My mother-in-law demanded to share a hotel room with my husband during our anniversary trip

Our 10th wedding anniversary trip was supposed to be about reconnecting and enjoying romance. Instead, it turned into a strange nightmare when my mother-in-law decided she couldn’t let her “precious son” out of her sight. And that wasn’t even the worst of it.

You see, Patrick’s mother has always had a knack for meddling. But when she barged into our anniversary suite and claimed it for herself, I knew I couldn’t let it go.

I just had to figure out how to make her pay for her antics without ruining my marriage.

My husband and I recently celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary.

We planned a week-long trip to a luxury resort, and it was our first real getaway since our son was born five years ago. The idea was simple. Disconnect, reconnect and maybe rekindle the romance a little. I had been looking forward to it for months.

Until my mother-in-law, Victoria, got in the way of our plans.

From the beginning, it was clear that she saw herself as the third person in our marriage.

At our wedding, she hijacked our first dance, taking Patrick’s hand before I had the chance. From then on, she made a habit of leaving me out whenever she could. She made sure she was the center of attention every time, whether it was a birthday or a party.

When Patrick and I mentioned our anniversary trip, she immediately jumped in with her suggestion.

“Why don’t I go?” she asked. ‘I could look after the little one while you two have some time alone.’

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Alone? With her hanging around? No, thank you.

Patrick, always so conciliatory, tried to frame it as a win-win situation for all of us.

“Think about it, Anna. She’ll look after our son during the day and we’ll still have the nights to ourselves.“

Reluctantly, I agreed. ‘All right. But he’ll stay in his own room. I won’t share my suite.’

“Of course!” he assured me, with a smile that was too broad. “I wouldn’t dream of allowing that.”

We made good progress until the day we arrived at the complex.

When we checked in, Victoria looked at the staff with that critical air she always had. She wrinkled her nose slightly when she saw the key to her room. It had the shower icon on it, while ours had the bathtub icon.

“What’s wrong?“ Patrick asked.

She sighed dramatically.

“Oh, nothing…” she began. “It’s just that I really don’t like showers. My bones need a good bath, a good soak”.

I narrowed my eyes.

The suite that Patrick and I had booked, with a double bed and a luxurious bathtub, was clearly the object of her complaint.

I opened my mouth to protest, but before I could say anything, she walked over to the bellboy, took the key to our suite and headed straight for the elevator.

“Mum, wait!” Patrick shouted, but she didn’t stop.

The poor bellboy barely had time to follow her at full speed down the corridor.

We followed her to the suite and, when we arrived, she was already unpacking. She put the suitcase on the bed, fluffed up the pillows and smiled at me like a cat that has just caught a mouse.

“This will come in handy,” she announced. Then, turning to me, she added sarcastically, ‘You can stay in the other room with the boy, and I’ll stay here with my son.”

Wait, what? Did I hear correctly?

I looked at Patrick, waiting for him to say something. But he just stood there, scratching his neck awkwardly. ’Mom, come on…”

“Oh, don’t be difficult, darling,“ she said, pushing him away. ‘We’re a family. This is what families do.”

Her message was loud and clear. I was the intruder. The odd one out.

What about the ’I need a bath” excuse? That was just a smokescreen to get me out of the anniversary suite.

I stared at Patrick, waiting for him to tell his mother that she was overstepping the mark. I mean, who demands to share a hotel room with their adult son on their anniversary trip?

But instead of putting her in her place, Patrick just shrugged.

“It’s just for sleeping,” he muttered. ‘We’ll do the rest of the trip together. Let’s not make a big deal out of it.”

Not make a big deal out of it? I wanted to scream. But instead, I put on my best fake smile.

“Of course. Whatever makes you comfortable,’ I said sweetly, my voice laced with sarcasm.

Victoria, oblivious to my tone, smiled. “I knew you’d understand, Anna. You’re a good wife.”

Inside, I was furious.

This was supposed to be our anniversary trip, a chance to reconnect after years of juggling work, parenthood and everything in between. I wasn’t going to let her make me the third wheel of my own vacation.

If I wanted to act like the queen of the complex, perfect. I had a plan prepared, and I knew she wouldn’t see it coming.

The next morning, I acted as if I approved of the new sleeping arrangements.

During breakfast, I smiled, nodded and let Victoria ramble on about how “considerate” Patrick was for including her on the trip.

“I love spending time with my son,” she said, patting his hand. ”It’s so rare these days.”

Patrick gave me an apologetic look, but I gestured for him not to worry.

“Don’t worry,“ I said. ‘Actually, I have a surprise for you both.”

