Chapter 3

I ignored the fact that she was in such a panic. Keeping my tone casual, I said, "Your sister's gone. My family arranged a blind date for me. A widower remarrying is perfectly normal, isn't it?"

…

Candice's expression darkened immediately.

"No!"

Maybe she realized her reaction had been too intense, because a second later she forced herself to lower her voice.

"I mean… my sister's only been missing for less than a year. You can't remarry this quickly.

"I'm her biological sister, and you're my brother-in-law. You and my sister were so in love when she was alive. How can you change your heart so fast? I can't just watch you leave the Jenkins family.

"And what if... I mean, what if one day my sister comes back? They still haven't found her body. She might not even be dead…"

Watching how nervous she looked honestly confused me a little.

She clearly hated me. Could barely stand me. So why was she trying so hard to stop me from remarrying?

When she saw me continue flipping through the matchmaking photos without responding, Candice started getting anxious. She snatched my phone away and impulsively deleted all the pictures.

"You should just stay with the Jenkins family already. Stop thinking about marrying someone else!"

She was so flustered she even forgot to call me 'brother-in-law.'

The woman opened her mouth to continue, but before she could say anything else, her phone rang.

"The doctor said I got an infection after surgery. You need to come over right now. I'll probably need another operation, and they need you to sign the paperwork."

Before Austin could even finish speaking on the other end, Candice had already rushed out the door, not even stopping to grab her coat.

Only then did I realize something.

The reason she told me not to remarry was probably just polite talk from the perspective of a younger sister. Nothing more.

I let out a bitter laugh, asked the Scott family to resend the photos, then picked out a suit and a diamond ring.

After that, I threw away every photo and belonging connected to Candice, treating it as if this person had never existed in my life at all.

That evening, when I was halfway through packing, Candice came home carrying the child, with Austin beside her.

"Luckily it was just a false alarm. One anti-inflammatory injection fixed it." She smiled at me naturally. "Brother-in-law, I'll have to trouble you to keep taking care of Austin from now on. Just think of it as helping my sister take care of her brother-in-law."

I tightened my grip around the trash bag in my hand, not even wanting to respond.

Candice noticed the bedroom looked strangely empty through the half-open door and was just about to ask about it when she suddenly stepped aside to answer a phone call.

As I went downstairs to throw out the trash, I heard her confident voice drifting from around the corner.

"His family only introduced him to a blind date, that's all. You know Jon. He's still completely hung up on me.

"Even if he can't find me, he'd probably die for me. There's no way he'll agree to the matchmaking."

I let out a mocking laugh and went back upstairs to continue packing.

After all, I was leaving tomorrow.

What I did not expect was for Austin to follow me into the room.

He smugly stroked the child in his arms, revealing a sinister expression I had never seen before.

"Jon, do you really think your wife died in that accident?

"Let me do you a favor and tell you the truth. The woman you think is your sister-in-law is the real Candice.

"She willingly stays by my side while turning you into a pathetic widower.

"Back then, you cried like the sky was falling and practically wanted to die alongside Candice. It was honestly laughable."

Yeah.

I really was stupid.

I never doubted Candice's love for me for even a second.

I believed there was no way she would abandon me after the plane crash.

Believed she could never fall for another man.

But those days were gone forever.