He told me not to change passwords on joint systems in a way that could harm an ongoing business, and not to confront anyone about crimes that had not been established.

Then he asked the one question I had avoided.

“What do you want from your marriage, apart from financial security?”

I looked toward the window.

A bus stopped outside the building.

A woman carrying grocery bags climbed aboard and settled next to a little boy with a bright green backpack.

The ordinary scene made my eyes ache.

“I wanted my husband to come home and mean it when he said he missed us,” I answered.