Being Dumped by My EX, I Marriied His Older Brother-Chapter 120: Really Married?

"Justin, you’re so secretive. Why didn’t you tell me about the test drive today so I could come watch?"

April Graham, dressed in a white business suit, walked up to them with bright confidence, giving Justin Kane a smile that was both alluring and familiar.

She glanced in the direction of the test car crash.

Then she added with feigned regret, "But from the looks of it, your new system’s test drive failed today."

’This is the first time I’ve ever seen someone take gloating to such a sophisticated level,’ Nina Thorne thought. ’On the surface, she’s expressing regret, but she’s really mocking the system’s engineers as incompetent. And just like that, I’m part of the drama.’

"Who told you to come?"

Justin Kane’s tone was cold as he averted his gaze.

As if worried Nina Thorne would mind, he reached out and wrapped an arm around her waist.

The gesture was a clear message to April Graham of their intimacy.

Nina Thorne looked at him, stunned.

’Isn’t he afraid of making the woman he loves jealous?’

’Or is he deliberately using me to provoke her?’

"We’ve known each other for a while, and given our past..."

April Graham shot a hostile glare at Nina Thorne, then lifted her chin arrogantly. "As a senior engineer, I came here specifically to help you vet this, to keep you from being swindled."

The implication was that the new system was no good.

But Nina Thorne picked up on more than just that. ’April Graham is a research and development engineer, too.’

Justin Kane’s eyes darkened, his gaze turning sharp. "Are you calling me an idiot?"

April Graham’s expression changed instantly. "No, I’m just worried you’re being deceived."

"That Albert Locke may have a big name, but I heard the new system he’s licensing wasn’t actually developed by him."

"If a patent dispute arises in the future, it would have a huge impact on your corporation."

"I don’t need you to worry about it," Justin Kane said dismissively, his tone distant.

Nina Thorne was once again surprised.

’His attitude is a carbon copy of the male leads in short-form dramas.’

April Graham was furious and deeply embarrassed.

She had just offered all that seemingly heartfelt advice, only to be completely ignored.

Especially being shot down so bluntly in front of Nina Thorne, with no regard for her pride.

’After all, everyone in Sylport’s high society knew the Thorne Family’s daughter was a good-for-nothing.’

’Not only did she not inherit the massive, hundred-billion-dollar corporation,’

’but she didn’t even inherit the engineering talent of her father, Chad Thorne.’

’What was she doing now?’

’Oh, right. An insignificant screenwriter for short-form dramas.’

’How is that any different from being a good-for-nothing?’

"I was just trying to help you..." April Graham said, looking hurt.

Mr. Wagner and the engineers finished inspecting the test car and hurried back.

"Mr. Kane, it seems to be a problem with the system."

Mr. Wagner recognized April Graham and was a bit surprised. "Miss Graham, you came all this way. Why didn’t you have someone let me know? I would have arranged a proper reception for you."

In Vistara, the Graham Family held a status in the business world that commanded respect from everyone.

As the daughter of the Graham Family, a graduate from a prestigious university, and an award-winning senior engineer,

Mr. Wagner was naturally respectful, afraid of slighting her in any way.

"Let me see."

April Graham shot him an arrogant glance. "Did you just say it was a problem with the system?"

Mr. Wagner remembered the matter at hand. "That’s right. The system did indeed malfunction."

Justin Kane’s thick brows furrowed, his expression turning grim.

Nina Thorne was stunned to hear this.

’The new system is already mature. It’s impossible for it to have a problem.’

The engineer next to Mr. Wagner began to report on the inspection findings.

"Justin, did you hear that? The new system you trust so much isn’t reliable." April Graham snatched the maintenance logbook.

Before she could even look at it, Justin Kane snatched it back and shoved it into the engineer’s hands.

"This information is a corporate secret. You can’t afford the responsibility if it gets leaked."

Justin Kane ordered in a low voice, "Send the car for a full diagnostic. The new system can’t have a problem."

Nina Thorne was once again surprised by his words.

’He actually has this much faith in the technology?’

’Even though he has no idea that I’m the one who developed the system behind the scenes...’

’But to be defended with such trust... it feels like a technical validation of my work.’

’Anyone would be moved by that.’

The few people watching the scene didn’t dare to speak.

Everyone knew that Justin Kane and Miss Graham had a regrettable past together.

No one expected Mr. Kane to treat his old flame so harshly today.

"Let’s go."

Justin Kane gave Nina Thorne a gentle smile and led her away, his arm still around her.

"Justin!"

April Graham had never been so humiliated.

She chased after them, reaching out to grab Nina Thorne. "Both of you, stop right there!"

Justin Kane caught her movement out of the corner of his eye.

He tightened his arm around Nina Thorne, spinning his body to shield her to one side.

At the same time, his free hand shot out, grabbing April Graham’s wrist and blocking her.

The move was a single, fluid motion.

Nina Thorne was pressed against his broad chest, and she could feel the heat from his body even through their clothes.

’That move he just made to protect me... it was so cool.’

Justin Kane’s gaze rested on the top of her head, and he only relaxed after seeing she was unharmed.

He turned, his sharp gaze falling on April Graham as he flung her hand away. "Miss Graham, that’s enough."

Unwilling to back down, April Graham pointed at Nina Thorne. "This woman is your younger brother’s ex-girlfriend! How could you treat me like this for her sake?"

"She’s an ex-girlfriend."

Justin Kane corrected, his eyes cold. "So what?"

"You..."

April Graham gritted her teeth, as if her pride had been crushed. "Aren’t you afraid people will gossip if you’re this close?"

