The Snowman Secret My Wife's Five-Year Affair

We had a pact: on New Year's Eve, we would watch the first snowfall together.

I left the office earlya rare move for meand spent hours in the kitchen preparing a feast of Tessa's favorite dishes. I checked the clock repeatedly until my phone finally rang.

Oliver, I'm stuck at the office. Overtime. Sorry.

Her voice was clipped, dismissive. Before I could respond, the line went dead.

Outside, snow lashed against the windows. Worried she'd go hungry, I packed the food into a thermos and drove through the storm to find her.

I pulled up near her office, headlights cutting through the white haze. That's when I saw a flash of bright red.

It was Tessa. My wifethe woman who claimed she was too delicate to wash a dishwas out in the freezing cold, building a snowman.

She wasn't alone.

Carter Wiley stood behind her, arms wrapped around her waist. Intimate. Possessive. He laughed as he snapped photos of her posing with their creation.

The thermos tipped over on the passenger seat. Rich, savory soup flooded the cabin. The smell turned my stomach.

My vision sharpened. I shoved the door open and stepped into the snow.

"We're getting a divorce."

Tessa spun around. Her smile froze, then cracked into annoyance. "Oliver? What the hell? Divorce?"

"You heard me."

Carter unwrapped his arms and crossed them, watching me like I was a circus clown.

"Is this about missing our date?" Tessa frowned. "I know I broke our plans, but you don't need to be dramatic." She softened into that practiced, spoiled whine. "Alright, don't be mad. We'll watch the next snowfall together. Okay?"

A month ago, that tone might have worked.

But the sight of Cartercombined with an anonymous email I'd received weeks earlierturned my blood to ice. My fists clenched, leather gloves creaking.

"It doesn't matter. Watch it with whoever you want. I'm done."

A courier pulled upI'd placed the rush order the moment I saw them together. The runner handed me a thick envelope. I signed the divorce agreement against my car hood and thrust it at her.

"Sign it."

Tessa snatched the papers and ripped them to shreds, throwing the confetti into the wind.

"You're insane! Why are you doing this? If you're unhappy, just say so!"

I pointed at the mound of snow behind her. "Because of that. The snowman you built with your own hands."

Carter laughed. "Tessa, you really know how to pick them. A tantrum over a snowman? No wonder they say the useless men have the biggest tempers."

I met his gaze with zero warmth. "If it weren't for the snowman, I might have played the fool longer. But since she built that specific snowman... it's over."

Tessa stomped her foot, tears wellinga perfect performance. "Oliver Fox, do you have no heart? I'm out here working on New Year's Eve to support us, and you want a divorce over a pile of snow?"

"Ignore him," Carter scoffed. "He's just a leech with too much time. Pushing forty with no job, no prospects. Let him sign. How's he going to survive without your money?"

He wasn't entirely wrong about the optics.

Five years ago, I'd stepped back to become a full-time househusband. To the world, I was a parasite attached to the successful female executive. In reality, I'd let my own brilliance collect dust to polish hers.

If I'd only had that anonymous email, I might not have pulled the trigger. But seeing the symbol of their perversion right in front of meI wasn't swallowing this anymore.

"My survival is none of your concern." I pulled a second copy from the envelope. Always prepared. I signed it and held it out.

Tessa read it word by word. Her face paled.

"Oliver... you're willing to leave with nothing?" Her voice trembled. "Giving up all claims to the assets? Just because of a snowman?"

"You're right. It is because of the snowman."

"What is wrong with you? It's just snow."

"I know I promised to watch the first snowfall with you, but I was stuck at the office. I ran into Carter right after I clocked out. We just built a snowman together on a whim. That's all it was."

Tessa's explanation was pale, powerless, and rehearsed. Listening to it, I felt nothing but a rising tide of irritation.

I stared at the snowman. Ugly. Misshapen. Yet looking at it made my chest feel like a boulder had crushed my ribs. I couldn't breathe.

"I don't need explanations," I said, my voice devoid of warmth. "Just sign the papers. Let's get this over with. It's the best outcome for both of us."

The snow fell heavier now, large flakes drifting down to coat the city in white. The streets were filling with people celebrating New Year's Eve, their laughter a stark contrast to the freezing silence between us.

"Oliver, stop making a scene over nothing." Tessa stepped forward, her voice pitching up. "Tell mewhere have I failed you? Whatever it is, I'm willing to change."

She clung to my arm, her grip desperate.

I shook her off.

Perhaps I used too much force, or perhaps she was unsteady in her heelsshe stumbled and collapsed onto the snowy pavement.

"Oliver!"

Carter rushed forward, scooping her up with exaggerated distress. He turned his glare on me. "You ungrateful leech. Tessa has fed you, clothed you, supported you for five years. This is how you repay her?"

His self-righteous shouting and Tessa's soft, broken sobbing instantly drew a crowd.

Among the onlookers, I recognized several facesTessa's subordinates from the company.

"My god, isn't that Director Fletcher? Did I hear that right? Her husband wants a divorce over a snowman?"

