When my mother-in-law gets hospitalized due to cancer, I'm about to pay the hospital bills when I find out that my wife, Lilibeth Saunders, has used our savings to pay off a male escort's debt.

That's when I finally explode in rage.

"Mom has gotten hospitalized because of her illness, and yet you use our money to pay off the debt of a useless piece of trash who relies on his manhood for survival! You really are an evil bitch, Lilibeth Saunders!"

As Lilibeth grips the lingerie, she remains stone-faced.

"How am I the one at fault here? I'm just trying to give my future child a father who still has a future with me! You can always earn money to treat your own mother's illness! Meanwhile, Carl can't do the same thing about his debt! If he doesn't pay off his debt, his life will be ruined!

"You only have yourself to blame, Josiah! After all, you're a good-for-nothing impotent man!"

The entire room falls eerily silent. My friend, who's there to help patch things up between us, looks at me with sympathy in his eyes.

All the criticism surrounding me flashes through my mind at that moment. That's when I realize that it's time for me to end things with Lilibeth once and for all.

What she doesn't know is that she's the infertile one based on the doctor's diagnosis. Also, her mother is the one being hospitalized, not mine.

The room fell into an uncomfortable silence that grated on everyone. Even friends who had been trying to mediate got up and left.

My infertility was hardly a secret. Some people had even thrown it in my face to humiliate me, calling me impotent right to my face.

For the sake of my family, I'd learned to brush it off and pretend it didn't bother me. But hearing those same words come out of Lilibeth Saunders' mouth suddenly made me question whether any of it had been worth it.

Perhaps because I had stayed quiet too long, Lilibeth stood up.

"I won't stop you if you want a divorce, but don't think you're getting any of the money. Carl's counting on it."

Then, she turned to leave.

I drew a deep breath and blocked her path. "Mom's in the hospital right now, waiting for the money to pay for her surgery. This is a matter of life and death. Get the money back. Now."

Lilibeth's patience was wearing thin. "Do you not understand what I'm saying? I don't want my future child's father to end up in prison. What's a year or so for your mother's condition?"

She jerked her arm free from my grip.

Panic crept into my voice, raising it by a pitch. "You're the one who can't have children! You could go through a hundred men and still never get pregnant. Get the money back! It's your mother's cancer we're talking about! Your mother, Rosaline Darnell!"

Already at the door, Lilibeth paused. She turned around slowly, a cold smile curling her lips. Her eyes brimmed with mockery.

"Josiah Gibson, is that really the best excuse you can come up with? What, you think spinning some tale is going to restore your manhood? Groveling over money like this is downright pathetic! Honestly, you disgust me."

The door slammed shut behind her.

I stood there, taking in the messy room, and my gaze eventually settled on the crib out on the balcony. A flood of emotions washed over me.

We'd bought that crib a year into our marriage. Both of us loved children so much that we decided early on to start trying for one. But one year passed, then two, and nothing happened.

Eventually, we went to the hospital for tests.

The results showed that Lilibeth was the one who was infertile.

Considering we were both only children, and sensing that the immense pressure from parents and relatives to have a child would fall on Lilibeth, I made a request to the doctor.

That night, Lilibeth, who rarely cooked, made dinner and spoke to me gently. "It's okay. We can still be very happy even without children."

When I looked into her eyes and saw the love there, I silently vowed to keep the truth buried forever.

As time went on, the fact that we remained childless fueled more and more speculation. Eventually, the whispers turned into something everyone simply accepted as fact.

Once, while Lilibeth and I were strolling in the neighborhood, we overheard someone snickering and calling me impotent.

Lilibeth, who almost never argued with anyone, clenched her fists, stormed over, and demanded they apologize.

I never imagined that all our years together would boil down to Lilibeth calling me a good-for-nothing impotent piece of trash.

I shook my head, pushed my emotions aside, and called Ryan Carter, a friend of mine who was a lawyer, to sort out the divorce papers.

Before I could even finish the call, my phone buzzed with a call from the hospital.

The moment I picked up, Rosaline's shrill voice exploded from the other end. "Why is it so damn hard for you to just pay the bill? Are you trying to let me die here? The doctor's already pushing for the surgery!

"Marrying you was the biggest mistake of Lily's life, you good-for-nothing impotent trash! I swear you want to leave Lily without her mother and any children, just so you can keep her under your thumb forever. You have two hours to bring that money, or I'll make sure Lily divorces you!"

Her venomous words made my temples throb. Ever since the test results came back, Rosaline had grown increasingly cruel, slipping in a dig at me every chance she got. Lately, she'd gotten even worse.

I took a few deep breaths to steady myself.

"Lilibeth and I are getting a divorce," I said flatly. "Go to her for anything to do with your medical condition from now on."

There was a beat of silence on the other end, followed by a burst of mocking laughter.

"You and Lily are getting a divorce? All these years, you've clung to her shamelessly. Lily could find herself two more husbands, and you still wouldn't have the spine to divorce her, you pathetic cuck! If she weren't so soft-hearted, no woman would ever look twice at a barren failure like you!

