Reddit Stories - RETURNED home ahead of SCHEDULE from work journey to DISCOVER that my spouse's

Episode Date: August 2, 2025

#redditstories #askreddit #aita #relationships #marriage #worklifebalance #unexpected #surpriseSummary: RETURNED home ahead of SCHEDULE from work journey to DISCOVER that my spouse's actions had caused a misunderstanding. Confusion led to a heartfelt conversation, resolving the issue and strengthening our bond.Tags: redditstories, askreddit, reddit, aita, tifu, relationships, marriage, worklifebalance, unexpected, surprise, misunderstanding, conversation, resolution, bond, communication, love, trust, support, growth, reconciliationBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/reddit-stories--6237355/support.

I hope you enjoy this story. Returned home ahead of schedule from work journey to discover that my spouse's former romantic partner had fully relocated to our residence and was preparing intimate meals for him as he deceived me. For three days about her mom being there. My husband Casper broke his leg three weeks ago in a stupid accident at work and now he has this huge cast and he cannot walk properly and needs help with basic things like getting food and going to the bathroom sometimes. I have been taking care of him every single day since it happened and I took time off work and everything to make sure he was okay and comfortable.

But last week my boss called me and said I had to go to this conference in Denver for five days because our biggest client specifically requested me to present our new project and if I did not go we might lose the contract and that would be really bad for everyone at the company. Casper said I should go because we need the money and he would be fine by himself for a few days and his mom Sophia could check on him if he needed anything. I did not want to leave him but he kept saying he would be okay and that I was being too worried about nothing. Sophia has always been weird about me and Casper's relationship and she never really accepted

that we got married two years ago. She always makes these little comments about how Casper's ex-girlfriend Ashley was so much better at cooking and how Ashley used to help Casper with his work stuff and how Ashley was studying to be a nurse so she would know how to take care of people when they are hurt. Ashley and Casper dated for three years before we met and Sophia always talks about her like she was the perfect daughter-in-law that got away. I told Casper that I did not trust his mother to just check on him and that maybe we should ask my sister to stay with him instead but he said his mom would be hurt if we did not let her help and that I was being paranoid about Ashley because

they broke up four years ago and she lives two hours away now and works at some hospital. He kept saying I was making drama where there was no drama and that his mom just wanted to help her injured son. So I went to Denver on Monday morning and I called Casper every few hours to check on him and he always said he was fine and his mom had brought him some food and he was watching TV on Tuesday. He said the same thing and on Wednesday. When I called him around lunchtime he sounded a little weird like he was hiding something but when I asked him what was wrong he said his leg was just hurting more than usual and his mom had given him some pain medicine that made him sleepy. Wednesday night I tried calling him around nine and he did not answer his

phone which was really strange because he always answers when I call and he knows I get worried when he does not pick up. I called three more times and then I called Sophia and she said Casper was probably just sleeping and that I should not worry so much. Something felt wrong but I did not know what to do because I was 800 miles away. Thursday morning I called Casper and he answered but he sounded really weird and distracted and when I asked him how he was feeling he said he was fine and his mom was taking good care of him. When I asked him what he had for breakfast he said his mom made him eggs and toast but then he said something about how the eggs were made exactly the way he likes them which was weird because

Sophia never cooks for Casper the way he likes anything and she usually just gets him fast food when she comes over. I had this really bad feeling in my stomach and I could not concentrate on the conference at all and I kept thinking about how Casper was acting strange and how Sophia was being too helpful all of a sudden. During my lunch break I called my neighbor who lives across the street and I asked her if she had seen Sophia's car at our house and she said she had seen a different car there yesterday and today that she did not recognize and it was a blue Honda with some nursing stickers on the back window. That was when I knew something was really wrong because Sophia drives a red truck and she does not know any nurses except Ashley and Ashley drives a

