Yet, from the beginning to the end, the only thing he offered her was clandestine happiness within the confines of that apartment.
He never even acknowledged their relationship publicly.
*
Mark sat inside the car.
As the car halted near the apartment building, he placed a call.
In truth, he shouldn’t have come but he couldn’t resist making this special trip, even keeping it hidden from his personal secretary.
Cecilia declined his offer.
Mark ascended the stairs and unlocked the door to the apartment.
He had already arranged for it to be cleaned beforehand.
Everything remained unchanged, except for the absence of that one person.
Mark, known for his scheming nature, had never felt such deep desolation and longing to see someone in his entire life.
He sat on the sofa throughout the night.
Recalling the intensity of their past connection, he remembered how she would lie in his embrace and affectionately call him Uncle Mark. @
There had never been a girl as pure and uncomplicated as her.
Everyone around him seemed seasoned and sophisticated.
Individuals like him had long lost their innocence, but in his early forties, he found himself entangled in a love affair with a young woman. He cherished her, yet he didn’t wish for her to be entwined in his dangerous world.
His world held too many perils.
However, she lacked the means to protect herself, so he had to divert his attention to safeguard her.
Subsequently, following that incident two years ago, she appeared disheartened, and he also began to feel that they were ill-suited for each other…
They had been separated for over two years, and he had believed that he had moved on, but Waylen had unintentionally reopened his old wounds.
As it turned out, he hadn’t truly gotten over her.
The first rays of morning sunlight streamed into the apartment.
Mark rose and prepared breakfast. Subsequently, out of habit, he made his way to the bedroom, intending to wake the girl and share their usual meal together. She had a hearty appetite but was undemanding. She always had a fondness for junk food.
However, the bedroom was empty.