Taylor Swift's Glee-ful date

Mar 24, 2010, 17:30 GMT

Taylor Swift enjoyed a secret date with actor Cory Monteith last night (23.03.10).

The 20-year-old singer was seen hugging the 'Glee' actor during an evening at Los Angeles' bowling alley Pins with a group of friends - including actress Selena Gomez - but refused to arrive or leave with the 27-year-old hunk.

A source said: "Taylor and Cory definitely looked close - they spent most of the night chatting together and had a long hug before saying goodbye - but their separate exits seemed quite deliberate so people wouldn't think they were an item."

It has been claimed that Taylor - who was first romantically linked to Cory after the Grammy Awards last month - is trying to keep her new relationship under wraps to prevent her protective mother Andrea, who is also her manager, from finding out.

A source told the National Enquirer magazine: "Taylor is actually pretending not to be interested in Cory so her mother doesn't scare him off.

"Taylor's figured out she better not have any serious mother-daughter conversations about her love life or the relationship will be doomed from the get-go. Taylor really likes Cory, and she's telling friends she sees real romantic possibilities with him."

The claims come weeks after it was reported Taylor - who has previously dated Joe Jonas and Taylor Lautner - had been warned by Andrea to stay focused on her career.

One insider said: "Andrea has told Taylor in no uncertain terms that she must put her career ahead of dating boys.

"Andrea, who has a firm grip on her daughter's career and personal life, thinks Taylor has worked far too hard to let everything go to the wall for the sake of a boy."