I Married into a ‘Perfect’ Family – at My MIL’s 60th Birthday Dinner, My Husband’s Aunt Hugged Me and Whispered, ‘You Have No Idea What They Did to the Last One’

Then came her birthday. The night everything finally snapped in a clean, quiet way.

Same house. Same crowded coat rack.

Same too-loud laughter.

I walked in feeling like I was walking onto a stage where my role was already written.

Dinner was fine because I barely spoke.

After dessert, Andrew’s mom stood up with her wine glass and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

“To my son,” Dolores said. “May he finally have a wife who understands her place.”

There was this awkward ripple of laughter.

“A wife who puts family first,” she added, looking straight at me. “A wife who stops acting like she’s still single.”

My chest burned.

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