Marina was sitting on the sofa, but she wasn’t alone. Next to her was a tall, fair-haired man Andrey had never seen before. They were laughing, and the stranger’s hand was on her shoulder.
“What… what’s going on here?” Andrey asked hoarsely, taking a step into the room.
Marina shuddered and turned around, her eyes widening in surprise.
– Andrey? Are you back yet? – She glanced at her watch. – We weren’t expecting you for another two hours.
– We? – Andrey looked from his wife to the stranger and back. – Who is this?
The blond man stood up from the couch and extended his hand with a smile.
– Alexey. Nice to meet you.
Andrey ignored his hand.
– Marina, what’s going on here? What kind of holiday is this?
– Have you forgotten? – Marina looked genuinely surprised. – Today is ten years since our wedding day.
Andrey felt the ground sinking beneath his feet. It was his wedding anniversary. He’d entirely forgotten. Worse, he had spent the week with another woman plotting how he would request a divorce.
“And you decided to celebrate with… with this?” He nodded towards Alexey, who continued to smile calmly.
“Oh, don’t worry,” Alexey said, returning to the sofa. “I’m here purely for work.”