The smile that had appeared on her face quickly faded. “What do you mean?”
“I have a girlfriend, Ash,” I lied. “I have for a while now, but I have been hiding it from everyone, wanting to keep it hush-hush. This is my first relationship after Sarah.”
Ashleigh just stared at me blankly. I couldn’t get a read on what she was thinking, and that scared me. I reached for her hands and held them in mine.
“Are you happy for me, Ash?”
She blinked and then she smiled.
“Of course, who is the lucky lady? Do I know her?”
I shook my head. “No, you don’t. But I am excited for you to meet her.”
“And this relationship of yours, is it serious?”
“As a heart attack. It took me a while, but I finally found someone, Ash, and I could not be happier. Obviously, I still love and miss Sarah, but at least now I am finally moving forward.”
“I want to meet her. Next week when I move here. We should all have dinner.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.” She smiled easily, a little too easily for my liking. “If she is important to you, then she is important to me.”
I had no other choice. I was already deeply embedded in my lie. So, I nodded my head and agreed to introduce my imaginary girlfriend to Ashleigh.