Victoria’s eyes sparkled with curiosity. ’A surprise?”

“Yes,” I nodded. “I’ve booked a romantic couples photo shoot this morning at the resort. I thought it would be a great way to capture some memories.”

Patrick frowned. “A couples’ photo shoot?”

“They’ll love it,” I said, maintaining an innocent expression. “I spoke to the resort staff last night and they took care of all the arrangements. You and Mom are going to look great together.”

Victoria clapped her hands together in delight. ”Oh, how nice! Patrick, isn’t that nice of Anna?”

Patrick didn’t seem convinced, but he didn’t protest. He was still in that uncomfortable middle ground where he didn’t want to upset either his mother or me. Poor guy had no idea what was in store for him.

When they arrived at the photo shoot, the photographer greeted them with a big cheerful smile. “Ah, they’re here! We’re ready for your shoot.”

Patrick’s eyes widened. “Wait, no…”

“Oh, don’t be modest!” interrupted the photographer. “You seem like a lovely couple.”

From a distance, I watched as the photographer posed them by the fountain, gushing about their ‘chemistry’ and their ‘love story.’ Patrick looked like he wanted to be swallowed up by the ground, while Victoria enjoyed the attention.

She could hardly contain her laughter. This had only just begun.

The following morning, Patrick and Victoria headed off to what they thought would be a casual activity in a tourist center. Little did they know that they had been signed up for an exclusive tango class for couples.

The instructor, Marco, greeted them dramatically. “Welcome to the dance of love!”

“Wait, what?” asked Patrick, his eyes wide with horror.

Victoria clasped her hands together, delighted. ”Oh, Patrick, this is so beautiful! I’ve always wanted to learn tango.”

I stayed close, pretending not to notice while Patrick gave me a desperate look. I just took a sip of my coffee and waved.

“Now,“ Marco began, ‘tango is about connection! Mr. Patrick, put your hand on your wife’s waist and look her in the eyes. The soul must speak through the dance.”

Patrick looked ready to run away. ’She’s not my…”

“No excuses! Dance is the truth,” Marco declared, clapping his hands.

Victoria leaned towards him, practically dizzy. “Come on, Patrick. Let’s show them what we’ve got.”

Reluctantly, Patrick put his hand on her waist and went through the steps while Marco shouted instructions. Every few seconds, Patrick tripped over or stepped on Victoria.

I couldn’t help laughing at the sight of their misery.

“More passion!” Marco exclaimed. ‘The woman must feel the fire in her partner’s eyes!”

I saw Patrick mutter something in a low voice that was surely not appropriate.

At the end of the class, Victoria was beaming.

“It was wonderful!’ she exclaimed. ”We should take dance classes at home.”

Patrick groaned. “I think I’ve had enough tango to last a lifetime.”

But the day wasn’t over yet.

In the evening, I invited them to the resort’s sunset dinner cruise. The staff had arranged everything, with a violinist, rose petals and a candlelit table on deck.

As they boarded, the captain greeted them warmly. “Welcome on board! We’ve prepared the most romantic table for you lovebirds.”

Patrick looked like he wanted to jump overboard. “Er, we didn’t…”

Victoria greeted them regally, enjoying the attention. ‘Thank you. This is simply lovely.”

I waved to them from the pier.

“Have a good trip,’ I exclaimed with a smile.

Patrick’s face turned red. He looked back at me, clearly understanding that I was behind it all.

The cruise lasted two hours and, by the time they returned, Patrick had had enough.

He came up to me as soon as Victoria disappeared into her room.

“What the hell is going on?” he said, his face red with embarrassment. ”Why does everyone think we’re a couple?”

I blinked innocently. “Oh, I have no idea. I guess the staff must have misunderstood when I said it was our anniversary trip. I just wanted to make sure your mother had a good time, since she insisted on coming.”

He ran a hand through his hair, exhaling sharply. ”Anna… I’ve messed up, haven’t I?”

I folded my arms, raising an eyebrow. “You think?”

“I should have said no,” he admitted, shaking his head. “I thought it would be easier to let her come. I didn’t realize how ridiculous it would be.”

“Well,” I said, taking a sip of my champagne, “now you know.”

The next morning, as we were packing to leave, Patrick was apologizing profusely. “I won’t let her interfere like that again. Next time we’ll hire a babysitter.”

“That’s perfect,” I replied with a smile of satisfaction.

Victoria, oblivious to the chaos she had caused, declared that it had been the best vacation of her life.

What did I learn from all this? That sometimes you don’t have to raise your voice to make a point. You just need a little creativity to teach a lesson that won’t be forgotten.