I teach French at a university and I have two stepchildren, aged 12 and 14. Their mother expects me to teach them at home after my working hours. I told her, “I’m not a free tutor—I do this for a living!” She replied, “You’re a stepmom; you have responsibilities. You should be ashamed to call them your stepkids.” My husband just smirked.

The next day, I walked into my room and was shocked to find a note that read: “You’re not a free teacher, and this is not a free house.” When I confronted my husband, he told me that if I expected to be paid to teach his kids, then he expected me to pay rent for living under his roof. I refused and said, “You own the house; we don’t rent it.” Again, he just smirked.

A month later, I discovered that my husband had secretly been using my savings to pay for private tutors for his children. When I confronted him, he admitted it and said, “If you won’t help them, someone has to.” Feeling betrayed and manipulated, I decided to leave and stay with a friend.

Now, I’m questioning whether I made the right decision—or if I overreacted and should have taught the kids from the beginning.