Being Dumped by My EX, I Marriied His Older Brother-Chapter 122: One Night

Justin Kane’s voice wasn’t loud, but it carried, reaching the ears of everyone nearby.

Nina Thorne was too stunned to speak.

Her gaze froze on his face. The man’s chiseled, handsome features seemed to be bathed in a soft glow.

It lit up her entire heart.

’This was why she loved him, wasn’t it?’

No matter the occasion or the company, he always protected her.

He made her feel, time and time again, the security of being cherished and protected.

Master Graham’s expression visibly darkened. "His wife?"

"His wife! Mr. Kane is actually married?"

"Wait, that’s not right. I thought I heard Nina Thorne was once engaged to Cole Kane."

"You’re not mistaken. That’s exactly what happened."

"Justin Kane never struck me as the type to do something so outrageous, getting involved with his own brother’s ex-fiancée."

A buzz of discussion rippled through the crowd.

Listening to the murmurs, Nina Thorne realized just how absurd her fervent pursuit of Cole Kane must have seemed.

It had unwittingly become an obstacle to her and Justin being together now.

"Grandpa, Justin is just joking."

April Graham’s face was deathly pale. Forcing a smile, she walked to Justin Kane’s side. "Justin, stop fooling around. Everyone is watching."

Justin Kane’s deep, dark eyes swept over her coolly. "It’s a fact."

The crowd erupted.

The corners of April Graham’s mouth twitched violently. She lowered her voice. "Today is my grandfather’s eightieth birthday. Don’t you dare humiliate me."

Justin Kane’s voice was cold. "That’s your problem."

"I’m begging you."

April Graham’s panicked, tear-filled eyes gazed at him, pleading.

Though her voice was quiet, Nina Thorne was standing right there and heard every word. She resisted the urge to look at Justin Kane.

Then, his deep voice sounded softly. "Why must you do this?"

"I haven’t asked you for much. Let this be one of those times." April Graham’s hands, hanging by her sides, were clenched together nervously.

Justin Kane’s brow relaxed slightly. "Just this once."

As if after careful consideration, he had agreed.

SNAP. It was as if a string in Nina Thorne’s heart had snapped.

A bitter, sour feeling washed over her.

’Why did he agree to April Graham’s request?’

’Was she that important to him?’

’Or had he lied to her again? Was April Graham actually the one he loved...?’

Her racing thoughts made her scalp tingle. Justin Kane’s low voice reached her ear. "Nina Thorne, I’ll explain when we get back."

Nina Thorne looked up at him, a faint, listless smile touching her lips. "It’s fine."

Seeing her indifferent expression, Justin Kane’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

"Mr. Kane was just joking with everyone."

April Graham’s clear voice rose, addressing the crowd. "The banquet is about to begin. I hope this hasn’t spoiled the mood for any of you."

The guests let out a collective sigh.

"I knew it couldn’t be true. How could a man like Mr. Kane be so reckless as to get together with his own brother’s ex-fiancée?"

"Everyone knows Miss Graham is madly in love with Mr. Kane. They’re a perfect match in every way."

"That’s not entirely true. The Thorne and Kane families already had a marriage alliance, so it’s perfectly normal for them to be joined by marriage."

"I heard that even though Second Young Master Kane and Nina Thorne were engaged, their relationship was never consummated. Since there were no feelings involved, it’s reasonable for her to break the engagement and choose Mr. Kane instead."

"Exactly. I also heard that Second Young Master Kane has something going on with that adopted sister of his..."

"Either way, it’s impossible! Mr. Kane would never choose an incompetent socialite over the perfectly good Miss Graham."

"Everyone knows Miss Graham is an engineer who graduated from a prestigious university abroad, right?"

"..."

The crowd looked at Nina Thorne with strange expressions, as if she were a laughingstock.

Justin Kane’s expression turned frigid, his sharp gaze sweeping over the crowd. "Enjoy gossiping so much? Perhaps you should all consider a career change."

The words were laced with threat.

The crowd instantly fell silent, clearly wary of him.

