily they’d converse.
It would suit him right now if the night didn’t end. If she wasn’t his employee he wouldn’t be leaving when he drove her back to her place—well, not until morning.
Dragging his thoughts away from sharing a bed with Mia, he said, ‘My assistant has rescheduled my most crucial meetings to tomorrow morning, and postponed the rest until Thursday next week. I should be finished by 3pm.’ The morning would drag. ‘Whether or not you go into the office tomorrow morning is up to you. As you suggested, I’ve told