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I think I’ve just caught my husband cheating

528 replies

CoffeeRevelsfan · Yesterday 16:00

DH is working from home and I was doing the housework, I walked upstairs as a jet went over the house so it was really loud. We don’t live on a flight path so it was unusual. I went into his office and he literally jumped out of his skin and pressed the X to hide a teams message on screen. I asked about the jet just as another message popped up on teams from a woman called Joanna - he scrabbled to press the X again as fast as possible and was as red as a beetroot. The message said “yeah, it looked better in my head hahaha”.

His whole demeanour had changed and looked hugely guilty and caught out. I asked who he was messaging to which he said no one, i again asked who it was and he said a man from work - i told him i saw it was from a woman called Joanna. I asked why he was acting like this and looking so guilty and lying - he said it’s because he knew how I’d react. I am well aware he works in a mixed team and have never taken any issue to him having work conversations with other women so this is completely gas lighting on his part. I told him this was bull shit and to bring up the messages, he refused. I asked again and he locked his screen then picked up his mobile - he has teams on his phone so I am assuming he was deleting the messages. I asked if that’s what he was doing and he dug his heels in and shouted that there is nothing going on. I told him to prove it by showing the messages, he repeatedly refused and told me no as he didn’t feel he should have to prove himself, and then wouldn’t make eye contact with me.

if that was me and the conversation was innocent, I’d have brought up the messages and demanded an apology. Everything about him screamed red flag during that situation.

ive left the house and am currently in my car in a park, shaking and feeling sick. There surely can’t be any other explanation for his reaction and refusal to prove himself innocent?

we’ve never been in a situation like this, I’ve not had any cause to doubt him in the past. Been together for 15years.

OP posts:
OnlyUsername · Yesterday 19:47

ohnowhat · Yesterday 19:41

If he baulks at all then you know you're on to something.

Most people would baulk if their partner demanded all that and there was nothing going on.

Well, there is, and he's admitted it so that's irrelevant.

Freeme31 · Yesterday 19:47

Ask him to hand over his phone saying you know someone who can restore messages. His reply will tell you all you need to know. Ask him to leave tonight so you have time to think, he may then take this more seriously as just now he’s just denying as you have no proof so no consequences for him he just has to blag it out till you stop talking about it. Show him your serious

ohnowhat · Yesterday 19:51

OnlyUsername · Yesterday 19:47

Well, there is, and he's admitted it so that's irrelevant.

OP said he's claimed nothing is going on and there's nothing in it. I don't see him admitting anything apart from the messages being a bit flirty.

Releasemeplease · Yesterday 19:54

ohnowhat · Yesterday 19:51

OP said he's claimed nothing is going on and there's nothing in it. I don't see him admitting anything apart from the messages being a bit flirty.

What so you think a married man flirting with another woman behind his wife's back is acceptable and normal behaviour?

ohnowhat · Yesterday 19:58

Releasemeplease · Yesterday 19:54

What so you think a married man flirting with another woman behind his wife's back is acceptable and normal behaviour?

No.
But you said he'd admitted cheating.
I think there is a difference between flirty chat and cheating.
The flirty chat might not be sexual, it might be just having a laugh. Not as bad, but you also might not want your partner to see it.

bigboykitty · Yesterday 19:59

ohnowhat · Yesterday 19:58

No.
But you said he'd admitted cheating.
I think there is a difference between flirty chat and cheating.
The flirty chat might not be sexual, it might be just having a laugh. Not as bad, but you also might not want your partner to see it.

He did, by his actions.

Calliopespa · Yesterday 20:01

CoffeeRevelsfan · Yesterday 19:26

@Imdonehere he’s completely unwilling to try to restore the chat, and just says they can’t be retrieved.

he’s doing the whole wow is me routine. Glum face and puppy dog eyes, he’s not trying to make any conversation with me and he’s not coming up with ways to restore my trust or prove his innocence.

he has instagram and facebook but don’t use them, I’ve checked for her on his friends list and she’s not there. He has linked in but I don’t and I don’t know how to look for her without alerting either of them to the fact I’ve checked.

