My live-in husband had low sperm motility. The day our ninety-ninth round of IVF failed, I finally broke.

"Forget it. It hurts too much. I can't do this anymore."

Before he could respond, the nanny attending to me let out a piercing shriek. "Mr. Sanchez is the sole heir to Henson Sterling Group! How can he not have a son?"

"The Sanchez family was unlucky enough to marry a barren hen like you. Now you can't even endure a little pain? How shameless can you be?"

She stood there, righteous as a saint, as if I were some unforgivable sinner.

But Brendan Sanchez was the one with the fertility problem.

I barely managed a bitter twitch of my lips before Brendan quietly stepped in front of the nanny, shielding her behind him.

"Debbie, Cindy just cares too much about me. She speaks without thinking. Don't hold it against her."

Then his large, well-defined hand patted my shoulder in consolation, a flash of tenderness crossing his eyes. "Does it hurt that bad? Let me go out and get you something to help you recover."

"Mr. Sanchez!" Cindy Pruitt stomped her foot, her face twisted with exaggerated heartache. "You're too good for her! Does she even know how badly you want a child? She's the one who can't get pregnant, and now she can't even handle a little suffering!"

Cindy scoffed. "If I were her, I'd have died of shame. Married all these years and she still hasn't given you a single child. She's useless!"

The dark amusement in my eyes vanished in an instant. "Cindy Pruitt, is it? I'm officially informing you that you're fired."

"You think you have that power?" Cindy didn't flinch. She planted her hands on her hips and looked down at me. "Mr. Sanchez hired me. Fire me? You don't have the authority."

"Enough." Before I could speak, Brendan cut in with a low, sharp reprimand. "Cindy, go pick up some supplements for Debbie. You're not needed here right now."

The next second, Cindy shot me one last provocative glance and sauntered out the door without a care in the world.

The room fell deathly quiet.

"Brendan Sanchez, explain something to me. Since when did you become the heir to Henson Sterling Group?"

...

Brendan's flawless face was etched with helplessness.

"Debbie, Cindy just misunderstood on her own..."

I didn't soften. I glanced at the message my assistant had just sent to my phone. "Cindy Pruitt. Middle school education. No formal domestic service training of any kind."

I flung the phone down in front of him. "Brendan Sanchez, this is who you're cheating on me with?"

His expression changed instantly, jaw clenched, words grinding through his teeth. "Debbie Henson, after everything, you're still questioning my loyalty?"

"I don't love you? Then why would I have married into your family?"

"Because of this arrangement, I barely speak to my parents anymore. Every relative I have laughs at me behind my back."

Yes. On that count, Brendan truly had been wronged. That was exactly why, when he said he wanted a child, I put myself through ninety-nine rounds of IVF.

I tapped the table and looked at him squarely. Despite everything, something in my chest still gave way.

"Fire Cindy Pruitt, and I'll pretend none of this ever happened."

Brendan had just turned thirty. His handsome face was smooth, unmarked by a single line. Yet for Cindy Pruitt alone, his brows knotted into a deep, tortured furrow.

"Debbie, can you please not put me in this position?"

"Cindy and I really have nothing going on. She's a village girl who barely finished school. You're a graduate from a top university, a CEO who commands boardrooms. I'd have to be out of my mind to have anything with her."

"Besides, it's not like you actually suffered. She said a few words to you. Is that really worth making a young girl lose her job?"

A beat of silence. Then his phone rang. He glanced at me, looking torn. "Debbie, I can't stay with you. Something urgent came up at the office. I need to go."

"Can you manage on your own? I can stay if you need me to."

I waved him off. "Work comes first. Go handle it. Call me if you can't sort it out."

I sat alone for a few minutes, then ignored the doctor's orders to rest and walked out of the clinic.

Right there, in the coffee shop by the entrance, Brendan and Cindy sat side by side.

Cindy was gently blowing on his coffee to cool it. "Mr. Sanchez, you've had it so hard. You gave that old woman the title of Mrs. Sanchez, and she can't even bother to show her husband a little kindness."

Brendan didn't pull away. He sighed. "If only everyone were as gentle as you. Debbie Henson... never mind. Forget I said anything."

Watching the two of them nestled together like that, the pain I'd been fighting so hard to ignore surged back, sharp and relentless, like a thousand needles driving into my skin all at once.

I pulled out my phone. The color had drained from my face as I dialed a number. "Fire Cindy Pruitt. I want her blacklisted across the entire industry." My voice didn't waver. "And start consolidating my assets. I want a divorce."

That evening, Brendan showed up with Cindy in tow, ready for a fight.

"Debbie, you promised me you wouldn't fire Cindy. How could you go back on your word?"

I tossed the photos of the two of them at the café onto the table.

"Brendan, who lied first? You really want to play this game?"

The color drained from his face. Before he could respond, Cindy stepped forward with a scornful laugh. "Debbie, when are you going to get it through your head? The only reason you can stand here with any authority is because of Mr. Sanchez."

"He's the one who gave you money to spend. He's the one who gave you a job. Everything you have was handed to you by Mr. Sanchez out of charity."

"Wanting it all and giving nothing back. Didn't your parents ever teach you manners?" She tapped her chin in mock thought, then flashed a saccharine smile. "Oh, right. How does the saying go? Born with a mother, raised without one. That's you, isn't it?"

I froze. My gaze snapped to Brendan.

