Ava Lane, my wife of five years, suddenly gets addicted to yoga. Whenever she visits the yoga gym, she'll stay there for the whole day.

She often does yoga to the point that she forgets all about the time. As a result, she ditches our daughter, Daisy Statham, at the kindergarten, letting her burst into loud cries out of fear.

As I cradle Daisy in my arms, I decide to confront Ava angrily. But she retains a nonchalant attitude.

"You were the one who told me that I should train my body because of how weak I am! So why are you scolding me for exercising?"

I no longer want to tolerate Ava's behavior, so I leave a divorce agreement behind and take Daisy away.

Everyone accuses me of being dramatic, saying that nothing actually happened to my daughter.

Ava responds by crying about the whole thing in front of my parents. She thinks I'm completely unreasonable.

"If not for the fact that Jordan, a personal trainer, doesn't like my figure, I wouldn't have started learning yoga in the first place! And yet, now he tells me that I can't go for yoga anymore! What am I, his slave? Must I obey his every order?"

I just point at Ava's trembling legs while mocking in return, "I can't do anything about how devoted you are to yoga at the end of the day. Once we're divorced, you might as well spend the rest of your life in that yoga gym!"

Ava Lane frowned down at her trembling legs in their yoga pants. She said carelessly, "This is a normal reaction from doing too much yoga. Aren't you supposed to be a professional trainer? Don't you even know that?"

She put on an angry look and turned to my parents to complain again. "Mom, Dad, I'm telling you. He's definitely got someone on the side. Why else would he keep picking fights with me?"

I let out a cold laugh and pulled my daughter, Daisy Statham, into my arms. She was still sobbing. I wanted to calm her down first before talking to Ava about getting a divorce, but Ava suddenly rushed over and slapped me across the face before I could even say anything.

The burning sting on my cheek made it crystal clear what had just happened. I shot Ava an icy look, but she still wore that cocky, superior expression.

"That slap was to teach you a lesson. See if you dare mess around behind my back again!" she snapped.

My silence, in her eyes, was compromise. She lifted her chin and went on, "I'm not an unreasonable person. Turn your gym into a yoga studio and give it to me. I'll forgive you then."

I felt my heart freeze over when I saw how entitled she was.

Mom and Dad both frowned at me. Mom tried to persuade me gently, saying, "Jordan, don't be so stubborn. Just do what Ava wants. Or do you really want your family to fall apart?"

Ava's eyes filled with smug arrogance when she saw Mom take her side.

Still, I shook my head, remaining steadfast. "I want a divorce."

Dad kicked me hard and jabbed a finger in my face, yelling, "Why are you so damn stubborn, you brat? You've been married for five years! Has Ava ever done wrong by you all this while?"

He wasn't wrong. For five years, Ava and I had been the model loving couple. Once she decided on something, I would never object. That was why I'd agreed without hesitation when she said she wanted to do yoga.

But I never imagined that yoga would become the catalyst that completely destroyed our marriage.

I cut off Mom's attempts to smooth things over and spoke with unwavering resolve, "Don't bother trying to talk me out of it. I'm getting this divorce!"

Ava burst into loud, dramatic sobs before the words had even fully left my mouth. I was afraid she would scare Daisy, so I held Daisy close and walked out.

I didn't expect Ava to chase after us. Her yoga outfit hugged every curve, and her hourglass figure drew every pair of eyes in the neighborhood.

"Jordan Statham, you're a heartless jerk! I stuck with you when you had nothing, and I'm still here now! Now, you want to divorce me for some other woman!" she wailed. "If you don't like me doing yoga, I can quit. Let's not get divorced, okay?"

The neighbors started giving me hostile looks when they saw her humbling herself like so. Someone spoke up on her behalf.

"This guy's really something else. He still wants a divorce when he has such a wonderful wife."

Someone else went even further. He whistled at Ava and gave her a flirty look. "Hey, gorgeous, that body's amazing. Once you dump him, be with me instead."

The words were barely out of his mouth when a man rushed over and shoved him hard to the ground. "Run your mouth again, and I'll cut your tongue out!"

I looked at Neal Anderson's angry face and sneered inwardly. I'd yet to even say anything, and he was already furious. He truly was my ride-or-die buddy… or so it seemed.

He walked over to me, still scowling, and started trying to talk me down. "Jordan, you love Ava so much. Can you really bear to leave her?"

Love? Ava didn't deserve my love.

Neal glanced at Daisy in my arms and went on, "Sure, you own a gym, but it barely makes any money. Plus, you've got a daughter. Will any other woman marry you after the divorce? Besides, Ava already said she'll stop doing yoga. Don't be so stubborn."

I didn't respond. I just took a deep breath and forced my anger back down.

Ava lifted her chin and shot me a sideways glare, like she was waiting for me to apologize. I ignored her completely and hurried off, holding Daisy close.

I didn't expect Ava to suddenly lunge over and try to yank Daisy out of my arms. Daisy had just calmed down, but the scare made her whole body jolt. She squeezed her eyes shut and started wailing.

Ava didn't care at all and just kept yanking at her with brute force. She screamed, "Get down already! Your dad doesn't want you anymore. Why are you still clinging to him?"

I frowned at Ava and snapped, "What the hell is wrong with you, Ava? Can't you see Daisy is crying?"

She shot me a vicious glare. "I put my life on the line bringing Daisy into this world. Why should she stay with you?"

With that, she ignored Daisy's cries of pain and gave her another hard tug. Afraid that she would hurt Daisy, I had no choice but to loosen my grip.

Ava jabbed a finger hard against Daisy's forehead, scolding her nonstop. "Your dad doesn't want you anymore. Why are you still sticking to him like a leech?"

Hearing that, Daisy cried even harder, her body shaking as she sobbed. My heart ached at the sight, and I hurried to comfort her.