Blue Honda because Casper told me about it before. I immediately booked my flight to come home Thursday night instead of Friday afternoon and I did not tell Casper I was coming home early because I wanted to see what was really going on. The flight was delayed for two hours and I did not get home until almost 11 at night and when my Uber turned onto our street I saw the Blue Honda parked in our driveway like it belonged there. I sat in the car for two minutes just staring at it and trying to figure out what I was going to do and then I decided I was not going to sneak around my own house like some crazy person so I just walked up to the front door and used my key. When I opened the door I could smell food cooking and I heard Casper laughing from the living

room which was confusing because he had not been laughing much since he got hurt and usually he just watches TV and complains about being bored. I walked toward the kitchen and I saw dirty dishes in the sink and there were groceries on the counter that I did not buy and there was a woman's jacket hanging on the chair that was definitely not mine. I went to the living room and there was Casper sitting on the couch with his leg up and there was Ashley sitting next to him with her hand on his arm and they were watching some movie together and laughing like nothing was wrong. When Casper saw me he got this look on his face like he had been caught doing something bad and Ashley just stared at me like I was the one who did not belong there.

I asked Casper what Ashley was doing in our house and he started. stuttering and saying that his mom thought it would be good to have someone with medical training to help him while I was gone and that Ashley had some vacation days so she offered to help out. Ashley just sat there smiling and said she was happy to help Casper recover and that she had been staying in the guest room to make sure he was okay during the night in case he needed anything. I asked Casper why he did not tell me that Ashley was going to be staying in our house and he said he did not want me to worry and that he knew I would get upset for no reason and that Ashley was just helping him as a friend. I told him that I had specifically asked him every day how he was doing

and who was taking care of him and he lied to me every single time and said it was just his mom helping him. Casper got angry and said I was being jealous and crazy and that Ashley was a professional nurse and she knew how to take care of injured people better than I did and that his mom thought it was a good idea. He said I should be grateful that he had good care while I was away working instead of being mad about it and that I was making a big deal out of nothing. I looked around the living room and I saw that Ashley had moved a bunch of her stuff in there including some books and a blanket and her purse and it looked like she had been living there for days. I asked her how long she had been staying in my house and she said she got there Tuesday

afternoon when Sophia called her and asked her to come help Casper and that she was planning to stay until I got back on Friday. I told Ashley that she needed to pack her things and leave right now because I was home and I could take care of my own husband and she did not need to be there anymore. Ashley looked at Casper like she was waiting for him to say something and Casper said I was being rude and that Ashley had driven two hours to help him and she should at least be able to stay the night since it was so late. I told Casper that I did not care how late it was and that Ashley was not spending another night in our house and that she could drive back to her own place or get a hotel room but she was not staying here. Casper started yelling at me and saying I

was being unreasonable and paranoid and that Ashley was just trying to help him and I was acting like she was trying to steal him away from me. I yelled back that his mother had no right to invite his ex-girlfriend to stay in our house without asking me and that he had no right to lie to me about it for three days and that if he needed a nurse so badly he could have gone to stay with his mother or me getting my sister to help instead of having his ex-girlfriend move into our home. Caspers said I was being dramatic and that nothing happened between him and Ashley and that I was embarrassing myself by acting so jealous. Ashley finally stood up and said she could see that I was upset and that she would pack her

things and leave but that she was only trying to help and that she thought I would appreciate someone taking good care of Casper while I was working. I told her that if she really wanted to help she would have suggested that Casper stay with Sophia or that Sophia could stay here instead of moving herself into my house like she lived here. Ashley went upstairs to get her stuff and I followed her because I wanted to make sure she actually left and when I got to the guest room I saw that she had completely moved in with all her clothes and the dresser and her toiletries in the bathroom and even some of her food in a mini fridge

we keep up there. It looked like she was planning to stay for weeks not just a few days. I asked her what she thought she was doing moving all her stuff into my house and she said Sophia told her that Casper might need help for a few weeks while his leg healed and that I traveled for work a lot so it would be good to have someone nearby who could take care of him. I told her that Sophia had no right to make that decision and that I did not travel for work a lot and that this was the first business trip I had taken in over a year. Ashley said she was just trying to be helpful and that she and Casper were still friends and that she cared about him and wanted him to get better quickly. I told her that if she really cared about him she would respect his marriage and not move