My mother had passed away when I was young. It had always been a wound I carried deep inside. I never imagined Brendan would share it with Cindy like it was gossip.

My arm shot up. My palm was already swinging toward Cindy's face.

The next instant, Brendan's hand clamped around my wrist like a vise. Fury blazed in his eyes. "Debbie, lay one finger on her. I dare you."

My body was still weak from just being discharged. I had no time to brace myself before he flung me to the ground.

"You—" He faltered, then bent down to scoop me up. I thrust out a hand to stop him.

"Brendan, you hurt me for her?"

He pressed his fingers against the bridge of his nose, a flash of weariness crossing his face. "Debbie, can you grow up? You're the one who tried to hit her first."

"Think about what you've done. You got jealous over nothing and cost an innocent girl her job. Now you're trying to assault her. When did you become so unreasonable?"

"Here's what's going to happen. You apologize to Cindy, then arrange a position for her at the company. We put this whole thing behind us."

A laugh tore out of me, sharp and bitter. "She barely finished middle school. You think she's qualified to work at my company?"

"It's fine, Mr. Sanchez." Cindy latched onto Brendan's arm, her voice soft and pitiful. "I don't want you getting in trouble because of me. It's just that I can't make rent anymore, and my landlord kicked me out..."

"Cindy, don't worry about a thing." Brendan pressed her firmly onto the couch. "This is your home now. Stay as long as you want."

"But..." Cindy trailed off, though her eyes kept drifting toward me, as if to say, What about her?

"She owns plenty of properties. She won't miss this one."

Brendan glanced at me, his tone hardening. "Debbie, this is settled. Don't make a scene."

"Sure."

I let out a cold laugh and pulled out the documents I'd prepared long ago. "Sign this, and I promise I won't bother the two of you ever again."

Brendan's lips curved into a smug grin. "Well, look at that. At least you know how to behave. Preparing an apology gift for Cindy. Though if it's anything cheap, I won't accept it on her behalf—" His eyes dropped to the papers. "Divorce papers?"

His pupils contracted. His head snapped up. "Debbie, you want to divorce me?"

"Cut the crap and sign."

"Considering everything we've been through, I've left you a fair share of assets. Enough to live comfortably for the rest of your life."

But before Brendan could say a word, Cindy shot to her feet and ripped the divorce agreement to shreds. "Debbie, you gold-digging tramp! Have you no shame?"

She was practically frothing at the mouth. "You're leaving Mr. Sanchez a couple of properties while you swallow Henson Sterling Group whole? How dare you! That company is Mr. Sanchez's life's work!"

Watching her little performance, I almost laughed. If she only knew that Henson Sterling Group was mine, and the man she'd schemed so hard to get was nothing more than a live-in husband with no stake in any of it. Now that would be entertaining.

"Debbie, will you stop with this nonsense!" Brendan gripped my shoulders with both hands. "I'm going to chalk today up to you being impulsive. But if you bring this up again, I will be genuinely angry."

"Although... you really should learn a thing or two from Cindy. She's gentle, she's considerate, and she'd never fly off the handle the way you do."

There was no getting through to him. I didn't bother trying anymore. My lawyers were already preparing to file.

I gathered my things, ready to leave this house I'd lived in for years. It was time to go home to the family estate and look after my parents.

Brendan saw me packing. He didn't stop me. "Just stay at a hotel for a few days. Once Cindy finds a place of her own, you can move back. After all, it was your little tantrum that cost her the job. You owe her that much."

The moment he left, Cindy dropped the act entirely. "Oh my, isn't Mrs. Sanchez supposed to be so tough? What happened? Slinking off with your tail between your legs?"

"Without Mr. Sanchez, you're just another washed-up old woman. I really don't understand what you've been so high and mighty about all this time."

She taunted me, waggling her ring finger in my face. On it sat a diamond ring. The diamond ring. The one Brendan had used to propose to me.

I didn't indulge her for a second. My palm cracked across her face, and I seized her hand, wrenched the ring off her finger, and tossed it straight into the toilet. "What's mine gets thrown away before it ever goes to you. And for the record, everyone calls me Ms. Henson. Nobody has ever dared call me Mrs. Sanchez."

"Debbie!"

Behind me, Cindy's shrieking curses didn't let up.

The next day, I went to pick up a custom order.

My father's birthday gala was coming up soon. I could never get comfortable in those couture gowns, so months ago I'd commissioned a bespoke suit at considerable expense.

Standing in front of the familiar storefront, I felt a pang. The last time I'd been here, Brendan had come with me. He'd said that once I put on that suit, I'd look so striking he'd have to fight off every man in the room.

And now, in the blink of an eye, he was the one tangled up with another woman.

"Ms. Henson, your suit was already picked up by Mr. Sanchez."

Why would he take my suit?

Baffled, I floored the accelerator and drove straight to Brendan's place.

One look was all it took. I knew exactly what he'd done. The suit that belonged to me was on Cindy's body. She stood in front of the mirror admiring herself, then turned to Brendan with a simpering smile. "Brendan, don't I look so much better in this than that old hag Debbie?"

Brendan dipped his head and tapped the tip of her nose, indulgent as ever. "You're young. Of course everything looks good on you."

A few days apart and she's already calling him by pet names. I could have laughed.

"Sure, it looks good," I said, stepping forward. "But I wonder if people would still compliment you once they found out the suit was stolen."