My Husband and I Planned a Once-in-a-Lifetime Trip, but I Had to Go Alone Because of My MIL

Tom and I married young, raised adopted twins, and believed love could survive anything. When the kids left home, we planned a long-awaited trip to Europe to reconnect. But days before, Tom lied about his mother’s surgery and urged me to go alone. I returned to find betrayal: my best friend Meredith in his shirt, a newborn upstairs, and forged papers his mother waved to push me out.

The truth unraveled—every document fake, their “future” built on lies. Divorce left me with the house and my freedom, while Tom and Meredith’s life crumbled. I rebooked the trip, this time with Liam and Lila, and in Rome and Venice we laughed, ate, and danced. At sunset, Lila whispered, “I hope he sees this.” I smiled. The point wasn’t revenge—it was choosing joy, wide open and ours.