When Belinda jokes about skipping her SIL’s strict vegetarian Thanksgiving, her husband Jeremy’s reaction is anything but funny. His sudden anger and ultimatum for divorce leave her reeling. As tensions rise, Belinda uncovers secrets that hint at a far deeper betrayal hidden in plain sight.
Thanksgiving was supposed to be family time, right? But this year, it felt more like I was heading into a battle I didn’t sign up for.
A troubled woman | Source: Midjourney
It started with my sister-in-law, Amy’s text announcing that she’d be hosting Thanksgiving this year, and that it would be a strictly vegetarian meal. This wasn’t a suggestion, mind you, but a declaration.
I couldn’t help but laugh as I stared at the words on my phone screen: No meat or animal products allowed! Anyone who doesn’t respect this rule will be kicked out. Trust me, you won’t even miss them once you try my Tofurky roast!
Yeah, right. I’d choked down enough of her cardboard-flavored fake meat experiments since she decided to become vegetarian last year to know better.
A vegetarian burger | Source: Pexels
I could hear her voice in my head as I read the text, all high and haughty, the way she sounds when she’s convinced she’s right about something.
“Can you believe Amy’s Thanksgiving dinner message? Can’t she just make a lentil curry instead of forcing us all to eat that awful faux meat?” I turned to Jeremy, expecting him to chuckle along with me, but he just gave me a look that stopped my laughter dead in its tracks.
“It’s just one meal, Belinda,” he said in a low, tense voice. “You can handle it.”
A tense man sitting on a sofa | Source: Midjourney
“I know I can handle it,” I shot back, rolling my eyes. “I just don’t want to.”
“Why does everything between you and Amy always have to be such a big deal?” he asked, running a hand through his hair, eyes fixed on some invisible spot on the carpet. “It’s a family holiday, and this is important to Amy. For once, can’t you just do something to make her happy?”
I don’t know whether it was the way he suddenly seemed so rigid, or how his voice took on that edge, but something in me snapped.
A woman with an angry glint in her eye | Source: Midjourney
I was tired of constantly bending to Amy’s needs and whims for every family gathering. Maybe it would’ve been easier if she weren’t so controlling and erratic, but I was tired of riding the roller coaster of being Amy’s sister-in-law.
“Because it’s not about the food, and you know it. Amy always steamrolls everyone else’s plans, and it’s not fair.” I crossed my arms, trying to keep the hurt out of my voice. “Jeremy, we could just spend Thanksgiving on our own this year. Make a nice dinner, watch a movie…”
He shook his head like I’d just suggested setting the house on fire.
A solemn and serious man | Source: Midjourney
“We’re not skipping Thanksgiving at Amy’s. It’s… you’re not being supportive, Belinda.” He looked at me, then with tightness around his mouth and tension in his shoulders, he said, “If you can’t be there for my family, maybe… well, maybe you shouldn’t be a part of it anymore.”
My jaw dropped. I felt the blood rush to my face, a mix of shock and anger. “You’d really divorce me over one family dinner?”
“It’s not just dinner,” he muttered, looking away. “It’s about supporting each other.”
A stern-looking man | Source: Midjourney
Supporting each other. Right. Except the support only worked one way, and I always came off as second best to his sister.
But I bit my tongue and swallowed the one thousand things I wanted to shout at him, mostly about his unwavering dedication to Amy, which went beyond the typical brotherly concern.
I’d noticed the late-night calls, and the anxious glances when she was around. But I couldn’t quite figure out how to bring it up without sounding… petty and paranoid.
An emotional woman | Source: Midjourney
“Fine. We’ll go to Amy’s Thanksgiving,” I said, but the words tasted bitter.
I could feel the weight of his expectations pressing down, and that weight carried me straight into the storm I had no idea was brewing.
The days leading up to Thanksgiving felt like walking through quicksand — every step heavier than the last. Jeremy seemed to slip away right in front of me.
He was always out early and back late, his shoulders hunched under an invisible weight. I’d never seen him so preoccupied, so completely withdrawn, and the walls he’d put up between us grew thicker by the day.
A woman glancing at her husband | Source: Midjourney
It wasn’t just his absence. Money, too, had become strangely tight. I noticed him pulling our bank statements more often, scanning them with an intensity that seemed out of character.
He’d insisted on managing our finances when we first married, saying it made sense since he worked in accounting. Back then, I’d shrugged, trusting him completely.