into his house when his wife was not there and that what she did was inappropriate and wrong. Casper came upstairs on his crutches and he was breathing hard from climbing the stairs and he told me to stop harassing Ashley and that she was just being nice and that I was making her feel bad for no reason. I told Casper that Ashley was not just being nice and that moving into someone's house for days without telling their spouse was not normal helpful behavior and that he knew it was wrong or he would not have lied to me about it. Ashley finished packing her stuff and she came downstairs and Casper hobbled after us and when she got to the door she turned around and told Casper that if he needed anything else he should call her and that she hoped his leg felt better soon. Casper thanked her for everything and said he was sorry that I was being so difficult and that he appreciated all her help. After Ashley left I went into the kitchen and I saw that she had cooked a whole dinner and left it on the stove and there were two plates set out on the table with candles in the middle like they were having some romantic dinner. together. I asked Casper about the candles and he said Ashley just thought it would be nice to make dinner special since he had been eating boring food for weeks and that it was not romantic

it was just thoughtful. I told Casper that having candle-like dinners with his ex-girlfriend while I was out of town was not appropriate and that he knew I would be upset about it if I found out and that was why he lied to me about Ashley being there. Casper said I was reading too much into everything and that Ashley was just being a good friend and that the candles were not a big deal and that I was acting crazy. We got into a huge fight where I was yelling that he lied to me and betrayed my trust and that his mother had no right to invite his ex-girlfriend to live in our house and that he should have told Sophia no when she suggested it.

Casper was yelling that I was being paranoid and jealous and that nothing inappropriate happened and that Ashley was a professional who was just helping him recover and that I should be grateful instead of angry. Casper said I was being controlling and that Ashley was a better caregiver than I was because she actually knew what she was doing and that his leg felt better after three days with Ashley than it had in weeks with me taking care of him. I told him that if Ashley was such a great caregiver maybe he should go live with her instead of me and that if he wanted his ex-girlfriend taking care of him so badly he should have married her instead. So, Ida for kicking my husband's

XGF out. Update 1. I have not been able to sleep at all and Casper is acting like nothing happened and like I am the one who did something wrong. This morning he asked me to make him breakfast and when I said I was not hungry he said I was being petty and that he still needed help with things because his leg was still broken whether I was mad at him or not. I called in sick to work because I could not focus on anything and I needed to figure out what I was going to do about this whole situation. I called my sister Aria and told her everything that happened and she said that what Sophia and Casper did was completely inappropriate and that I had every right to be angry and that Casper lying to me about Ashley being there was a huge red flag.

Aria said that if her husband's ex-girlfriend moved into their house while she was away and he lied to her about it she would be filing for divorce immediately and that I was being too nice about the whole thing. I told Aria that I did not want to get divorced over this, but that I felt like I could not trust Casper anymore and that I did not know how to get past the fact that he lied to me for three days. Casper's friend Lance came over around noon to check on him and Casper told him the whole story but he made it sound like I was being crazy and unreasonable and that Ashley was just helping him out as a favor and that I was too jealous to appreciate it. Lance said that if his wife acted the way I was acting he would be really annoyed and that

Casper was lucky to have friends who cared enough to help him when he was hurt. I heard them talking and I went downstairs and I told Lance that he did not know the whole story and that Casper had lied to me about Ashley being there and that she had moved all her stuff into our house without my knowledge and that they were having romantic dinners together while I was working. Lance said that Casper already told him about the dinner and that it was not romantic. It was just Ashley being nice and making good food. I asked Lance how he would feel if his wife's ex-boyfriend moved into their house while he was out of town and lied to him about it for three days and had candlelight dinners with his wife. Lance said that was different because Ashley was a nurse

and she was helping Casper with medical stuff and that Casper's situation was special because he could not take care of himself. Casper said that Lance understood the situation better than I did and that maybe I should listen to what other people were saying instead of just assuming the worst about everything. I told Casper that I did not care what Lance thought because Lance was not married to me and he did not have to deal with the consequences of Casper lying to him and betraying his trust. Lance left after that and Casper said I was embarrassing him in front of his friends. and that I was making him look bad by acting so paranoid and jealous. I told Casper that he made himself look bad by lying to me and that if he was embarrassed,

maybe he should have thought about that before he decided to let his ex-girlfriend move into our house. I went for a long drive to clear my head and when I came back Casper was on the phone with someone and he was talking really quietly and when he saw me he hung up quickly and said it was just his doctor's office calling about his next appointment. I asked him why he hung up so fast if it was just the doctor's. and he said he was done talking to them anyway and that I was being paranoid again. I don't know what to do is my marriage over Reddit.

