When I asked my daughter about the other people she wanted to invite to her birthday party, she lightly brought up a woman I had never heard of. This shocked me so much that it made my whole world spin. A week later, I met the woman in person, and she changed my life forever.

My husband Jake and I have been married for seven years now, but we were together for ten years before that. I never had a reason to doubt him; he is a nice, friendly, busy, and sometimes messy man.

Jake quit his job before the new year began. Even though I’m not working there anymore, I’ve been putting in long hours to make sure everything runs smoothly while he looks for work. We were able to gently turn things around, even though it was hard. The chance to spend more time with him makes our five-year-old daughter Ellie very happy.

Jake is someone she looks up to.

Up until last week, everything seemed to be going as planned.

We were getting ready because Ellie’s birthday party was still being planned. As I worked on the party list with her one night, she said something that really caught me off guard.

Outside of her family and close friends, I asked her to let me know of anyone else she might want to bring.

“Mommy, can I invite the beautiful lady coming to see Daddy while you’re at work?” She answered with interest.

When I looked down and saw one ice crystal in my coffee, I was quickly trying to stay cool. “The beautiful woman visiting Daddy?” Please explain what the issue is, sweetheart.

Even though Ellie couldn’t see how angry I was getting, she still gave me a smile.

“Yes, the long haired person!” She is very nice and proper. By telling him, “She always gives Daddy a big hug when she leaves,” she relies on his kindness. Could she go to the event? Could you please?

For some reason, even though my heart was beating fast, it was hard for me to keep my voice steady.

Yes, that’s right, honey. Why don’t you invite her over the next time she comes to visit?

It was clear that Ellie was shining. “All right!” I plan to! Mom, that was nice of you.

It was that night that I just couldn’t fall asleep. My mind was full of doubts, questions, and a growing feeling of being uncomfortable. Jake had never done anything to make me doubt him before Ellie’s answer, but it planted the seeds of doubt in my mind. Who was this “pretty lady” being talked about? One friend? Someone who lives nearby? What would be worse, though, than meeting someone I’ve never met before?

Also, I thought about the chance that my five-year-old might be seeing things, even though this seemed like way too much to be made up. I chose not to face my husband and made sure the stranger was at Ellie’s party so I could better understand what happened.

The next night, I chose to get more info. Just for fun, I asked Ellie at dinner, “Did you invite the pretty lady to your party?” My partner was in the bathroom at the time.

It is correct! She made it clear that she would be here in person. Ellie chirped as she ate her porridge very quickly and thoroughly.

I was very close to finishing my water glass, but by the time my partner got there, we had already changed the subject. I told him not to do it because I didn’t want him to find out about his secret friend and stop our meeting.

When the day of the party finally came, I started to feel really stressed out. Friends and family crowded into our living room to start the party, as they always do. Kids ran around with balloons, and Ellie was thrilled about the whole thing. When I tried to keep my eyes on the task of being a good host, I noticed that they kept wandering to the front door, as if I was looking forward to the mysterious guest’s coming.

The doorbell rang thirty minutes into the meeting. It made my stomach hurt really bad. I called Jake right away when I saw him helping Ellie make her cake in the garden. The young woman standing on the balcony looked to be at least in her early 20s.

Along with her long, dark hair, she carried a small gift bag and a shy smile. That was also something she had.

“Hello, my name is Lila,” she said softly. “I’m here for Ellie’s party.”

At that very moment, Ellie’s face lit up with excitement, and she ran back to the door quickly.

That’s her! Oh, that’s her—she! “A friend of my father!”

While I stood there still, trying to make sense of what I saw, I couldn’t figure out what was going on. On the other hand, I could stutter the word “Oh!” I hope you will be able to join us for this event.

Ellie held the woman’s hand and led her inside the building to the front door. She pulled Lila over to Jake, and the way she made him look made him pale. When he opened his mouth, he looked like he was about to die. He then closed it, let out a breath, and then closed it again.

He said her name in a soft, shaking voice. He said, “Lila,” in a soft voice. “I did not….” I had not thought that you were here.

I tried to make sure my voice was both cool and firm when I said, “We need to talk.” Jake bowed and led Lila and me into the kitchen, away from the chaos going on around us. He looked like he had lost.

I told our little girl, Lee, “Let’s play in the backyard with your school friends and cousins.”

