Infamous by Irene Preston

tie. As if reading her thoughts, he shrugged out of his jacket and hung it carefully over the back of a chair.
    “I brought sushi — do you have anything to drink?”
    He turned and opened the refrigerator. She winced at what he would see — the take-out container, imploded avocado, a few condiments, and half a bottle of white wine. After a minute he sighed, took out the wine, and began opening cabinets until he found her wine glasses. When everything was arranged on the table, he settled into a chair and picked up a pair of chopsticks.
    “Well? There’s plenty for both of us,” he gestured to the colorful array of food.
    She considered telling him she wasn’t hungry. The last thing she wanted to do was prolong this meeting. If he didn’t want her, he could damn well tell her and get out.
    Unfortunately, her stomach picked that time to growl again. With bad grace, she sat down opposite him and devoted her attention to the food.
    Neither of them attempted conversation during the meal. She watched him while he ate. He handled the chopsticks expertly, and she noticed he still favored the sashimi. She remembered sitting cross-legged on the floor of his den, feeding each other choice bits of fish, learning each others preferences, punctuating each bite with kisses and laughter. It pissed her off. The memory was too clear, more vivid than the lunch she had with J.T. just yesterday. She pushed it aside and picked up an avocado roll.
    Trust Morgan to bring really good sushi. The last time she had gone out for sushi, it was all about being seen in the trendiest new place. There had been hot stones and lots of elaborate preparations, none of which she could actually remember tasting.
    When she finished eating, she found she was not in any hurry to hear what Morgan had come to say. She began clearing the table, picking up the take-out cartons and carrying them to the recycling bin. The bottle of wine was almost empty. She held it over Morgan’s glass, but he shook his head.
    “I have to get back to the office.”
    “Am I corrupting you with wine at lunch? You should loosen your tie a little, Morgan. It’s not like you have to worry about the boss finding out.” She dumped the last of the wine into her own glass.
    “My decisions have consequences for a lot of people,” he said, “I prefer to keep a clear head while I’m working.”
    It was obvious he thought her work was beneath being damaged by a few drinks. He left his glass on the kitchen table as he followed her into the living room.
    “Kinsey’s been talking about you all week,” he said. “I didn’t realize you had kept in such close contact. I didn’t even know she had a web page.” He sounded disapproving.
    “Facebook,” she murmured, “she has a Facebook page. You should pay closer attention, Morgan. She didn’t even have her profile set to private until I convinced her to change it. The ’net can be dangerous.”
    Here it comes, she thought. No doubt she would be blamed for Kinsey having the page in the first place. He hadn’t just changed his mind, he wanted her completely out of Kinsey’s life. She kept her back to him, so he couldn’t see the hurt when he said the words.
    “That’s exactly what I’m talking about,” he said. “There are things Kinsey shares with you that she doesn’t share with me. It’s why I’m asking you to come back.”
    At first the words didn’t make any sense. Asking her to come back?
    “So you’re asking me to move back in with you because I know Kinsey has a Facebook page? It seems a little extreme, Morgan. What, exactly, do I get out of the deal? For that matter, what do you get? Is this situation with Kinsey really worth having me underfoot all the time?”
    Was she crazy? She had already decided to move back, now she was going to talk him out of it?
    Morgan took his time answering.
    “I assume that you get out of it exactly what you wanted when you married me in the first place. Business has been good