A few weeks ago, Riley (first name) saw her life change. And for good reason, the 20-year-old young woman discovered a shocking secret about her late father’s past. It all started with a lunch with her aunt, on her father’s side, whom she hadn’t seen for years. “She told me that during his marriage to my mother, my father had had a mistress for years,” she confessed in a letter sent to Coleen Nolan, the Mirror’s official adviser. But the revelations don’t stop there. The twenty-something learned that her parent had also had a son with his lover.
Riley now knows that his father took care of his second family and that he occasionally saw his child in hiding: “At the end of his life, his relationship with this woman ended. But she looked for my aunt and they emailed after my dad died. So my aunt has his contact info.” Today, the young woman is wondering what to do knowing that they live only 8km from her mother’s home: “I would like to meet my half-brother because I am an only child but I don’t want to hurt my mother. . Should I tell her? My aunt thinks it’s a bad idea. I’m confused. Please help me.”
To tell or to keep the secret, such is his dilemma
Coleen Nolan is torn. If she thinks it would be better to be transparent, this secret could be difficult for Riley’s mother to digest. “You can contact your stepbrother without telling your mother, but if she finds out, she might feel betrayed,” she says. And to add: “I think it’s important not to make a decision in haste. Talk about it with your aunt. Anyway, only you know your mother so ask yourself if she can do it. bear (…) Be careful. And if you decide to meet him, be prepared for the consequences – you might not get along and there might be resentment on both sides.”
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