"Mummy!" Josh greeted Kate enthusiastically as she walked though the front door.
"Josh!" Kate exclaimed, grabbing her son in a massive hug as he ran towards her before lifting him up. "Have you got bigger?" She asked as she got a good look at him.
"Uh huh," said Josh proudly.
It wasn't long before he was too heavy to keep in her arms and Kate had to put him down. She followed Josh as he ran back in to the kitchen. Mark was there when Kate entered. "Hi," Kate said awkwardly.
Mark didn't say anything, just carried on drinking from the mug in his hand. "Josh eat up. Remember it's bath time tonight,".
"Sounds fun. Can I join in?" Kate asked.
"Yeah!" Josh said excitedly, keen to have both his mother and father at his bath time.
"You don't have work to do?" Mark asked sarcastically. Kate ignored him.
"Come and see my room," Josh declared getting distracted from his dinner once again.
"Ok. You got something to show me?".
"Yes," Josh said as he took his mothers hand and dragged her up the stairs. He led Kate in to the room and it wasn't difficult to spot the new item. A large TV now took pride of place on one of the walls. Josh found the remote control and turned it on.
"A TV?" Kate asked, surprised at the inappropriate new furnishing. She looked at Mark who had followed them up the stairs. He had a smug grin on his face seeing Kate wasn't particularly happy with Josh's new acquisition. "I thought we decided he was far too young for his own TV?".
"Yeah, well I changed my mind," Mark said, "and you weren't here," he added. The snide comments had started already.
"All channels?".
"Yes. Only the best for Joshy," Mark said as he ruffled his son's hair. Josh had gravitated towards him after detecting his mum wasn't so happy about the present.
"Are you monitoring what he is watching?".
"Chrissake Kate. He's three!" Mark exclaimed.
"Exactly," Kate retorted. "He could be watching anything up here alone,".
"Always think the worst don't you?" Mark snapped. "It's the police officer in you. You need to lighten up a bit,".
"Don't you like my present, Mummy?" Josh asked tearfully.
Kate realised her arguing with Mark in front of their son had upset him. "Course I do," she said as she kissed the top of his head. "Will you still watch with me. I'll miss cuddles otherwise," Kate explained, making up some excuse why she was unhappy for Josh to have a TV in his room.
Mark scoffed at her remark. "You are hardly ever here to have cuddles,".
"I'm going to go and get changed out of these work clothes," Kate said, keen to get out of the room before she started a full blown argument with Mark in front of Josh. Her husband was a twat. She was disappointed in herself that she hadn't noticed it before now.
The rest of the evening was as awkward as Kate had predicted. Once Josh was in bed, Mark hardly spoke a word to her.
"Solve the case?" He asked as they ate dinner. Kate nodded. "Took you bloody long enough,".
"We've made a real break through in getting to the top of the organised crime group this time," Kate said.
"Does that mean you're done with the undercover work?".
"No," Kate said. "And I've got a handler now. My new partner, Steve,".
"Steve?" Mark asked. "I don't remember you mentioning him before,".
"Hastings has just recruited him. He's just moved up from London,".
"Fascinating," Mark said sarcastically. He really couldn't care less what his wife got up to at work.
Deciding to get an early night after the lack of sleep the previous night, Kate headed upstairs to the bedroom. She hoped that she would be able to sleep well and not dwell on Tony's suicide too much.
As she stood at the sink, brushing her teeth, Mark came in to the bathroom as well. The couple barely said a word to each other as they got ready for bed. Mark came up behind Kate and quickly put his hand under the large T-shirt she was going to wear to bed. He went straight for between Kate's legs again.
Kate instantly pushed him away. She was not in the mood for sex at all that night and she wasn't going to let him take advantage of her again as he had done before she had gone undercover.
"Not sure why you even bothered to come back if this is how it's going to be," Mark said as he left the bathroom.
Alone, Kate spat her toothpaste in to the sink before turning on the tap to wash it down the plug hole. She washed and dried her toothbrush not looking forward to having to share a bed with her husband at all that night.
One last look in the mirror and she headed out the bathroom. Except the handle wouldn't move. She jiggled it a few times and came to realise that Mark had placed a chair up to the door on the other side, locking her inside.
"Mark!" she said loudly as she jiggled the door handle again. There was no response from her husband. This was payback for rejecting him, she realised. "Please, Mark," she begged gently as she tried the door again.
She waited, hoping Mark would release her but nothing happened.
She heard movement in the next room and thought it might happen, but it was just Mark turning the light off before he got in to bed.
It looked as though she was going to be spending the night in the bathroom.