{"id":3011,"date":"2025-12-11T10:45:52","date_gmt":"2025-12-11T10:45:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/?p=3011"},"modified":"2025-12-11T10:45:52","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T10:45:52","slug":"my-husband-banned-me-from-the-housewarming-i-paid-for-the-mansion-i-replied-understood-and-one-hour-later-my-quiet-move-ruined-their-party-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/?p=3011","title":{"rendered":"My Husband Banned Me from the Housewarming. I Paid for the Mansion. I Replied, “Understood,” and One Hour Later, My Quiet Move Ruined Their Party."},"content":{"rendered":"

At seven months pregnant with twins, my husband’s boss sent me a photo of Eric in her bed. Hours later, they delivered the ultimate betrayal \u2014 he was leaving me for her, and she wanted one of my babies in exchange for housing. Little did they know what I had planned.<\/p>\n

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I was heavily pregnant with twins when my life fell apart.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I was folding tiny onesies, daydreaming about baby names, when my phone buzzed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Folded baby clothes | Source: Pexels<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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My heart pounded when I saw it was a message from my husband’s boss, Veronica. I immediately assumed something bad had happened to Eric at work, but the truth was far worse.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I opened the message, expecting news of an accident, but found a picture of Eric, lying in a strange bed, shirtless. Smirking at the camera.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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If there’d been any doubt in my mind about what it meant, the caption made it perfectly clear: “It’s time you knew. He’s mine.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A shocked woman | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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My hands went cold. The babies kicked inside me, almost sensing my distress. Eric was cheating on me with his boss.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I immediately called Eric, but it went straight to voicemail. I kept trying, but none of my calls went through.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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By that point, it felt like the twins were taking turns treating my bladder like a trampoline. I slowly lowered myself onto the sofa and placed a hand on my belly.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A woman touching her pregnant belly | Source: Pexels<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“Easy, babies,” I muttered. “Mama will take care of you, always. And no matter what happens now, I know Daddy\u2026 Eric won’t abandon you, even if he’s betrayed me.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I could never have imagined how wrong I was.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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When Eric arrived home from work that evening, he wasn’t alone.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Veronica waltzed in like she owned the place. Tall, confident, dressed in clothes that probably cost more than our rent. The type of woman who commanded attention just by breathing.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A man and woman in an apartment | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“Eric… what is this?” I stood in the living room, staring them both down, trying to be strong even if I didn’t feel like I was.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Eric sighed. “It’s simple, Lauren. I’m in love with Veronica, so I’m leaving you. Let’s be adults about this and not make a scene, okay?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The words hit me like physical blows. Each one landed precisely where it hurt the most.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A woman gasping in shock | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“You can’t be serious,” I whispered. “We’re having babies in two months.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Life happens,” he said with a shrug. A shrug! Like he was discussing a change in dinner plans, not abandoning his pregnant wife.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Then Veronica crossed her arms, her perfectly manicured nails tapping against her designer blazer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“And since this is Eric’s apartment, you’ll need to move out by the end of the week.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A smug woman | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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I saw red. “Are you both insane? I have nowhere to go! I’m carrying HIS children!”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Twins, right?” She tilted her head, studying my belly with cold calculation. “Or is it triplets? You are rather\u2026 swollen. I think I can offer you a solution.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Her lips curved into what I suppose she thought was a smile. “I’ll rent you a house and cover all your expenses, but I want one of your babies.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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My blood ran cold. “What?!”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A woman staring at someone in disbelief | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“I’d like to have a baby, but there’s no way I’m going to do that to my body.” She twirled a finger at my belly. “You’ll never manage raising twins alone, so this is a win-win situation.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. This woman spoke like she was talking about adopting a puppy!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“I’ll raise the child as mine. They’ll have the best nannies, and attend the best schools\u2026” she stroked Eric’s chest, and he leaned into her touch. “And you get a roof over your head. It’s a fair deal.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A woman’s hand on a man’s chest | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Eric nodded along as she spoke, like bartering one of our babies was reasonable.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I couldn’t breathe. How dare they try to turn my babies into bargaining chips? I wanted to kick them both out, but they had me cornered. I had no family or close friends I could turn to.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But then a plan formed in my mind.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“I have nowhere else to go,” I whispered, forcing tears to my eyes. “I’ll agree to your deal, but I have one condition.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A deeply concerned woman | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Veronica smirked. “Smart girl. What’s the condition?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“I want to pick which baby you get.” I sniffled, looking down as if ashamed. “Just give me some time with them to decide which one will have a better life with you.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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She exchanged a look with Eric. They thought I was defeated \u2014 I could see it in their eyes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Fine,” she agreed. “But don’t take too long. Once they’re born, we’ll take the one you don’t want.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I nodded, wiping away a fake tear. “And… one more thing.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A woman speaking to someone | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Veronica sighed dramatically. “What now?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“You’ll buy me a house, not rent it,” I said firmly. “I need security. If you don’t agree, I’ll walk, and you’ll never see either of them.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Eric scoffed, but Veronica held up a hand.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“You’re pushy, but I’ll agree,” she said. “It saves me the trouble and delay of finding an alternative solution. But you better hold up your end of the deal.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A woman staring at someone | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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I nodded, looking every bit the broken, helpless woman they thought I was.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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But inside? I was grinning. Because they had no idea what was coming.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The next few months were a game of patience.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Veronica bought me a three-bedroom house in a quiet neighborhood. She and Eric didn’t even view it, or meet the agent until the day we signed the papers.