Edward Sullivan, Dexter Sullivan's grandfather, thought I could cure Dexter's mysophobia.

But it didn't work, no matter how many times I had slept with Dexter.

Upon learning that, Edward wrote me a check for 3 billion dollars and sent me abroad.

In the next few years, I spent countless fun nights clubbing in a foreign land. When my best friend's birthday rolled around, I flew back home.

At the party, people teased me. "Are you back to rekindle your love with Major General Sullivan?"

"Everyone knows you're the forbidden topic when he's around. He has to cry himself to sleep every night with your stuff in his arms."

Dexter was sitting opposite me quietly, his eyes red-rimmed.

I twirled the ring on my ring finger and chuckled, "I'm married and have children."

My grandpa and Edward went way back. Before Grandpa died, he worried that nobody would take care of me once he was gone. So, he invited Dexter over and got him drunk.

Dexter and I slept together that night. Then Grandpa pressured him into marrying me, leveraging an old favor owed to our family.

That was how I ended up marrying my dream man, Dexter—the famous neat freak who always kept women at arm's length.

On our wedding night, Dexter sterilized me inside out.

I knelt before him, tears staining my face, as he was fully dressed in his uniform.

"Dexter, please stop... It's swollen."

He continued cleaning my pussy, his touches even harsher.

"I'm not going to fuck you until you're clean," he said, his voice cold. "Of course, you can tell me to leave."

I gritted my teeth and took his abuse silently.

From that day on, the first of every month was reserved for our private physical connection.

In the five years that we'd been married, that day was the only time I'd be granted access to his bedroom. He had guarded the place like a restricted military area.

I had to go through a strict sterilization procedure before being allowed to have sex with him, and the whole encounter felt entirely obligatory and rigidly controlled.

He even counted how many times he thrusted in me. On the count of 50, he'd draw his dick out and leave.

I'd taken the humiliation without a complaint, telling myself that at least Dexter wouldn't cheat.

But soon I realized I was wrong.

At a small get-together, I overheard the spouses of Dexter's soldiers.

"It's said that Major General Sullivan has been keeping a young girl on the side. He adores her and has given her several of his properties."

"There's more. He got that girl a job in the army. Made her a captain, though she knew nothing. He even gave her a personal seal that held the force of law."

"I heard that the girl is spoiled rotten. He allowed her to go into his office. They have fooled around there. And she often comes inside and kisses him while he's having a meeting."

I chuckled and muttered, "No way. These are just rumors."

Nobody knew better than I how serious Dexter's mysophobia was.

I had gone out of my way to bridge the distance between us.

I'd sneak into his room and put on his shirt. I'd lie in his bed, naked. I even danced for him in sexy lingerie.

But every time, Dexter would push me away coldly and change everything in his room before sterilizing the room again.

The most hurtful one was that time in the gym. He was taking a break between his practices, and I kissed him. My lips barely touched the corner of his mouth. Yet, he shoved me away.

"Do you know how many germs there are in a man's saliva?" he said flatly. "Kissing is basically swapping saliva, and it's disgusting. I'd never do it.

"Bertha, stop trying to cross the line. I don't care how horny you are—I won't touch you. You're too filthy." His tone was flat, but the words hit hard, leaving my face pale.

After that day, I gave up and followed all his rules dutifully.

The night of the get-together, the building of Dexter's dorm had a fire.

I ran over in a panic. As I was about to run into the burning building to find him, he showed up at the fire escape with only his trousers on.

There was a woman in his arms. She was wrapped in his uniform jacket.

He looked scared and relieved as he'd just received a lost treasure. Then, he kissed her.

I was stunned, my world collapsing around me.

People were scrambling. Someone pushed me and I fell to the ground. Feet stamped on me.

I watched Dexter carry the girl to his jeep carefully.

When he was with me, he'd disinfect himself after even the slightest touch. But at that moment, he actually leaned down and took the girl's bleeding finger into his mouth!

All the humiliations in the past five years hit me at once. My heart broke.

It hit me that he could be intimate with a woman like any normal man—he could change for someone.

Just not for me.

As the girl's finger stopped bleeding, he fastened her seatbelt for her fondly. They left together in his car.

My hand subconsciously went to my belly, and the pain was clear in my eyes.

I was pregnant.

It was meant to be a surprise for him on our fifth anniversary.

But I'd realized—Dexter didn't love me, so there was no way he would love our baby.

Dexter never came home that night.

And I stayed up all night.

The next morning, I went out and did two things.

First, I went to the hospital and made an appointment for an abortion.

Second, I went to the courthouse and filed for divorce.

