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touch. Little things—red stitching on the curtains, china
prominently displayed in a cabinet, Bible verses on painted
ceramic tiles near the stove. The house was filled with evidence of
his life with another woman, but to her surprise, it didn’t bother
her.
“I’m going to go hop into the shower,” Alex said. “Will you be
okay for a few minutes?”
“Of course,” she said. “I can snoop around your kitchen and think
about dinner.”
“The pasta’s in the cupboard over there,” he said, pointing. “But
listen, when I get out, if you want me to drive you over to your
place so you can shower and change, I’d be glad to do it. Or you
can shower here. Whatever you want.”
She struck a sultry pose. “Is that an invitation?”
His eyes widened and then flashed to the kids.
“I was kidding.” She laughed. “I’ll shower after you’re gone.”
“Do you want to pick up a change of clothes first? If not, you can
borrow sweats and a T-shirt… the sweats will be too big for you,
but you can adjust the drawstring.”
Somehow the idea of wearing his clothes sounded extremely sexy
to her. “That’s fine,” she assured him. “I’m not picky. I’m just
watching movies with the kids, remember?”
Alex drained his glass before putting it in the sink. He leaned
forward and kissed her, then headed toward the bedroom.
Once he was gone, Katie turned toward the kitchen window. She
watched the road outside, feeling a nameless anxiety come over
her. She’d felt the same way earlier in the morning and assumed it
was an aftershock of the argument she’d had with Alex, but now