Chapter 2 Sweet Temptation 2

Elena was still going through the documents spread across her desk when someone knocked on her door. Before she could answer, the door opened. "Elena, are you busy?" Nathan asked. She looked up and saw him standing by the door. His face was serious, and there was a worried look in his eyes. "Very busy," she said as she picked up another document. "But what is it?" Nathan walked into the office and closed the door behind him. "I need your help." Elena looked at him. "My help with what?" "It's about my divorce." The document in Elena's hand stopped halfway to the desk. She put it down. "Your divorce?" Nathan nodded. "Victoria has filed for divorce." Elena leaned back in her chair. "I'm sorry to hear that. But why are you telling me?" "I want you to represent me." Elena raised her eyebrows. "Nathan, there are a lot of lawyers in this firm. Why me?" "Because I trust you." Elena gave him a doubtful look. "You trust me enough to handle your divorce, but I'm guessing Victoria doesn't know you're here asking me?" Nathan looked toward the window. "She doesn't." Elena sighed and reached for another file. "Okay. Tell me what happened." Nathan pulled out the chair opposite her and sat down. "Victoria says I cheated on her." Elena looked up. "She's not lying," Nathan said. "You cheated on her?" "Yes." Elena was quiet for a moment. "Nathan..." "I know," he said quickly. "I know how it sounds. I made a mistake. Actually, I made more than one mistake, but I don't want to lose my children because of it." Elena looked at him. "Is that what this is really about? The children?" "Yes." Nathan sat up. "Victoria wants full custody. She says I'm irresponsible and that the children are better off with her. She's also trying to make sure I barely get to see them." "And what do you want?" Elena asked. "I want to be part of their lives." His voice became quieter. "I want to see them, spend time with them and be there when they need me." He looked down at his hands. "I don't want to become a father who only hears about his children from other people." Elena was quiet for a moment. "Nathan, custody cases can get complicated, especially when infidelity is involved." "I know." "And if Victoria has evidence against you, this isn't going to be easy." "I know that too." Nathan looked at her. "That's why I need someone who knows what they're doing." Elena looked at the clock on the wall. She still had several documents to go through, a meeting coming up and more work waiting for her. "Nathan, I understand what you're asking, but I can't discuss this properly right now." His expression changed. "When can we talk?" "Later today, if I get the time. If not, tomorrow." "But Elena..." "I said we'll discuss it later." Nathan was quiet for a moment. Then he nodded. "Okay. I'll wait." He got up and walked toward the door. Before he opened it, he turned around. "Please, Elena. I really need your help." Elena nodded. "I'll hear you out." "Thank you." Nathan left. The door closed behind him. Elena looked at the door for a moment before pulling the next file toward her. She returned to work. The rest of the day passed quickly. One file replaced another. Her phone rang several times. Emails continued to come in, and she moved from one meeting to another. Every time she finished one task, another one was waiting. By late afternoon, Elena sat back in her chair and rubbed her neck. She closed her eyes for a few seconds. A knock sounded on the door. She opened her eyes. Nathan stood by the door with a file under his arm. "Are you finally free?" he asked. Elena laughed softly. "Free? I don't think that word exists in this office." Nathan smiled and walked inside. "I was beginning to think you were avoiding me because I cheated on my wife." Elena shook her head. "I wasn't avoiding you. I've just been busy." "That's what every lawyer says when they don't want to talk." Elena pointed to the chair opposite her. "Come in and sit down." Nathan sat. For a few minutes, they talked about work. Nathan told her about one of the firm's current cases and a difficult client who kept changing his statement. "I still don't understand why that client keeps changing his statement," Elena said as she went through one of the documents. "Because he thinks we won't notice." "We always notice." "That's why I told him to stop wasting our time." Elena looked up. "You actually said that to him?" "I did." "You're going to get yourself in trouble one day." "At least I'll get into trouble honestly." Elena laughed. They continued talking about work, the other lawyers in the firm and the pressure they had all been dealing with. Nathan was one of the few people Elena felt comfortable talking to at work. They had known each other for a while, and she had learned to notice when something was bothering him. After a while, his smile disappeared. "There was something else I wanted to talk to you about," he said. Elena looked up. "Your divorce?" Nathan nodded. She closed the file in front of her. "Okay. Tell me." Nathan took a deep breath. "Victoria wants full custody of the children." "And you?" "I want to remain in their lives." He looked down at his hands. "I'm not asking to take the children away from her. I just want to be able to see them. I want to spend time with them and be there when they need me." "Why is she refusing?" Nathan didn't answer immediately. Elena waited. "How many times?" Nathan kept looking at his hands. "Nathan." He remained quiet. "How many times?" He took a deep breath. "If I'm going to represent you, then you need to be honest with me." Nathan finally looked at her. "More than once." Elena shook her head. "Nathan." "I know." He rubbed his face. "I had affairs. Victoria found out." "What kind of evidence does she have?" Elena asked. "She has messages and pictures." Nathan paused. "Some of the women even contacted her after she found out."