With the divorce papers in hand, I went to find Dexter. But someone knocked me out from behind.

When I woke up, I was sitting in a mine area with Wade Osborn, my brother.

My heart nearly stopped. I hugged Wade closer and didn't dare to move a muscle.

The footsteps of military boots got closer and closer.

I snapped my head up and saw Dexter. He was striding over with his guards. He eyed me coldly and asked, "Where is Ally?"

Confused, I replied, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Really?" Dexter scoffed. "You saw Ally last night. Today, you asked Wade to kidnap her! Bertha, how dare you!"

My face went pale. He saw me last night!

He must have seen how heartbroken I was. And he'd seen me get stomped. Yet, he did nothing.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and said, "I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. Maybe there's a misunderstanding."

Wade woke up and said weakly, "Leave Bertha out of this. I did it. Dexter, let her go..."

As he spoke, I finally noticed that his mouth was full of blood as his front teeth were knocked off.

My eyes turned red. I scowled, "Dexter! We've been married for five years! Wade is my only family after Grandpa died! How could you hurt him?"

My words didn't affect Dexter at all as he continued gazing at me coldly. "Then you should think about how important Ally is to me when you hurt her."

He glanced at his watch and said curtly, "You have one minute to tell me where she is. My man will guide you out.

"Once the time is up, we'll leave, and you can die in this mine area."

Wade was barely conscious, blood running out of his mouth. "I'll tell you. She's in my family's old warehouse in the south of the city.

"Dexter, I did this on my own. Let Bertha go."

Dexter stared at him for a few seconds and motioned his guard to check it out.

He beckoned another guard to enter the mine area with a mine detector. The guard came over and dragged me out.

Dexter looked at me coldly, "Take this as a lesson. Do your job as Mrs. Sullivan dutifully. Do not come near Ally again."

I struggled in the hands of his guard, crying over my shoulder. "Wade! Release me! Bring him out, too!"

Dexter blocked my view and said darkly, "Wade hurt her. He needs to be punished."

Then, he left with his guards. Wade was left in the mine area.

I dashed toward him like a madman. Wade shook his head frantically. "Bertha, go! Don't come back!"

Squaring my jaw, I ran inside and managed to pull Wade out of the mine area three seconds before it exploded.

Wade somehow found the strength to tackle me down.

With a loud sound, we were blown away by the heat wave.

Blood ran down from the corner of Wade's mouth. He said in a breathy voice, "Divorce Dexter. I'll try my hardest to support our family business. I'll take care of you..."

I hugged Wade tightly, tears dropping on his face. "Don't worry, Wade. I have the divorce papers ready. All I need is his signature."

"No need to go to him." Wade took out a seal. "Alison dropped this. It's Dexter's seal. With this, you don't need his signature."

Without thinking, I took out the divorce papers, which had blood on them, and stamped them with Dexter's seal.

After bringing Wade to a hospital, I went to the courthouse.

Once the procedure was done, Dexter and I would be strangers.

I hurried back to the hospital to look after Wade. Dexter's deputy was standing outside Wade's room.

He said robotically, "Mrs. Sullivan, General Sullivan sent me to give you a message. Your marriage is a business deal. Know your place. If you mess with Alison again, the Osborn family will be kicked out of the city."

"OK," I replied in a hoarse voice, my fingernails digging into my palms.

Nobody knew my secret. I'd had a crush on Dexter since I saw him in a military parade. I was only 18, and he just got a promotion.

Before I married him, Edward told me a secret. When Dexter was little, he saw his mother cheating in his family's house. It traumatized him deeply.

Edward gave me the key to that house and said he wanted me to help Dexter overcome his trauma.

Later, Dexter saw that key in my purse and put me in lockdown for a month.

I smiled bitterly and fished out the key. It was time to return it.

The scene I walked in on when I opened the door broke me.

Clothes were scattered on the floor, forming a trail to the bedroom, the forbidden area.

I was rooted to the spot as I heard Alison ask between gasps, "Dexter, why do you bring me here?"

Through the gap of the open door, I saw them in bed together. Although they were under the cover, I knew they were in the middle of an intense sex.

Dexter kissed her affectionately and said, "This place is special to me. Thank you, Ally."

I turned and scurried away.

The next day, I went to the hospital and got an abortion myself.

The two-month-old fetus was taken out of my body.

I spent the following days taking care of Wade in the hospital.

On the day Dexter got decorated, I got a call from him. "Ally prepared a party for me. You must be there."

I walked into the ballroom and immediately saw them. Alison had looped her arm around Dexter's as they greeted the guests like a couple.