But now, the way he pored over each line, his brow knitted with worry, stirred a growing unease in me. What was he hiding?
A man drinking coffee and working on his laptop | Source: Pexels
One evening, after he’d gone to bed, I gave in to my instincts and pulled up the details for our joint account on my laptop. Guilt whispered that I was crossing a line, but my need for answers drowned it out.
As I scrolled, my breath hitched. Regular withdrawals, small but persistent, were labeled under a vague “medical expenses.” Doctor’s names cropped up every month, one more than the rest.
I typed the name into my browser. The last thing I expected was to find out that the only doctor in the area with that name was a psychologist.
A woman using a laptop | Source: Pexels
My heart pounded. During dinner the next night, I worked up the nerve to ask, “Jeremy, are you… are you in therapy?”
His eyes widened, a flicker of something unnameable darting across his face.
“Yeah, sometimes,” he mumbled, too quickly. His hand fumbled for the edge of the table as if anchoring himself. “It’s just… uh, it’s been a rough year. So much stress.”
My stomach twisted. He was lying. My steady, unflinching husband was lying to me, and I didn’t know why.
A frowning woman | Source: Midjourney
A few nights before Thanksgiving, I woke to the soft murmur of his voice drifting from the living room. Tiptoeing to the doorway, I held my breath, listening.
“I told you I’d handle it,” he whispered, his voice warm and tender. The way he spoke — so careful, so… intimate — it sent a shiver through me.
“You don’t have to worry,” he assured, the words almost a caress. Then there was a long pause, thick and lingering, before he murmured, “Goodnight, Amy.”
A woman eavesdropping from a doorway | Source: Midjourney
As he hung up, my heart plummeted, thudding painfully in my chest.
Amy. Of course.
I wanted to demand answers, to press him until every last hidden truth unraveled before me, but the words stuck in my throat, a bitter knot of suspicion and fear.
If I pried too far, would I even recognize what I found? Or would the truth change everything I thought I knew about my husband and his relationship with his sister?
A worried woman | Source: Midjourney
Jeremy was so different now, a stranger masquerading in the familiar face I’d trusted for years. I could feel the edges of something larger, a whole tangled mess of secrets he’d worked tirelessly to keep buried. But there it was, just beneath the surface, waiting to be exposed.
Thanksgiving Eve dawned gray and somber, casting a dull light over the kitchen where I sat, my stomach a knot of nerves and questions.
I couldn’t stomach the idea of sitting across from Amy, pretending nothing was wrong, stuffing my face with tofu roast while my husband’s lies swirled around us. No, I needed to know what they were up to before I walked through that door.
A determined woman | Source: Midjourney
Jeremy entered, his face blank with that practiced calm of his, but I could see a flicker of something when he met my gaze. I waited until we were both settled at the table. The fridge hummed in the background, filling the space between us.
“Jeremy, I need to know.” I kept my voice steady, though inside I was anything but. “Why are you so…committed to Amy?”
His face shifted, and for a moment I saw something raw flicker in his eyes before he blinked it away.
A secretive man | Source: Midjourney
“What are you talking about?” He tried for nonchalance, but his hands were clenched tight, his knuckles white against the tabletop.
“All the secrets, the money, the phone calls in the middle of the night.” My voice wavered as the words spilled out, no longer restrained. “Are you hiding something… something I need to worry about?”
He opened his mouth as if to deny it, then shut it again, his gaze darting around the room like he was searching for an escape. But there was none.
A stunned man | Source: Midjourney
Trapped, he let out a small sigh, his shoulders slumping under the weight of his secrets.
“It’s… complicated,” he murmured.
“Try me,” I said, my voice rising with a mix of desperation and anger. “Whatever it is, I deserve to know.”
A thick silence stretched between us, heavy and unyielding. Finally, Jeremy looked away, his face shadowed, haunted by memories he’d kept hidden from me.
A man avoiding eye contact | Source: Midjourney
“Amy has had a lot of issues. Mental health things. She has bipolar disorder. It was bad a few years ago. Really bad.” He paused, his eyes far away. “She was hospitalized for months and when she got out, I was the only one she trusted. So I was there for her. I made sure she was taken care of and felt supported.”
His words sank into me, each one heavy, each one unraveling my understanding of him a little more. So this was the burden he’d been carrying, alone, without letting me in.
