Maria Shriver confronted the mother of Arnold Schwarzenegger's secret child after noticing the boy's resemblance to her husband.
Although Mildred 'Patti' Baena - who worked as a housekeeper for the couple - never confessed her son Joseph's paternity to Arnold following a brief fling with the "Terminator" star, Maria became suspicious after staff pointed out the similarities when Joseph, 13, visited their home and following a confrontation, Patti "broke down" and the truth emerged.
Patti said: "Last summer I brought Joseph over to the house. Until then, he hadn't been around very much. After that, people in the house started whispering about how much they looked like each other.
"Maria would ask if I needed to talk to her and I kept saying no. Finally, she asked point blank. Maria asked me directly if Joseph was Arnold's son and I just broke down. I dropped to my knees and I was crying saying that yes he was and I was so sorry."
However, Maria shocked Patti with her reaction, comforting her and encouraging the housekeeper not to retire from her job until after the holidays.
In an interview to Britain's HELLO! magazine Patti said: "She was so strong. She cried with me and told me to get off my knees. We held each other and I told her it wasn't Arnold's fault, that it takes two. Since I was retiring soon, I said I would pack and leave right away, but she said to stay until after the holidays."
Now Patti hopes the couple - who are currently working on divorce proceedings - manage to reconcile and save their marriage. She said: "He's a good man and I know he's suffering too. He loves Maria. I hope with time they work things out."
Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife of 25 years, Maria Shriver, announced Monday that they are separating.
The statement, issued by a spokesman for Schwarzenegger, said the two were working on the future of their relationship while living apart and they would continue to parent their four children together.
"This has been a time of great personal and professional transition for each of us," the two said in a prepared statement. "After a great deal of thought, reflection, discussion, and prayer, we came to this decision together."
It was not clear from the statement if either remained at their estate in Brentwood, or whom the children were with. Schwarzenegger's spokesman, Daniel Ketchell, said he wouldn't answer questions beyond what was said in Monday's statement.
About a month before the anniversary, Shriver wrote on her Facebook page that she was going through a transition in her life.
"As you know, transitions are not easy. I'd love to get your advice on how you've handled transitions in your own life," she said in a video posted on YouTube.
"It's so stressful to not know what you're doing next. People ask you what are you doing and then they can't believe that you don't know what you're doing," she said.
The separation announcement comes months after the death of Shriver's father, Peace Corps founder and former vice presidential candidate Sargent Shriver, in January.
