Being Dumped by My EX, I Marriied His Older Brother-Chapter 20: You Want Me to Kneel? Only If You Die

Chapter 20: Chapter 20: You Want Me to Kneel? Only If You Die

The two words "break up" coming from Nina Thorne’s mouth sounded more preposterous than a doomsday prophecy.

After a moment of stunned silence, Cole Kane let out a cold, mocking laugh. "Nina Thorne, you’re getting better and better at this whole ’playing hard to get’ game, aren’t you?"

"You think saying you want to break up will make me believe you? That it will scare me?"

Nina laughed, exasperated.

’Right.’

Cole Kane never took anything she said seriously. He just assumed she was lying to get his attention.

"Believe it or not, I don’t care." Nina didn’t want to get tangled up with him any further and turned to leave.

’In a month, the Kane family’s parents will be back, and the truth will come out anyway.’

"Why are you running? What are you afraid of now?"

Cole Kane grabbed Nina’s wrist, his furious expression showing not a shred of tenderness. "I don’t care what scheme you’re trying to pull. You’re coming with me to the hospital to apologize to Serena today."

The grip hurt. Nina’s fine brows furrowed deeply as she struggled. "Cole Kane, let go! What do you think you’re doing?!"

But Cole was determined to take her. Ignoring her pained expression, he dragged her toward the parking space and shoved her into the car.

"Cole Kane, are you insane?!"

"What the hell do you want?"

Nina’s wrist throbbed with pain, and her eyes grew so cold she looked like she wanted to kill him.

"To apologize." Cole ordered the assistant in the driver’s seat, "Drive. To the hospital."

...

Nina reached for the door on the other side, but before her hand could even touch the handle, Cole yanked her back forcefully.

He was already strong, and now that he’d lost control, he had no sense of restraint. Nina slammed into the leather seatback, her forehead hitting the seatbelt buckle. The pain was so sharp it almost brought tears to her eyes.

Nina cried out, doubling over in pain.

A flicker of panic crossed Cole’s eyes, but then he remembered how manipulative she’d always been, and his face hardened again.

"Stop putting on an act. You’d really do anything to get out of apologizing to Serena, wouldn’t you?"

Nina sniffled, trying to hold back the pain.

Even though she had already given up on Cole, his heartless words still found their way into her ears, piercing her heart with pinpoint accuracy.

’It hurt. It hurt so much, and her heart ached with sorrow.’

They had been together for five years, and for all five of those years, Cole had always assumed the worst of her.

Looking back on everything, she honestly didn’t know how she’d managed to endure it for a full five years.

Her phone started to ring.

It was a call from Justin Kane. The contact name read: My Personal Icebox.

Nina glanced down and was about to answer when Cole snatched the phone from her hand.

He glanced at the contact name, then looked at Nina suspiciously. "What’s ’My Personal Icebox’?"

Nina had come up with that name for Justin’s contact info when she remembered something that had happened between them five years ago.

Back then, Nina had just made her relationship with Cole official.

When Justin found out, he had questioned her with a stern face, "This is a serious matter. Have you thought it through?"

Nina had been incredibly resolute at the time. "Justin, I have. I really like Cole."

After she said that, her eyes lit up when she saw the tiramisu in his hand. "Justin, is that for me?"

Justin casually tossed the cake into the trash can. "No."

Nina was furious.

Hurt and angry, she shouted at his retreating back, her voice thick with tears, "Why are you always so mean to me? You’re colder than a refrigerator!"

Just as he was about to leave, Justin suddenly stopped. With his back still to her, he tossed a single sentence over his shoulder before walking away. "You’re only just realizing that now?"

Her thoughts snapped back to the present as Cole’s impatient voice broke in. "Nina, I asked you a question. Are you deaf?"

Nina tried to grab her phone back. "It’s none of your business."

Since she wouldn’t talk, Cole gritted his teeth and hung up the call. When she tried to snatch the phone, he held it high out of her reach and simply turned it off.

"Cole Kane, what gives you the right to take my phone?" Nina glared at him angrily.

Seeing her like this, Cole seethed with anger, a look of disdain crossing his face. "’My Personal Icebox’? I think you’ve lost your mind! You spend all day with your head in the clouds, never doing anything productive. Your so-called career as a screenwriter is a joke." 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Nina’s heart felt as if it had been grabbed and crushed in someone’s hand. The pain made her tremble.

