A marriage should be based on love, trust, and understanding, and this Christmas, I discovered what that really means.

Shawn has always been my soulmate, the person who means the world to me. I never questioned his love until Christmas Eve when I found out he wasn’t being honest about his supposed business trip to another city.

“Hey, babe,” Shawn told me a few days before Christmas, “my boss wants me in Boston. I have to meet with an important client. I know it’s almost the holidays, but I couldn’t turn it down.”

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When he avoided looking me in the eyes, I started to feel a little unsure, but I pushed that feeling away. After all, it was Shawn, the one person I completely trusted.

As he packed his things, I felt a wave of disappointment wash over me. This was going to be our first Christmas apart since we got married, and I knew it wouldn’t feel the same without Shawn there.

Still, I understood how much his job meant to him, so I decided to be supportive.

I told myself I would enjoy the holiday with my friends and family and not let my mind wander too much.

But then, on Christmas Eve, I received a call from Shawn late at night. Unfortunately, that call left me with more questions than answers.

Midjourney
“Merry Christmas, gorgeous,” Shawn said, but his voice seemed a bit off.

“Merry Christmas! How’s everything in Boston? Did you manage to fix the client issue?”

“It’s… um… fine. Hey, I can’t chat right now. I need to leave—”

In the background, I could hear a lot of noise, like dishes clattering and people laughing.

“Are you at a dinner?” I asked. But Shawn said he had an urgent meeting and then hung up.

An urgent meeting at 9 p.m. on Christmas Eve? That just didn’t add up.

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Shawn was definitely keeping a secret from me, and I was set on finding out what it was.

As I walked back and forth in my room, my thoughts were all over the place, filled with confusion and curiosity. Then it hit me! Just last week, I had left my fitness tracker in Shawn’s car. I quickly opened the app, and my heart dropped.

It revealed that Shawn hadn’t gone to Boston at all; he was actually at a hotel just 15 minutes from where we lived.

The drive to the hotel felt like an eternity. I couldn’t believe Shawn had lied to me, and I was really struggling to accept that.

When I arrived, I saw Shawn’s car parked outside the hotel. I hurried to the lobby, but the receptionist stopped me. “Excuse me, how can I assist you?”

I showed her a picture of Shawn and said, “This is my husband. He said he was in Boston, but his car is right outside.”

Tears streamed down my face as I pleaded with her to tell me which room he was in. At first, she seemed unsure, but then she slid a keycard over to me and said, “Miss, sometimes things aren’t what they appear to be.”

I didn’t get what she meant until I opened the door to room 412.

“Shawn, how could you do this?” I shouted. But then I froze, surprised to see him standing next to a man in a wheelchair.

The man, with silver hair and eyes I hadn’t seen in 26 years, looked at me with confusion.

Midjourney
“Dad!?” the word came out as a whisper.

“Andrea, sweetheart,” he said, his voice shaking.

My dad left when I was only five years old after a tough divorce from my mom. I’ve felt his absence every day since then. He was the part of my life that I needed to feel complete and happy.

But why was he here now? I couldn’t understand anything.

Then Shawn looked at me and said that before my mom passed away, she shared more about my dad with him. He managed to find him on social media. My dad had been living in Arizona all along.

Midjourney
Shawn planned a big surprise for me on Christmas, but I accidentally found out about it. Even so, that Christmas turned out to be the best one I’ve ever had.

My husband’s secret wasn’t a trick; it was a true expression of his love.

That Christmas, it was only the three of us. My dad told us stories from his life, and I understood that being back together with him was a wonderful gift that I was grateful to accept with open arms.