Page 44 of Fake Dating My Billionaire Boss

She pinches her lips together.

Odd reaction.

Very odd.

Before I can analyze it further, she goes on. “And it’s the spring water that makes your soda so popular, right? That’s the motto: ‘Made with pure mineral water and bursting with bubbles.’ It’s right there on the can…”

“Bella, I don’t see why you’re interested in the ingredients in Bubbly Springs soda. Or our company motto.”

“Bear with me, okay? Can you do that?”

“I’m trying.”

“Okay, so… what would happen if there was a mix-up of some kind, and you guys didn’t actually own the spring? And someone else did?”

“That would be devastating. It might ruin the company. But it’s not going to happen, and I have enough to worry about without dwelling on impossibilities.”

“Right. Got it…”

She continues studying the horizon line. She won’t meet my eye.

I’m getting to know Bella better, now that I’ve spent time with her. I’ve taken note of her quirks of character. Right now, she’s hiding something. There are obvious tells: the way she won’t look me in the eye; the way she lifts a finger and nibbles the nail for two seconds; the surly edge to her tone. She’s not happy about keeping this secret, whatever it is, from me. The lightness and joy have been zapped out of her, and in its place, I see defensiveness etched on her pretty features. When we were at the Hidden Garden and she acted like this, I didn’t press the matter. But now that we’re no longer strangers to one another, I feel I can.

“You want to tell me what’s on your mind?”

She shakes her head. “Nope. Not yet. Maybe later. Right now, I think I want another one of those fig things, with the bacon. Isn’t it crazy, how you can take pretty much anything and wrap it in bacon, and it tastes awesome?”

Chapter 14

Bella

I made it through dinner.

That head-spinning, confusing, whirlwind affair that included too-fancy appetizers, a three-course meal, and way too much interaction with the Knights.

Damian’s hard enough to handle on his own. His attractive good looks, aloof demeanor, and long, weighted silences are enough to make me feel dizzy. Add in his overbearing mother and workaholic, distant father, and you have yourself a doozy of a night. I feel like a stewed tomato in a blender, and someone touched the tornado icon.

Part of me turned to mush tonight, thanks to those Knights. And then there was Addison, with her ‘Pumpkin’ talk and fluttering lashes—always aimed at Damian.

But I survived.

All of it. From the moment Damian greeted me and told me I looked ‘lovely’ until now, sitting in the front seat of his SUV as he pulls up his driveway into the spot next to my rusty Camry.

It wasn’t easy.

There was so much golf talk. Chatter about stocks and bonds. A long discussion of the weather in different regions of Italy in July and August. Apparently, according to Nora, August is a spectacular time for sailing around Sardinia.

Somehow, I survived Nora’s comments about how ‘salt of the earth’ my ancestors were. I tried to overlook the fact that while she gave lip service to the necessity of ‘fine farmers’ like my kin, her tone dripped with disdain. She went on and on about how‘the cream always rises to the top, but a society must also have a good, solid foundation of milk to support the cream.’

That made Damian cough and splutter.‘Mother… don’t say things like that!’I don’t know how I did it, but I choked down a few bites of maple-glazed salmon, asparagus spears, and some sort of green confetti that may or may not have been made from Brussel sprout shavings.

“Well, that was interesting,” I say, as Damian shifts into park.

In the driver’s seat, he mutters something I can’t catch. The word sounds like a grunt to my ears.

Maybe he’s lost in thought like I am. Trying to process the evening.

I do my best to lower down out of Damian’s SUV without breaking an ankle. I think cars like this should come with folding step stools.

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