The text message arrived in the evening, just as the house was settling into a charged quiet. Martha's name lit up the family group chat on both their phones.
"Hey, loves — work emergency. I have to fly out of state tonight for a conference and back-to-back client meetings. It's going to take a couple of days, maybe until the weekend. I'm so sorry to drop this on you. Take care of the house and each other. Love you both!"
Kate read it aloud in the living room, her voice calm, but her eyes found Jaenor where he sat on the couch.
The memory of the night before still clung to them both — the long massage that had turned into something else entirely, the way she had ended up face-down on the bed with his cock buried deep inside her, and the way she had begged him not to stop while he filled her again and again. She hadn't known then that he had already been with Martha.
She still didn't know.
She typed the reply for both of them.
"Be safe, baby. We've got the house. Love you."
