Thanks mainly to Elena, I remained to sort out the papers while the former nurse strove to dust the room next door. The afternoon passed in a blur. I had only occupied myself with a single pile of paper. This was nothing compared to the other white columns that surrounded me. The days here would be well filled, It was sure.

Elena, adorable as always, wanted me to stay for dinner. But I declined her offer. I wanted to go back before the wind became too important during the evening. Disappointed, she nodded and let me go to the bus that brought me back to my apartment.

During that day, I hadn't seen Alex again, and that relieved me. After his discussion with Elena, he hadn't put his feet back in the house when I was there. I still didn't know the reason for his anger, but I expected to ask my dearest Elena for more information.

Exhausted, I returned to my dark, empty apartment. Nothing had changed. Everything had been left as it was. Like every day since I lived alone. I stopped thinking about this dreary life and went to bed.

The next day, I stayed too much time on my bed. I hurried to walk to the big house to avoid being late. Once in front of the wooden door, Elena greeted me with a smile.

"Come, come, you didn't need to run! You are not within five minutes," she reassured me, almost in a reprimanding tone.

I didn't like being late. Especially after being a secretary of a large company. Punctuality was a must.

I was surprised to find the room clean and illuminated. The dust and the columns of papers could be seen, the parquet floor and the desk and shelves stuck to the wall could be seen. Elena did some cleaning after I left yesterday in the late afternoon.

"We finally see the room, don't we?"

"You weren't have to do it alone, I could have helped you today."

"Oh, don't worry about that," she swept away. "If only you could have seen Alex's face. He almost had tears in his eyes."

"Why ? Is there a special memory attached to this place?"

"Yes," she said, staring at the chair behind the desk. "It was his father's office. It was hard when he left, especially for Alex. For Max also, but he managed to rebuild his life in a big city with a wonderful woman."

I nodded, looking at the empty chair. I couldn't understand the distress of losing his parents, but I knew loneliness. Fortunately, I had met David to palliate the sadness.

"And your parents?" Elena asked as we walked over to the paper-filled room.

"My parents are pretty busy with their work. And they love to travel. I love them, but sometimes it was difficult. I will not complain. My childhood was like any other. Friends, boyfriends, studies ... I have a small question, why was accepted right away when we barely even spoke to each other?"

My question seemed to take her by surprise. She didn't look at me in the eyes and then gave a nervous laugh. After a sigh, she intimated me to sit on the chair she had placed among the white columns. She settled on another chair and looked up at me. Regret and anxiety were there. While my heart beat faster, I remained silent and confused by her behaviour.

"I owe you an apology, my dear. I accepted after hearing your name on the phone. My husband doesn't know you, but I have already heard of you. In fact, Max the man who has a company had a wonderful secretary who resigned. This woman was you..."

"What?" I asked, dumbfounded by her revelation.

"I... I'm sorry. You know Max talks a lot about you as a very good secretary. He was a little disoriented when you left. The second secretary had difficulty following the movement. He had to find someone else to replace your absence, which was quite difficult... And when I heard your name coming out of my husband's mouth, I thought I was dreaming. I jumped at the opportunity. Max confessed to me that your husband was cheating on you, hence the resignation, but..."

"What? You mean he knew my husband was going to see someone else behind my back?!"

I got up from the chair with anger that I couldn't control. My old boss knew everything! And he hadn't told me anything. Maybe he wasn't the only one to know. My other colleagues surely knew David's infidelities.

Before Elena could speak, Alex came into the room, casting a ferocious glance at me.

"What is happening?" he asked as he approached Elena.

She tried to dispel his suspicions by saying that nothing happened. But he didn't believe her.

I stared at the blue-eyed man. He was the little brother of my former boss. What a coincidence! As I tried to escape from my old life that reminded me of the wounds inflicted on my heart, I found myself with another man who had an indirect connection with my past. Of course, I had never met Alex, but the simple fact of seeing him remind me Max and thus David. The man I fled from more than anything.

"Nothing," I said after a while. "Elena and I were talking, that's all."

"Then why did she apologize?" he asked, with an ill-concealed reproach.

"I don't know. She doesn't need to apologize for anything."

The tension dropped, I looked at her with a slight smile. I had come to work, not to revisit the past. It wasn't like I was going to see Max anyway.

Elena took me in her arms. I let her do so to appease her remorse, which served no purpose.

"I have to work, Elena."

"Oh yes, of course! I leave you with your papers," she exclaimed as she left the room with a smile on her face.

However, she left me with Alex who hadn't moved and was still staring at me. I put on my professional woman's mask and asked if he needed anything. A long silence followed, where no one spoke.

"No, when you're done here, I'd like you to take care of the documents in my garage. Please."

I nodded, stunned to his polite tone. He who didn't want my presence at the beginning, now wanted me to help him. I let out my breath, which I held back as soon as he left the room.

For several days, the same ritual dictated my visits to this house. I continued to sort and put the papers in binders or tag them and put them on the shelves of the office. A dull job, but that was better thanks to the simple presence of Elena. Her husband sometimes came to visit her. These two people were adorable together. That was how I imagined myself with David. Together to the end. What an idiot I had been to think such a thing?

"Alicia, is everything okay?" Elena asked, pulling me from painful thoughts.

I was sitting in front of my tea on the kitchen table while Elena, still behind the counter, looked at me with concern.

"Yes, don't worry," I smiled. "I was lost in my thoughts."

That was the moment Alex decided to come into the kitchen. He went straight to the refrigerator to take fresh water without even looking at me. It was how he acted most of the time in my presence. I didn't know if he was embarrassed or if he was just like that.

Elena had already warned me that he was a loner, but his attitude towards me was close to disrespect. Eventually, I would ignore him just like he had done to me. But tomorrow it would no longer be possible. Given that I had finished with the documents from the office, I had to help him with the papers that were hanging in his garage.

I hoped it was a minimum tidy. But with the lack of organization of this man that Elena had confessed to me on my first day here, I wouldn't be surprised to find filthy papers with oils or other substances in a corner of his garage.

I left my eyes to look at his back as he walked out of the kitchen. Suddenly, he stopped and turned to look at me. Confused, I stared at him too.

"See you tomorrow," he said before leaving.

I didn't have time to reply and I think I couldn't have talked because of my shock. I didn't know why, but the few times he spoke to me, I felt embarrassed. Embarrassed to answer him. A situation that reminded me of the beginning of my relationship with David. A lovely relationship that I didn't want to reproduce with this man, especially if it was going to end in the same way.

I was frightened by the disturbance that my body and mind felt. I still hoped to have my whole head to be lucid when I will be by his side the next day.

On my way home, I sighed well in my bath. But the look of Alex haunted me. Again.

In a way, I was furious to think of him, but I couldn't prevent my body from straining under desire. I let my fingers satisfy this palpitation between my legs.

Breathing quickly, I realized that my lack of sexual intercourse was becoming more and more felt. Tears of anger came to my cheeks. Having always been with David, I didn't know if I could bear to make love with a stranger for just one night. I didn't know how long I had to restrict myself, but I was sure that I would never fall in love again.

I left the bathtub and prepared to go to bed. I hoped I wouldn't see this man again in my dreams. But he appeared into my mind more and more. I realized that I was trapped again by a man.