Being Dumped by My EX, I Marriied His Older Brother-Chapter 42: Their Unusual Relationship

The punch was so powerful that Cole Kane, caught completely off guard, was sent sprawling to the floor. Serena Kane cried out in alarm.

"Justin, why would you hit Cole out of nowhere?"

Serena Kane was terrified. She rushed to help Cole up. "Cole, are you okay?"

"I’m fine."

The corner of Cole’s mouth was split and bleeding. He let Serena help him to his feet, wiped his lip with the back of his hand, and stared at Justin Kane, both angry and confused.

"Justin, what did I do wrong?"

"What do you think?"

Justin Kane rubbed his wrist and ground his back teeth. His gaze was glacial as it swept over Cole, his entire being radiating fury.

Cole was completely baffled.

’Could it be because I’ve invested in too many projects lately, and he found out and is unhappy?’

’But they’re all profitable.’

He grew even more confused. "Justin, if I did something wrong, just tell me. There’s no need to get physical."

With a dark expression, Justin Kane strode forward and suddenly kicked Cole hard in the side.

This time, Cole was sent flying, his back slamming into the edge of a vanity. He grunted in pain.

The bottles and jars on the vanity toppled over with a CLATTER, some falling to the floor.

Serena Kane was too shocked to speak.

Justin Kane’s eyes were sinister as he stared at Cole. "Figured out the reason yet?"

Cole gripped the vanity to steady himself. The pain made his face flush, and veins bulged on his forehead and the back of his hands.

His voice was hoarse when he spoke. "Justin, what on earth did I do wrong? Why don’t you just tell me directly?"

"Still don’t know?"

Justin Kane ground his teeth again and closed in on Cole, his aura overwhelmingly menacing. "Think again."

Cole was terrified. He was afraid—he had always been afraid of Justin Kane.

Even though they were less than four years apart, Justin had been mature and worldly since childhood. At just eighteen, he was already capable of managing the corporation.

He had even increased the corporation’s annual profits by twenty percent. He was Cole’s role model, but also the shadow that loomed over his entire life.

"Justin, the projects the company signed, I’ve run the numbers. They’ll all be profitable..." Cole stood up and tried to explain, assuming Justin’s rage was related to business.

"Cole..."

Serena Kane suddenly cut him off, stepping in front of him to face Justin Kane directly.

She said to Cole, "Justin didn’t hit you because of company business. He did it because of Nina Thorne."

"Justin, am I right?"

For the last sentence, she looked back at Justin Kane, but she was already almost certain.

Otherwise, there was no other explanation for why Justin would suddenly attack Cole.

Cole looked at Justin in shock. "Justin, is it like Serena said?"

"That’s right." Justin Kane’s sharp gaze fixed on Serena Kane. His tone was hard to read as he said, "You’re quite something."

A chill went through Serena’s heart. Her eyes darted away, not daring to meet his.

It was as if his eyes could pierce through to her soul and see her dark side. She instantly felt a sense of unease.

Justin Kane had always been distant and cold toward her. If he grew to detest her, her position in the Kane family would become precarious.

Besides, there was still that incident from three years ago...

Cole asked, bewildered, "Justin, you’re hitting me just because of Nina Thorne? We’re blood brothers!"

"You’ve hurt her time and time again. Don’t you deserve to be beaten?" Justin Kane’s eyes narrowed, his domineering presence making him seem like he was looking down on Cole. "You should be glad you’re my brother."

Those words were laced with a biting, murderous intent, and they sent a tremor through Cole’s heart.

He quickly explained, "No, Justin, I never meant to hurt her. What happened this afternoon was an accident. I didn’t hit her on purpose."

Serena Kane chimed in anxiously, "That’s right, Justin. You and Cole are brothers. How could you hit him over something involving Nina Thorne?"

"Anyone who didn’t know better would think there was something going on between you and Nina Thorne."

"Shut up."

Justin’s sharp gaze swept over her, his eyes brimming with murderous intent. "You should be glad I don’t hit women."

Serena Kane trembled and immediately fell silent, terrified.

