Page 96 of The Match Faker

It was funny. Even though the river’s dirty greeny-brown water couldn’t compare to the clear blue sea and pretty beaches in LA, somehow even after all these years, London still felt like home.

My gaze flicked back to Mia, who was now fiddling with the hem of her dress, giving me a glimpse of her thigh. Another flashback of my head buried between her legs jumped into my brain. I pushed it out again.

We sat in silence with just the sound of car horns piercing the air.

‘So, have you ever seen The Lion King at the theatre?’ I said.

Mia faced me and I swallowed hard. She really was beautiful. Her eyes sparkled, her lips were so full and soft. I wondered how they’d feel wrapped around my…

For fuck’s sake. This was getting ridiculous.

‘Nope.’

‘What?’ My eyebrows shot up to my hairline. ‘You haven’t lived!’

‘Why? How many times have you seen it?’

‘I probably watched the film a hundred times when I was a kid and I’ve seen the show in London a few times and on Broadway. I know the story so well that I could probably recite everything word for word by now.’

‘Your memory’s pretty impressive.’

‘Thanks. It’s part of the job. Need to be able to remember my lines.’

‘Speaking of lines, you seem to like the theatre a lot, so how come you haven’t done any plays?’

Good question.

‘Gotta stay in my lane!’ I laughed, avoiding Mia’s eyes. ‘Liam Stone is an action hero. He doesn’t fit on the stage.’

‘Sorry, but did you just refer to yourself in the third person?’

‘Yep.’ I tugged at a cuticle poking out from my thumbnail.

‘Why?’

I cracked the window a little. It suddenly felt hot in here. Mia’s gaze burned into my skin. She was waiting for an answer.

‘Because…’ I paused. I didn’t know if I really wanted to go into this now. ‘Because, sometimes it’s how I feel. I feel like Liam Stone isn’t really me. He’s a character that I play.’

‘Do you enjoy what you do?’

Another good question. I shuffled in my seat. I wasn’t used to talking about my real feelings.

When people asked questions, it was usually during a press junket when I did back-to-back media interviews talking about a role in my latest movie. My answers were rehearsed and based on what my publicist told me to say, not my own opinion.

Opinions were dangerous. If I said what I really thought, I’d end up saying the wrong thing. Most people could just shrug it off and forget about it. But in my business, saying the wrong thing resulted in a bad headline splashed across the media and dissected in detail all over the internet.

I knew this wasn’t a press interview. It was Mia. The person I used to be so comfortable with. I could tell her the truth. I was sure she’d understand. Then again, telling her how I really felt about my job might sound insensitive, given her financial situation.

Nah. Better to just stick to the script. It was safer that way.

‘I’m lucky. Thousands of actors would give their right arm to be in my shoes, so I can’t complain.’

That was true.

‘I didn’t ask about other actors, though. I asked about you.’

Damn. I should’ve known Mia was too smart to have fallen for that stock response. I blew out a breath, psyching myself up to speak my truth.

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