A woman looking at her husband in shock | Source: Midjourney
My anger surged, not at Amy’s demands, but at him. At the lie he’d been living and the betrayal that came from not being trusted enough to share his truth with me.
“And all those expenses? They’re for her, aren’t they?”
He nodded slowly, his gaze fixed on the floor, unable to look at me. “Yes. Therapy, sometimes groceries… whatever she needs.”
A chill settled over me as I closed my eyes, feeling the weight of his confession suffocating. “So, you’ve been lying to me for our entire marriage. About our money, about everything.”
A woman with her arms crossed | Source: Midjourney
“It wasn’t lying, Belinda,” he insisted softly, his voice breaking, barely above a whisper. “It was just… keeping the peace. I’m her big brother and Amy’s life has been hard enough without having to face people treating her differently because of her illness. I didn’t think you needed to know about any of this.”
I wanted to scream at him, shake him until he understood the cost of his silence. Instead, I sat there, silent, as the reality of what he’d done washed over me like a tidal wave.
I shook my head, feeling the tears rise, hot and unforgiving.
A tearful woman | Source: Midjourney
“But what about us? Keeping this secret has been tearing us apart, Jeremy. And you’re so focused on Amy and protecting her from everything that you’re willing to lose your wife over Thanksgiving dinner.”
He stared at me, his face a mix of sorrow and regret. “I… I didn’t know it would come to this.”
“Well, here we are.” I took a shaky breath, gathering the last of my resolve. “And Jeremy, you need to make a choice.”
A woman frowning sadly | Source: Midjourney
“Not between Amy and me,” I added. “I would never ask you to abandon your sister. But you need to choose between hiding things and being honest. Between enabling Amy’s controlling behavior and setting healthy boundaries. Between being her caretaker and being my partner.”
The silence that followed felt endless. When Jeremy finally spoke, his voice was thick with tears.
An emotional man | Source: Midjourney
“I’m scared,” he admitted. “What if setting boundaries makes her worse? What if she can’t handle it?”
“What if she can?” I countered gently. “What if she’s stronger than you think? What if she needs the chance to stand on her own two feet?”
“I… I don’t know if I can risk losing her.”
A sad man | Source: Midjourney
I stared at Jeremy and sighed. It felt like we were at an impasse with no obvious way forward. Amy couldn’t keep running our lives, but I understood Jeremy’s reluctance to confront his sister.
One thing is clear: we can’t carry on like this. After everything I’d uncovered over the past few days, I wasn’t even sure our marriage was built on a solid enough foundation to be worth saving.
What should I do now?
A conflicted woman | Source: Midjourney
Here’s another story: Ten years after vanishing without a trace, Sara’s ex-fiancé, Daniel, reappears on her doorstep with a lawyer, demanding custody of the son he’d abandoned. Secrets unravel as Sara fights to protect the life she built with Adam, and the true reason behind Daniel’s sudden return threatens everything.
This work is inspired by real events and people, but it has been fictionalized for creative purposes. Names, characters, and details have been changed to protect privacy and enhance the narrative. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
The author and publisher make no claims to the accuracy of events or the portrayal of characters and are not liable for any misinterpretation. This story is provided “as is,” and any opinions expressed are those of the characters and do not reflect the views of the author or publisher.
I Faked a Fiancé to Win the Family Inheritance Only to Discover My Sister’s Shocking Plot Against Me — Story of the Day
I thought faking a fiancé would finally let me step out of my sister’s shadow. But in the middle of my own scheme, I discovered that true love had been closer than I’d ever realized.
The moment I opened Mom’s letter, I felt a familiar wave of dread wash over me. The whole family was gathering for Christmas, including my sister Megan and her new boyfriend. Perfect Megan, with her perfect life.
I could already picture her—radiant, accomplished, with some dazzling guy by her side while I just sat there, blending into the background as usual.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
An idea hit me out of nowhere.
What if I show up with a fiancé of my own?
I looked around the office, and my gaze landed on Zach by the printer. He was organizing files. Reliable, responsible, and… not exactly “Prince Charming,” but he could work. And more importantly, he worked for me.
“Hey, Zach,” I called, strolling over casually.
He looked up. “Yes, Claire?”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Would you be interested in a, um, side project over the holidays?”
He raised an eyebrow. “A side project?”
“Yes, but more… personal,” I said, glancing around to make sure no one else was listening. “It’s just a quick thing with my family. I need someone to… play a role.”
“A role? What kind of role?”
