Chapter 3

For the first few days after Wendy moved in, she behaved herself.

Well, mostly.

There was just one incident: she wandered into the living room in her pajamas, pretending it was an accident, and deliberately lingered in front of George.

It was subtle, more like a test than anything outright inappropriate.

But I could tell—she was itching to make her move.

Every day, I watched her play the role of the innocent, sweet girl, flitting around George Lewiske a little butterfly.

I pretended not to notice. The more she thought she was getting away with it, the bolder she became.

Then, the fall break arrived.

My son, Ryan, was coming home from boarding school.

In my previous life, this was when Wendy and Ryan first met.

I was curious to see if she’d try to pull the same tricks on him this time.

And, predictably—

It seemed Wendy had decided George would take too long to seduce. She’d set her sights on Ryan instead.

That day, as soon as I walked into the house, I heard her sugary voice:

"Ryan, have some water."

Ryan, bless him, had a good eye for trouble. From the moment he saw Wendy, he clearly didn’t like her.

He glared at her attempt to fawn over him and snapped, "Get lost. I’m not your brother, and I don’t have a sister. Stay away from me."

Wendy’s face froze, but she quickly recovered. Her eyes turned red, and tears started streaming down her cheeks.

"Ryan, do you… not like me?" she whimpered.

She then turned her tearful gaze toward George, sniffling pitifully.

"Mr. Lewis, I’m sorry. It’s my fault. I must’ve done something wrong to make Ryan hate me…"

George, predictably, softened at her display. He immediately tried to smooth things over.

"Don’t worry about Ryan, Wendy. He’s always been spoiled by us—don’t take his words to heart."

I decided it was time to step in.

Wendy’s lingering gaze on George hadn’t even faded yet when I walked into the room, catching her off guard.

The moment she saw me, her expression stiffened. She quickly masked it with a look of vulnerability and said,

"Mrs. Lewis, it’s all my fault. I upset Ryan earlier. You can blame me, but please don’t be mad at him."

Ryan’s face darkened as he glanced at me, clearly wanting to explain himself but unsure how to start.

And honestly, I didn’t blame him.

In my previous life, even I had fallen for Wendy’s act. How could my son stand a chance?

Back then, I had scolded Ryan harshly for being rude to Wendy.

He’d always been an obedient child, taking my words to heart.

Because I constantly praised Wendy in front of him—telling him to treat her like a little sister and protect her—Ryan reluctantly put up with her.

When Wendy got into trouble at school, he even defended her, getting into fights on her behalf.

That led to a disciplinary record right before his college entrance exams.

Looking back, I must’ve been out of my mind to favor an ungrateful snake over my own son.

But this time, I wouldn’t make the same mistake.

Meeting Wendy’s gaze, I smiled faintly.

"Why would I blame Ryan?" I said coolly.

"Wendy, Ryan works very hard at school, and this is his chance to rest. Don’t bother him unless it’s important."

Then I added pointedly, "I only have one son, after all."

Wendy’s eyes widened in disbelief, and for a split second, I caught a flash of hatred in her gaze.

But she quickly suppressed it, replacing it with a pitiful expression as she whispered,

"Of course, Mrs. Lewis. I’m sorry. I’ll make sure not to disturb Ryan again."

Ryan let out a sigh of relief and walked over to me.

"Mom, I’ve missed your cooking. The food at school is terrible."

George patted Ryan’s shoulder, saying, "You’ve been working hard, son. I’ll take you shopping for new shoes tomorrow."

Wendy watched our warm family interaction, biting her lip so hard it turned white.

I glanced at her out of the corner of my eye.

Maybe the problem wasn’t that no one had taught her properly.

Maybe she’d been rotten to the core all along.