Page 25 of Secret Desire
“Are you ready for the brunch?”
I looked up to see Ariel and Grace standing in my office doorway. The three of us had made a substantial donation to a local charity that helped sexual assault victims. Our donation had been instrumental for them to create a new program for victims who were minors, including opening several foster homes for those who needed it. Their board was having a big fundraising brunch today and the three of us had promised to attend to try to encourage our peers to donate as well.
“I’m ready.” I looked behind them. “Is Sadie joining us?”
Sadie was working part time for our AGM Foundation now, helping us expand our philanthropic efforts. We’d all pledged to give away a substantial portion of our fortunes to charity, andwe took that pledge seriously. She’d been the one to recommend that we support this particular charity.
“She’s meeting us there,” Ariel replied. “She has a class today.”
Sadie had finally gone back to college to finish her degree with Ariel’s encouragement. She was studying social work, but was considering focusing on social work administration to help her with her work at the AGM Foundation.
The three of us headed downstairs to the waiting limo. It was probably a little excessive how often we rode in a limo. Our car service also had Town Cars and other nice vehicles, but we all preferred the extra space of a limo when they were available. For some reason, traffic seemed more forgiving in a vehicle this size, and if there was one thing we could count on in Chicago, it was traffic.
At least we still flew commercial – unless one of our friends with private planes could give us a ride.
We used the first part of the ride to catch up on work stuff, then the conversation turned personal.
“We haven’t been hanging out enough,” Ariel began.
“Because you two are in serious relationships now,” I pointed out. “It seems rude to kick someone out so the three of us can have alone time.”
“And you’re off all the time with your secret girlfriend,” Grace added.
I tried to ignore the tinge of hurt in her tone. The longer I kept the details of my relationship secret, the more it bothered them. I couldn’t blame them. If the situation was reversed, I’d feel the same. Things were going great with me and Ashley, but we just weren’t ready to rock the boat yet and bring everyone else into the loop.
“I love Sadie and I’m so happy with her,” Ariel said. “But I don’t want to grow apart from you two either.”
“We could hang out at Maeve’s,” Grace suggested. “When you’re not spending the night with Secret Girlfriend – although that really limits our options.”
Thanks to my friends’ constant nosiness as well as the extra spying from their partners, they seemed to somehow know every time I slept over at Ashley’s. Which was more often than not. I hated keeping my relationship a secret from my friends. That wasn’t what we usually did, and I knew that I was hurting them by not sharing like I normally would have done. Sooner or later Ashley and I were going to have to come clean, otherwise my continued secrecy would drive a wedge in our relationship.
“Is she married?” Ariel asked suddenly.
“What?”
“Secret Girlfriend. Is she married, is that why you’re hiding your relationship?”
“She’s not married,” I said impatiently.
“Is she… a man?” Grace asked. “Because we’d still love you, even if you were dating a hetero dude.”
She shuddered like the very thought of my dating a man skeeved her out.
“It’s not a dude.”
“Wait, is it a movie star? A singer? Someone famous who’s not out to their fans yet?”
“No, it’s no one famous. Not a movie star or a singer or a politician or a model.”
“Then what’s the problem?” Ariel gave me her pouting face. “Why are you being so secretive?”
“I’m sorry. I swear I’m not trying to hurt you guys. I just… we both just need this to be private, at least for now. I promise I’ll tell you more when I can.”
Ariel opened her mouth to argue some more, but Grace put her hand over her mouth to silence her.
“We’re here when you’re ready to talk Maeve. Just remember, we’re always on your side. We’ll love you no matter who your Secret Girlfriend is.”
I only hoped that was true.
