Chris Watts Wrote Love Letters to His Mistress Before Murdering His Family: 'You Heat Me Up'

Watts in court
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Chris Watts was sentenced to five life sentences in November in the killings of his family.

Killer Colorado dad Chris Watts wrote passionate love notes to his mistress in the time leading up to the slayings, with the most recent being sent just two weeks before he murdered his pregnant wife and two children.

Watts began having an affair with his co-worker Nichol Kessinger over the summer. According to Kessinger, they started talking in June and began a physical relationship a few weeks later.

Watts seemed smitten with Kessinger. For her birthday on July 3, Watts wrote in a card, “You heat me up, you make me melt and then you cool me down like rain."

In another note, dated July 30, he began, “Nikki, Wow, where do I even start? The first day I saw you, you took my breath away. ... We kissed, I knew I had met the most amazing, unique and electric woman EVER!”

Kessinger told the Denver Post in an exclusive interview that Watts "lied about everything," allegedly telling her he and his wife, Shan'ann Watts, were separated and finalizing divorce proceedings. 

She also said she did not know Shan'ann was pregnant until she saw the news reports after the mother had vanished with her daughters.

Kessinger told police she initially believed Watts that Shan’ann had moved out of the home, but as his story changed and he showed little emotion about his family’s disappearance, she told him to not contact her until his family was found.

“Those poor babies," she told investigators in video released by the Weld County District Attorney's Office, speaking through tears about Watts’ daughters.  

She noted she would never have wanted to see his family hurt. 

“Did you ever say anything about the kids being problem? Anything about his wife being a problem?” one detective asked. 

“Never! Never!” she replied. “This shocked me just as much as I think it shocked the rest of the world.”

Watts was sentenced in November to five life sentences for his family's killings. 

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