But before I could say anything, Neal cut in, "Enough of this, Jordan. Just focus on your life with Ava. Break things off with that other woman."

I turned my head in shock, staring at Neal in disbelief. He knew perfectly well I hadn't cheated, yet he still wanted to slander me. I knew exactly what he was up to, though.

The neighbors who were lapping up the drama gasped when they heard him.

"So he really did cheat. Men only behave if you nail them to the wall, huh?"

"No wonder he doesn't even want a wife this pretty. Some homewrecker out there has him completely bewitched."

Ava completely lost it. She started swinging at me, her slaps landing wherever they could. "I can't believe you actually cheated on me, Jordan! How could you do this to me? Who is that woman? Tell me who she is right now!"

Her angry shouts grated on my nerves, filling me with frustration. On normal days, my life was just the gym and home. I didn't go anywhere else. No one knew that better than Ava, yet the second Neal said a few loaded words, she believed him without hesitation.

In the past, I would've rushed to explain myself, terrified she would misunderstand. But now that I'd already decided to divorce her, I didn't care what she thought of me anymore.

When I stayed silent, Ava turned her anger on Daisy. "You're your daddy's little girl, aren't you? Go on, ask him about this other mother he got you!"

Daisy had already cried herself red in the face from being frightened, and she now started coughing hard. I quickly pulled her into my arms and patted her back gently to calm her down.

Ava still tried to grab at her, but I saw what she was planning and twisted away with Daisy in my arms. Neal stepped forward to block my path, siding with Ava as he tried to talk me down.

"Come on, man. Ava's the one who carried Daisy to term. If you're set on divorcing her, then get your side chick to give you another kid. Besides, you've always wanted a son, haven't you? Daisy's a girl."

I stared at him incredulously, catching the smug glint in his eyes. He had great acting skills—if I hadn't known him for over a decade, I might not have noticed what he was really thinking.

I didn't want to keep arguing with them, so I lowered my voice and gently asked Daisy, "Daisy, do you want to come with me?"

She threw her arms around my neck without hesitation, sobbing her heart out.

Ignoring Ava's nonstop cursing, I covered Daisy's ears and turned to leave. Behind us, Ava screeched, "Everyone says their daughters are total sweethearts, but mine has nothing but a jet-black heart!"

I didn't want to return to a so-called home that only made my stomach churn, so I took Daisy to the break room at my gym. She'd cried herself to sleep, but her body was still shaking with involuntary sobs.

My chest ached as I looked at her. My resolve to divorce Ava only hardened. I immediately contacted a lawyer, had a divorce agreement drafted, and sent it to Ava.

To my surprise, I only saw one gray tick after the message was sent, when there usually were two. It seemed she'd blocked me. With no other options, I printed the divorce papers, signed them, and hired a courier to deliver them to her.

One minute after the delivery was marked complete, I got a text message full of insults from Ava.

"I can't believe you're serious about this nonsense, Jordan. Are you really abandoning me and Daisy for that homewrecker? Fine. Just you wait!"

I ignored her. No matter how she slandered me, this marriage was over for me.

…

I was still asleep when a frantic pounding on the door jolted me awake. Thinking that a gym member had come early to work out, I rushed to open the door.

Unexpectedly, the person standing outside was my mother-in-law, Yvette Moore. She glared at me furiously.

I called out in confusion, "Mom?"

She spat on the floor and shot back, "Don't you dare call me that! You cheat on my daughter and then have the nerve to cause trouble for her? You want a divorce? Fine, but you walk away with nothing, and Daisy stays with Ava!"

I rejected her without hesitation, "No way."

I could accept leaving with nothing, but I would never give up custody of Daisy.

Yvette shot me a vicious glare and barked, "What do you mean, no way? You'll turn into a horrible father once you get a new wife. Do you want Daisy to grow up suffering with you?"

I frowned and tried to reassure her. "I won't ever get married again."

She rolled her eyes. "Talk is cheap. You think your mistress will just agree to that?"

By now, several gym members had already gathered at the entrance, but Yvette stood in their way, blocking them from coming in.

"Jordan Statham cheated on my daughter, but he's using her yoga classes as an excuse to divorce her. Are you sure you have the guts to work out in a place with such a heartless owner? Who knows when he'll just take the money and run?" she announced loudly. "Or is one of you his little side piece?"

Her accusing gaze swept over the crowd, as if she were determined to drag some imaginary mistress into the light.

The members' expressions shifted. The woman, especially, looked disgusted.

"I didn't do anything! Give me a refund right now. I'm not supporting some cheating jerk's business!" one woman cried.

That set off a tidal wave. Everyone started chiming in, demanding refunds.

Yvette fanned the flames. "Exactly. Get your money back. Let's see how he buys luxury goods for his mistress when he's broke!"

I stared at her incredulously. I hadn't even cheated, so how was I buying another woman luxury goods?

But the gym members only got more worked up when they heard that.

"Oh, my God! So, he's been using my money to keep his mistress? That's disgusting."

"Hurry up and give me my money back, or I'm hauling your equipment out!"

Once someone said that, everyone suddenly seemed eager to act. Yvette seized the moment and egged them on. "Do it. Take it all! Move everything out!"

With her backing them up, they ignored me completely, brushing past my attempts to stop them as they carried my gym equipment away piece by piece.

Yvette watched my confusion and helplessness with obvious satisfaction, a smug smile tugging at her lips. "Serves you right. This is what you get for breaking my daughter's heart!"

I glared at her, vision going red at the edges. My voice trembled as I demanded, "You keep saying I betrayed Ava. What proof do you have?"

She refused to answer me, turning instead to every passerby she saw, repeating the story that I'd cheated. Only after the gym had been stripped almost bare did she finally look pleased enough to leave.