Woman ‘Blindsided’ After Fiancé Suddenly Asks For Prenup — ‘I Have Invested Years Of My Life’
Some people choose business before love.
Anastasia Shuraeva | Pexels The months before your wedding might be a little stressful with last-minute details like seating charts and dress fittings, but for most brides-to-be, the excitement outweighs the anxiety. That wasn't exactly the case for one young woman, however. She took to Reddit not because her venue was giving her grief or her guests were refusing to RSVP. The reason for her angst fell solely on the shoulders of her fiancé, who "blindsided" her two months before the big day by asking for a prenup.
When you strip the emotions out of it, marriage is a contract. It makes sense that some couples would want to negotiate the terms of that contract before signing on the dotted line. That's where prenups come in. Here's the thing, though. Prenups are only a useful tool if both parties agree.
A woman said her fiancé gave her an ultimatum 2 months before the wedding: sign a prenup, or the wedding is off.
"My fiancé and I have been together for almost six years," she wrote, "and engaged for a little over one." She explained that the wedding is just two months away, and out of nowhere, her fiancé said he wanted a prenup. "He said it’s to protect his business in case things go wrong in the future," she added. The woman also mentioned that he has a small but successful company that he started before they met.
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There's no denying that her fiancé's timing is abysmal, but is what he's asking for all that bad? Well, the answer lies somewhere in the grey. If this woman simply signed a prenup without consulting her own attorney and doing her own negotiating, well, that's bad.
However, signing a prenup doesn't and shouldn't be a one-sided contract. It should protect both parties. The issue with her fiancé's position isn't so much the ultimatum but the fact that it seems like he is trying to throw the prenup at her with little time to advocate for herself. That's a serious red flag.
The woman argued that she supported him in building the business he is trying to protect with a prenup.
The woman explained that in the beginning, when they started dating, her fiancé worked long hours and had very little income. "I have always been there through the late nights," she wrote, "the stressful launches, and even the times he considered giving up." Long story short, she helped him grow the company.
And she was there financially as well. She explained that she helped him manage the household and handle bills when he needed extra cash flow. "I don’t have as much money or assets as he does now," she wrote, "but I invested years of my life into building a future together."
For that reason, she said, when he brought up the prenup, it "felt like a slap in the face." She told him she didn’t feel comfortable. It seemed like he was already planning for the marriage to fail before it even began. His reaction was clear: she either signs the prenup or the wedding gets called off.
The biggest issue in this entire scenario, as even commenters pointed out, was not the prenup itself. It was how he went about asking for it. As many others suggested, if she really wants to move forward with this marriage, she needs to seek out separate legal counsel and have them examine the agreement and amend it as needed. If he is unwilling to negotiate the terms, she would be a fool to marry him.
A prenup can and should help both partners.
Anastasia Shuraeva | Pexels
The woman explained that she felt "blindsided" and hurt. "This was never mentioned before we got engaged," she wrote, "or while we were planning the wedding." She said she keeps going back and forth, wondering if she’s overreacting or if this is a sign she shouldn’t get married.
Most of the commenters focused on the legal aspects of prenups. One said, "You could build clauses into the prenup that acknowledge your work and support." And that’s true. According to the McKinney Law Group, "If your spouse contributes labor, capital, or expertise to the business, you may agree in advance on compensation or reimbursement in case of divorce."
Others pointed out that the timing of the prenup was unfair, which could make it invalid in court. "There are cases where prenups have been overturned because the closeness to the wedding date was considered undue pressure," one user wrote. And that’s absolutely true. According to the Law Offices of Jeffrey G. Marsocci, "One of the most effective arguments for having a premarital agreement thrown out is that it was signed under duress, and a common 'duress' factor is when the spouse sprung the agreement at the last minute."
The takeaway is that if the fiancée feels backed into a corner, she should consider canceling the wedding. But if she decides to go through with it, she can work with a lawyer to draft a prenup that fairly protects both her and her fiancé. She spent time and effort helping him grow the business, and that must be taken into consideration.
Matt Machado is a writer studying journalism at the University of Central Florida. He covers relationships, psychology, celebrities, pop culture, and human interest topics.
