Page 10 of Ruthless Lullaby

"I came here to –" I hear him gulp. "Well, you know, I come here sometimes."

I'm taken aback. "No, I do not," I say. "You never told me. You go to Marble Monkey sometimes?"

"Yes," he says. "I do. "

"Since when?"

"Since… I was sixteen or so."

My eyes widen. "Since you weresixteen?And why did you never mention this during our two-and-a-half years together?"

"Because… because there was no need," he explains. "I only came here today because of the IVF money."

What?

He went to a casino because of our IVF money?

"Maurice, " I say, trying my best to not sound pissed-off. "Tell me, in coherent sentences, what the hell is happening."

"Okay," he starts, seemingly sobering up a little. "I only had half the amount for your IVF treatment."

"Ok, and then?"

"I panicked. I knew we needed to have all the money by Monday, so…" He goes silent again.

“So?” I urge him. “So, what?”

Maurice continues, "so, I took a chance. I came to Marble Monkey to double it, and… I lost the money.”

I try to maintain my composure. "Are you telling me that you went to a casino to double our IVF money and you gambled it away?” I nearly yell at him. “Is that what you’re saying?”

“Yes, Mindy,” he says. Silence hangs between us for a moment. “But it doesn't matter anyway. It’s over,” he adds.

“Over? What do you mean?” I press for an answer.

More silence.

“Maurice,whatis over?” The tears start to well up in my eyes as I repeat myself.

"Us, Mindy. Our relationship,” he says flatly. “It’s over.”

I'm struggling to process his words. He lost the IVF money and now he’s breaking up with me? My mind feels cloudy and overwhelmed as I imagine a future without him, without children.

“Why? What happened?” I whisper, trying to process this.

Silence again.

“It's… your sex drive, Mindy,” he confesses. “I can't keep up. I tried but I just can’t.”

“You're breaking up with me because of my sex drive?" My voice shakes with hurt and disbelief.

Maurice hesitates before answering. “Well... we've been drifting apart for a while and it's finally coming to the surface. We've been in a rut for some time now, and we both know that.”

“Well, I tried…” I’m on the verge of crying. “I did my very best, Maurice, I really did. That's why I started sending you those… photos. They seemed to be working, and...”

“I didn't even like them, Mindy,” he interrupts. “Don't get me wrong, you have an amazing body, but when those photos showed up on my phone, I knew I had to… reciprocate. And I just didn’t want to. I’m not a sex machine.” He sighs. “We are not meant to be, Mindy. You need someone who can keep up with your libido… and that’s not me.”

A thought pops into my head. “You’re seeing someone else, aren’t you?”

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