“My fiancé,” I replied, letting the word drop with a casual shrug.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Your… fiancé?” He looked like he’d misheard me.
“Yes, just for Christmas.” I grinned, hoping I looked more confident than I felt. “It’d be helping me out. My family is a little… competitive about relationships.”
He stared at me. “I don’t know, Claire… that seems… unusual.”
I leaned in, lowering my voice. “Think of it as an opportunity, Zach. It could be good for your career. You know, help things along.”
His eyes widened. “Oh, God, Claire. If it’s just for the holiday…”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Yes!” I clasped my hands together a bit too eagerly. “Just one holiday.”
“Fine. I’ll do it. But only this once.”
“Perfect,” I said, unable to hide my excitement. “All you need to do is show up, look convincing, and smile.”
***
As Zach and I walked up the long, winding path to my mom’s grand house, I clung tighter to his arm. Inside, the atmosphere was warm and inviting, yet my heart sank when I spotted Megan.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
She sat on the plush couch next to her boyfriend, Jason, laughing like she didn’t have a care in the world. Her hair was perfectly styled, her smile dazzling. She looked up, eyes glinting when she saw us.
“Well, well,” she drawled, standing up and sauntering over. “Claire! And… who’s this handsome man?” Her eyes swept over Zach with suspicion.
“This is Zach,” I said. “My boyfriend.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Boyfriend, huh? Oh my, Claire, where did you find someone so… perfect?” She let the word linger, clearly enjoying the hint of doubt in her voice.
“Work. We met at work. He’s great, actually.”
Zach nodded, giving Megan a polite smile. “Nice to meet you, Megan.”
Megan’s gaze lingered on us for a moment longer before she returned to Jason, whispering something in his ear that made him chuckle.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
My cheeks burned. I could tell she wasn’t buying our act for a second.
Later, while Zach was chatting with my dad, I overheard Megan and Jason talking in the hallway. I stopped, straining to listen.
“Can you believe it?” Megan was saying with a laugh. “Mom said she’d leave her inheritance to the first one of us who got married! Guess that means Claire and her ‘boyfriend’ are in a bit of a rush.”
Jason laughed softly. “You don’t think she’d actually…”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Oh, she’ll try, alright,” Megan replied. “But it’s Claire. She always falls short.”
So, Mom is turning our lives into some twisted race to the altar? Fine. If marriage is what Mom wants, then I’m ready to give her exactly that.
Later that evening, I dragged Zach to a small shop nearby and picked out the cheapest engagement ring I could find.
Holding it up, I said, “Tomorrow, at dinner, you’ll propose.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
Zach’s eyes went wide. “Claire, are you serious?”
“Yes. It has to be done. You’ll understand soon.”
***
The Christmas dinner table was set to perfection. Crystal glasses sparkled under the warm lights, and holiday decorations framed every inch of the room. I glanced at Zach, who caught my gaze and gave me a small, frightened smile.
Then came the moment we’d practiced for, rehearsed like actors preparing for the role of a lifetime. I could only hope he’d remember his lines.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Everyone,” Zach said, clearing his throat as he stood up, his face pale but resolute. “I have something important to say.”
The room fell silent. My mother’s eyes lit up, practically sparkling. Megan raised an eyebrow, barely able to contain her smirk, and I could see Jason nudging her with an amused grin.
“Claire,” Zach began, turning toward me.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
I watched as he slipped his hand into his pocket, fingers grazing the cheap ring that we’d picked out together in that cramped jewelry store. My heart pounded so loudly that I was sure everyone could hear it.
“I never thought,” he began, glancing around the table, “that I’d find someone like Claire. She’s… well, she’s one of the most passionate people I know.”
He paused, and I saw something flicker in his eyes—maybe nerves or maybe something else.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
My mother clasped her hands with excitement. Megan smirked, folding her arms, clearly enjoying the performance. I forced myself to breathe, gripping my napkin so tightly my knuckles turned white.
Zach continued, “She pushes me to be better every day. And I realized… well, I realized that I couldn’t imagine my life without her.”
His voice softened, almost genuine, and for a moment, I felt the room fade as he looked at me. I nearly forgot we were pretending. Nearly.
“Will you marry me?”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
“Yes!” I clapped my hands together, throwing on the biggest smile I could muster. “Oh, I… I can’t believe it!” I gushed, practically shoving my hand out so he could slide the ring onto my trembling finger.
