Being Dumped by My EX, I Marriied His Older Brother-Chapter 36: Are You Trying to Force Her to Death?
Nina Thorne looked completely unfazed, her voice cold and resolute.
Todd Grant and Director Young looked on like they were watching a show, their eyes darting back and forth between Cole Kane and Serena Kane.
Cole Kane’s expression was grim. He felt as if Nina Thorne had become a completely different person.
In the past, she would have never spoken to him this way, much less held a grudge for so long.
’Could she be serious this time?’
Serena Kane looked mortified, on the verge of tears. "Nina Thorne, my brother is just being nice to me because I’m his little sister. How could you say something so horrible?"
"Cole has always wanted to marry you. You’re the one who’s always throwing tantrums. He’s giving you a chance now, Nina Thorne, so stop being so stubborn."
Serena Kane feigned a placating tone, her voice so sickeningly sweet it grated on Nina Thorne’s nerves.
"Shut up. Stop with the fake sincerity. You know better than anyone why Cole Kane and I broke up."
Nina Thorne didn’t regret breaking up with Cole Kane in the slightest. What she couldn’t stand was Serena Kane’s two-faced act.
With tears welling in her eyes, Serena Kane looked aggrieved. "Nina Thorne, why are you being so harsh with me? I was only trying to help. If you don’t like it, I’ll just stop talking."
Nina Thorne rolled her eyes at her. "I thought I made that obvious enough."
Serena Kane lowered her head, putting on the air of a bullied victim.
"Nina Thorne, don’t take it too far," Cole Kane said angrily. "No matter what, Serena is my sister. You don’t have to like her, but you can’t disrespect her like this."
"Besides, to stop you from fighting with me and breaking up, she went abroad for three whole years just to give you peace of mind."
"And you’re still so unforgiving. What are you trying to do, drive her to despair?"
Nina Thorne didn’t want to waste any more time. She pressed on, "So this is what you call ’being good’ to me? Getting Todd Grant and Director Young to give my script to Serena Kane? Stealing the fruits of my labor?"
Cole Kane said with righteous indignation, "What’s so great about being a screenwriter anyway? Besides, Serena is interested in this field. You’re the reason she was hospitalized for days last time. Giving her your script now can be considered your apology."
’Unbelievable logic.’
Nina Thorne honestly wanted to pry his head open and see what it was filled with—water, or just fluff.
But she had achieved her goal.
Unwilling to waste any more time, Nina Thorne said, "Fine. As long as you’ve admitted it."
She turned to leave.
Suddenly, a hand gripped her wrist. Cole Kane held her fast, saying impatiently, "Stop making a scene. I’ve already swallowed my pride to placate you. Don’t blow this out of proportion and drag it out." 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦
"I’ll do what I just promised. As soon as my parents get back, we’ll go get our marriage license."
’I’ve met narcissists before, but never one on this level.’
Nina Thorne violently shook off his hand, her eyes cold and filled with disgust. "Listen here," she said with finality. "I, Nina Thorne, will never get a marriage license with you!"
"The moment your parents get back, the first thing I’m going to do is tell them I’m calling off the engagement. Cole Kane, you dote on Serena Kane so much, don’t you?"
"This is perfect. I’ll help you two get together."
"I’ll even beg your parents to let you turn your brother-sister relationship into a marriage. That way, you two can be together without any shame or restraint."
With that, Nina Thorne decisively walked away.
Watching her resolute figure walk away, Cole Kane felt a sudden, inexplicable dread rise in his heart. It felt as if he were truly about to lose her.
He started to chase after her, but Serena Kane quickly grabbed his hand. In a weak, aggrieved voice, she said, "Cole, Nina Thorne has never liked me, and now she’s so furious... Why don’t I give the script back to her?"
"You can try to calm her down... and from now on, just don’t worry about me. I really don’t want to be the reason you and Nina Thorne break up."
Cole Kane’s impulse to chase after Nina instantly vanished. He comforted Serena softly, "Nina Thorne only gets more and more outrageous because she knows you’ll always give in to her."