I noticed people's curious gazes and low whispers. Those words pierced me like the smallest needles. "Major General Sullivan never hosted a celebration party or appeared at one with a lady. I bet Ms. Fleming is the one for him."

"It's said that she fixed Major General Sullivan's mysophobia. Looks like she's going to be the new Mrs. Sullivan."

I stood there. My face went pale as I steeled myself against the gazes.

It was my husband's celebration party. Yet, I spent all night in a corner.

I watched him take care of Alison and told every guest that she was his loved one and gave her his medal. I was detached like a stranger.

Later, Dexter brought Alison up to the stage with him as he was about to make a speech. The slideshow of his achievements stopped and was replaced by a video.

It was me dancing an erotic dance in a bunny suit in a dark room.

In the video, I was gazing at Dexter with hooded eyes, seducing him while he watched me with a blank expression.

The crowd roared.

I felt my blood freeze.

The video was real. I sneaked into the bedroom to seduce Dexter.

Only Dexter had access to pull the surveillance footage.

Immediately, I was swarmed by shocked looks and scornful remarks. "Bertha carries herself with a dignified manner. Who knows she can be such a slut in private?"

"You see that? Major General Sullivan wasn't tempted at all. So pathetic."

With a broken look, I met Dexter's eyes through the ballroom.

He simply stood there, not showing a sign to disrupt the scene.

I got it.

Because I called Alison a home wrecker. He introduced her to everyone and showed people this humiliating video to taunt me.

I stared at that man on the stage and bit my lip, tasting blood in my mouth.

Despite the eyes on me, I walked over to the console desk and unplugged the machine.

I turned and started walking away. Then, Alison said.

"Bertha.

"I'm sorry. It must be a mix-up. You're not mad at me, are you?"

Dexter spoke up, too, "What happened here tonight won't get out. Don't worry."

Without a word, I turned and left.

However, my video hit the trending list that night.

Countless people flooded my page, leaving insults.

I instantly called people to take it off the ranking.

But it returned to the trending ranking every time.

The next day, I broke into Dexter's office and slammed my phone on his desk.

With a pale face, I asked, "You're behind the trending list, aren't you? Dexter, you said nothing would get out of that ballroom!"

In contrast to my seething attitude, Dexter was calm. He put down his pen and leaned back in his chair. "You walked out of the party. Ally stayed up all night since she couldn't gain your forgiveness."

I looked at him in disbelief, my whole body shaking in anger. Tears rolled down my face uncontrollably. "Because I didn't forgive her, you decided to ruin my life?

"Does our marriage mean nothing to you?

"I'm just a tool that is at your beck and call? Or am I just the dirt that you can trample on?

"Dexter, I'm a woman, too! What about my pride? My dignity?!"

I shouted firmly. Dexter saw the broken look on me and suddenly had a strange feeling.

Before he could think about it, his phone rang.

He answered the call, and I heard Alison sob on the other end. "Dexter, Wade tried to force himself on me. I used your gun to defend myself... It went off...and shot him..."

The news struck me like lightning. My legs gave out, and I fell to the floor.

Dexter shot me a cold glare and said to Alison, "Calm down. I'm on my way."

There was a pool of blood in the storage room next to the hospital.

I grabbed a janitor and asked, "What happened?"

He stuttered nervously, "I-I don't know. A man got shot in the chest, I think..."

"Where's he?"

"ER."

I dashed to the ER.

Outside of the operating room, Alison was sitting on the bench, hugging her knees with a pale face.

"Ally!" Dexter strode over, walking past me. He picked Alison up and put her in his lap, looking her over carefully. "Are you hurt?"

Alison threw her arms around him and cried, "Dexter, you're here! I'm so scared..."

"What happened?" I disrupted her rant, my voice shaking.

Alison was shaking in Dexter's arms. She looked at me with watery eyes. "You looked so mad last night. So, I came over this morning to apologize.

"I ran into Wade in front of the hospital. He called me a home wrecker and threatened to rape me...

"He said Dexter wouldn't want me anymore afterwards..."

She seemed shellshocked as she buried her head in Dexter's chest, shivering. "I struggled and tried to break free. When I remembered Dexter put a gun in my bag so that I could defend myself, I took it out...

"I was just trying to scare him off... But the gun went off...

"Dexter, I'm terrified. What if he dies..."

Dexter tightened his arms around Alison, emitting a dark aura. "Serves him right! How dare he attack you?!"

It shattered my last hope for him like a sharp knife.

I stood there and felt my blood freeze like I was dumped into icy water.

The door opened, and a doctor walked out. "We saved him. He's lucky that the bullet missed his heart.

