Mike looked like he’d been caught. He sat down on the couch, his head in his hands. “I was going to tell you, Amy. I just… I didn’t know how.” He took a deep breath. “Remember a few years ago, when I was doing some volunteer work at the community center?”
I nodded, waiting for him to continue. “There was this woman, Sarah. She was a single mom, really struggling. She had a little boy, Josh. We became friends, and I helped her out as much as I could. Then, Sarah got really sick. She had no one else, so I promised her I’d take care of Josh if anything happened to her.”
My eyes widened. “What? And you never told me?”
Mike looked up, his eyes full of pain. “She passed away a few months ago. Josh is autistic, and he needs a lot of support. I didn’t want to burden you with this, especially since I know how busy you are with work and the kids. So, I’ve been taking Ava and Ben to spend time with him, to be his friends, to make him feel like he has a family.”
I was furious. “You should have told me, Mike! This is a huge deal! How could you keep something like this from me?” I was so angry that I started to cry. I felt betrayed. All these weeks, he’d been lying to me.
For the next few days, I was cold towards Mike. I didn’t know how to deal with this. I loved my husband, but I was hurt that he’d kept such a big secret. Mike tried to talk to me, but I just couldn’t listen.
Then, one day, I decided to go with them. I told Mike I wanted to see this Josh for myself. When we got to the small house on the edge of town, a little boy with messy brown hair was sitting on the porch. Ava and Ben ran up to him, and he smiled a big, toothy smile.
I watched as Mike interacted with Josh. He was so gentle, so patient. I could see how much he cared. And then, Josh looked at me, and he said, “You’re pretty, like a princess.”
At that moment, my heart melted. I realized that Mike had been trying to do a good thing. He’d made a promise to a dying woman, and he was keeping it. Yes, he should have told me, but I could see the love in his eyes as he played with Josh.
That evening, after we got home and the kids were in bed, Mike and I sat on the porch swing. “I’m sorry, Amy,” he said. “I should have trusted you. You’re my wife, and we should be in this together.”
I took his hand. “I’m sorry, too. I overreacted. I can see how much Josh needs you, and I want to help. We can be a family to him, all of us.”
And so, we did. We started to include Josh in our family activities. Ava and Ben loved having a new friend, and Josh thrived in our home. It wasn’t always easy, especially with Josh’s special needs, but we were all in it together. And in the end, our family became even stronger because of it.