Well he "isn't woe is me" if he could restore the messages and won't.

He has his options but is choosing to sit in the Bad Dog corner.

Puzzledandpissedoff · Yesterday 20:07

Ask him to hand over his phone saying you know someone who can restore messages. His reply will tell you all you need to know

Unless he's a real IT whizz himself that might just work - or rather not, since I doubt there's any hope of him handing over the phone

Another option is what I did myself: create a fake Facebook account with a very tasty profile pic, send him a friend request, approach him about some "mutual interest", ramp up the conversation to a LOT more and see how he responds

After the endless lies and denials I got mine as far as meeting up with "Sue", and his surpise when his wife turned up instead was quite something

Charlatanfreethesedays · Yesterday 20:07

I use Teams at work, you can easily restore the messages, he's still lying.

He's doing the drip feed thing, only admitting what he's been caught for and can't get away lying about.

I'm sorry OP.

Releasemeplease · Yesterday 20:11

ohnowhat · Yesterday 19:58

No.
But you said he'd admitted cheating.
I think there is a difference between flirty chat and cheating.
The flirty chat might not be sexual, it might be just having a laugh. Not as bad, but you also might not want your partner to see it.

I didn't say he'd admitted cheating

You obviously think that flirting, even though he is a married man, is actually acceptable. I don't. Not if he is in a supposedly monogamous marriage. I think flirting with another woman means he is open to cheating and signalling that to the other woman. And flirting is the first steps towards cheating.

He admitted flirting. And the messages must have been pretty explicit because if they weren't sexual then was no reason for him to hide them from.OP.

momtoboys · Yesterday 20:12

Ugh. I'm sorry. I would feel as shaken as you are given the circumstances.

CoventryCity · Yesterday 20:14

@CoffeeRevelsfan

From Microsoft

If you have deleted a chat or conversation in Microsoft Teams application you may be wondering if there is any way to restore it. Depending on the situation, you may have different options to get it back.

One option is to use the OneDrive feature in Teams, which stores a copy of your chat files. To do this, follow these steps:

  • Navigate to the *Files tab in Teams, select OneDrive, and click Open in OneDrive*.
  • In *My files, open the folder Microsoft Teams Chat Files*.
  • Navigate to *Recycle bin, select the files to be restored, and click Restore*.

Maybe do this when he's not there.

TwisterSister208 · Yesterday 20:18

Do you have children? I am a burn the house down kind of person, so if I didn't have children I would try to kick his arse out. Or I would leave myself. There is no way I would let him think that he is getting over on me by deleting the proof. Not that I would anticipate that my marriage would be over right this minute but I would put the fear of god into him. Or, being separated even for a few nights might make him happy and then you will know for sure. I'm sure people are going to hate my answer.

Daisylove1 · Yesterday 20:21

CoffeeRevelsfan · Yesterday 19:26

@Imdonehere he’s completely unwilling to try to restore the chat, and just says they can’t be retrieved.

he’s doing the whole wow is me routine. Glum face and puppy dog eyes, he’s not trying to make any conversation with me and he’s not coming up with ways to restore my trust or prove his innocence.

he has instagram and facebook but don’t use them, I’ve checked for her on his friends list and she’s not there. He has linked in but I don’t and I don’t know how to look for her without alerting either of them to the fact I’ve checked.

Check the LinkedIn! Be unapologetic. Be blatant. You’ve done nothing wrong- if he asks did you check say yes, what’s he going to do?

Supperlite · Yesterday 20:22

CoffeeRevelsfan · Yesterday 19:26

@Imdonehere he’s completely unwilling to try to restore the chat, and just says they can’t be retrieved.

he’s doing the whole wow is me routine. Glum face and puppy dog eyes, he’s not trying to make any conversation with me and he’s not coming up with ways to restore my trust or prove his innocence.

he has instagram and facebook but don’t use them, I’ve checked for her on his friends list and she’s not there. He has linked in but I don’t and I don’t know how to look for her without alerting either of them to the fact I’ve checked.