She lost her mother at ten, and when she was eighteen, her father passed away too.

That year, Cole had clearly promised her father he would treat her well and cherish her.

But only four years had passed... no, that wasn’t right.

Not long after her father was gone, Cole had changed. He grew disdainful of her, scoffing at everything she did.

No matter what she did, he would question her motives, assuming the worst.

She had told Cole more than once that she loved being a screenwriter because she wanted to be like the characters she wrote—to have a complete family.

Every protagonist she created had living parents and grew up surrounded by love. It was her way of channeling her longing for her own parents, a vision of what her heart desired.

But Cole had insulted her profession time and time again, trampling on that small, precious piece of her heart.

Thinking of this, a heavy weight settled in Nina’s chest. Her eyes, red and cold as she looked at Cole, were like those of someone staring at an enemy.

"Cole Kane, you truly disgust me." Nina’s gaze was bleak, filled with the utmost disappointment.

Cole’s heart lurched. Her expression made him panic, as if he were about to lose her.

Fear gripped him. He opened his mouth, "Nina, I..."

The car suddenly stopped. The assistant said, "Mr. Kane, we’re here."

Cole’s thoughts turned to Serena Kane in the hospital room, and his earlier unease vanished instantly. "Let’s go. Get upstairs and apologize properly to Serena."

A cold laugh escaped Nina’s lips, but she said nothing.

「Meanwhile, at the Kane Group headquarters, in the CEO’s office.」

After his call to Nina Thorne was hung up, Justin Kane tried calling two more times, only to be notified that her phone was off.

A bad feeling washed over him, and he immediately had his assistant look into it.

「A few minutes later.」

The assistant reported back with the findings: Nina had been taken to the hospital by Cole from downstairs at the company.

A chill rose in Justin’s eyes. He shot up from his seat and headed out. "To the hospital."

...

「The hospital. A private room.」

Nina was dragged inside and forced to stand before the hospital bed, where she looked at Serena Kane’s pale face.

Serena was propped up against the pillows, a gauze patch on her forehead, looking impossibly fragile.

"Second Brother, why did you bring her here?" Serena’s frail act made it seem like she was terrified of Nina.

"I told you I’d bring her to apologize."

Cole looked at Nina, his tone commanding. "Serena almost had her face scarred and was hospitalized with a concussion for days because of you. You’re going to apologize to her obediently today."

"You skipped out on getting our marriage license on my birthday and played a good hand of ’hard to get,’ but I’m not falling for it. If you get on your knees and apologize nicely, I might even make it up to you with a birthday gift."

’Kneel and apologize?’

’Does he really think I’m still the same Nina from the past, the one who would grovel in the dust just to please him?’

"Second Brother," Serena said delicately, "please don’t make things difficult for Nina Thorne. It’s only right that she hates me. Don’t ruin your relationship with her on my account."

’Serena’s usual trick.’

It looked like she was speaking up for Nina, but in reality, she was just adding fuel to the fire.

Nina had fallen for her act several times and had even been framed by her on a few occasions, which was why Cole eventually came to believe Nina was manipulative.

"Stop calling me ’sister.’ You’re three months older than me," Nina said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Her attitude enraged Cole. He commanded furiously, "Nina, don’t take it too far.

Serena is being generous by saying you don’t have to apologize, but that doesn’t mean you’re actually off the hook. Get on your knees and apologize to her, now!"

"If someone has to kneel and apologize, then you do it. You want me to kneel? Only when you’re dead." Nina spat out the cold words and turned to leave.

"Get back here!" Cole roared.

Nina ignored him and kept walking toward the door.

A flash of triumph crossed Serena’s eyes, but she continued her pretense. "Second Brother, I really don’t need an apology from Nina Thorne. Please stop pressuring her. If this goes on, she’ll only hate me more..."

Cole couldn’t believe that Nina, who had always been so obedient, would ignore him so blatantly.

He felt a sharp sting of humiliation. In a fit of rage, he lunged after her, grabbed the back of her neck, and dragged her back to the bedside. Then, he kicked the back of her knees hard, forcing her to kneel.

"Apologize! Now! If you don’t apologize today, don’t even think about leaving this room!"