Page 91 of Wife After Wife

Pictures came into her head, of happy, relaxed times with the person she’d thought of as her soul mate. For a moment she felt a deep sadness.

Then she thought about what Harry had done, how carefully he must have planned it. How much must he have wanted her?

A jolt of desire ran through her.

She exited the cubicle and washed her hands, then touched up her lipstick. Looking good.

As she was leaving, Janette came in. There was a hint of dismay as she saw Ana, then she smiled. “Hi, Ana! It’s gone really well. Harry’s very pleased!”

Ana caught a whiff of her perfume. Anaïs Anaïs, unless she was mistaken. How very Boots.

“Good. But it’s time for him to come home now. I’m bored, and... well, horny, actually.” She winked.

The secretary’s jaw dropped, and Ana swept past. Smiling to herself, she headed toward Harry, aware of heads turning as she passed.

He was talking to a striking blonde wearing an indecently short, black, wet-look skirt teamed with knee-high white boots. Her pale pink lips were set in a deliberate pout as she looked up at Harry from under false eyelashes, which she was most definitely fluttering.

“Hi,” Ana said to Harry, ignoring pretend Twiggy. “This thing finished at eight, didn’t it? Shall we make a move?”

“Ana, this is Veronica,” he replied, giving the blonde a charming smile. “Turns out she was at school with Megan. They made much mischief together.”

Veronica’s eyes flicked to Ana, then returned to Harry.

“Really,” said Ana, her tone uninterested. She didn’t attempt to fill the silence that followed. Her eyes traveled down Veronica’s body, not so quickly that she might miss the appraisal, but not slowly enough for it to look rude. “That’s an interesting outfit. Are skirts of that... type back in? And... white boots?”

“Veronica works atVogue,” said Harry. “Ifshe’swearing one, then skirts of the micromini type are most definitely back. And I for one say hallelujah to that.” He made a clicking noise, like he was encouraging a horse, and winked at Veronica.

She smiled playfully. “If you’re a fan, wait until you see our October issue. Kate Moss in sixties gear. The photos are brilliant. Mario took them.”

“Oh, well,Katecould make a bin bag look iconic,” said Ana.

Veronica raised her eyebrows slightly, then turned back to Harry.

“I have to go. Tell Megan to give me a call. I’d love to catch up on all the...” Her glance briefly fell on Ana. “Gossip.”

Harry grinned. “Will do, sweetheart. Take care.”

As Veronica sashayed away, Harry turned to Ana. His eyes were cold. “Don’teverdo that again.”

“So I was supposed to just ignore the fact that some slut in a fetish skirt was sending ‘shag me’ vibes to my... my—”

“‘Boss’ is the word you’re looking for. This is a work function. For god’s sake, Ana, where’s the professionalism you pride yourself on? You acted like a jealous wife.Vogue’s bloody important, you know that.”

It was difficult to say which of them was more furious as they made their way to the taxi rank. Setting off for Knightsbridge, Ana stared out the window, while Harry discussed the Tories’ “Back to Basics” campaign with the driver.

They arrived home, and Harry went through to the kitchen without a word.

Ana changed into a thigh-length robe, leaving on her black lacy underwear. She tied the belt loosely, allowing the top to gape open, then went back into the living room and sat on the couch. She picked up a magazine. It wasVogue. She put it down and picked up aTatler.

Harry came in with a whisky and a plate of toast and switched on the TV.

This was stupid. They were grown adults.

“Harry.”

“What?” He munched his toast as he watched the news.

“I’m sorry.”