"She wants to call off the engagement? Fine. I’d like to see if she actually dares to go through with it when my parents get back."
He knew better than anyone just how much Nina Thorne loved him.
Five years!
To please him, Nina Thorne, a wealthy young woman who didn’t know the first thing about cooking, had learned to make him nourishing broths and hangover-soothing soups.
She already had to get up early for her own classes and wasn’t getting enough sleep, but she would still wake up an hour earlier than usual just to make sure he was up for his meetings.
Nina Thorne was in love with him down to her very bones. Talk of calling off the engagement was just a tantrum, an empty threat meant to scare him.
When the time actually came to do it, she’d get cold feet and come crying and begging for his forgiveness.
...
Back in the conference room, Nina Thorne had made a recording.
Now she had irrefutable proof.
She sent the recording to her lawyer, then got ready to leave the office.
While waiting for the elevator, she ran into Ryan Reeves, the President of OmniCorp. The moment he saw her, his attitude became deferential and eager to please, and he invited her to his office for a chat.
"Miss Thorne, I’ve been briefed on the situation with the script. I assure you, it will be handled properly. I’ll make sure you get a satisfactory outcome," Mr. Reeves said, a broad smile plastered on his face. He was a rather tall and handsome man.
But Nina Thorne found it strange. This was the first time they had ever met. How did Ryan Reeves know who she was?
Furthermore, an issue like this should be trivial to him, so why would he handle it personally?
Nina Thorne couldn’t make sense of it. Assuming he was just trying to placate her, she smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Mr. Reeves. I’ll leave it in your hands, then."
Mr. Reeves’s smile was almost fawning. "Oh, it’s no trouble at all. I just hope you won’t let this incident bother you, Miss Thorne. Rest assured, I will discipline my subordinates."
"Why don’t you take some time off? Come back to work whenever you’re feeling better, how does that sound?"
’This is strange. Very strange.’
Nina Thorne was in a daze as she left the president’s office. It wasn’t until she was in her car that realization began to dawn.
’It seemed... Ryan Reeves said he would deal with *them*?’
’Logically, since Cole Kane was the one deliberately targeting her, Ryan Reeves should have just turned a blind eye even if he knew.’
’But now he was helping her. Could it be... that Justin Kane had intervened?’
At that thought, Nina Thorne called Justin Kane. "Where are you?"
He picked up after two rings, his voice magnetic and gentle. "I just got off work. Heading home now."
"Okay. We’ll talk when we get home," Nina Thorne said, quickly hanging up.
Justin Kane slowly lowered his phone, a faint smile playing on his lips.
Nina Thorne returned to the villa and waited for him in the living room.
Less than ten minutes later, Justin Kane walked through the front door. Nina Thorne looked up, her gaze meeting his.
He had a tall, commanding presence, and his deep-set eyes held a noble air that made it difficult to look away.
As he walked toward her, Nina Thorne shot to her feet. "You’re back."
Justin Kane hummed in acknowledgment, one eyebrow slightly raised. "You had something you wanted to talk to me about?"
Nina Thorne nodded and got straight to the point. "Did you know about the issue with my script?"
"Is that all?" A small smile touched Justin Kane’s lips. "Yes, I knew."
Seeing that he wasn’t going to elaborate, Nina Thorne decided to ask him directly, "So you went to Ryan Reeves and had him handle it?"
"Correct," Justin Kane’s expression was unreadable. He then added, "I did."
He was a man of few words, his gaze glued to Nina Thorne’s face. He only answered when she asked.
’This kind of conversation is excruciating.’
’Then again,’ she thought, ’Justin Kane has always been a reserved person. The fact that he’s paying any attention to my problems after our marriage is already a good sign.’
Besides, the fact that he was willing to step in meant he knew Cole Kane was involved.
They were brothers, after all. For Justin Kane to help her was a direct slap in the face to Cole Kane.
Nina Thorne couldn’t help but feel a sense of relief that she hadn’t been ignored and abandoned once again.