"No way. Her husband worships the ground she walks on. He brings her dinner every time she works late."

"He's just a house husband. Delivering food is the only skill he has."

Vicious whispers assaulted my ears while the biting wind drilled into my collar.

Yet internally, I felt no chill. The cold inside me had long since frozen over.

"Sign it," I repeated, ignoring the audience. "While this hasn't completely blown up, while I haven't changed my mind about the termssign it. It's for your own good."

I thought of our five years together. Despite everything, I was still giving her a chance to walk away with her reputation intact. Still urging her to sign an agreement where I left with nothing but the clothes on my back.

"I won't sign! I absolutely won't sign!" Tessa cried out, tears streaming down her face. "Oliver, you're being incredibly petty. I missed one snowfall with you. I built one snowman with Carter. And for that, you want to throw away our marriage?"

She paused, her tear-filled eyes widening as if struck by sudden realization.

"Wait... say it. Do you have someone else? Is that it? Did you deliberately wait until today to stage this?"

Her face was a mask of pure grievance, painted with the perfect amount of betrayal.

Instantly, the murmurs around us grew louder, turning into a roar of judgment.

"The freeloader is cheating?"

"Director Fletcher must be right. Look at his faceguilty."

"He definitely found his next meal ticket. Why else would a man divorce his wife over a snowman?"

"Scumbag. Absolute trash. I'm exposing him."

Phones were raised. Flashes went off.

Tessa's company was in the heart of the commercial district, and the New Year's Eve foot traffic was immense. My stated reason for divorce sounded absurd to outsiders, and several self-appointed vigilantes began livestreaming.

"Look at this guy. Lives off his wife's money, acts tough, and demands a divorce because she built a snowman with a friend."

Viewer counts climbed rapidly. Tessa noticed the cameras, and her tears flowed harder.

"Oliver," she choked out, playing to the gallery. "Even if everyone's guesses are true... as long as you cut ties with that woman, I won't hold it against you. Come home."

She looked so righteous. So forgiving. So understanding.

Bile rose in my throat.

"Tessa has already compromised this much! How are you still not satisfied?" Carter held the "heartbroken" Tessa in his arms, practically spitting as he cursed me. "Oliver Fox, everyone is right about you. You aren't worthy of being called a man."

I looked at the signed divorce papers in my hand.

Then I pointed at the pure white snowman behind them.

"I am getting this divorce," I said, my voice cutting through the noise like a blade. "And the answer to why is right there. Inside that snowman."

Tessa froze, her eyes flickering. "Oliver, I've already compromised. Do you have to force my hand?"

"Tell me!" she screamed suddenly, trying to drown me out. "Who is she? What does she have that I don't? I loved you for five years! Every holiday, every birthdayI spent them with you!"

"Only tonight... only because of overtime, I broke a promise. You cannot use divorce to threaten me over this!"

Her words exploded like a bomb, blasting a crater into calm water, sending ripples of sympathy through the crowd and turning public opinion violently against me.

"I've never seen such a manipulative drama queen in my life. Just because she didn't spend New Year's with him, he's throwing a tantrum like this?"

"Divorce him, then! Tessa, honestly, what are you afraid of?"

An angry voice sliced through the crowd.

Audrey Mason. Tessa's best friend.

"Audrey, please, try to talk some sense into Oliver. He... he insists on divorcing me."

Audrey shot me a look of pure disgust, like she wanted to flay me alive right there.

"Tessa, he's just a leech. Why are you trying so hard to keep him?" She turned her glare on me. "Oliver Fox, do you even have a heart? Tessa has gone above and beyond for you. Every month, she gives you over ten thousand dollars for household expenses. Every business trip, she brings you gifts. Every holiday, she asks me to help pick out luxury goods for you."

A cold smile touched my lips.

Luxury goods?

From the day we married until now, the only gifts Tessa had ever given me were a plain silver band and a pair of generic sneakers she'd picked up on sale.

Audrey whipped out a stack of printed receipts.

"Audrey, don't" Tessa's voice cracked.

She reached for the papers, but Audrey was too fast, too fueled by righteous indignation.

"Open your damn eyes," Audrey spat, shoving the papers toward me. "Every single item on this list was hand-picked by Tessa."

108 gifts. High-end daily necessities. Top-tier luxury items. Watches, limited edition belts, designer suits.

Not one had ever reached my hands.

A flicker of panic darted through Tessa's eyes. Gone in an instantbut I caught it.

"Audrey, enough!" Tessa's tone turned frantic. "Oliver isn't materialistic. There's just a misunderstanding between us. I can handle it."

To the crowd, she sounded like a devoted wife protecting her husband's dignity.

I knew better. She was protecting her lie.

"You act so tough for a man who lives off a woman," Audrey sneered. "Tessa told me about your... issues. That's why she asked me to buy that lingerie set last week. She wanted to surprise you on New Year's Eve..."

The rest faded into a dull buzz.

So the snowman photo was just the appetizer.

The main course had been hidden beneath it all along.

