‘Married at First Sight’: 15 Key Moments From ‘Secrets and Lies’ (RECAP)

[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Married at First Sight Season 10, Episode 13, “Secrets and Lies.”]

Lifetime’s Married at First Sight continued to spew drama as the five couples continued their journeys as spouses.

After recommitting to each other in last week’s episode, “Secrets and Lies” saw old habits resurface jeopardizing the unions they’ve agreed to. Below, we’re breaking down every key moment from new understandings to … an actual break-up. Beware of spoilers.

Work Problems

Jessica and Austin take a date night out during the week and discuss their jobs, which Jessica learns may take her husband away on business trips more often than she previously thought. Disappointed in this revelation, it’s the first time they’ve really “argued” about anything. He reassures her it will be fine, but is distant when she brings up the “I love you” debate, telling her he has to feel it in order to say it.

Pay Discrepancies

In order to gain some trust on either side, Michael and Meka agree to share their salaries and weekly pay with each other by showing pay stubs. While Meka has hers, Michael only has an offer letter with varying numbers that he can’t really explain. Feeling like he’s lying, Meka gets angry and leaves, claiming she can’t do this anymore.

Zach’s Lie

Mindy meets with her friends and tells them she’s recommitted to Zach and they’re obviously not pleased as they can see through the situation that she’s trying to salvage. When Zach’s friendship with Lindsay is brought up along with the lie he accused her of — which turned out to be a claim that Mindy had an ex pick her up at the airport — apparently Zach said a mutual friend of her ex and him told him, but Mindy’s friend revealed that she mentioned to Lindsay that the ex wanted to pick her up, essentially revealing Lindsay as the source and drama stirrer. This fact led Mindy to reconsider some things.

New Leaf

Brandon and Taylor turned a new leaf after fighting and splitting up — they went on a date and admitted they were glad to be giving their relationship another shot. When Brandon brought up wanting to move in, Taylor said he was welcome to and we later see them hop into bed together. But Brandon’s return also means some awkward attention from Taylor’s dog, who he believes tries to assert dominance over him.

Done

Later on, Mindy meets with Zach at “their” apartment, and while he spouts all of these positive feelings about their progress, she confronts him about hearing the lie he accused her of from Lindsay. He admits that he did, but wasn’t sure how to tell her and regrets even bringing the situation up. She calls his behavior disrespectful and that she officially doesn’t want to continue their marriage because it is something that she takes seriously and she doesn’t believe he does. She then tells him to leave and take his things in a calm manner.

Childlike

Next, the couples met with Dr. Viviana to discuss different challenges and things from their own parents’ relationships that they don’t want to mimic. Among the couples to explore this are Katie and Derek, during which he reveals he didn’t get to have a lot of control over his choices, leaving him a childlike dreamer today. Meanwhile, they learn Katie never developed that side of herself because she had to mature quickly in order to maintain peace between her parents who would fight often before they divorced.

The Final Nail

Dr. Viviana met with Mindy and then Zach separately following their divorce decision. While the expert is pleased for Mindy, she calls Zach out for trying to make a positive spin on the experience that he didn’t put full effort into.

First Fight

When Jessica and Austin meet with Dr. Viviana, they share that they got into their first fight over Austin’s work schedule and trips. They also explore Jessica’s desire to tell Austin she loves him and determine her stubbornness to withhold this is due in part to feeling vulnerable. So, she finally tells him how she feels despite him not being able to say “I love you” back.

Mending Fences

While Michael and Meka left things tense after the salary debate, they bring their issues to Dr. Viviana who asks them to speak freely. Meka doesn’t trust Michael and wants him to stop lying, while he reveals that his adoption has caused a ripple effect in his life that he can’t seem to control, which has caused him to behave this way. While Meka understands where he’s coming from better, it doesn’t mean they’re out of the woods yet.

Exploring the Past

After being told to show their spouses a part of their history and past, Brandon takes Taylor to his home neighborhood where he grew up and plays ball in the basketball court he used as a kid.

Negative Impact

Katie and Derek also explore his past, but through storage items in on of his parent’s garages. When they come across a poem he wrote, Katie is moved to tears. We learn that she’s frustrated because it seems like he knows about love, but he still claims he’s never been in love. She also gets jealous when he recalls a former girlfriend and their dates while explaining one of the items they found in the garage search. Needless to say, this probably was a bad idea.

Letters to Yourself

Austin and Jessica go to the beach for an exercise Dr. Viviana suggested which involved them writing letters to their younger selves in order to explore vulnerability. While she tells her younger self to tell more people she loves them, especially her grandma, he would have advised himself to focus on more than just baseball, and the exploration brings them closer together.

Advice

Meka invites Michael’s sister to lunch so she can understand her husband better. What she learns is that Michael used to be teased for being his authentic self, which has forced him to build a wall and exaggerate things to be accepted. This helps Meka learn about her husband and extended family as she bonded with her in-law.

Party Time

Mindy holds a divorce party at the apartment with her friends and she seems happier than ever. We can’t help but be happy for her too.

Playing Games

Brandon and Taylor play a special card game Dr. Viviana suggested which includes giving verbal compliments and showing physical affection. During this, they agree that they’re happy they’re giving marriage a second shot.

What will happen next time? Tune in for another episode next week on Lifetime.

Married at First Sight, Wednesdays, 8/7c, Lifetime