"Now get over here with the money! Keep running your mouth, and I'll have Lily divorce you for real this time."

She hung up before I could respond.

I had already said what needed to be said. There was no point in explaining further, so I started packing my things. Since I had made up my mind to end the marriage, there was no reason to drag my feet.

After rummaging for a while, I realized my possessions barely filled half a suitcase.

In all our years of marriage, I had poured everything into giving Lilibeth the best I could.

I'd moved us from a cramped rental house to a shabby two-bedroom, then to a spacious flat, and finally to a villa. I'd also filled her once-empty jewelry box with expensive pieces little by little.

But all I had for myself was the modest watch on my wrist, which was worth barely a thousand dollars. Its strap, worn and faded from years of use, carried every memory of us.

I'd always loved watches, but having grown up poor, I'd never been able to afford one.

During those heady early days of our relationship, I had shyly told her about my little dream.

Three months later, she came to me cradling this very watch. "Ta-da! Look what I got you! A watch! Do you like it? I'm going to buy you so many watches someday that we'll need an entire cabinet just for them!"

It wasn't until much later on that I found out she'd scrimped and saved, working a part-time job for three months, just to afford it. After that day, I never changed my watch.

Now, I took a deep breath, slipped the watch off my wrist, and placed it on the nightstand.

When I finally zipped up the suitcase, I noticed the sky had gone dark. Hours had slipped by since Lilibeth had stormed out. Letting go of this relationship, it turned out, wasn't as easy as I'd imagined.

I managed a bitter smile, grabbed my suitcase, and was about to leave when the door suddenly swung open.

A wave of alcohol hit me first. Lilibeth stumbled in, cheeks flushed red, practically draped over a young man who was struggling to keep her upright.

I'd seen this man a couple of times before.

He was Carlson Jenner, the college student Lilibeth claimed she was sponsoring. In reality, he was a male escort at some club.

When Carlson saw me, he held his head high like some kind of victor, pulling Lilibeth closer and fixing me with a look full of contempt.

"Josiah, Lily seemed upset and had too much to drink, so I brought her back," he said, his voice dripping with false respect even as his face gradually dipped toward her neck.

Lilibeth, seeming to feel his breath on her skin, let out a soft, drowsy hum and pressed herself closer to him. Carlson seized the opportunity and swept her up in his arms.

"Josiah, I'll just take Lily to the bedroom first."

The mockery on his face deepened. Then, as if he owned the place, he walked toward the bedroom with the easy familiarity of someone who'd done it a hundred times before.

I had thought I was past caring, but seeing this still ignited a nameless fury inside me. My breath came in shallow tremors, and it took me a long moment to steady myself.

Just as I was about to leave, the bedroom door swung open again. Carlson emerged, loosening his tie. "Hey, Josh, leaving in such a hurry? Aren't you going to stay for a chat?"

The pretense was gone now. His tone was pure condescension.

"I've got nothing to talk to you about," I replied flatly, not breaking my stride.

But unexpectedly, he stepped directly into my path. "What's the rush? Can't you just hear me out?"

Carlson grumbled impatiently, "You don't have to divorce her. Let me be straight with you, man to man.

"I'm just playing around with the old hag. I mean, I can't possibly spend the rest of my life with her, can I? I know how much you love her, so you have my word—I'll just have some more fun with her for another six months. After that, I'll walk away.

"By then, she'll feel guilty as hell and come crawling back to you. You'll have your happy little marriage again."

With an indifferent shrug, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes and even offered me one with a practiced flick.

My first instinct was to stop him—Lilibeth hated the smell of smoke.

"Your sudden willingness to get a divorce really caught me off guard. It makes it hard for me to gracefully bow out, you know? So how's this for a deal? Don't divorce her. Give me six months. And when I'm done, I'll hand you back a perfectly trained and well-behaved wife."

He lit the cigarette. Through the curling smoke, his smile looked twisted and sickening.

I gave him one long, hard look and started walking away again.

Carlson grew anxious. "Hold on! Name your price, then!

"Tell you what, I'll sweeten the deal. I'll train her into a plaything who's up for anything. You've never seen her let loose, have you? I guarantee, by the time I'm done, you can have your way with her, however you like it. Sounds good, doesn't it?"

He gave me a knowing, leering grin that made my stomach turn.

Feeling nothing but revulsion now, I moved to push past him.

But Carlson, frustrated that things weren't going his way, blocked my path. "Josiah, don't be so ungrateful. It's not like you can perform in that aspect anyway. Let me take care of that side of things for you and keep her satisfied. In the long run, it'll make your marriage stronger."

Before he could finish, the bedroom door flew open. "What are you two doing, Carl?"

A flicker of panic crossed Carlson's face before it settled into a smirk.

The moment I saw that smile, I knew exactly what was coming.

The very next instant, he threw himself backward, crashing hard onto the floor.

Hearing the commotion, Lilibeth stumbled out, her face etched with worry.

After taking in the scene in the living room, she lost her cool. "Josiah, what the hell do you think you're doing?"

She rushed to Carlson's side, fussing over him, her eyes filled with concern.