Emily Taylor

My Husband’s Parents Refuse to Accept Our Marriage and Keep Pushing Him to Reunite with His Ex-Wife—“Can’t You See, They Have a Child Together!” My Mother-in-Law Complains

My husbands parents simply wont settle down and keep trying to reconcile him with his ex-wife.

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04

My Mother-in-Law Offered to Help Look After Our Children During the Summer Now She’s Retired, but When My Brother-in-Law Left His Three Kids with Her Too and Didn’t Provide Food or Money, We Ended Up Paying for Everything – How Do I Address This Without Starting a Family Row?

My mother-in-law suggested she could help look after the children over the summer holidays. She’

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02

My Mother-in-Law Offered to Help Look After Our Children During the Summer Now She’s Retired, but When My Brother-in-Law Left His Three Kids with Her Too and Didn’t Provide Food or Money, We Ended Up Paying for Everything – How Do I Address This Without Starting a Family Row?

My mother-in-law suggested she could help look after the children over the summer holidays. She’

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06

I Paid to Become “Younger”—Years Later, My Husband Uncovered the Truth and We Ended Up Divorced

With money, I made myself younger. Years later, my husband discovered the truth and we divorced.

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08

I Paid to Become “Younger”—Years Later, My Husband Uncovered the Truth and We Ended Up Divorced

With money, I made myself younger. Years later, my husband discovered the truth and we divorced.

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My Husband Only Thinks of Himself – He Eats Everything in Sight, Leaving Nothing Even for Our Son “Adam, where have the bananas gone?” I ask my husband. “I ate them, I fancied a snack,” he says. “Couldn’t you have saved just one for our son’s tea?” “You’re making a fuss over nothing. It’s not like you can’t buy bananas at the shop.” “Then pop out and get more, please.” “I’ve got the football match on – how can I go?” This is constant in our family: fromage frais, biscuits, apples – I even have to hide food or else our son might go hungry with a dad like this. We’ve been married for five years. Our son’s nearly two. We’re paying off our mortgage, so money’s tight. My husband claims he’s the breadwinner for getting us this house, but really, he just sold his one-bedroom flat for the deposit, and my parents helped too. My mum says Adam is so selfish. I kind of agree. One time we were getting ready for a birthday do. I was cooking for guests, and there he was, hovering, emptying dishes. Worst was the cake – I left it on the balcony because there was no fridge space, brought it in to slice up, only to find there was just a bit of decorated chocolate left. Imagine how embarrassed I was. This happens all the time. Yes, he works, but surely he could think of others. His only excuse: “We’ll just buy more – don’t stress!” Fine, don’t care about me, but how can you not care about your own child? Especially when we don’t have lots of money and I’m trying to budget. We can eat a month’s worth of food in a week. “Why are you going on at him? He’s a man, let him eat. He earns the money. Don’t nag, just cook more,” his mum says, defending him. Funny thing is, no matter how much I cook, it’s never enough for him – he’ll eat everything. There’s no question of buying more with the mortgage, clothes and other bills to pay. In the end, I told my husband that if he did it again, I’d divorce him. We’ll split the flat and go our separate ways. He sulked, whined to his mum, and now my mother-in-law won’t even speak to me. But I honestly think I’m right. What would you do?

My husband only ever thinks about himself, Emily confessed, her words laced with frustration as she stood

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06

Nice Try, Romeo! My Suitor Thought He Could Move Into My Flat at My Expense I’ve always been determined and goal-oriented—by 25, I managed to save enough to buy my own flat, all on my own, with no help from family or relatives. When I fell in love, I was foolish enough to mention I had my own place. I made it clear from the start: I wasn’t going to live in his flat, so we agreed he’d find us a place to rent together, while I’d let out my flat to save up for a car. He agreed and said he’d soon have enough saved so we could move in together. But just six months later, he turned up at my door with his suitcase, claiming he’d lost his job and had no money, asking me to let him stay “just for a while.” Thankfully, he had his own family to turn to—because I said no. I’m convinced this was just a ploy to freeload at my expense—so I ended things for good.

As luck would have it, Ive always been someone who sets her sights firmly on her goals. By the time I

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08

Ever Since I Was a Little Girl, My Parents Told Me I Was Useless and Nobody Needed Me—But I Proved Them Wrong by Moving to London, Starting My Own Business, and Building the Family I Always Dreamed Of

Since I was a young boy, my parents used to tell me that nobody needed me and that I would never amount

