A man has been left mortified after realising he married his cousin after buying a DNA testing kit for fun. He explained how he remarried a woman from his small town after the breakdown of his first relationship - and has been co-parenting with her ever since.
The couple both have three children from previous relationships - but do not have their own together. Taking to Reddit, the man said: "My current wife and I went to high school together in a small town.
"Both of our families are well known in the area with deep roots - both families have been here a long time." Without thinking too much into it, he bought his wife a DNA testing kit as she wanted to learn more about her European roots.
Her sister decided to do the same thing - and they compared results when they came through.
"When their results were posted, it started making family connections which included my mother, my oldest son, my uncle etc," he added.
"My wife's mum came in to the room so they ask her how we could be related. Her mum starts crying and says that when she was very young she overheard someone say Tom isn't your father, Jimmy is.
"Her mum being from an older generation says she just put it out of her mind and convinced herself it's just a rumour.
"I called my mum and asked if she's ever heard a rumour that her father could be my wife's mother's father as well.
"She gets quiet for a moment and says yes I have and it was believed to be true by her mum as well and that her dad (my grandfather) was a well known cheater/womanizer."
Looking deeper into the results, the man discovered that his wife and his oldest son share a great-grandparent.
He and other family members have now ordered their own testing kits, wanting to uncover the truth once and for all.
He added: "My mum and wife's mum are apparently half sister's. My wife's mother is quite upset.
"What bugs me most is both our mums knew there was the possibility but said nothing."
Despite the results, the couple have vowed to stay together - but say they won't be sharing this information with others outside the family.
Commenting on his admission, one user said: "If you aren't having kids together, and you weren't raised together as family, then I would say there are no ethical concerns regarding your marriage."
Another user added: "I'm betting this is much more common than people think, with how small towns are and everything."
A third user said: "I also found out a secret through 23andMe that the guy I've been calling dad my whole life is not my biological father. I actually met a whole other family I didn't know I had last year at the age of 35. It's been a wild ride."
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