Make your own LinkedIn profile and put the privacy setting on private. That means you can look at other people’s profiles without them being alerted. It just means you also can’t see who has looked at yours, but that’s not an issue here.

I am really sorry you’re in this situation, OP. I would let my DH look at whatever he wanted on my phone or computer. I think it is very shady not letting you see anything. If my DH behaved the way yours has I would be reading him the riot act. Even if he has “just” been flirting, he is displaying victimhood behaviour which strongly suggests he thinks he has done nothing wrong. He wants to have his cake and eat it and by doing so taking you for a mug. You are worth MUCH more than this. If you can, give him a chance to grow up, and get other the shock of being found out, and to make it up to you. If he doesn’t then you know where you stand.

Mildred007 · Yesterday 20:24

Not sure if anyone else has already said this as I've not rtft, so apologies if I'm repeating advice, but you can literally just click "undo" on teams messages. The most easiest of messages to restore 🤷‍♀️

Puzzledandpissedoff · Yesterday 20:24

That sounds very helpful, @CoventryCity - I'm not techie enough to know if it would work - but it all depends on DH handing over his phone, and if he's prepared to do that I'll be most surprised

JoWilkinsonsno1fan · Yesterday 20:27

Very happy for you to PM me and I will check both for you. I am sorry OP I believe this isn’t innocent, he has grossly overstepped the mark and even if this was a ‘him’ infatuation- I don’t think I could trust him again. What else is he hiding and how many other contacts are called ‘neil’ when its really a ‘Joanna’

Even I can restore messages on teams and I am useless with that kind of thing!! He is a liar - carry on calling his pathetic ‘puppy eye’ behaviour out - he could reinstate all those messages he just won’t. He’s been caught though now so is reverting to being a twat to try and show he’s been hurt by your accusations.

TonyDancer · Yesterday 20:28

Sounds like he’s sitting comfortably in the victim space tonight.

Boreded · Yesterday 20:32

CoffeeRevelsfan · Yesterday 17:48

im back home, he’s pulling the woe is me face. He again told me there was absolutely nothing going on and he has no idea why he reacted like that. I continued to press him for what caused his reaction and why Neil from work was actually Joanna. He has eventually admitted the messages were of a nature that could be “construed” as flirting, and has admitted he has deleted them as “he panicked”. I am furious and gutted all at once, the main stab in the heart is his refusal and reluctance to prove he was anything other than guilty. Really don’t know where I go from here.

Teams for work doesn’t delete, it just hides. You click delete but then you can undo the deletion. Just get him to do that.

Sodthesystem · Yesterday 20:38

Sorry but, that would be it over for me. If there was nothing going on he would have shown you the messages.

I’m wouldn’t waste any more time. Get yourself a solicitor and find out what you are due. Don’t tell him anything until you’ve got your ducks in order.

He can’t be trusted, that’s all you need to know. Don’t waste years of your life trying to figure out the exact nature of his betrayal. That way madness lies. And gaslighting too probably.

Just get yourself out.

Thisismynewname23 · Yesterday 20:38

He could so easily have shown you them, no matter what was said now he has ruined your trust

shuggles · Yesterday 20:44

@Puzzledandpissedoff Another option is what I did myself: create a fake Facebook account with a very tasty profile pic, send him a friend request, approach him about some "mutual interest", ramp up the conversation to a LOT more and see how he responds

Men are not idiots. Any woman who contacts me online with highly sexual messages is either a prostitute or a scammer (both instances are about money). It has never been anything else.

If you did this to me, I would either block you, or mess you around a bit thinking that you were a scammer.

Mumofoneandone · Yesterday 20:47

Of course he's up to something! Look at your options and don't let him win you back over with the woe is me look.
Could always report the behaviour to his work place as misuse of work commuters and time. Might even be abuse of position if he is a line manager/more senior!

Lizzbear · Yesterday 20:47

God. I’d be so pissed-off with him. Op.