Update 2. Sophia came over this morning without calling first and she brought Casper some soup and when she saw me she acted like nothing had happened and asked me how my business trip went. I told Sophia that we needed to talk about what she did while I was gone and that it was not okay for her to invite Ashley to stay in our house without asking me first. Sophia said that Casper needed proper medical care and that Ashley was a qualified nurse who knew how to help him and that she thought I would be grateful that Casper was in good hands while I was working. I told Sophia that if Casper needed medical care that badly she should have taken him to the hospital

or hired a real nurse not invited his ex-girlfriend to move into our house. Sophia said that Ashley was a real nurse and that she was happy to help Casper for free and that hiring a professional nurse would have cost thousands of dollars that we could not have I told Sophia that we did not ask her to find medical care for Casper and that she had no right to make decisions about our house and our marriage without talking to me first. Sophia got angry and said that I was being selfish and that I cared more about my job than about Casper's health and that if I was a better wife I would have stayed home to take care of him instead of going to some stupid conference.

I told Sophia that the conference was not stupid it was my job and that married couples make decisions together and that what she did was wrong and disrespectful. Sophia said that Ashley was family to her and that she would always be welcome in her life and that if I could not handle Casper having good friends then maybe I was not the right person for him. I told Sophia that Ashley was not family she was Casper's ex-girlfriend and that Sophia needed to respect my marriage and stop trying to interfere Casper told us both to stop fighting and that he was tired of all the drama and that he just wanted everyone to get along and help him get better.

Sophia said she was just trying to help her son and that she was sorry if I was upset but that she would do the same thing again if Casper needed help and I was not available. I told Sophia that if she ever invited anyone to stay in my house again without my permission I would not let her come over anymore and that she needed to understand that Casper and I were married and that meant she could not make decisions about our lives without consulting both of us. Sophia said I was being threatening and controlling and that Casper was her son and she would always put his needs first. Sophia left after that and Casper said I was being too harsh with his mother and that she was just trying to help and that I should not have threatened her.

I told Casper that his mother disrespected our marriage and our home and that if he could not see that then we had bigger problems than I thought. I also called my mom and told her what happened and she said that Sophia was completely out of line and that what she did was inappropriate and that Casper should have stood up for me instead of defending his mother and Ashley. My mom said that when you get married your spouse comes first and that Casper was not acting like a married man. My mom offered to come stay with us for a few days to help with Casper so that I could go back to work and not worry about what Sophia might do next, but Casper said he did not want my mom staying here and that his leg was getting better and he did not need that much help anymore. I asked Casper why my mom could not stay here but Ashley could and he said that was different because Ashley was a medical professional.

I pointed out that my mom raised four kids and took care of my dad when he had surgery last year and that she knew how to help people who were hurt but Casper said that was not the same thing as having real medical training. I told Casper that he was making excuses because he liked having Ashley here and that he was trying to find reasons to justify what happened. Casper got angry and said that I was twisting everything and that he never asked Ashley to come here and that his mother arranged it and that he was just being polite to someone who was trying to help him. I told Casper that being polite did not mean lying to me for three days and that being polite did not mean having romantic dinners with his ex-girlfriend. Casper said the dinner was not romantic and that I needed to stop calling it that and that Ashley just made nice food and happen to light some candles and that it did not mean anything special. I asked Casper if he would be okay with me having candlelight dinners with my ex-boyfriend if he was out of town and Casper said that was different because my ex-boyfriend was not a medical professional who was helping me. I told Casper that he was being ridiculous and that he knew what he did was wrong and that he was just trying to make excuses because he did not want to admit it. Casper said that he did not do anything wrong and that I was the one who was acting crazy and that he was getting tired of me making such a big deal about everything.

Update 3 Casper's cast came off yesterday and his leg is much better and he can walk around pretty normally now which means he does not need help with basic things anymore. I thought this would make things better between us, but Casper is still acting like I was wrong to be upset about the Ashley's situation and he has not apologized for lying to me or for letting his ex-girlfriend move into our house. I asked Casper if he understood why I was hurt that he lied to me and he said that he did not really lie he just did not mention that Ashley was helping him because he knew I would get upset for no reason. I told Casper that not telling me the truth was the same thing as lying and that he knew I would

want to know who was staying in our house while I was gone. Casper said that if I trusted him more I would not have gotten so upset about Ashley being here and that the fact that I was still angry about it proved that I did not really trust him. I told Casper that trust was something you earned and that lying to your spouse was not the way to earn trust and that he broke my trust when he decided to hide the truth from me. Casper said that nothing happened between him and Ashley and that they were just friends and that I was being paranoid to think that anything inappropriate was going on. I told Casper that it did not matter if anything physical happened because he still chose to lie.