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A woman signing documents | Source: Pexels<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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I breathed a sigh of relief as we left the realtor’s office that day. Step one was complete, and they were still clueless.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I updated them on doctor’s appointments and let Veronica feel my belly when she visited, cooing about “her” baby. I told her I was agonizing over choosing which baby to keep.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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It was all a play for time while I prepared the final blow.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A thoughtful woman | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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I went into labor on a Tuesday night. I texted Veronica when I left for the hospital, but made sure the nurses knew I didn’t want her or Eric in the delivery room.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I heard them complaining outside at one point, but the contractions were coming hard and fast by then and I didn’t make out what they were saying.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Six hours later, my babies arrived. Two perfect girls with wisps of dark hair and lungs that worked just fine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A baby being checked after delivery | Source: Pexels<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The nurse smiled. “Want me to tell your husband and your… friend?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Tell them the babies are fine, but I need three days,” I said, holding my daughters.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The nurse looked confused but nodded.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I named the girls Lily and Emma. I memorized their faces, their cries, and the feel of their tiny fingers clasped around mine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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And I finalized my plan.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A woman with a calculating look in her eyes | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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I took the babies home on the second day. On the third day, I called Veronica.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“I’m ready to talk.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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She and Eric showed up within an hour. Veronica was practically vibrating with excitement, Eric trailing behind her like a shadow.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“So,” she cooed, walking into my house. “Which one is mine?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A smug woman in a living room | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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I took a deep breath, holding one baby in each arm. “Neither.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Her smile froze. “Excuse me?”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I stood up slowly. My body ached, but my voice was strong.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“I’m not giving you my child, Veronica. Either of them.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A determined woman | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Eric groaned. “Oh, don’t start this dramatic nonsense\u2014”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“You two thought you could buy a baby from me? Like I was some desperate idiot? Well, newsflash: I’m not.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Then I’m kicking you out of this house,” Veronica snarled. “You can live on the street for all I care!”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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An angry woman yelling at someone | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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I smiled. “You can’t do that. This house is in my name.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Veronica’s face drained of color. “What? No, that’s impossible! Eric, tell her!”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Eric looked just as confused. “We signed the papers together!”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Yeah. And you both signed it over to me completely. You were too busy gloating to notice. My name’s the only one on the deed.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A confident woman in a living room | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Veronica stumbled back like I’d slapped her.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“You conniving little\u2014”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Oh, and one more thing,” I added, gently rocking Lily as she fussed. “I went ahead and told a few people about how Eric cheated on his pregnant wife, and how he and his mistress tried to buy his child.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A woman holding a baby | Source: Pexels<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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I nodded toward my phone on the coffee table.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“Feel free to check social media. I posted everything last night. The messages. The pictures. Your sick baby deal. It’s all there. I tagged your company too, Veronica, and your investors. Even those charity boards you sit on.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Veronica lunged for my phone. Her face went from pale to gray as she scrolled.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A woman holding a cell phone | Source: Pexels<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“As you can see, they find your behavior very interesting.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Veronica screamed, a sound of pure rage and desperation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Eric grabbed the phone from her, his face white as paper. “You \u2014 you ruined us!”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“No. You ruined yourselves.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A woman holding a baby speaking to someone | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Eric lost his job. Attempting to sell your child didn’t sit well with his company’s “family values” image. Veronica wasn’t just fired: she made front-page news for all the wrong reasons and her social and business circles blackballed her.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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And me? I rocked my girls to sleep each night in our beautiful home, content in the knowledge that I didn’t just get revenge.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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I won.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"A<\/picture><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A victorious woman in a nursery | Source: Midjourney<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Here’s\u00a0another story: Anna’s perfect life crumbled when her husband’s shocking admission made her faint and fall down the stairs. When she woke up paralyzed, he handed her divorce papers and vanished. Left to struggle alone with their son, she fought to rebuild\u2026 but two years later, he returned, begging on his knees.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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This work is inspired by real events and people, but it has been fictionalized for creative purposes. Names, characters, and details have been changed to protect privacy and enhance the narrative. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The author and publisher make no claims to the accuracy of events or the portrayal of characters and are not liable for any misinterpretation. This story is provided “as is,” and any opinions expressed are those of the characters and do not reflect the views of the author or publisher.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At seven months pregnant with twins, my husband’s boss sent me a photo of Eric in her bed. Hours later, they delivered the ultimate betrayal \u2014 he was leaving me … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3012,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3011","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3011","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3011"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3011\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3013,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3011\/revisions\/3013"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3012"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/readinstory.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}