John and Sarah are very busy with their jobs, so they don’t have much time for housework. But John gets a cleaner to help them out. But the couple quickly learns that they’ve brought trouble into their home.
John, my husband, and I have always been very focused on our jobs. But recently, our jobs have gotten busier, so we barely have time to keep our house in good shape.
As an architect, I have to go from one place to another all the time. John, on the other hand, is a software engineer and can work from anywhere as long as he’s at his computer.
The bond between John and me is strong. We’ve always liked living a “work hard, play harder” life. When we can, we take the best vacations after working hard.
But lately, I’ve started to doubt John, even though I know it’s not a good idea.
About six months ago, he made a big decision when he hired Vanessa, a cleaner who came highly recommended by a local business.
His coffee mug sipped, he said, “It’s just to help us around the house, Sarah.”
I wasn’t sure if I wanted a stranger to look through our house when we weren’t there, but I said, “I think we’ll be fine.”
John said, “We’re so far behind on laundry.” “Our hours are crazy.” Since we have a cleaner, we can at least go about our normal business. Plus, the house will be clean.
In the end, I gave up. It was getting old to do washing at night and then forget about it.
Things changed after that.
John liked working from home, which I knew.
“It’s just easier for me because I’m used to it.” “And I can think more clearly when my coworkers aren’t talking,” he said.
I noticed that John worked from home more after Vanessa started cleaning for us. At first, I didn’t think much of it because I thought it was just an accident. Plus, I knew Vanessa was a beautiful woman.
I would think too much about John’s activities at home because I was sure he was cheating on me with Vanessa and not focus on my work.
I did what I needed to do.
I left work early one day because I knew John had chosen to work from home and it was Vanessa’s day at our house.
As I drove back to our house, I thought about what I should do if I saw them in a bad situation.
I told myself, “You’ll leave him.” You are going to leave and begin a new life.
If I had gone into the house, I would have found John sitting at his desk, but his home office was empty.
I went into the kitchen because I thought Vanessa would be there, but it was also empty.
As I went up the stairs, I could hear laughing coming from my room and saw clothes all over the floor by the door.
I screamed into our bedroom, what I was about to see making my heart race. It hit me hard, but it wasn’t John lying on the bed with Vanessa. It was a man I had never seen before.
As I tried to understand what had happened in my home, anger rushed through my blood.
“What’s going on here?” I demanded, my voice shaking with anger and shock. It made me feel better that the man wasn’t John. But why did Vanessa think it was okay for someone else to sleep in our bed?
The unknown guy was having trouble getting dressed, and Vanessa looked shocked and guilty.
“We…” “I didn’t mean for this to happen, ma’am,” she said, her voice shaking as she tried to explain what she had done.
I told them to leave my house or face the results of what they did, but they didn’t listen.
Even when they said they would call the cops, I stood my ground. She told her partner to leave the house, but Vanessa stayed behind.
She said, “Let me explain.”
I couldn’t find the words to tell her I didn’t want to look at her any longer as I looked at her.
She said, “I just wanted a job.” “I was so thankful that the agency put me with you and John.” But as I got to know this guy, I started to like him.
“How long has this been going on?” Even though I didn’t want to hear more, I asked.
She said, “Not long, no more than a few weeks.” “But I’ve been seeing Julian for a while.” He was welcome when I told him I would be home alone today.
I told her in a calm voice, “Get out.” “Please leave my house.”
John answered the phone while he was at the store.
He said, “I just came to get some things for dinner.”
I told him right away what had happened, and he said he would be home right away.
After Vanessa and Julian’s afternoon events, I made John change our dirty sheets when he got home.
It looks like John didn’t know Vanessa had ulterior goals and had trust her completely.
John said, “She became a friend.” “Someone to flirt with, nothing more.” Also, I didn’t know she was having people over.
“Why have you worked from home when she has been coming in?” To flirt?” I asked for.
“No, Sarah. Not at first. It made me feel good to have a stranger in our home while she worked because I knew you were not sure about it. He stroked his hair and said, “But then it turned into something a little more.”
He asked, “What now?”
I told them, “We’ll report her.”
The next day, I went to the office and told them about Vanessa. They finally heard our complaint and understood the damage to our trust and respect.
Vanessa was fired from the agency, and she no longer had any ties to our house.
John and I cut back on our work hours after the whole episode. We agreed that the only way to fix our relationship was to get back together and spend time together.
While I was telling myself I would leave if I even caught a whiff of cheating, I realized I didn’t want to go through life without John by my side.
We’re going to start therapy soon because we want to get better.