Richard tried to remember how his affair with Serena had started. How does any romantic liaison begin – a look, a smile, an unspoken connection? He was captivated from the first moment he saw her sitting at the hotel bar he occasionally went to for a drink after work. Serena was quite simply the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen – she was stunning, the perfect package, long blonde hair, bright blue eyes and a figure most women would envy.

When she smiled encouragingly at Richard, he couldn’t believe such a woman would be interested in him, yet she accepted his offer to buy her a drink and hung on his every word, eyes wide at his stories of life as a barrister. She made him feel as if he was the most entertaining and fascinating man in the world.

Serena knew he was married from the start, but it didn’t stop her flirting, which initially seemed harmless enough. Richard was flattered. Martha hardly noticed him in a sexual way anymore and he couldn’t remember the last time they made love; it simply wasn’t on the agenda of their busy lives. Perhaps that was why Serena was so appealing. She looked upon him as a man, a desirable one too, and he’d been flattered, going along with the flirting until it became more, much more.

In the early days of their relationship Serena seemed mysterious, exciting even, revealing very little of her own life, past or present, which aroused Richard’s curiosity – the enigma added to the attraction. It was as if she’d materialised from nowhere, coming into his life and adding the excitement and passion he didn’t even know were missing.

Richard wanted to spoil Serena, to buy her jewellery and clothes, for which she squealed delightedly like a child at Christmas. He found this endearing and the gifts continued – but he could afford it and she was always keen to show her appreciation. Richard couldn’t quite remember how the subject of buying an apartment came up. The thought had crossed his mind that he might leave Martha and settle down with Serena one day, an idea about which she enthused.

Serena never took him to her home and Richard knew nothing of her living arrangements. When he asked questions, her face clouded with sadness, but she remained tight-lipped about her life when they were not together.