My son’s question about my husband’s “secret car” almost tore our family apart, but it turned out that things weren’t as they appeared, and we actually grew closer than ever.
Ben, my husband, works in construction, so you can imagine that the car he drives, which is the same one I use when I go to my mom’s or run errands, is always a total mess. It’s filled with fast-food wrappers, muddy boots, and dusty tools, so it’s definitely not clean.
When Ben’s co-worker offered to give him a ride for an early shift, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to clean the car. I asked my son, Liam, to help me out, and he was super excited to grab the sponge and scrub the car.
However, in the middle of having it cleaned, Liam got tired and said, “Mom, why don’t we use dad’s secret car instead?”
“Did you say a secret car?” I was confused and couldn’t believe what I just heard. “What secret car are you talking about?”
“The one that the nice lady with curly hair let Dad drive when you were at Grandma’s,” Liam explained.
I forced a smile for Liam, but inside, I was really nervous. My hands were trembling. “What was going on when I wasn’t around?” I thought to myself.
Ben never told me about any woman or car. And Liam said he spotted them while I was at my mom’s, who is sick and needs my help.
At first, I wanted to confront Ben, but I felt like it wasn’t the best idea, so I called my friend Sarah and asked her to come to my place that afternoon and be part of my plan to get to the bottom of Liam’s words about the secret car.
I told Ben, Liam, and Jenny, the babysitter, “I’m going out with Sarah,” in the afternoon.
Ben didn’t even glance my way; he just muttered, “Have fun.”
I stepped outside, got into Sarah’s car parked nearby, and waited.
If something was happening, I had to find out what it was.
After a little while, I noticed Ben leaving the house with what looked like a jewelry box tucked under his arm. He stood there for a few minutes until a woman with curly hair, the one Liam had mentioned, pulled up to pick him up.
Sarah and I decided to follow them as they drove off.
They parked in front of a building and went inside. I trailed behind them. The place had offices, and the door they entered had a sign that said Private Meeting Room.
Feeling curious, I peeked through the glass and saw Ben giving a necklace to the woman who was busy typing on her laptop. My heart started racing, and my hands and knees felt shaky. Just when I thought about leaving, Ben opened the door.
“Hey, what are you doing here?” he asked, looking surprised.
“I was just about to ask you the same thing,” I replied.
“It’s not what it seems,” Ben said quickly, “let me explain.”
I walked into the room, and he introduced me to a woman named Melissa, who was a financial consultant.
“This jewelry is a family heirloom,” Ben explained. “I wanted to sell it because I really needed some cash.”
He went on to tell me that a few years ago, when my mom got sick and needed expensive medical care and medicine, he took out a personal loan. He thought he could manage it, but with the interest, it got way out of hand.
Melissa’s formal outfit and her typing told me Ben was telling the truth.
The “secret car” and him driving it made sense because Melissa was looking over some papers while they headed to her office. Everything clicked into place after that.
I appreciated that Ben helped with my mom’s bills, and now it was a debt we both needed to handle. I told him to hang on to the necklace. He could pass it on to Liam when he got older, so it could be a special family keepsake.
I decided to work extra hours and we started saving money by cutting out things we didn’t really need. Thanks to Melissa, we were able to change our loan and set up payments that we could actually handle.
When my son asked about his dad’s “secret car,” it uncovered a hidden truth that brought us closer together than ever.
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