Casper got frustrated and said that I was never going to get over this and that I was going to hold it against him forever and that he was tired of apologizing for something that was not even a big deal. I told Casper that he had never actually apologized and that saying sorry would be a good start if he wanted me to get over it. Casper said fine he was sorry that I got upset but that he still did not think he did anything wrong and that he would probably do the same thing again if he was hurt and needed help and I was not available. I told Casper that if he would do the same thing again then he had not learned anything

from this situation and that he still did not understand why I was hurt. Ashley called Casper yesterday afternoon and when he answered the phone he walked out to the garage so I could not hear what they were talking about. When he came back inside I asked him what Ashley wanted and he said she was just checking to see how his leg was doing and that she was glad the cast was off and he was feeling better. I asked Casper why he had to go to the garage to talk to Ashley if it was just about his leg and he said he went out there because he knew I would get upset if I heard him talking to her and that he was trying to avoid another fight. I told Casper that hiding his conversations with Ashley was just another form of lying and that if he had nothing to hide

he would not need to sneak around to talk to her. Casper said that he was not sneaking around and that he just wanted to have a normal conversation with a friend without me analyzing every word and making it into something it was not. I told Casper that Ashley was not just a friend. She was his ex-girlfriend and that most married people did not have private phone conversations with their ex-girlfriends especially after what happened. Casper said that I was being controlling and that he should be able to talk to whoever he wanted and that Ashley was part of his life before I was and that he was not going to cut off all contact with her just because I was insecure. I told Casper that I was not asking him to cut off all contact, but that I expected him to be honest about when

they talked and that I expected him to respect my feelings about the situation. My sister Aria came over for dinner last night and she could tell that things were still tense between me and Casper and she asked me privately if we were doing okay. I told Aria that Casper still did not think he did anything wrong and that he was still talking to Ashley and hiding it from me and that I did not know what to do next. Aria said that Casper was acting like a single and that if he could not see why what he did was wrong, then maybe he was not ready to be married. Aria said that her husband would never let his ex-girlfriend move into their house and lie to her about it and that if he did, she would be looking for a divorce lawyer. Casper overheard part of our conversation and after Aria left he asked me if I was thinking about getting divorced and I told him that I did not want to but that I felt like he did not respect me or our marriage.

Casper said that he did respect me in our marriage and that he never wanted to hurt me and that he thought Ashley's staying here was just a practical solution to a temporary problem. Casper said that he did not call me because he knew I would say no and that he really needed help and Ashley was the best option available. I told Casper that was exactly the problem because in a marriage both people get to have input on major decisions and that he did not get to just do whatever he wanted because he thought I might disagree with him. Casper said that he understood that now and that if something like this happened again he would handle it differently but that he could not change what already happened and that he wished I could just forgive him and move on. I told Casper that forgiveness was not something that happened overnight and that he needed to show me that he understood why what he did was wrong and that he was committed to rebuilding my trust. Casper asked me what he needed to do to prove that to me

and I told him that first he needed to stop talking to Ashley and that if she called him he needed to tell her that it was not appropriate for them to have private conversations anymore. Casper said that seemed extreme and that Ashley was just being a friend and that cutting her off completely would be mean and unnecessary. I told Casper that Ashley was not just being a friend and that friends do not move into your house and have candlelight dinners with you while your spouse is out of town and that if he wanted to save our marriage

he needed to prioritize our relationship over his friendship with his ex-girlfriend. Casper said he would think about it but that he did not want to be cruel to Ashley when she was just trying to help him. I do not know what else I can do to make Casper understand that what happened was not okay and that our marriage has to come first before his ex-girlfriend's feelings. I feel like I am the only one fighting for our relationship and that Casper is more concerned about protecting Ashley than he is about fixing things with me.