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Seriously, thank you so much for leaving such awesome reviews behind. They really made my day and actually made me write a new chapter as well.

Disclaimer: I don't own Lie To Me.

… … …

One of the first things we teach our children is that it's not okay to lie.

One of the first things we tell our children is that, no matter what, everything is going to be just fine.

Most people wouldn't call that a lie but there's a slight difference between the truth and what you wish the truth to be. And when the person you are sharing your house with happens to be a lie detector, all those slight differences are what matters the most.

When you tell a big fat lie, you can give the I-wasn't-thinking-clearly excuse, but when there's just a slight difference, it usually means you gave it a lot of thought, it means you deliberated about the percentage of truth that you wanted or were ready to give.

Usually those slight differences are hard to find but don't let that thought work as an encouragement because once they are found, they usually explode like an atomic bomb, spreading a wave of suspicion and confusion on the surroundings of whoever programmed it in the first place.

When that happens, life as you know it is over. Trust me, I know what I am talking about.

Not many people know the story of how Cal and I met. I am almost sure we are the only ones who do and that's just because we were both there.

It was not love at the first sight.

Actually, it was more like sexual attraction at the first touch after a great amount of alcohol.

We were both celebrating the New Year at my boyfriend's place. There were way too many people and we were all so drunk that we no longer recognized each other. I remember being by the bathroom door when I first saw him. I do believe I was waiting for my turn to use it but the next thing I recall is being pressed hard against a wall and feeling his breath on my face.

I asked no questions. He offered no answers.

I have no idea of how we had the decency of looking for a room but we did and we happened to find my boyfriend's bedroom. I wasn't quite aware of it and the fact that my picture was on one of the bedsides tables didn't seem to ring any bells to my slow, aroused brain. When the bells started ringing, or at least when I started hearing them, it was already way too late as I was naked by the side of whom I later found out to be Cal Lightman.

Memories of the night we had shared started crossing my mind. I could still feel his hands all over my body… it was like they had set my skin on fire and God, I was burning badly. It seemed like he had decided to mark me for life that night. Well, he certainly had. Emily was born 9 months later.

I couldn't quite believe I was pregnant.

When I first went to the doctors, about three weeks after the incident, I complained about stomach pain. Actually, I complained about all my body hurting and being extra sensitive to the touch. I remember asking my doctor if it could be somehow related to that crazy night. She said that everything was possible but that she would like to be sure it was nothing serious by making a few exams. I only did two. A full blood test and an ultrasound.

I was pregnant of a man I barely knew. I was carrying the child of a man with whom I had slept on my own boyfriend's bed. I was going to have a baby and I was about to start my first real job as a lawyer.

This was it, this was the moment when I started telling different versions of the truth, telling myself I was only editing it slightly so that no one would get hurt.

At the same pace my belly started expanding, the number of questions I got from the people who surrounded me started growing as well.

I ended up losing my boyfriend, my job and Cal Lightman's respect.

Yes, we did get married but we weren't in love. We liked to think we were but deep down inside we knew that this was just another one of those situations when it was easier to edit the truth so that no one would get hurt. No one got hurt but we were both hurting deeply.

Sure, Emily's birth brought us closer together but as she started growing, we started growing apart.

Still, for her sake, we kept playing our roles.

What we weren't expecting though was Emily to be such a natural emotions reader. I remember the look of panic on Cal's face when she started asking questions. That was the day when she learned the meaning of the word theatre at pre-school. That was the day when she realized that her life was a play and her role was to keep the theatre from falling apart as there was another word that was spelled as dih-vawrs and that wasn't pretty.

Someone got hurt? No.

We are still hurting.

This is probably all my fault but I am already hurting enough and I am not sure I can handle any more pain. I need my life to stabilize for a while and for that, I can't have any more drama.

So forgive me for not being too happy to see my husband all over another woman. Forgive me for not being too keen about the fact that my daughter seems to love her already. Forgive me for being jealous of the perfect family portrait I see as I approach the table where I am supposed to belong.

Forgive me… forgive me for hating the beautiful woman who owns the kindest eyes I have ever seen.

Forgive me… but you are too much for me to handle right now and I must hate you for you are the reflection of his face on the mirror of life.

You belong.

I must belong.

… … …

I must confess I am not a big fan of Zoe but I do believe she plays an essential role on this story. I thought I should give some background on her before diving any further. And besides, I gave both Cal and Gillian an opportunity to talk about themselves and their past… Why not Zoe, right?

Anyway, I hope you are still enjoying this story.

R&R, if you feel like it. :)

See you soon,

Tess.