’Hmph.’ Nina Thorne scoffed inwardly, suppressing the bitter feeling without dwelling on it.

It was true that Justin Kane had just defended her.

She could tell that he cared for her.

But she couldn’t help but wonder why, after defending her, he had suddenly sided with April Graham.

April Graham returned to Master Graham’s side, her smile triumphant. "Grandpa, you know my relationship with Justin. How could he possibly run off and marry someone else?"

"Justin is just helping Master Thorne look after Miss Thorne. There’s nothing else between them."

Master Graham’s expression softened. "The Thorne and Kane families have always had a close partnership. It’s certainly plausible that Justin is helping look after the Thorne family’s girl."

"My Justin has always been kind to people."

April Graham smiled, satisfied. She shot a triumphant glance at Nina Thorne before turning to the crowd to put an end to the commotion.

"Tonight is my grandfather’s birthday banquet. Please eat, drink, and enjoy yourselves. And please forgive us if our hospitality is lacking in any way."

April Graham’s words were poised and gracious, winning over the crowd once more.

A lazy, chilling voice suddenly cut in. "Mr. Kane, brought the little neighborhood girl out to play?"

As the voice faded, a tall, powerfully built figure with a deadly aura strode toward them.

"It’s President Graham."

Someone in the crowd called out.

Nina Thorne looked over and saw it was indeed him.

Jason Graham approached, his sharp eyes flicking past Justin Kane to land on her. The corner of his mouth curved into a dark sneer. "Miss Thorne, you should be more careful about which ’older brothers’ you go out to play with."

"Especially when he’s your ex-fiancé’s older brother."

The words were incredibly sharp.

They were sharp enough to make Nina Thorne feel not just awkward, but utterly humiliated.

Snickers erupted from the surrounding crowd.

Dozens of gazes, all filled with mockery, landed on Nina Thorne.

Jason Graham’s words had completely delegitimized her relationship with Justin Kane in the public eye.

Nina Thorne’s face went white, and she could barely stay on her feet.

’How humiliating.’

"Just what I’d expect from the Grahams of Veridia, always clinging to such feudal, pedantic notions."

The light in Justin Kane’s eyes darkened as he spoke, his low voice forceful. "Who I, Justin Kane, choose to love and be with is not for any of you to judge."

His palpable anger radiated, and the air grew so still you could hear a pin drop.

Master Graham narrowed his eyes.

April Graham’s heart skipped a beat. "Brother, don’t speak so carelessly," she said quickly.

Jason Graham let out a thin, derisive laugh. "Mr. Kane’s temper is certainly growing by the day."

He raised a lazy eyebrow at Nina Thorne. "Perhaps my words were a bit harsh. Miss Thorne, please don’t hold it against me."

Nina Thorne looked at him coolly, a faint smile on her lips as she refused to back down. "It’s quite all right. I couldn’t possibly take offense, knowing the Graham Family’s typical lack of class."

The atmosphere around Master Graham instantly grew heavy.

April Graham’s brow furrowed. "Nina Thorne, what are you insinuating?"

Nina Thorne was done being polite. There was no point in holding back. "You understood me perfectly well," she said sharply. "Why ask? Are you looking to humiliate yourself?"

"You—"

April Graham raised her hand, pointing an accusing finger at her.

Justin Kane took a step forward, his sharp, meaningful gaze fixed on her. "Are you looking to humiliate yourself?"

April Graham’s heart trembled, and her expression turned grim as she lowered her hand.

But she was furious.

’Even though he agreed to save my face, he’s still protecting Nina Thorne.’

’By what right?’

’Because of what happened back then, I almost died, and all I got from him was a shred of pity.’

’How did Nina Thorne get his protection so easily?’

Jason Graham shot her a cold glance. "I told you. Why bother?"

He was speaking to April Graham.

April Graham’s chest heaved with anger. "Stay out of it," she snapped arrogantly.

Master Graham cleared his throat loudly, his face turning stern. "It looks like you all came today specifically to ruin the Graham family’s reputation and to deliberately vex me to death."