"However, it hit his spine. It's not looking good. He's likely to be paralyzed for the rest of his life."

I stumbled backward, finally breaking down. My eyes were red as tears rolled down my cheeks. "As long as he's alive."

Wade was in the ICU, and I sat by his bedside, not sleeping a wink.

He was a few years younger. Although he liked to joke, he respected women. I didn't believe he'd do anything like that.

So, I went to the police station.

Soon, the police came to investigate the case.

But Wade was still in a coma. The storage room was a blind spot in the hospital's surveillance. There was no eyewitness.

Alison's accusation against him was very compelling.

The office called. "Ms. Osborn, Alison made a post, accusing Mr. Osborn of attempting to rape her!

"Major General Sullivan used his official account to like and retweet the post. The internet believes Mr. Osborn is guilty.

"The Osborn Group's stock price took a dive. We lost billions overnight. Many projects are postponed, and employees are quitting. We're on the verge of bankruptcy!"

I sat in the dark room, my eyes filled with tears and my knuckles turning white and shaking.

That night, Wade was sent to a regular ward.

I stayed in his room and hired bodyguards to watch over him 24/7.

As the situation was spinning out of control and the Osborn Group was about to go bankrupt, Wade regained consciousness.

He gave the police a recording on his phone. It had recorded what happened that day.

I pulled strings to send the recording to the trending list.

It started with Alison's taunting, her voice thick with malice, "Wade, let me tell you something.

"Bertha's slutty video is all over the internet. Everyone in our circle knows she's a whore now!"

"Shut up!" Wade scowled. "Bertha and Dexter are husband and wife! What about you? You seem so proud to be a home wrecker!"

There was a slap. The darkness in Alison's voice thickened. "You got dropped off in a mine area for sending me away. Imagine what Dexter would do if he knew you tried to rape me."

Then, there were some rustling sounds.

Wade asked warily, "Alison, what are you doing?"

Alison merely screamed, "Help! Wade, no!"

The recording ended with a loud noise of a gunshot.

Unlike my dancing video, the recording was wiped from the internet within 30 minutes. And I couldn't send it out anymore.

At the same time, the police had released their report, declaring that Wade was innocent.

I immediately sued Alison for defamation and murder.

One hour later, Dexter came to Wade's ward.

His gaze was cold. The epaulettes on his shoulder reflected a cold glint.

"Bertha, drop the charges against Ally and sign an understanding.

"She knew she did wrong. I'll punish her and keep her out of your hair."

I wiped my tears off and said aloofly, "No, Dexter. I won't do that."

His expression turned thunderous. "What do you want?"

I gazed at him coldly. There wasn't a trace of love in my eyes anymore. "I want Alison to be tried and punished."

Dexter scoffed and made an offer he knew I couldn't refuse. "Bertha, I have 50% of the Osborn Group's shares."

Wade and I both looked stunned.

Dexter said, "In exchange for your family business, drop the charges and give me an understanding.

"If you refuse, I'll destroy the Osborn Group."

I willed myself not to cry and looked at Wade. In the end, I nodded. "OK.

"But you'll give me all the shares you have and 85 million dollars to make up for the company's loss in this scandal.

"Once you deliver, I'll sign an understanding.

Dexter answered without thinking, "Deal."

For the next week, Wade stayed in the hospital to recover while I took over his work to stabilize the Osborn Group.

Luckily, it was a high-profile case. The recording and the police announcement convinced people, making our reputation bounce back.

With Dexter's money, the Osborn Group was saved.

On the day he signed over his shares, I gave him the understanding and went to the police station with him to drop the charges.

Once we left the police station, I hurried away.

"Bertha," Dexter called from behind. I was surprised.

Something felt off. Dexter couldn't shake the feeling.

"Ally is young and made a mistake. You have a hard time. Sorry.

"After this, I'll make it up to you in the future."

I didn't even look back and just kept walking.

I got into my car and finally stopped suppressing my laugh. I laughed so loud and sadly.

In the end, I was sobbing, tears soaking my steering wheel.

"Dexter, there's no future between us anymore.

"I won't love you anymore.

"Dexter, I hate you."

I went back to our house and packed all my things, not leaving a trace of myself there.

In the afternoon, I got a call from the courthouse, telling me the divorce was done. At the same time, I got an acceptant letter from Oxford University.

I went to the courthouse and got the divorce certificate. I mailed it to Dexter's address in the army.

Two days later, Wade was discharged. We got on a flight and left the country.

Meanwhile, Dexter's orderly knocked and came in with a parcel. He put it on Dexter's desk and said, "Major General Sullivan, this is for you."