The Divorce

ARIA’S POV

“I want a divorce.”

Those were the first words that fell from my husband’s lips the moment I showed him the video… a proof of his balls deep in another woman's cunt.

There was no apology, no remorse, not even an attempt to lie or give an excuse. Just those four words that are cold enough to split us apart.

The tablet slipped from my fingers and landed on the bed with a dull thud. I forced my hands to my sides, nails digging into my palms as I fought the urge to scream.

“Is it because of her?” I asked, my voice steady even though my chest felt like it was caving in. “Are you asking for a divorce so you could be with my cousin?”

His eyes widened so fast I thought they might pop out of his head.

I hadn’t asked because I needed clarification. I’d already recognized the familiar curve of her legs, the sweetness of her voice, even the exact nail design we once admired on our favorite celebrity in that video.

No. I asked because I needed to see the truth on his face.

And there it was.

Clear as day.

He did it. He cheated on me just three months after I gave him one of my kidneys to save his life.

I blinked back the tears threatening to spill from my eyes. “You cheated on me with Isabella?”

“Aria…” He took a step toward me, hands raised like he could calm the storm in me. “You know what’s at stake. I’ll lose my inheritance to my brother if he has a child before me. We’ve been together for five years and you’ve refused to give me one.”

“I refused?” I shot back at him. “Dean, I begged you,” My voice shook despite my effort to hold it together. “I tried to book appointments so we could find out what was wrong, but you wouldn't let me.”

The silence that followed was so deafening you could hear a pin drop.

For two years, I'd carried the weight of that blame. I’d cried myself to sleep wondering what was wrong with my body. I endured his mother’s sharp comments, even her prayers said a little too much at dinner. I listened as his friends joked about my empty womb and laughed about it like it was the joke of the year.

And I carried it alone.

Every ounce of shame, I carried it until I got tested… and everything came back normal.

So I did something desperate.

I took his semen from a used condom to a fertility clinic… one far away from our usual doctor.

Just before I saw the video, the results came in.

I regretted every choice I'd make for the past five years as the truth stared back at me in black ink.

My husband had a severe low sperm count. One that made natural conception almost impossible.

He shrugged like none of it mattered. “That's because it's obvious that you're the problem, not me.”

Those words hurt almost as much as the betrayal.

I swallowed hard, forcing the words down… but he had to know.

I took a step closer. “Dean, the result…”

With a sharp flick of his wrist, he tossed a document at me. It fluttered through the air before landing at my feet.

“That’s the divorce paper,” he said coldly. “Sign it and leave everything I bought you, including the car. And never come back here again.”

A bitter laugh slipped past my lips as I wiped at my tears. “So you had this planned.”

It wasn't even a question.

There's no point in telling him now, no point in trying to fix this. I've done enough of that for the past two years.

My tears fell freely as I bent down, picked up the paper, and pulled a pen from my bag. My hands shook so badly I had to steady them against my thigh.

Five years, five long years of marriage reduced to a light signature on a piece of paper.

And just like… it was over.

I turned away from him and walked to the closet, pulling out a single box. Inside were only the things I bought with my own money. Nothing else. Nothing tied to him.

Then I walked past him without a word.

“Don’t cry, Aria,” I whispered to myself as I stepped into the hallway. “Don’t waste another tear on a man who barely remembers your birthday.”

The elevator ride down felt endless.

My reflection stared back at me from the mirrored walls… I looked pale, broken but still, I'm standing.

And somewhere inside me, a thought settled deep in my chest.

If he doesn’t see me as worthy to stand beside him… then I’m free. Free to become whoever I want.

My phone felt heavy in my hand as I dialed the number I’d been avoiding for days.

“I thought you'd never call back.” the deep voice on the other end answered instantly. “Have you thought about my offer?”

I closed my eyes and exhaled slowly.

“You see what he did, Aria.” He added. “He doesn't love you.”

I clenched my fist, thinking of the risk I'm about to take, of the life I'm leaving behind,

of the consequences of getting involved with my ex-husband’s brother and his biggest rival.

I almost turned him down and crawled back into that cage I've been in for five years.

But Dean's voice echoed in my head again.

‘You’re the problem, not me.’

My grip tightened around the phone so hard the case cracked.

“I’ll take the offer,” I said to my brother-in-law in my lowest voice. “I'll sign the contract and get married to you.”

Dean divorced me, convinced my cousin would give him the child he needed to secure his inheritance.

Well…

jokes on him.

Let’s see how he plans to do that with a condition as severe as his.

And I’ll be right there…

As the eldest daughter-in-law of the Weston family…

watching closely from his brother’s arms as everything he plans falls apart.