Nina Thorne could clearly see the apprehension in the Graham siblings’ expressions. She really didn’t want to deal with Master Graham, whose intimidating presence made her uncomfortable.

She gave a slight nod, looking for an excuse to leave.

’I never should have come to this viper’s nest tonight.’

Justin Kane noticed her mood had soured. He came up behind her and took her hand. "Where are you going?"

Nina Thorne glanced back at him, her expression flat. "The restroom."

Her voice was devoid of warmth, as was her gaze.

Although she was often this distant, her reaction tonight made Justin Kane feel a particular pang of guilt.

"I’m sorry," Justin Kane said, his expression tense—a rare sight. "It’s a debt I owe her."

Nina Thorne’s lips twitched into a faint, humorless smile. "What kind of debt?"

She wanted to hear it for herself—what reason was so compelling that it made him first announce their relationship, then suddenly clam up.

It wasn’t the others’ attitudes that made her feel humiliated.

It was his sudden change of heart that hurt her.

"Back then, I..."

"Justin."

April Graham strode over, her expression exquisitely confident. "Can you come over for a moment? I need to talk to you."

Nina Thorne’s eyes flickered toward her.

As their eyes met, the smugness and provocation in April Graham’s gaze were unmistakable.

She seemed so sure of herself.

’She’s so sure Justin Kane will go with her.’

"Justin, about that incident... I need to have a serious talk with you. I don’t think you’ll refuse, will you?"

Justin Kane’s expression was grim, his deep, dark eyes unreadable.

Nina Thorne felt a surge of fear.

She had been abandoned more times than she could count over the years.

She didn’t want to be the one left behind again. "Go on," she said quietly. "I’m going to the restroom."

She turned to leave.

But Justin Kane grabbed her slender arm, holding fast. "I’m not going anywhere. I’ll wait for you here."

With that, he turned his head and said to April Graham in a cold voice, "Whatever it is can wait. Miss Graham, that’s enough."

His words were a clear warning, his tone icy.

Ultimately, April Graham didn’t dare to press her luck; she had already pushed things too far tonight.

She gritted her teeth and stalked away in a fury.

A flicker of warmth touched Nina Thorne’s chilled heart.

But she didn’t dare to feel happy.

’The happiness might vanish in a matter of seconds.’

And she didn’t want to let anyone else control her emotions again.

"Okay, I’m going to the restroom."

"I’ll wait for you here."

Nina Thorne gave a slight nod, pulled her hand free, and walked away.

Justin Kane watched her frail figure retreat, his dark pupils constricting slightly.

The Graham estate was enormous and packed with people.

Nina Thorne had said she was going to the restroom, but really, she just needed to breathe.

When she came out of the restroom, she returned to where she’d left Justin Kane.

To her complete lack of surprise, he was gone.

The main hall was even more crowded than before.

Nina Thorne took out her phone to call him, but the signal was weak, likely due to the crowd, and the call wouldn’t go through.

She spotted an empty terrace and headed toward it.

But then, a call from Macy Lynch came through, surprising her. "How do you have time to call me? Aren’t you busy?"

"I’ll always make time for you, no matter how busy I am."

Macy Lynch’s voice was urgent. "Honey, what I’m about to tell you might be a little shocking, but you need to brace yourself."

A bad feeling crept over Nina Thorne. "Okay," she said softly. "Go on."

"I know a famous model who’s good friends with April Graham from Vistara. And you’ll never guess what she told me. She said that years ago, April Graham had a one-night stand with Justin Kane... and got pregnant..."

BUZZ. It felt like something had just exploded inside Nina Thorne’s head.

She couldn’t hear a word of what Macy Lynch was saying anymore.

Just then, from beyond the terrace, came April Graham’s insistent voice. "I don’t care how great other men are, I don’t want them! Justin Kane, I only want you!"

"I love you! Have you forgotten? You were the father of my child!"

Nina Thorne froze. Her grip on her phone loosened, and it crashed to the floor.

It felt as if her heart had shattered, and an intense, spreading pain consumed her entire body.