Man's Late Wife Leaves His Sons Financially 'Set For Life' — His New Wife Demands They Share Their Inheritance With Her Kids
These matters should be resolved long before a couple decides to remarry and blend finances together.
LightField Studios, Krakenimages.com / Shutterstock Many parents work hard to leave a legacy for their children. We do not want them to experience the struggles that we have been through, so we try and lay a financial foundation, building wealth and leaving them with enough money and security to thrive.
One woman did just that before she passed away from cancer when her children were young. Her husband shared his story in the r/xxxxxxxxxxx subreddit and it was later posted on TikTok.
He shared that his late wife left his sons a considerable sum of money, but his current wife feels she's entitled to it.
It has been 10 years since his wife, Anna, died of breast cancer when their sons, John, now 18, and Freddie, now 16, were small children. Because she had a lucrative career in investments, his deceased wife had been able to put away enough money to solidify her boys’ futures.
The man had been a stay-at-home dad, working from home while taking care of the children. His wife had thanked him by ensuring he, too, would be financially secure upon her passing. “To this day, I am grateful to her that,” he said.
Anna’s will dictated that her two sons would be able to access their inheritances when they reached the age of 18.
With John recently reaching the age of maturity and having been accepted into a “prestigious” college, his father took him to their lawyer’s office to make sure he got the money his mother had left him. John would also be moving into his very first apartment. He was excited to have the option of living off campus and having money to invest once he completed school.
The attorney went through all the legalities and necessary steps, and the grateful dad decided to keep the inheritance between himself and his children.
Though he had remarried a woman named Suzanne, he opted to keep it a secret from her because he did not feel it was her business. His new wife has two children of her own in college, both working part-time to support themselves. The couple had entered into a prenuptial agreement dictating that each parent would pay for their own biological children’s education.
The woman overheard her husband and stepson discussing the inheritance and 'freaked out.'
Shocked after learning of the windfall her stepsons’ mother had left them, the woman lashed out, accusing her husband of giving them “preferential treatment.” He recalled her suggesting, “If there was so much money in the family, the boys and I could help out with her children.” She was upset that her own kids had to work to afford college.
The poster said he reminded his wife of what they had agreed on in the prenup and that they should both worry about their own kids’ education. He also explained that the money belonged to his sons and that he had no power to distribute it otherwise. Anna had left her children the money and it would be doled out accordingly.
His wife erupted in anger and accused him of not supporting everyone in the family.
She told her husband that his boys were obligated to financially support their siblings now that they could. But he recalled that his children had not been treated well by his wife’s “spoiled brats” and that it had been a source of contention almost leading to separation due to Suzanne’s unwillingness to intervene.
He told her that there was no way his sons would share their inheritance. “If her children had just been a little kinder to the two of them, they would have undoubtedly had a good relationship,” he added.
She responded by threatening to divorce him if John and Freddie did not share the wealth. That only made her husband believe he had married an especially “greedy” woman. The mask was off, and he agreed to the divorce on the spot.
His sons thanked him for defending them and, that night, Suzanne went to her mother’s house to crash. She got an unwelcome surprise when her own mother agreed with her son-in-law and told her she was dead wrong. There was no word on whether the divorce would proceed.
Distribution of finances should always be worked out ahead of time when planning to re-marry.
This couple did the right thing when they discussed how to pay for their children’s futures ahead of time. Having expectations that are mutual is important when avoiding future conflict and confusion. The man's new wife had no right to move the goal post after they had already agreed.
However, her husband had decided to withhold vital information from her that might have changed the discussion. Transparency is important in marriage, and he was not honest with her. Had he been, she might not have reacted so volatilely, or she would have put safeguards in place to make sure her children were afforded the same opportunities.
Because finances are one of the most common causes of divorce, hopefully others consider this a guide on what not to do in a situation like this. Marriage is about love, honesty, openness, and effective communication, after all.
Everyone has something they could have done differently here, which could have avoided such divisiveness and, ultimately, a divorce. But at the end of the day, it's truly a story about a mother's love for her children, setting aside a little something to make sure they can go through life with a few less worries.
NyRee Ausler is a writer from Seattle, Washington, and author of seven books. She covers lifestyle, relationships, entertainment and news, as well as navigating the workplace and social issues.