I sat there holding my phone.
Heather finally spoke.
“I’m sorry.”
“I know.”
She looked down.
“I still don’t know what I’m going to do Monday.”
Her voice cracked.
“My supervisor already warned me about missing more days. Ben was sick twice last month. I’ve used almost all my paid time off.”
I understood how scared she was.
Three kids depending on her. A job she couldn’t afford to lose. And a brother who’d promised help he had no right to promise.
I almost said it.
The words were right there on my tongue. I could watch them Monday. Just Monday. I could call Dr. Bennett. Take one day.
Maybe two.
Maybe a few more, until Heather found something.
But I knew how fast “just a few days” turns into forever.
And that was exactly what Seth was counting on.
So I didn’t say it.
I barely slept Saturday night.
A few times I woke up in my apartment and reached over to the other side of the bed before I remembered.
My moving boxes were stacked by the door. Four of them. Kitchen stuff. Books. Winter clothes.
And one box filled with things I’d bought for our new life together. Matching towels. New sheets. Two coffee mugs that said Mr. and Mrs.
Sunday morning, standing over that box, I wanted to smash those mugs on the floor.
Instead, I made coffee.
And then I sat at my kitchen table and cried until it went cold.
My mom called around nine.
“Have you e
Ten minutes before our wedding, I heard my fiancé tell his sister, “Don’t worry about daycare anymore. Natalie will take care of all three kids starting Monday.”
All three of her kids were under six years old.
I had a full-time job. And I had never once agreed to watch them.
Then Seth laughed.
“Once we’re married,” he said, “she won’t have much choice.”
I was standing in the church hallway holding my wedding dress up off the floor with both hands. And I couldn’t make those words fit the man I’d loved for three years.
Seventy guests were already sitting in the pews.
That morning, my mom cried when she saw me in my dress. My best friend Paige spent twenty minutes pinning up my hair. The whole church smelled like fresh roses. Somewhere down the hall, the organist was running through our processional music one last time.
It was supposed to be a perfect day.
Five minutes earlier, the biggest problem in my life had been a loose hook on the back of my gown.
I’d stepped out of the bridal room looking for Paige. She’d gone to find a safety pin. And as I walked past the fellowship hall, I heard Seth’s voice through the door. It was open a few inches.
I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop.
Then I heard my name.
“Are you absolutely sure about this?” his sister Heather asked.
“Of course I’m sure.”
“Because it’s a lot, Seth. All three of them. Five days a week.”
“She loves the kids.”
“Loving them isn’t the same as keeping them all day.”
For half a second, I was grateful to Heather for saying that.
Then Seth said I wouldn’t have a choice once we were married. And laughed.
I stepped closer to the door.
Heather has three kids. Maddie is five. Ben just turned three. Owen is eighteen months.
I genuinely adore them.
I’ve taken them to the park. We’ve made chocolate chip pancakes together. Every so often, I’d watch them on a Saturday when Heather needed help.
Last Christmas, Maddie drew me a picture of giant purple flowers with NATALIE written across the top in big wobbly letters. It’s still hanging on my refrigerator.
But babysitting once in a while is not the same thing as becoming somebody’s full-time nanny.
My name is Natalie Brooks. I’m thirty-four years old. I’ve worked at a dental practice outside Columbus, Ohio, for almost seven years.
And three days before my wedding, my boss, Dr. Bennett, offered me the office manager position.
A promotion I’d been working toward for years.
Apparently, my future husband had decided my career didn’t matter.
Sophia Rivers is an experienced News Content Editor with a sharp eye for detail and a passion for delivering accurate and engaging news stories. At TheArchivists, she specializes in curating, editing, and presenting news content that informs and resonates with a global audience.
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