My son’s question about my husband’s “secret car” almost shattered our family apart, but things weren’t what they seemed, and in fact, we became even closer than before.

Ben, my husband, works in construction, so as you assume, the car he uses, which is the same I drive when I visit my mom or run errands, is always a mess. From fast-food wrappers, to muddy boots and dust-covered tools, it is far from clean.

So, when Ben’s co-worker offered to pick him up for an early shift, I saw it as a chance to clean the car. I asked my son, Liam, to help, and he was over the moon to be using 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?”

“A secret car?” I wondered if I’d heard that right. “What secret car?”

“The one the nice lady with curly hair let dad drive when you were at granny’s.”

I tried to brush it off with a smile for Liam’s sake, but the truth was that my hands were shaking. “What was happening behind my back?” I wondered.

Ben never mentioned a woman or a car. And Liam said he saw them while I was at my mom’s who is ill and in need of 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’ll be out with Sarah,” I said in the afternoon, leaving Ben, Liam, and Jenny, the babysitter home.

Ben didn’t even look at me, he just mumbled, “Have a great time.”

I went out of the house, entered Sarah’s car that was parked near our home, and waited.

If something was going on, I needed to know what it was.

After some time, I saw Ben leaving the house, carrying what resembled a jewelry box under his arm. He waited for a couple of minutes before the lady with curly hair, the one Liam mentioned, pulled over and picked him up.

As they started driving, Sarah and I followed.

Ben and the lady parked in front of a building. They entered inside and I followed after them. The place consisted of offices, and the one Ben and his lady friend entered had Private Meeting Room written on its door.

Curious, I peeked through the glass and saw Ben handing a necklace to the woman who was typing something on her lap top. My heart raced and my hands and knees were shaking, and just as I was about to leave, Ben opened the door.

“Honey, what are you doing here?” he asked, shocked.

“I was about to ask you the same thing,” I said.

“It’s not what you think,” Ben said, “let me explain.”

I entered the room and he introduced me to the lady. Her name was Melissa and she was a financial consultant.

“This piece of jewelry is a family’s heirloom,” Ben said. “I wanted to sell it because I needed money.”

Ben explained that a few years back, when my mom’s health declined and she was in need of medical assistance and some expensive medicine, took out a personal loan. He thought he could handle it, but with interest, it spiraled out of control.

Melissa’s formal outfit and her typing told me Ben was telling the truth.

And the “secret car” and him driving it, it was because Melissa was reviewing some document while they were going to her office. It all made sense then.

I was grateful Ben helped with my mom’s expenses and now it was both his and my debt to cover. I told him to keep the necklace. He could give it to Liam once he was old enough, to cherish it as a family treasure.

Instead, I picked up more hours at work and we cut on unnecessary expenses. With Melissa’s help, we managed to restructure the loan and make realistic payments.

My son’s innocent question about his dad’s “secret car” revealed a secret that made our bond even stronger than before.

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