"You know what this is called?"

"What?"

As April Graham watched in confusion,

a mocking smile touched Justin Kane’s thin lips. "It’s called ’none of your business.’"

Nina Thorne was speechless.

’That was brutal.’

’Suddenly, I’m curious about what happened between them.’

April Graham’s face flushed with anger. Her hands clenched into tight fists, and her chest heaved violently.

As she watched them get into the car and drive away, undisguised hatred surfaced in her eyes.

’I don’t believe there’s anything between them!’

’Even that marriage certificate Justin Kane posted on his social media feed has to be fake.’

’He’s doing all this just to spite me!’

She immediately took out her phone and made a call. "What have you found on the things I asked you to investigate? Is Justin Kane really married or not?"

The person on the other end sounded troubled. "Miss Graham, we can’t find anything. All of Mr. Kane’s information is unsearchable. It’s clearly been encrypted."

April Graham’s voice turned harsh. "Useless! Keep digging. And get me everything you can on that Nina Thorne, too."

In the car, Nina Thorne didn’t mention a word to Justin Kane about what had happened at the test drive site.

After they returned to the hotel, Justin Kane narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Is Mrs. Kane being magnanimous, or do you just not care about me? You haven’t even asked about what just happened."

It wasn’t that Nina Thorne didn’t care.

She cared, but she didn’t want to ask.

Just as she had thought before, since it was his past, it wasn’t her place to pry into his private life.

Unless he chose to tell her himself.

Nina Thorne looked into Justin Kane’s eyes and smiled. "Well, Mr. Kane, do you want me to ask, or not?"

Justin Kane wrapped his arm around her waist to face her, a teasing look in his playful eyes. "I’ll leave it up to Mrs. Kane."

"If you want me to talk, I’ll talk."

Nina Thorne raised her arms and boldly wrapped them around his neck. "Alright then. Tell me, what’s the relationship between you two?"

Justin Kane’s thick brows furrowed slightly, as if he was thinking about how to answer.

Nina Thorne simplified the question. "Is she the woman you love? And were you deliberately holding me in front of her just to provoke her?"

A captivating smile flickered in Justin Kane’s deep eyes as he answered each question.

"First question: she is not the woman I love."

"Second: it was certainly not to provoke her."

Nina Thorne stared at him, watching for any change in his expression.

But it was futile.

Justin Kane’s expression remained unchanged; there wasn’t a hint of falsehood in it.

’A man like him probably wouldn’t deign to lie. Since he’s said multiple times that April Graham isn’t the one he loves, then it must be true.’

The knot of worry in Nina Thorne’s heart loosened. All the better.

She had nothing more to ask.

"Does Mrs. Kane think I’m using you?" Justin Kane’s face suddenly lowered, and he leaned in to study her.

Nina Thorne gave him a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. "The thought did cross my mind."

’It was pretty obvious, after all.’

She let go of Justin Kane and turned to sit on the sofa.

She casually grabbed a nearby throw pillow and hugged it to her chest.

’Thinking about it, I know nothing about Justin Kane’s past.’

’The child April Graham lost... was it his, too?’

’What happened between them back then?’

’I don’t know any of it.’

Justin Kane leaned his tall frame over, pinning her against the sofa. "Mrs. Kane, don’t forget, our public wedding banquet is coming up soon."

Of course Nina Thorne hadn’t forgotten. She asked in surprise, "We’re really going public with it?"

"What, are you having second thoughts? You don’t want people to know I’m your husband?" Justin Kane’s hand gave her waist a firm pinch.

His heat was scorching and obvious, even through her clothes.

Nina Thorne felt a mix of tingling and pain, her expression shifting slightly. "I wasn’t thinking that."

"Good enough."

Justin Kane nibbled on her earlobe and murmured in a husky voice, "The banquet is in less than half a month. If Mrs. Kane doesn’t like the gown I sent, you can still pick another."

His warm breath seared her neck, sending shivers through her body.

"I like it a lot. There’s no need to choose another," Nina Thorne said, her voice trembling slightly. She couldn’t help but feel a little excited for their public banquet.

Seeing the blush on her cheeks, Justin Kane didn’t have the heart to tease her further and adopted a more serious tone. "What do you think was the problem with the test car today?"

Nina Thorne wasn’t sure why he had suddenly asked that.

She patted his chest, and he took the hint and sat up.

Nina Thorne sat up properly, lowering her eyes to straighten her clothes. "I don’t know anything about that kind of thing. Asking me is probably useless."

"Let’s just discuss it."

A faint smile played on Justin Kane’s lips. "From an outsider’s perspective, what are your thoughts on today’s test drive?"

Nina Thorne recalled the scene from earlier.

’The moment the test car hit the wall, its wheels were still spinning wildly. It definitely looked like a malfunction. But I developed the system myself. I know exactly how mature it is. Even if it were to malfunction, it would give the driver an advance warning to stop, slow the vehicle’s speed, and then bring it to a complete halt within a set time frame.’

"From the looks of it, the system did have a problem. However, while the new energy vehicles on the market still have their flaws, the technology is already quite mature."

Nina Thorne said slowly, "The system must have been tampered with. Someone sabotaged it."

Justin Kane’s expression grew solemn.

The next second, his phone rang. It was Mr. Wagner. "Mr. Kane, the diagnostics confirmed it was a system problem, but..."

"But what?"

"The system data was secretly tampered with, which is what caused the chaos..."

Hearing this, Justin Kane looked up at Nina Thorne. His pupils constricted, and a flash of surprise rippled through his dark, bottomless eyes.