you a few questions to help us get there?” he suggested.
“Of course,” she said.
“Infidelity?” he asked.
The hostess brought her tea and for Logan, a tall blond beer. For both of them, water. Then she left quickly.
“I suspect so. My sister saw my husband kissing a woman. She described it as passionate kissing. In a dark restaurant.”
“Forgive the question, but is there any reason you know of that your sister would make up something like that? Some ax to grind. Family arguments, jealousies, anything?”
Justine shook her head. “Addie loves Scott,” she said. “She told me immediately. She’s outraged and hurt. I didn’t get overwrought, at least for her to see.”
“Who might he have been kissing?” Logan asked.
“I don’t know the woman, but Addie was with a friend who said her name is Cat Brooks and she owns a kayak rental shop in Half Moon Bay. That’s where I grew up. I’ve been gone for over twenty years, since college, only home for brief visits. Addie still lives there. She’s quite a bit younger than me—twenty years younger.”
Logan frowned. “Kind of ballsy, kissing some woman in his wife’s hometown, his sister-in-law’s town of residence...”
“Well, Addie lives there, but she has a very small circle of friends and doesn’t have much of a social life. For years she cared for our parents who were disabled and in need of medical care. Our mother only recently passed away. Addie can finally go out with friends, if they haven’t all deserted her by now. She was out for a pizza with a friend she’s known since childhood.”
“So, what is it you want me to do?” Logan asked.
“Let me tell you some things first,” she said.
“Of course,” he said. He took a swallow of his beer. Then he pulled a small notebook and pen from his pocket. “Take your time. Tell me what you think is important.” Pen poised over notebook, he gave her a nod.
“I’m a corporate attorney for a major software developer. Sharper Dynamic. I have two daughters, age sixteen and seventeen. Scott has been a stay-at-home dad since Amber, my oldest, was born. We’ve been married twenty-eight years but started dating in college. And I’ve provided most of the income the last twenty years.”
“Most?” he asked.
“When Scott didn’t have the responsibilities of two babies or toddlers or preschoolers, he sometimes worked part-time. Usually sporting goods retail—he liked the discounts on his gear from golf clubs to high-end mountain bikes. Discounts for the whole family. One year he even gave me a profit and loss statement showing me how much money he saved the family with his discounts. Enough to take a great vacation.”
She sounded ridiculous even to herself.
“And,” Logan said. “I sense there’s more.”
“He managed the finances. He would ask my opinion from time to time. No, that’s not right. He would tell me things like he was moving a little money to lessen our exposure in a volatile market. And I would say okay. But I rarely looked at a credit card bill or a phone bill or a bank statement. For all I know—”
“What do you want to know?” he asked.
“What do I want to know?” she repeated. “I guess I want to know if he’s having an affair.”
Logan leveled his gaze on hers. “I think you already know the answer to that. You just can’t prove it. In your capacity as an attorney, you’ve had occasion to work with an investigator or two.”
“On a regular basis, yes. But in quite a different way. Background checks, financial records, lawsuits, et cetera. I can honestly say extramarital affairs never crossed my desk.”
“Unfortunately, there seems to be an epidemic. You’ve been married a long time. Have you considered counseling?”
“We’re in counseling now. At Scott’s suggestion. Do you suppose that means he wants to save the marriage?”
“Let me be honest, Mrs. Somersby—”
“Please, feel free to call me Justine.”
“Justine. He might be trying to demonstrate he’s made an effort when he has no intention of staying in the marriage. I suggest