As he slipped the ring on, I was praying no one noticed the rush of desperation beneath it all.
“Oh, Claire, sweetheart!” Mom cried, practically bouncing in her seat. “This is just… wonderful! I’m so happy for you both!”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
As I tried to force a laugh, I could feel Megan’s eyes boring into me. But I was determined to play this role to the end, whatever it took.
“Oh, Claire, darling,” Mom continued. “You know, I’ve been saving something very special for this day.”
She hurried out of the room, her heels clicking with excitement. A few minutes later, she returned, carrying a box wrapped in delicate silk.
“This was my wedding dress,” she said, her eyes misty with nostalgia as she opened the box. “I saved it, hoping one day I could give it to one of my daughters. And now… it’s yours.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
Mom’s joy, Zach’s quiet resignation, and Megan’s smirk—it was too much. I forced a smile, trying to keep my hands from shaking. “Oh, Mom, I… I don’t know what to say. This is… so generous.”
“Tomorrow,” Mom said, beaming, “we’ll have the ceremony. I’ve already called the family priest.”
Beside me, I felt Zach go rigid. His face was drained of color, and my own heart pounded with panic.
What have I done?
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
***
The next day, just before I slipped into the wedding dress, Megan sidled up to me. She leaned in, her voice low and mocking.
“You know, I made up that whole inheritance story, right? Just to see what you’d do.”
“What?” I whispered, barely able to believe it.
She shrugged, feigning innocence. “I knew you’d overhear. I just didn’t think you’d actually fall for it this hard.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
My face burned with anger and embarrassment. Megan tricked me, and I walked right into it. I was left with a choice: go through with that charade or run out and face the humiliation.
As I stepped up to the altar, dressed in my mother’s gown, the weight of it all hit me. The cheap ring on my finger felt heavy, like a reminder of every lie I’d told.
I looked over at Zach, who stood beside me, clearly trying to hold it together for my sake.
But is this how I want to spend this day for the sake of a ridiculous rivalry?
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
In that final second, something in me snapped. I couldn’t do it. I pulled up my dress and bolted down the aisle, the fabric billowing behind me like a parachute. I didn’t look back, didn’t stop to see the stunned faces of my family or hear Megan’s laughter or… or… or see Zack’s eyes.
I just ran.
When I finally got home, reality crashed down like a wave. I let my jealousy, my need to prove myself, push me to this.
And now? Now, I have a cheap ring, a fake fiancé, and a sinking feeling of shame.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
***
Back at work, I went straight to my office, eager to start the day and hoping to shake off the embarrassment from the holiday disaster. But as I walked in, Zach’s desk was empty.
Puzzled, I glanced around, half-expecting him to walk through the door at any moment. Instead, I noticed a folded piece of paper on my desk, my name scrawled in Zach’s familiar handwriting.
My heart sank as I unfolded the note. It read:
“Claire, I’m sorry for leaving like this, but I think it’s for the best. I didn’t agree to be your fiancé for the promotion or because of the pressure. I did it because I’ve been in love with you for a long time. I wish things had been different, and I hope you find what you’re really looking for.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
I hadn’t realized how blind I’d been to his real feelings. I sat there, realizing I’d just lost someone who genuinely cared.
Without a second thought, I grabbed my coat and headed out. I found Zach’s address in his employee file and drove to his apartment, determined to make things right.
***
When I arrived, the doctor let me in. Zach was sitting beside an elderly woman on the couch, holding her hand gently. She looked frail. She was probably his mom.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
As I took in the scene, everything clicked into place. He needed the income to help her.
I stepped forward.
“Zach, I had no idea… I’m so sorry for everything. I never considered what you were going through.”
Zach looked up, surprised but calm. “It’s alright, Claire. I didn’t expect you to understand.”
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
I swallowed, feeling a surge of regret. “Let me help. With her medical bills, I mean. Please.”
After a long pause, he nodded. We sat together, talking about everything that had happened, the absurdity of our pretend engagement, and the misunderstandings that had piled up between us.
“You know… if you’re still interested, I’d like to go on a real date with you,” I finally confessed.
Zach smiled, and I felt my heart lighten. This time, there was no pretending.
For illustration purposes only | Source: Midjourney
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If you enjoyed this story, read this one: At 50, I thought my career was behind me. But when I joined a fast-paced startup, I quickly became the target of a young colleague’s jealousy. What unfolded was more than a battle for respect. It led to a shocking twist that changed everything.
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