When a person finds out they have been cheated on by their partner, their world crushes into a million pieces. However, one man decided to use his wife’s infidelity to his advantage.
Sharing his story, Tom started by saying that he somehow knew his spouse, Claire, was seeing someone else. There were late-night texts, secretive calls, and sudden work trips. He, however, never confronted her because she was the one providing financial stability and paying for the groceries, covering the rent, the insurance and a lot more.
Divorcing her would ruin him financially so he simply pretended that everything was fine although he had no feelings left for her.
One day, as he was going through the clothes, he found a crumpled credit card receipt from some fancy restaurant in one of Claire’s jackets. The name written on it sound too familiar to ignore; Alex M.
Tom realized that the man Claire was cheating with was one of her father’s rich friends whom he had met a few times at her dad’s birthday parties. He recalled Alex starring at Claire, but he thought he was just friendly. Now, however, he knew better.
That night, he couldn’t sleep burdened by the thought of his wife being with Alex.
In order to learn more, he decided to go through one of her old phones. When he tried the pin, it was their wedding anniversary. “What an irony,” he thought to himself.
There, he found texts Claire had sent to some of her friends. One of those messages read, “I still love Tom but we needed the money. Alex… he’s just a means to an end. Is that terrible?” to what her friend replied, “Girl, you gotta do what you gotta do. But be careful. This could blow up in your face.”
As expected, there were also messages between her and her lover. Alex tried to convince her to leave her husband and be with him, but her responses were always noncommittal. “You know it’s complicated, Alex. Let’s just enjoy what we have.”
As Tom put the phone down, there was this crazy idea that started forming. Could he use this situation to his advantage?
The following day he gathered the courage to give Alex a call. “Hello?” Alex’s deep and confident voice could be heard from the other side of the phone.
“Alex? This is Tom, Claire’s husband,” he said taking a deep breath. The silence from Alex’s side was defeating. After a few seconds he said, “Tom. What can I do for you?”
Tom cut to the chase. “I know about you and Claire. I know you’re paying our bills. I’m willing to walk away, file for divorce, and let you have her. But I need something from you.”
“And what’s that?” Alex’s voice was guarded. “Fifty thousand dollars. To start over,” Tom answered.
“Why would I give you money?” Alex asked. “Because if I leave her and break her heart, she’ll finally be yours. I just need a fresh start. Think of it as… an investment in your future happiness.”
“You’d do that? Just walk away?” Alex was puzzled.
“Alex, my man, I checked out of this marriage a long time ago. I’m just looking for a way out that doesn’t leave me broke.” He was quiet for so long I thought he’d hung up. Then, “I’ll think about it.”
“Don’t think too long,” Tom said. “Offer expires in 48 hours.”
The next two days were filled with anticipation. Whenever Tom’s phone buzzed, he thought it was Alex, but it was always either his friends or his mom. The evening was quiet, and Claire could sense Tom was bothered by something. Asking him what was wrong, she squeezed his hand. But her touch, that once felt comforting, made his skin crawl. He pulled away, pretending to needed some water.
Finally, someone called. It was Alex. “It’s done,” he said. “Check your account.”
Tom logged into his bank account, and really, there were $50,000 there.
The following day, he was waiting Claire at home, with the divorce papers on the table. His belongings already packed, he told her he knew about her and Alex and that he was leaving her for good.
Claire started crying. She tried to explain to him that Alex was just someone who was paying the bills, but Tom didn’t want to listen.
He checked into a cheap motel and ignored the calls. But just as he was drifting off to sleep, his phone buzzed one more time. Against his better judgment, he checked it. It was Claire. She texted, “I’m sorry. I really did love you.”
Tom decided to reply. “I know. But sometimes love isn’t enough.” Once he hit send, he turned his phone off. Tomorrow was a new day fro him.
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