When I agreed to spend $25,000 to renovate my husband’s inherited house, I never imagined he’d refuse to repay me. But that betrayal paled in comparison to what I discovered next.

I never thought I’d be sharing this story, but here I am. It’s been a crazy ride, and I’m still processing everything that happened.

Let me start from the beginning. I married Theo two years ago. I met him through a dating app, and things turned out to be great between us.

Theo worked as a truck driver and was always on the road. Sometimes, he used to go for weeks at a time, and I was okay with it. I mean, I eventually got used to it.

Meanwhile, I ran a small family business. It was a quaint little store my dad left me when he retired. It’s not much, but it’s mine, and I love it.

Everything was going well until Theo left for another long-haul trip three months ago. He said he’d be doing multiple trips, back-to-back during that time, and I honestly felt terrible for him.“We’ll go for a mini getaway once you return, okay?” I told him before he left.

“Sure, babe,” he smiled. “We’ll have fun.”

Little did I know I’d never want to go on a trip with him again.

Once he left, I kept myself busy with some pending tasks at my store. It had been about two weeks when I got a call from him.

“Hey, babe,” he said, his voice crackling over the line. “I’ve been thinking. Remember that house I inherited from Grandpa? I want to renovate it. Can you handle that while I’m away?”

I was surprised but excited. We’d talked about fixing up that old place for ages.“Sure,” I replied. “But it’ll cost a bit. Are you sure?”A woman talking on the phone | Source: Midjourney

“Yeah, absolutely. Just use your money for now, and I’ll pay you back when I get home. Promise.”I should’ve seen the red flags. I shouldn’t have agreed to pay for the renovation.

As expected, I dove into the project. I poured my heart (and $25,000 of my savings) into that house to build a new kitchen, a bathroom remodel, fresh paint, and the works.

I imagined us building a life there together whenever I chose a new piece of furniture or appliance. I was super excited, unaware of what Theo was doing behind my back.

This was the first time I was directly involved with this house because Theo had always handled the paperwork and bills for it. He always said it was “his responsibility” since it was his inheritance.

I trusted him completely, never questioning his management.A woman in her living room | Source: Midjourney

About three months later, Theo returned from his trip. I was so excited watching him park his truck in our driveway. I couldn’t wait to tell him everything about the renovation.

But the moment he stepped out, I could tell something was wrong. He barely looked at me and walked inside.I felt my heart had almost jumped up to my throat. Those four words were never a good sign.

“About what?” I asked. “I want a divorce.”

I wouldn’t be lying if I said the world stopped at that point. I just stood there and stared at Theo, trying to process what he’d just said.

“What? Why?” I managed to ask. “Theo, what’s going on?”

He shrugged, unable to meet my eyes.

“It’s just not working out. I’ve changed, you’ve changed. We want different things.”“But… but the house,” I stammered. “The renovation. You said you’d pay me back.”

He had the audacity to laugh.

“That old place? Why would I pay you for renovating my house? It’s mine, remember?”No way, I thought. This can’t be happening.

“Theo, I spent $25,000 on that house. Our house. You promised—”“Well, promises change,” he cut me off. “Look, I’ll have my lawyer contact you. It’s over, okay?”

And just like that, my world crumbled. Theo refused to listen to anything and told me to leave the house. I had no idea what had gotten into him, so I thought leaving the house was the best thing I could do. I thought my parents would help me figure this out.So, I left the house and drove to my parents’ place. They were as shocked as I was and kept reassuring me everything would turn out to be okay.

Days passed, and I still had no idea why Theo had suddenly decided to part ways with me. I couldn’t understand why he tricked me into paying for the renovation.

Curious, I decided to drive by the renovated house, half-hoping to see it empty, half-dreading what I might find. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I reached there.A woman’s hand on the steering wheel | Source: Pexels

I saw a woman in the front yard, watering the new flower beds I had planted. She was tall, beautiful… and everything I wasn’t.

Who is she? I thought as I parked my car and walked toward her.“Oh, you must be the ex-wife,” she said. “Theo told me all about you.”

Ex-wife. The word stung more than expected.

“Who are you?” I asked, even though I already knew the answer.

“I’m Lexi,” she said, extending her hand. “Theo’s girlfriend.”

“Girlfriend?” I asked, pretending to be surprised.

“Yeah,” she smiled. “Uh, I don’t know if you’d want to know this, but we’ve been together for about six months now.”

Six months. Six. Months. The renovation. The long haul. It all started making sickening sense at that point.

I turned around and walked back toward my car without saying another word. I remember Lexi kept calling me, but I just drove away.I cried on my way back to my parents’ house. It hurt knowing Theo had been cheating on me for this long and used me to build a house for his girlfriend.

I knew I couldn’t do anything about it. I couldn’t file a case because I had agreed to pay for the renovation. I couldn’t get my money back.I cried on my way back to my parents’ house. It hurt knowing Theo had been cheating on me for this long and used me to build a house for his girlfriend.

I knew I couldn’t do anything about it. I couldn’t file a case because I had agreed to pay for the renovation. I couldn’t get my money back.So, I threw myself into work, trying to forget everything. I thought I’d keep living like this until I got a call from Dad one day.“Sweetheart,” he said, and I could hear the smile in his voice. “The most interesting thing just happened.”“Really? What is it, Dad?” I asked.

“You won’t believe it but you’re now the owner of the house you renovated. Congratulations!”

I nearly dropped the phone.