Ben wasn’t supposed to be home during the day. He always said he was “busy with work.” But there he was, standing in our living room, smiling at Emily like he hadn’t smiled at me in years.

They didn’t even notice the kids in the background.

Emily laughed softly, tossing her hair over her shoulder. Ben reached for her waist. My stomach twisted.

I leaned closer to the screen, hoping—praying—that I was misinterpreting what I was seeing.

But then he kissed her.

Not a quick, accidental peck.
A slow, familiar kiss.

My hands started shaking so badly I had to pause the video.

So this was why my sons said she “wasn’t really with them.”

Because she was with him.

I forced myself to keep watching.

They sat on the couch. Too close. Whispering. Laughing. Completely forgetting about the children playing just a few feet away. At one point, my youngest tried to show them a drawing.

Emily barely looked up.

“Not now, sweetie,” she said.

Ben didn’t even acknowledge him.

Tears burned my eyes. My kids were being ignored in their own home… while their father played house with the nanny.

But what hurt the most?

This wasn’t the first time.

The footage showed the same routine every day. Emily arriving. Ben suddenly “working from home.” The door closing. My children left to entertain themselves.

My chest felt tight. I felt betrayed. Humiliated. Angry.

But I didn’t confront them.

Not yet.

Instead, I waited.

The next afternoon, I came home early without warning. The house was quiet. Too quiet.

I opened the living room door.

Ben and Emily jumped apart like teenagers caught sneaking around.

“Surprise,” I said coldly.

Emily turned pale. Ben tried to speak, but no words came out.

“I know everything,” I continued. “And so do my kids.”

Emily grabbed her bag and rushed past me without a word.

Ben tried to apologize. Tried to explain. Tried to blame stress. Work. Loneliness.

I didn’t listen.

That night, I packed his bags.

But the real shock didn’t come from him.

It came from my oldest son.

He looked at me and whispered,
“Mom… Emily said Daddy was going to leave us anyway.”

And that’s when I realized this wasn’t just an affair.
It was a plan.