My husband Wyatt and I had been fighting a lot lately. It felt like every day turned into a battle. We were drowning in financial problems, and he was always coming home late. I was frustrated, confused, and hurt. So one night, I couldn’t take it anymore. I decided to follow him—and what I found completely shocked me.
A few days earlier, we had one of our worst arguments.
“We can’t keep going like this, Wyatt!” I shouted. “I thought you were making more money. Where is all our money going every month?”
He looked exhausted, rubbing his forehead and avoiding my eyes.
“I don’t know what to tell you,” he mumbled. “Things are just more expensive now. I’m doing my best. I really am.”
I could hear the sadness in his voice, but I couldn’t ignore the feeling in my gut. Something wasn’t right.
“I’m sorry,” I sighed, softening a bit. “It’s just… I don’t get it. A few months ago, we could make it to the end of the month just fine. Now? We can’t even save fifty bucks.”
Wyatt didn’t say much after that, and deep down, I started to wonder: Was he hiding something? Was it really just inflation and bills… or something more?
You see, I had quit my part-time job a few months earlier because of a chronic health condition. Stress and anxiety made my symptoms worse, and I just couldn’t handle it anymore. Wyatt became the only one bringing in money, but I was the one paying the bills—and I could see things were getting worse. Fast.
But why? We hadn’t changed our spending. So what was going on?
My mind wouldn’t stop racing. And then, I did something I never thought I would do—I waited outside Wyatt’s job. When he left work, it was only 5 p.m. But he had told me he’d be working late again. My heart dropped. I quietly followed him in my car, my hands shaking on the wheel. A thousand terrifying thoughts ran through my mind.
Where is he going? Is he cheating on me?
I watched as Wyatt drove into a familiar neighborhood. My chest tightened when I saw him pull into a driveway I recognized all too well—his brother Dawson’s house.
What the hell was he doing here?
We had agreed to stay away from Dawson and his wife, Faye. That part of the family was toxic. Greedy. Heartless.
I remembered the time when Wyatt and I had just gotten married, and we were struggling badly. We had no place to live, and I begged Faye to let us stay just one night.
She looked me straight in the eye and said coldly, “That’s not my problem.”
We were almost homeless. My medical bills were piling up. Thank God a friend helped us out with a loan, and we barely managed to rent a tiny room. We worked day and night to climb back up. And now, Wyatt was going back there?
I clenched the steering wheel tighter.
There was another time, at a family party, when I confided in Wyatt’s aunt about my health and how I might need to quit working. Faye rolled her eyes at me. I tried to ignore her. But later that night, when people started talking about kids, I shared how much I wanted to be a mother.
Faye laughed right in my face.
“You? A mother? HA! With all your health problems and how badly you two manage money? Don’t even think about it.”
Then she added with pure disgust, “No one here is going to help you when you’re broke, even with a baby in your arms. Who wants to deal with a mentally unstable mother anyway?”
Her words cut through me like glass. And the worst part? Wyatt didn’t say anything. He just sat there. I was crushed. That night, we had one of our worst fights ever. We almost split up. But somehow, we moved on. We avoided Dawson and Faye after that.
So now, seeing Wyatt walking up to their house? I was furious. My blood boiled as I saw Faye open the door and… smile at him. Then she wrapped her arms around him.
I couldn’t take it anymore.
I slammed my car door shut, marched right up the driveway, and pushed open their front door like a woman on a mission.
I was ready to scream. To end this marriage. I was sure they were cheating. I was ready to burn it all down.
But what I saw inside froze me in my tracks.
Wyatt was holding a baby.
Faye was holding another.
What…?
My voice trembled, barely a whisper. “What’s going on here? Are you coming here every night? Are those babies… yours, Wyatt?”
He looked at me, shocked. “What? Jenna, no! What are you even saying? Of course not! These are Faye and Dawson’s babies.”
I stared at him in disbelief. “But… why didn’t you tell me? I thought we weren’t even talking to them anymore.”
Wyatt sighed and stepped closer. “We weren’t. But a few months ago… things changed. I didn’t know how to tell you.”
Then, to my surprise, Faye stepped forward. Her expression was completely different. For the first time, she looked like a real human being—not the smug, cruel woman I remembered.
“I think I should explain, Wyatt,” she said gently. Then she turned to me. “Jenna… I had these babies a little while ago. And Wyatt… he’s been helping me. With money. With time. With everything.”
I blinked, confused. “Money? Why would you need money? You and Dawson were always doing great.”
Faye’s eyes welled with tears. “We were. Or I thought we were. And I was a horrible person back then. I’m so sorry for how I treated you. Truly.”
I was stunned. I couldn’t believe I was hearing this.
She took a deep breath. “The truth is… Dawson was doing illegal stuff at work. He got caught. He’s in jail now.”
“What?” I gasped, feeling the floor tilt beneath me.
“That’s not even the worst part,” she continued, her voice cracking. “He was cheating on me. With his secretary. She’s the one who exposed everything. He owes tons of money, and all our accounts were frozen. Everything’s gone.”
I didn’t know what to say.
They brought me to the couch, and I sat down as they explained everything. Dawson’s crimes had destroyed their lives. The only reason they weren’t homeless was that the house was still under Faye’s mother’s name. She had no income, two babies, and no one to help her… except Wyatt.
My husband—who I had accused, doubted, and nearly hated—had been secretly helping her survive. He was buying formula, diapers, groceries. Giving what little we had to help those babies.
And I had no idea.
I thought he was lying, sneaking around, possibly cheating… when really, he was just being too good of a man to say no, even to someone who once hurt me deeply.
And now I didn’t know what to feel.
Should I forgive Wyatt for keeping this secret? Should I forgive Faye for everything she said to me? She seemed truly sorry. She looked so broken.
But part of me still hurt. Deeply.
What would you do in my place?
Would you forgive them both?
Or would you walk away?
Should I take the high road… or finally choose me?