Strays

Chase was between victories.

So begins this tale of a husband who rides every edge, and the wife who's had enough of it. She leaves him the house she never wanted in Connecticut, and takes a flat on the Upper East Side.

Can they be more, separate, than they ever were together?

And how separate can they be, with a teenager between them?

Barbara used to think walking out was the biggest move she'd ever make; now she knew it was the not going back. If she went back, she'd know what she was getting into, for she knew Chase like nobody did. And she knew the deal was there for the taking-knew it even if Chase did not.

But did she want that deal? Was the alternative so scary? Years from now, would she look back on choosing the ambiguity of the unknown as the best move she ever made-or the worst?