I Found a Note in My Husband’s Shirt That Said, ‘Please Don’t Let Her Find Out’

I didn’t tell Ron that night. Or the next. Instead, I watched my husband carefully.

I watched his weight loss and the way he continued to drink red wine despite hating it. I noticed how he rubbed his temple while reading, and how he still folded napkins into neat triangles out of habit.

He didn’t know I knew.

But something inside me had shifted, not rage, not even betrayal. It was just a kind of quiet dislocation, like I had taken one step outside of the life we built and now I was watching it from a distance — familiar but askew.

A few days later, my daughter called me.

“Mom?”

“Hi, sweetheart,” I said.

“Did you get the laundry powder I told you about? The one with the lavender scent?”

“I did; it smells calming.”

There was a pause. I wondered if Serenity was finally going to confess.

“Did you… ever notice anything off with Dad?”

“What do you mean?” I asked, my heart thudding, but I kept my voice soft.

“I don’t know. He just seems… different. He’s tired all the time and distant. I guess I thought maybe something was wrong. I shouldn’t have gone behind your back.”

“You hired someone,” I said, not accusing — just stating the truth.

She didn’t speak.

“You did, didn’t you?”

“I just wanted to be sure,” she said. “I didn’t want to tell you unless it was something current. And I thought there wasn’t.”

“There was,” I said, not explaining further.

“I’m so sorry, Mom.”

“Don’t be; you were trying to protect us.”

A few weeks passed.

Then one evening, while we were eating grilled salmon in silence, Ron looked up from his plate.

“You’ve been quiet lately,” he said. “Everything okay?”

“I’ve had a lot on my mind.”

“About what?”

“Do you believe that people can be forgiven for things they did a lifetime ago?” I asked, meeting my husband’s eyes.

“That’s a loaded question, hon.”

“Is this about anything in particular, Delilah?”

“You tell me.”

“I think I’m being let go at work,” he said, pushing his plate away. “They haven’t said anything yet, but it’s been building. That’s why I’ve been… off.”

“That makes sense,” I said, nodding.

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