The moment Richard walked into my mother’s kitchen, my blood ran cold. I’d just served this man champagne on a flight yesterday – to a different woman. Now here he was, kissing my mother’s cheek and calling her “darling” with the same practiced charm.
As a flight attendant, I’m trained to keep calm in emergencies. But nothing prepared me for seeing my mother wrapped around the finger of a man I knew was cheating on her before they’d even married. The worst part? He didn’t even recognize me – just another faceless service worker in his privileged world.
I played along at first, watching how he manipulated the conversation at dinner. Every time I asked about his business or family, he’d pivot to complimenting my mother’s cooking or appearance. Classic avoidance tactics. My mother ate it up, blushing like a schoolgirl.
When I finally got her alone, her reaction shocked me. “I know this seems fast,” she said, “but when you know, you know.” She actually believed this fairytale. The man had her so thoroughly charmed she couldn’t see the red flags waving right in front of her.
Determined to protect my mother, I went rogue. Using my airline connections, I tracked down the other woman from the flight. What we discovered was worse than I feared – Richard had multiple fiancées across the country, all wealthy women who’d fallen for his polished act.
Our revenge was simple but effective. We crashed his wedding to my mother – all twelve of his “almost wives” showing up simultaneously to expose him. The look on his face when his carefully constructed world collapsed was almost worth the heartbreak he caused.