Chantal, don’t feel so down! I just recently bought some new things for you to look at. This is what Ellie said while she was eating an ice cream cone and holding the hand of a small kid nearby. The young woman looked awkward and out of place, but she followed Jake and me into the kitchen.

Lila was clearly nervous, and it showed in the way she handled the gift bag.

She first said, “I had no intention of making things harder.” “Ellie invited me; I just thought it would be great to meet everyone.”

“Who are exactly?” Even though I was trying to keep my cool, the question was asked in a rude way.

Lila was looking at Jake when she noticed that he seemed to be thinking about not being there. “I’m Jake’s daughter.”

I felt like I had been hit by a freight train when I read those words. What?

Lila tried to give a full explanation, even though my husband looked like he wanted to disappear into the floor. When he finally spoke, though, his voice was so quiet that only people close by could hear it.

“Lila is my daughter from before our meeting..” A few months ago, I had no idea she existed at all. She and I both didn’t hear anything from her mother. Before she died earlier this year, Lila knew that I existed. She kept looking for me until she finally found me a few months ago. She met you for the first time while you were at work. She was eager to see her dad again.

“Originally, I was skeptical of her identity when she told me,” Jake said. “I mean, it happened suddenly.” Because of this, I told her to get a DNA test.

Lila said “yes,” and then she emailed me the papers for paternity.

“I understood his needing proof.” “It was difficult to hear,” she added, “but I brought a test when I returned the next time, and it’s true, he’s my father.”

As I looked over the paper, my hands were shaking. It was without a doubt true. I was amazed as I looked at him. And you never thought about telling me?

He stroked the back of his neck and said, “I didn’t know how to do it.” “I kept processing it on my own unsure of how” .”I haven’t decided what to do yet or thought about the matter enough, which is why I’m hesitant to tell you this.”

Okay, I said in a low voice, trying to control my breathing. Why should Ellie know about her, though?

Jake looked like he felt bad about himself. She has been seeing you while you work. She was especially eager to learn more about Ellie and her family. Everyone she meets makes her very happy.

“So your intention was to merely… not tell me?” Would you be okay with having a five-year-old do the job for you? I raised my voice because I was interested.

Jake was shaking a lot. “I have awareness.” I messed up this time. To put it simply, I didn’t want to make things worse for you.

As Lila moved forward, her eyes begged her.

“I am truly ashamed.” I’ve never meant to cause trouble in my life. I only wanted to meet my dad’s family and get to know them. The child you have, your daughter, is really beautiful. On top of that, I saw her drawings.

Lila, don’t worry about it. You are more than welcome to join us in celebrating. Jake and I will also have a finish in the end.

When I saw the bigger picture, I took a deep breath, even though I was feeling stressed. Lila was not a “other woman,” as you said. After her mother died, she was a young woman looking for her family. Jake wasn’t perfect, but he was just trying to figure out what was going on because he hadn’t seen it coming.

The three of us had been having a long talk that seemed to go on for hours. From her point of view, Lila told stories about her childhood, her mother, and her first meetings with Jake. My partner promised to be more honest from now on and told me he felt bad for keeping the information from me several times and in depth. By the end, I still had a lot of feelings to work through, but I could tell they meant what they said.

When my husband and I finally got back to the party, Ellie was sitting with Lila and showing off a drawing she had made of our family. She also had Lila with her, and called her “Big Sister.” Right there, my friend put his arm around my shoulders.

“I understand that this was not how you had planned for the day to go,”

he said with a cool head. But I hope we can figure things out together.

I bowed toward him and gave him a nod. “We will,” he said. Jake, from that point of view, there will be no hiding.

“I will never do it again,” he said.

Over the next few weeks, we began to adjust to our new surroundings. After starting college in our city not long ago, Lila started coming to see us more often. Ellie had a lot of respect for her, and I began to feel the same way about her. I could tell Lila really wanted to be a part of our lives, even though it was hard.

Sincerely, to make things worse? Some people started to think she had been here from the start. Jake learned the hard way that secrets tend to get out, especially when a five-year-old is involved. During that time, he also learned this information.

Ellie got her birthday wish come true when a surprise new family member joined us. In a way, we all got the same wish come true. Life can throw you problems you didn’t expect, and it’s not always easy to solve them. But in the end, they can lead to something really amazing.