I have had a cordial business relationship with an old friend for decades. It’s not fair to say we are friends anymore — we are not — but our business relationship is stable and it has been moderately profitable for each of us over the years.

But the relationship is stale. Lately I’ve been feeling that I wanted out: Maybe another relationship could be fresher, and even more profitable for me? And then I heard at a dinner party that this old friend has a terrible gambling problem, and his family life is in a shambles.

Is this a good enough excuse to exit the relationship?

— Teetering