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06

Natalie, You’ve Been Gone Five Years—You Never Cared How I Was or What Became of Me Natalie and Ben had lived together for over five years. Ben wasn’t rolling in money—he was just an ordinary labourer earning a modest wage. Natalie always dreamed of a comfortable, or better yet, luxurious life, so whenever she met someone wealthier than her husband, she was secretly thrilled. Then one day, Natalie’s luck seemed to change—she was noticed by a wealthy businessman who promised her the world. Taken in by his smooth talk, she left her struggling husband to start a new, glamorous life. Ben was shattered by his wife’s decision. He begged her to stay, promising to work harder, switch jobs, make more money—anything to keep her happy. But Natalie remained firm. She was enchanted with visions of sailing on white yachts and shopping in Europe’s finest boutiques—things her poor husband could never provide. No vow of love or grand promise could sway her. Five years later, at thirty-two, Natalie’s rich benefactor lost interest in her—he was now surrounded by younger, more enticing women. He told her she was too argumentative and demanding, and cast her aside. With nowhere to go in London, no work experience, and no means to support herself, Natalie decided to crawl back to her ex-husband. Convinced that his vow of everlasting love meant he would be waiting for her, she set out for their former home. As she approached the door, she heard a rustle inside. The door opened, and a stranger holding a small girl appeared. “Darling, I’ve told you before not to open the door on your own,” the woman said to the girl in her arms. Then she turned to Natalie, “Can I help you?” Natalie stood frozen on the doorstep. “I’m looking for Ben. Is he home?” she stammered, lost for words. “Ben, there’s someone here for you! What’s your name?” called the stranger, then glanced back at their visitor. “Natalie!” Ben exclaimed in surprise when he appeared. Turning to the woman, he said, “Sweetheart, go back inside. I need to talk for a minute.” “Who was that woman?” Natalie asked, staring after the young woman with her daughter. “That’s my wife, Olivia, and in her arms is our daughter, Maddy,” Ben replied. “When did you get married? You have a daughter? Ben, you swore eternal love to me—you promised you’d never love anyone as much as you loved me!” “So many years have passed since that day! At first, I was heartbroken, but then I realised life goes on after you. Then I met Olivia—and I fell in love. She made me happy. She gave me a daughter.” “And what about me?” “Natalie, you’ve been gone for five years, and you never once cared how I was or what became of me. You left for someone else’s money, thinking only of comfort and a wealthy life. Maybe we were never rich, but what you did can’t be justified. Now you come back? What did you expect—that I’d be here waiting for you all this time?” “I was foolish! I love you!” “Natalie, enough of this charade. Please just go—I don’t need you and I don’t want to see you. Your fancy man threw you out so now you come crawling back? Honestly, it’s disgusting. Just go.” Natalie broke down in bitter tears, devastated that no one wanted her, while Ben was finally glad he’d managed to forget her and, in his own way, get his revenge.

Emily, its been five years since you left; you havent cared how Im living or whats happened to me.

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08

Natalie, You’ve Been Gone Five Years—You Never Cared How I Was or What Became of Me Natalie and Ben had lived together for over five years. Ben wasn’t rolling in money—he was just an ordinary labourer earning a modest wage. Natalie always dreamed of a comfortable, or better yet, luxurious life, so whenever she met someone wealthier than her husband, she was secretly thrilled. Then one day, Natalie’s luck seemed to change—she was noticed by a wealthy businessman who promised her the world. Taken in by his smooth talk, she left her struggling husband to start a new, glamorous life. Ben was shattered by his wife’s decision. He begged her to stay, promising to work harder, switch jobs, make more money—anything to keep her happy. But Natalie remained firm. She was enchanted with visions of sailing on white yachts and shopping in Europe’s finest boutiques—things her poor husband could never provide. No vow of love or grand promise could sway her. Five years later, at thirty-two, Natalie’s rich benefactor lost interest in her—he was now surrounded by younger, more enticing women. He told her she was too argumentative and demanding, and cast her aside. With nowhere to go in London, no work experience, and no means to support herself, Natalie decided to crawl back to her ex-husband. Convinced that his vow of everlasting love meant he would be waiting for her, she set out for their former home. As she approached the door, she heard a rustle inside. The door opened, and a stranger holding a small girl appeared. “Darling, I’ve told you before not to open the door on your own,” the woman said to the girl in her arms. Then she turned to Natalie, “Can I help you?” Natalie stood frozen on the doorstep. “I’m looking for Ben. Is he home?” she stammered, lost for words. “Ben, there’s someone here for you! What’s your name?” called the stranger, then glanced back at their visitor. “Natalie!” Ben exclaimed in surprise when he appeared. Turning to the woman, he said, “Sweetheart, go back inside. I need to talk for a minute.” “Who was that woman?” Natalie asked, staring after the young woman with her daughter. “That’s my wife, Olivia, and in her arms is our daughter, Maddy,” Ben replied. “When did you get married? You have a daughter? Ben, you swore eternal love to me—you promised you’d never love anyone as much as you loved me!” “So many years have passed since that day! At first, I was heartbroken, but then I realised life goes on after you. Then I met Olivia—and I fell in love. She made me happy. She gave me a daughter.” “And what about me?” “Natalie, you’ve been gone for five years, and you never once cared how I was or what became of me. You left for someone else’s money, thinking only of comfort and a wealthy life. Maybe we were never rich, but what you did can’t be justified. Now you come back? What did you expect—that I’d be here waiting for you all this time?” “I was foolish! I love you!” “Natalie, enough of this charade. Please just go—I don’t need you and I don’t want to see you. Your fancy man threw you out so now you come crawling back? Honestly, it’s disgusting. Just go.” Natalie broke down in bitter tears, devastated that no one wanted her, while Ben was finally glad he’d managed to forget her and, in his own way, get his revenge.

Emily, its been five years since you left; you havent cared how Im living or whats happened to me.