When Kate’s husband took her car and left the kids to sneak off to a wedding he refused to attend, she felt betrayed until she learned the truth about why he was there. But what didn’t he know? Kate had the power to stop him in his tracks, and she didn’t hesitate to use it.
What would you do if the person you trusted and built a life with betrayed you? Would you fight for him? Or would you walk away and never look back? I never thought I’d be asking myself these questions, but here I am. My name is Kate. I’m 32 years old, a mum of two, and last weekend my husband shattered everything I thought I knew about him.
It all started with an invitation to an old college friend’s wedding.
Emily wasn’t a close friend anymore, but Max and I had known her for years. She was the kind of person you couldn’t help but root for. She was kind, simpering, a little testy, but always sweet.
When we got the invitation, I happily went. But Max? Not so much.
‘Look what came in the mail!’ exclaimed I excitedly, waving an elegant cream envelope. ‘Emily is finally getting married!’
‘I’m not going to that wedding,’ he stated emphatically as we sat on the couch.
‘What, why?’
‘Because I don’t want to, Kate,’ he snapped, rubbing his temples. ‘I’m not interested in standing around making small talk with people I barely remember.’
A few days passed, and I figured he’d change his mind. But Max remained stubborn.
‘You’ve been acting weird since the invitation came,’ I said softly, moving closer to him. ‘What’s really going on?’
He pulled back, concern evident in every line of his body. ‘Nothing’s going on. I just don’t want to waste a perfectly good Saturday with people from our past.’
I raised an eyebrow. ‘Emily isn’t just some random person, Max. She’s our…’
‘She’s your friend,’ he cut in. ‘Not mine.’
‘Since when?’ I asked, with resentment in my voice. ‘You used to love spending time with her and her company. Remember all those game nights in college?’
His face darkened. ‘That was a lifetime ago, Kate. People change. Relationships change.’
The tone was definitive. I didn’t push it, though I couldn’t help but feel hurt. Max wasn’t usually like this. Sure, he could be stubborn, but this was another level of dismissive.
‘Okay,’ I said, forcing myself to smile. ‘Then you can stay home with the kids.’
He readily agreed, and that was the end of the plan.
On the day of the wedding, I woke up early and headed to the salon. Max was to take the kids to the amusement park while I got ready.
‘Daddy, aren’t you going to the wedding?’ asked Emma at breakfast, milk dripping down her chin.
Max tensed, then smiled forcibly. ‘No, princess. Daddy’s going to have a special day with you and Liam instead.’
‘But Mum’s going,’ Liam pouted. ‘Why can’t we all go?’
‘Sometimes adults make tough decisions,’ Max muttered, avoiding my gaze across the table.
‘Don’t worry, babe,’ he said that morning, squeezing my hand. ‘Go out and enjoy yourself. I’ll take care of the kids.’
‘You promise you’ll be okay?’ I whispered, searching his face for any sign of what was bothering him.
‘I promise,’ he smiled, but something about his expression was off. ‘The kids and I are going to have a great time. Maybe we’ll even build that pillow fort Emma’s been asking for.’
For a moment, I felt relieved. Maybe I’d overreacted. Maybe he wasn’t aloof and tired. But I was wrong.
A few hours later, I got home, styled my hair and did my make-up, anticipating the evening ahead. But when I walked into the house, my heart dropped.
The living room was a mess: abandoned toys, snack wrappers and the remains of what looked like a very rushed dinner. The kids were sad and lonely. But that wasn’t the only problem when I rushed to check. The problem was that my car – our only car – was gone.
And so was Max’s.
‘Emma?’ I called out, trying to stay calm.
My seven-year-old daughter poked her head out from behind the couch. ‘Yes?’
‘Where’s Daddy?’
She climbed onto the couch looking completely unfazed. ‘He left.’
‘Gone? What do you mean he left?’
‘He got a phone call,’ she said, sitting down and picking up the remote. ‘He said: ‘I’ll be there, don’t worry…the wedding,’ and then he dropped us off and left.’
‘Honey,’ I knelt down beside her, trying to keep my voice steady, ’did he say anything else? Anything else?’
Emma twisted a strand of hair around her finger. ‘He’s been acting weird, Mummy.’
‘Weird how, baby?’
‘His hands were shaking when he got the phone call. And he kept saying ‘I shouldn’t, I shouldn’t’ while he was packing us lunch. And then he just…left.’
My stomach twisted. ‘He went to the wedding?’
Emma nodded, flipping through the channels. ‘I think so.’
I didn’t know whether to scream or cry. He took MY car, abandoned OUR kids, and drove off to a wedding he refused to attend. And he didn’t even bother to text me.
I grabbed my phone and called him. But the call went straight to voicemail. I called again. Nothing.
‘Unbelievable,’ I muttered to myself. My hands were shaking as I crouched on the edge of the couch. This wasn’t just selfish – it was a betrayal.
I knew I couldn’t leave Emma and her little brother Liam alone, so I called my mum.
‘Hey, can you come over? I need to take care of something.’
‘Kate, what’s going on? You seem upset.’
‘I’ll explain later. Can you just come over as soon as possible?’
‘Honey, you’re scaring me,’ Mum’s voice cracked with concern. ‘Did something happen to Max?’
‘Mum, please,’ I choked back tears. ‘I need you to be here. Now.’
She didn’t ask any more questions, and ten minutes later she was at my door.
‘Kate, what’s wrong?’ – She asked, stepping inside.
I shook my head and grabbed my purse. ‘I can’t… I don’t have time to explain right now. I’ll call you when I’m on the road.’
‘Kate, wait,’ she caught my arm. ‘Whatever happens, be careful. Think about the kids.’
‘I am thinking about the kids,’ I whispered fiercely. ‘That’s exactly why I need to go.’
