Listening

Dear Ms. Taylor, I’m a 34-year-old single mother of three. I divorced my husband four years ago after ten years of marriage. During the divorce, I met a man, Daniel, who seemed kind and caring. We started dating and have been together for almost three years. Daniel is 45 and also divorced. I met his ex-wife once, and she seemed nice. But after a few months, I learned he was still seeing her—even though she also had a boyfriend at the time. I kept quiet because we weren’t very serious yet. Later, I became pregnant. Around the same time, I found out Daniel planned to attend a family gathering with his ex-wife. I even saw her car parked outside his house late at night. His excuse was that they were thinking about getting back together. I stayed in the relationship, but it’s been hard. Daniel claims he talks to his ex-wife only because he helps raise her son. But I don’t believe him. I’ve also heard rumors about him taking women to hotels. He swears it wasn’t her, but my heart says otherwise. Now we have a baby together, and I hate that Daniel seems to care more about her child than ours. He always helps her without being asked, but I must remind him when our son needs something. I was married to a cheating man before, and now I’m with another. I wonder if I’m just choosing the wrong men—or if I’m stuck in an unhealthy relationship with someone who wants to have it both ways.