The Billionaire in Disguise

A Name Worth Forgetting

დ Aidan დ

Waking up, I felt like I was drowning in sand. My mouth was dry, my limbs heavy, and every part of me ached like I had been dropped from the sky. I blinked up at a wooden ceiling, and dim morning light filtered through the curtains. The couch creaked beneath me, stiff and old. Not mine. Not familiar.

Where the hell was I?

I groaned and sat up, as my hand went straight to the side of my head. Pain flared behind my eyes, dull and pounding. Something crusted and sticky was in my hair. It was blood. Mostly dry blood. My shirt was torn. My knuckles were scraped. The metallic scent of dried blood clung to me like a warning. And then it hit me. A flood of memories hit me so hard that I gasped softly. The crash. I had been in the car. Black SUV. Narrow road. Curved too fast. No. No, that wasn’t it. I didn’t lose control. Something else had happened. My stomach turned as the pieces slammed together in jagged shards. There had been headlights behind me. A shadow in the mirror, and then suddenly, the steering wheel had locked. The tires had screamed as the SUV flipped. Metal twisted, but I had managed to crawl out. I had made a run for it. I had stumbled and fallen as someone had chased me. I frowned as I tried to remember. I blacked out at some point. But I did remember the bar. I had hoped to make it inside to call for help, but I hadn’t made it. And then there had been her. A woman’s voice. Warm, but panicked. A soft grip in the middle of chaos.

“Hmm,” I hummed softly as I looked around the room. It was rustic and cozy in a way that felt uncomfortably homey. The living room had wide windows, and I spotted a few family photos on the wall. Vines framed in faded wood. Somewhere rural. Somewhere very not the city. Thornebay was gone. And I had no idea where I had landed. I couldn’t remember where I had been going to when the chase had begun. I patted my pockets. Nothing. No phone. No wallet. No ID. I checked the coffee table and side tables, but no. I had nothing. Because, of course, I had nothing. Otherwise, it would have been too easy. I slowly got to my feet as I tested my balance. My right knee protested with a sharp throb, and my ribs weren’t thrilled either. I made my way to the window and pulled the curtain aside. Vines. Rows and rows of vineyards stretched into the distance. Someplace quiet. Far from the high-rises and glass towers, I had spent the last ten years building and dodging death in. I didn’t know the woman’s name. I didn’t know where I was. But whoever she was, she had dragged me out of that parking lot and brought me here. She might have saved my life. I needed to leave. No, scratch that. I needed to figure out who was behind the crash. Because that hadn’t been an accident. No way. That was deliberate. A warning, or a final attempt. And someone out there thought I was gone.

Let them.

If they thought I was dead, maybe I had a shot at staying alive long enough to find out why. A creak behind me snapped my head around. A man entered the room. He was younger than me. Shaggy blonde hair with light green eyes. And those eyes were sharp and narrowed like he was already ready for a fight. His gaze went straight to me, and I tensed as my instincts kicked in.

“To be honest, I hadn’t expected you to be up already,” he said. “You were out cold last night,” I didn’t answer. Not yet. He stepped closer with his arms folded. “You got a name?” he asked. I paused as I let the silence stretch. “Where were you coming from? Or going to?” I blinked as I broke eye contact.

“I don’t…know, I can’t…remember,” I said honestly. The man just stared at me. Now, I was pretty good at reading people, and it was clear that this man didn’t believe me. He didn’t have the proof to argue with me, but he wasn’t buying it.

“What do you remember?” he asked curiously, and I sighed softly.

“No…” I said, and he frowned.

“Right,” he stated the single word firmly as his jaw twitched. “Well, you stumbled in with my sister like a drunk deer, bleeding all over everything. I would like to know why,” ah, so it was his sister. She lived here with him. She had been the one to save me. I opened my mouth to answer, even though I wasn’t sure what I was going to say, but then she walked in.

“Rowan,” she snapped as she pointed her finger at him. “What are you doing?” she appeared in the doorway like sunlight after a storm. Messy brown waves with honey-colored eyes. She wore an oversized sweater that slid off one shoulder. She was barefoot and slightly flushed. She looked as if she had just rolled out of bed. And I couldn’t stop staring. In fact, Rowan couldn’t stop staring either. Her gaze landed on me, and something shifted. I saw her entire body relax in relief. “I am glad to see that you aren’t dead,”

“Likewise,” I murmured.

“Yes, he is alive…” Rowan said, his voice low and tight. “And conveniently forgetful,” the woman frowned, but then she waved him off like a mosquito.

“Can we not interrogate him like he is some criminal?”

“Elara, come on…he is a stranger bleeding on our couch,”

“Well, then he is our guest, isn’t he?” she snapped, and Rowan’s glare slid between us, but he didn’t argue. He stepped back with a warning look that said: This isn’t over. Elara turned her full attention to me. “How are you feeling?” she asked. I blinked. Let the act settle in.

“I don’t know,” I said slowly. “I don’t remember…anything,” she bit her bottom lip.

“Not even your name?” I shook my head. Not yet. Not for free. “Well,” she sighed, as she glanced at the blood-stained pillow behind me. “We should get you to a hospital. Just to be safe,”

“No,” the word escaped before I could soften it.

“No?” her brows rose, and Rowan looked just as suspicious.

“I’m fine,” I said. “Really,”

“You don’t look fine,” she replied as she folded her arms across her chest. I took a breath and looked at her. Then I looked at Rowan, who hadn’t moved. He looked like a predator waiting for the right moment to strike. If I argued too much, it would raise suspicion. If I gave in, I had be checked, scanned, maybe even identified. If whoever tried to kill me knew I was still alive, they might try to finish the job. But playing dead only worked if the body stayed buried. So I slowly nodded.

“Ok,” I agreed softly. “You are right, there is no harm in getting checked out,” Elara smiled.

“Good,” she said, and then she turned to Rowan. “Get the man sorted while I get cleaned up and dressed,”

“Elara, we need to talk,” he said to her.

“I know, and we will. I promise,” she said as she leaned up and kissed his cheek before she hurried from the room. Rowan glanced at me, and I swear, if looks could kill, I would have dropped dead.

“If you are lying about anything, I’ll know,” he warned, and I stared him down. I had no fear. Just enough cold to hold the edge.

“Duly noted,” I said. He nodded, and then he led me deeper into the house. Aidan Rourke was supposed to be dead. Maybe it was time I let him be. At least until I could put the puzzle pieces together. Until then, I had no knowledge of who I was or anything else. I could do this. I had no choice.

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