Without waiting for her response, I grabbed my car keys and headed for the exit.
The drive to the venue felt surreal. A thousand thoughts were running through my head. Why would Max do this? Why cheat on me, abandon my kids, and steal my car? What was so important about this wedding that he couldn’t stay away?
On the way out, one thought struck me like lightning. The guest list. I’d helped Emily put it together a few weeks ago. I quickly dialled the venue manager’s number.
‘Hi, this is Kate. I need you to do me a favour. Just a quick question – has a man named Max arrived yet?’
The manager hesitated for a moment. ‘No, I don’t think so. Not yet.’
‘Good,’ I said. ‘Listen carefully…under no circumstances should you let him in. He’s not invited, and it’s very important that he doesn’t get any further than the door.’
There was a pause at the other end. ‘Well… of course. Consider it settled.’
‘Thank you,’ I sighed. ‘And Sarah? If he asks who blocked him… make sure he knows it was me.’
I hung up the phone and pulled into the car park of the wedding venue about ten minutes later.
Max was standing at the entrance, pacing like a madman. His phone was pressed to his ear, and he was shouting loud enough for me to hear him through the car window.
I lingered in the car for a moment, watching him. He looked pissed off, and for once I didn’t feel sorry for him.
My phone buzzed and his name popped up on the screen.
‘Is that you!’ – he shouted as soon as I answered. ‘YOU’RE THE ONE WHO DID THIS TO ME?’
I couldn’t help but smirk. ‘What’s wrong, Max? Is something keeping you from sneaking into a wedding you didn’t want to go to?’
‘Are you serious?’ – he barked. ‘Let me in, Kate!’
‘No way.’
‘You’re just being ridiculous, Kate!’
‘No, Max. You stole my car, abandoned our children, and lied to me. It’s ridiculous that you think like I’m going to let you get away with this.’
‘Kate, please,’ his voice cracked. ‘You don’t realise what’s at stake here!’
‘What’s at stake? Our marriage is at stake, Max. Our family. And you just gave it all up for…what?’
Before he could answer, I hung up the phone and got out of the car. As I headed towards him, a confused looking Emily appeared at the front door.
‘Max?’ – She called out, her voice unsure.
He turned to her and his whole demeanour changed. ‘Emily! Finally. Look, I just…’
‘What are you doing here?’ – She asked, interrupting him.
‘You called me,’ he said, softening his tone. ‘You said you were nervous, so I came over.’
Emily blinked dazedly. ‘I… I called you this afternoon. Look, I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. I didn’t think you’d actually come.’
‘So that makes two of us,’ I said, stepping over the threshold.
Emily’s eyes widened. ‘Kate… I didn’t…’
‘What’s going on?’ I asked, crossing my arms.
She looked between me and Max, clearly panicked. ‘I swear, I didn’t mean for this to happen.’
‘You didn’t mean for WHAT to happen, Emily?’
Her shoulders slumped and she let out a shuddering sigh. ‘Max and I…we were connected. Years ago. Before you two were together.’
I felt like the ground had gone from under my feet.
‘It’s not what you think,’ Max said quickly.
‘Really?’ snapped back at me. ‘So you didn’t just abandon your family to run up to your ex’s wedding?’
‘Kate, it’s not like that!’ – He said, his voice sounding desperate.
‘Then what does it look like, Max?’ I demanded, tears welling up in my eyes. ‘Because the way I see it, you chose HER over our children!’
But Emily wasn’t done yet. ‘I don’t know why he’s here,’ she admitted. ‘I called him this afternoon because I was nervous. I just wanted to apologise – for leaving him, for everything – before I started a new life with a new husband. But no sooner had I finished talking than the call cut off or something. I couldn’t hear him anymore. I tried calling back, but my calls went straight to voicemail. I never asked him to come over.’
I stared at her, then at Max, my chest tightening with each passing second. After a tense confrontation, Emily retreated into the house, leaving me alone with Max.
‘Do you have any idea what you’ve done?’ I said, my voice shaking.
‘Kate, I was just trying to help-’
‘No,’ I cut him off. ‘You weren’t trying to help. You were trying to…what? Relive your glory days? To prove to yourself that you still meant something to her?’
He opened his mouth to answer, but no words came.
‘Our children, Max,’ I whispered, and the tears flowed on their own. ‘You abandoned our children. Do you realise what that means?’
‘Kate, please,’ he reached for me, but I pulled back. ‘You don’t understand what I was trying to prevent!’
I turned around, rage blazing in my chest. ‘Prevent? You left our children alone! What’s the penalty for that?’
‘I thought…,’ he muttered, running his hands through his hair. ‘I thought if I came here, I could stop her from making the same mistake I did.’
‘What mistake?’
‘Marrying the wrong person,’ he whispered, and those words hit me like a physical blow.
I shook my head, my voice barely audible. ‘Then I guess we both made that mistake, didn’t we?’
I turned and walked away without waiting for his answer.
That night, as I was putting Emma and Liam to bed, Emma wrapped her little arms around my neck.
‘Mummy?’ – She whispered. ‘Are you and Daddy going to be okay?’
I pulled her tighter against me, my heart breaking. ‘I don’t know, baby girl. But I promise you and Liam will always be okay.’
‘Pinky promises?’
‘I promise,’ I said, intertwining our fingers.
Later, alone in the kitchen, I was looking at my engagement ring when my phone buzzed with another text from Max, ‘Please forgive me… I’m sorry. We need to talk.’
I typed back three words, ‘Not tonight, Max.’ Then I switched off the phone and let the tears finally fall.
I don’t know what’s next for us. But I do know one thing – I won’t put myself last anymore. Because sometimes the hardest part isn’t the betrayal itself. It’s accepting that the person you love isn’t who you thought they were.