"Audrey, shut up!" Tessa's composure cracked.

Too late.

Audrey pulled out her phone and opened her chat history with Tessa, holding the screen up for me to see.

"Read it, Oliver. 'Audrey, this is the style he likes. Make sure the gift box is engraved: To my beloved Hubby.'"

On screen: explicit, sheer lingerie.

A chill ran down my spine.

In all our years of marriage, I'd never seen her wear anything like that. Whenever we were intimate, she was cold. Perfunctory. Lying there like a starfish, claiming exhaustion from work.

I'd believed her. Blamed myself.

Who would've thought she was buying scandalous lingerie in my nameto wear for someone else?

"You're certain," I said, my voice dangerously calm, "that these gifts and this lingerie were meant for me?"

Audrey stared at me with incredulity.

"Oliver Fox, you look like a gentleman, but you're really a piece of work. What, trying to smear Tessa now? I've been friends with her for ten years. I know her character."

I let out an icy laugh. "Then she's going to disappoint you. I haven't seen a single one of these 108 gifts. And that lingerie?" I gestured to the phone. "Never seen it in my life."

"You're lying!" Audrey's voice rose to a shriek. "Who else could 'Hubby' refer to? Tessa has given you her whole heart!"

The gift list was already circulating through the crowd. Someone uploaded it online.

In an instant, the narrative cemented. I wasn't just a husband asking for divorceI was an ungrateful parasite.

To the crowd gathering around us, I had become the villaina gold-digger living off a successful woman, a shameless freeloader with no bottom line.

"This man deserves to die," someone muttered loud enough for me to hear. "She supports him, and he still throws tantrums?"

"Even a hundred and eight gifts can't buy that washed-up old man's heart."

"I feel so bad for Tessa. She should divorce him. I'd date her in a heartbeat."

I ignored the noise. My gaze swept over the three of them: Tessa, eyes flickering with panic; Audrey, trembling with righteous indignation; and Carter, wearing that punchable smirk.

Without a word, I drove my foot into the snowman.

Snow exploded outward. The structure collapsed in a heap of white powder.

"You want to know why I'm divorcing her?" My voice cut through the murmurs. "This is the answer."

Buried in the snowman's torso, an exquisite velvet gift box sat revealed against the snow.

Tessa's jaw dropped. "Impossible... How could that be here?"

Audrey didn't miss a beat, pointing an accusatory finger at the box. "Oliver, look at this! This is the surprise Tessa prepared for you. She never does housework, yet she froze her hands scooping up icy snow just to build this. And you still want a divorce?"

"A surprise for me?" I let out a low, humorless laugh. "Audrey, are you sure those initials are meant for me?"

"Who else would they be for?"

Before I could answer, Tessa rushed forward.

"Oliver! I wanted to surprise you," she stammered, voice pitching up. "I was going to call you once I finished building it. I didn't think you'd misunderstand."

She masked the panic in her eyes, snatching up the velvet box. "Honey, Happy New Year. I bought the style you like. Hurry, open it."

She shoved the box toward me. I looked into her eyes and saw nothing but calculation. No sincerityonly fear of exposure.

I slapped the box away.

"Don't use this filth to disgust me. It's dirty."

The box hit the ground and popped open. Sheer lingerie spilled out onto the snow.

I stared at the lace. Identical to the set in Carter's photo.

The crowd's vitriol grew louder.

"Director Fletcher humbled herself to please him, and he refuses?"

"She spends money on him, buys him gifts... what does she see in this man?"

Tessa moved quickly, scooping the lingerie back into the box, wiping away a nonexistent tear.

"Oliver, if you don't like this style, I'll change it." Her voice trembled perfectly. "Please don't be angry. Don't divorce me, okay?"

I looked down at the pitiful mask she wore. A performance worthy of an award.

I reached out, pushing her hand aside, and pinched the fabric between my fingers. "You picked it out yourselfhow could I not like it?"

I held her gaze. "Since you've put in so much effort... For five years, you prepared so many gifts for me. A 'kept man' like me should be grateful, right?"

My voice dropped, turning icy. "In front of everyone, how about I give you a big gift in return?"

Tessa's eyes darted nervously, but she forced a sweet, relieved smile. "Oliver, I don't want a gift. I just want you to agree not to divorce me."

I reached into my coat, pulled out the divorce agreement, and tore it in half.

Tessa let out a heavy breath, shoulders sagging. The tension left her faceshe thought she had won.

I turned and walked to the car, opening the trunk to retrieve the portable projector.

Originally, this projector was meant to play a video I had spent months editinga montage of our life together. But now, as I thought about what I was about to display, a dark satisfaction coiled in my gut.

The video transfer completed.

For the sake of the five years I once loved her, I gave her one final exit ramp.

"Tessa." My hand hovered over the controls. "I'll give you one last chance. Agree to divorce me right now, and I won't open this 'surprise.'"

She shook her head violently, playing the martyr to the bitter end.

I sighed. I gave you a chance. Don't blame me for what happens next.