My Husband Chose His Ex-Wife Every Time, So I Chose Divorce

The moment my husband's ex-wife sent him a message, he'd reply in a heartbeat.

At first it only happened during the day.

Later, even when we were being intimate at night, he'd get up the instant one of her messages came in.

I couldn't hold back my anger anymore.

"Max Stephens, if you care about her this much, why don't you just go live with her instead."

He didn't even lift his head.

Only after he set the phone down did he look at me, frowning.

"She's out of town right now and things aren't easy for her, so she only asks me when something comes up. Don't throw a childish tantrum."

He promised me over and over that he'd never do it again.

But the very next second, his phone rang again.

He glanced at it once, his face filled with worry, and hurried out.

That was her ringtone. His ex-wife's alone.

Watching him walk away, I was suddenly exhausted.

01

Late in the night, the mattress beside me dipped, and Max pulled me into his arms.

I checked my phone. It was already past midnight.

He tucked his chin against my forehead the way he always did and murmured,

"Ivy forgot to walk her dog, and she's afraid it can't hold it much longer."

"She's out of town, so she asked me to go walk it for her."

"I figured, if I can help, I should. You won't be upset, right?"

But he said that same line every time.

Last month, a storm broke out one night.

And because of one phone call from Ivy Larson, Max drove out into the downpour to pick her up.

I tried to keep him there.

"Max, can you not go tonight? I'm scared…"

I hadn't finished before he cut me off.

"Ivy just got back from out of town, and it's pouring this hard."

"She's a woman on her own. I can't leave her like that."

"Be good, okay? I'll come straight back to you the moment I've picked her up!"

But he forgot the one thing I feared most was thunder.

That night I curled up alone under the covers, my face drained of color, and rode out the lightning and the storm.

And just last week, we'd made plans to have dinner with my parents.

We'd both already gotten to the restaurant.

Then one phone call from Ivy Larson, and he turned and walked out.

He left me and my parents sitting there, and the look on their faces went sour.

Afterward, he explained it to me.

"Ivy's away on a business trip and couldn't stop worrying about her place."

"I know how her plants need to be cared for, so she asked me to water them for her."

It took him a lot of time and effort to smooth things over with me and my parents.

Listening to his even breathing beside me, I opened his phone and went into his messages with Ivy Larson.

Right then, the newest message popped up on the screen.

【Max, thank god I have you. I wouldn't know what to do otherwise!】

【Your wife won't be upset, will she? Please don't let me be the reason you two fight.】

I kept scrolling up through the history.

Only then did I realize their chats had never once stopped in ten years.

Even after he and I married in the third year, their messages grew less frequent, but they never broke off.

Even on our wedding day, Max posted something online, and his ex-wife liked it.

And their chats only grew more and more frequent.

Small things, like not understanding an instruction manual. Big things, like asking him to go check on her parents.

And Max, without a single exception, said yes to all of it.

Looking at those messages, I was suddenly exhausted.