My husband Wyatt and I were fighting all the time. It felt like every day we were arguing about our financial struggles and the fact that he was always coming home late. I had no idea what was going on, but it was driving me crazy. One day, I decided I had enough. I was going to find out what was happening. I followed him.
I had no idea what I was about to discover. Wyatt pulled into his brother Dawson’s driveway, but it wasn’t Dawson who greeted him. It was a woman. I was frozen in shock. What’s going on? I thought, my mind racing with wild thoughts. Was he cheating on me? With her? What if our whole life together was a lie?
“We can’t keep going like this. I thought you earned much more. Where is our money going every month?” I confronted Wyatt, my voice shaking with frustration. I could see the exhaustion on his face. He rubbed his forehead, looking down at the floor.
“I don’t know what to tell you,” Wyatt said, his voice soft, almost defeated. “Things are just more expensive right now. I’m doing my best. I really am.”
I took a deep breath. I knew it wasn’t fair to blame him for everything. It wasn’t all his fault. I hadn’t been helping, either. I had quit my part-time job a few months ago because my health was getting worse. Stress and anxiety had taken a toll on me, and I couldn’t keep pushing myself.
Wyatt was the one working hard to keep us afloat. But still, something didn’t add up. We should have been able to save at least a little, but there was nothing left at the end of each month.
“I’m sorry,” I said, feeling guilty. “I know. It’s just… I don’t understand how we used to make it work, but now we can’t. We should have something, at least $50 to save. But there’s nothing, Wyatt.”
He didn’t have an answer. We sat in silence for a long moment. I was worried. What if we were headed for disaster? What if he was hiding something from me?
That night, I did something I never thought I would do. I followed him. I had to know what was really going on. He had told me he was working late, but when I saw him leave his office at 5 p.m., I knew something was off. My heart raced as I drove behind him, my mind filled with a thousand possibilities. What if he was cheating? Could I ever forgive him for that?
I watched as Wyatt turned onto a familiar street, and my stomach dropped. He parked in front of Dawson’s house. Why is he here? We had agreed to keep our distance from them. Faye, Dawson’s wife, had been a nightmare for me for years, and I didn’t want to deal with her anymore. But there he was, walking up to the front door, and when it opened, Faye was there to greet him, wrapping her arms around him in a hug.
I felt my heart stop. Is he cheating on me with her? I thought. Faye? The woman who has always treated me like dirt? I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Where was Dawson? Why was Wyatt here, acting like everything was normal?
I couldn’t just sit in my car and think myself crazy. I parked quickly, slammed the door, and stormed into the house, ready to confront Wyatt and Faye. This is it, I thought. I’m not going to forgive him this time.
When I walked in, I was stunned. Wyatt was holding a baby. Faye was holding another baby. My mind couldn’t process it. What’s going on? I thought, my voice shaking as I asked, “What’s happening here? Are you coming here every night? Are these babies yours, Wyatt?”
Wyatt looked at me with confusion and surprise. “What? Jenna, what are you saying? Of course not! These are Faye and Dawson’s babies.”
I was so confused. “But why didn’t you tell me? I thought you hadn’t spoken to them in a while,” I said, my voice shaking.
“I haven’t… until recently,” Wyatt admitted. “I didn’t know how to tell you. I didn’t want you to worry.”
Before I could ask more, Faye stepped forward. She had a strange look on her face, one I had never seen before. It was soft, almost apologetic. “I think I should explain, Wyatt,” she said, her voice surprisingly calm. “Jenna, I know we’ve had our issues in the past, but things have changed. These babies… they’re mine and Dawson’s. Wyatt has been helping us.”
I was so stunned, I barely knew what to say. “Money? Why do you need money? You and Dawson always seemed fine,” I said, confused.
Faye’s eyes welled up with tears. “We did. We thought we were fine. But Dawson…” She paused, swallowing hard. “Dawson got into some serious trouble at work. He’s in jail now, and all of our accounts have been seized. We’re struggling, Jenna. I’ve been pregnant with these twins, and we had nothing left. Wyatt has been helping, and I’m so sorry for everything I said to you before. I was horrible.”
I sat down, my head spinning. What had I just heard? “Dawson’s in jail? For what?” I asked, needing to understand.
“He was doing something shady at work,” Wyatt explained. “He got caught, and everything came crashing down. The worst part is, he was also cheating on Faye. His secretary had evidence, and it all came out at once. It’s been a nightmare for her.”
Faye nodded, looking down at the babies in her arms. “The only thing we have left is the house. It’s in my mother’s name. But other than that, everything is gone.”
I felt like I had been hit by a truck. Here I was, blaming Wyatt for our finances, and he had been secretly helping Faye through a crisis. She needed him, and he had been there for her. But what about me? Was I supposed to forgive him? Was I supposed to forgive Faye?
What do I do now? I thought. Would you forgive Faye? Would you forgive Wyatt for keeping this secret from me? Should I take the high road?
It was a lot to process. Everything had changed in an instant, and I didn’t know what was next.
