Hello

Thanks for requesting me!

Dear John,

I can understand that you may not want to hear from me, but if our friendship was worth anything, please grant me five more minutes of your time and read this letter.

Over the years we knew each other i felt honoured that you allowed our working relationship to develop into friendship. I always respected you for that and the way you treated me as more than just an employee. Allowing me to socialise with your wonderful family was an honour and a great pleasure.

Regarding the recent events over the money i can only begin to describe how utterly distraught i am because of what i did to you and our friendship. I think though that my distress is probably only half what you are feeling. I can understand that you are angry with me and feel betrayed. You are right to feel this way; what i did was inexcusable.

I would not insult you by trying to make excuses for my actions; please believe me though that my respect and admiration for you were genuine and whilst my actions may appear contrary to this, they were foolish acts and i have to face up to the fact that i could do this to someone as dear to me as yourself.

I understand that no apology can ever compensate for the wrong i have done you, your family and your business. All i ask is that over time you allow me to repay the money and try to remember that weakness is a human frailty; i am only human but have failed to behave in a civilised manner. I am, however, the same person you always knew. The stories we told each other, the times we laughed together were, and are still, genuine events in our lives. I hope one day you will find it in yourself to forgive me my transgressions and view me on the balance of the whole of my life and not a number of individual events where i utterly failed.

With kindest regards and sincerest apologies,

J Putney.

=======

There’s the first draft - let me know if/how it needs adjusting.

Regards,

Duncan