Cole stood up straight, but out of fear of Justin, he adopted a subservient tone. "Justin, I really didn’t mean to hit Nina. Macy Lynch attacked me, and when I fought back, I accidentally hurt Nina."

"Besides, if there’s a problem, you can just talk to me. There’s no need for violence."

Cole rubbed his aching side, resentment building inside him.

At the same time, he wondered why Justin was so protective of Nina, time and again. It was too abnormal.

Justin Kane stared at him with a grim expression and said sharply, "You keep hurting Nina Thorne. For that, even if the Thorne Family doesn’t hold you accountable, I will."

Cole was so intimidated by his fierce gaze that he didn’t dare to breathe. He was utterly miserable. "Justin, I really didn’t mean it."

"If you dare hurt her again, get out of the Kane Family." Justin’s voice was cold and heavy, his presence exuding a ruthless aura.

A chill ran down Cole’s spine. The innate fear he had for his brother erupted to its peak at that moment, and he nodded repeatedly.

"I won’t, Justin. I’ll apologize to her properly."

"That’s right, Justin. All Cole needs to do is apologize to Nina Thorne. They’re boyfriend and girlfriend, after all. Nina loves him so much, she’ll definitely forgive him."

Serena Kane was shocked by Justin’s words and decided to test the waters. "Justin, since you’ve come back to the country, you seem overly concerned about matters involving Nina Thorne."

’Boyfriend and girlfriend?’

Justin’s pupils contracted. His icy gaze swept toward Serena as he said with cold sarcasm, "Nice tricks. You’ve got him wrapped around your finger."

Serena’s expression faltered, and she fell silent.

Cole didn’t catch the underlying meaning. Full of resentment, he said, "Serena is right. Nina is my girlfriend. All I have to do is sweet-talk her a little. Why are you in such a rush on her behalf, Justin?"

Justin shot him a look as sharp as a cold blade. His usually profound demeanor was now replaced with fierce anger as he grabbed Cole by the collar. "And that gives you the right to hurt her?"

Cole found his brother’s expression absolutely terrifying. His mind went blank for a moment before he stammered, "No, I really won’t do it again, Justin..."

"I’ll definitely apologize properly later."

Justin stared at him, his cold, desolate eyes filled with fury, and warned, "Stay away from her." 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Without a second thought, Cole nodded again and again.

In his mind, he just assumed Justin was so angry because he didn’t want to damage the relationship between their two families.

Justin shoved him away and turned to leave, his expression frigid.

As soon as he was gone, Serena Kane looked at Cole’s red and swollen lip, her heart aching. "Justin was willing to hit you just because of Nina Thorne. Anyone who didn’t know better would think Nina was *his* girlfriend."

Cole lightly touched the corner of his mouth and hissed in pain, not paying much attention to her words. "Justin is just afraid of damaging the relationship between our two families."

"That’s not it at all." Serena started to say something, then hesitated. "Don’t you think Justin cares too much about Nina? It’s completely different from before."

Cole thought about it and realized it was true. He suddenly grew suspicious. "Are you saying... that there’s something between Justin and Nina?"

Serena said, "Don’t you find it strange? Since Justin came back, he’s been exceptionally concerned about Nina. He’s protected her right in front of us several times, and this time he even hit you for her."

The more Cole thought about it, the more sense her words made. Those classmates who had been dealt with earlier... after investigating, he had learned it was related to the Kane Family and assumed their grandfather had acted to vent Nina’s anger.

Now, thinking about it carefully, Cole’s heart skipped a beat. He was startled. "Could it be... that Justin was the one who dealt with those male classmates?"

"Grandfather is at the old residence and hasn’t been involved in company matters for a long time. It must have been Justin. When he hit you just now, he showed no regard for your bond as brothers. Don’t you think something is very wrong between those two?" Serena continued, deliberately adding fuel to the fire.

Cole’s pupils instantly constricted. He felt both shocked and furious. "Justin’s attitude toward Nina has definitely changed. Could there really be an unusual relationship between them?"