Being Dumped by My EX, I Marriied His Older Brother-Chapter 102: Showdown

Nina Thorne’s mind was completely focused on Justin Kane. Halfway across the room, she accidentally bumped into a dark figure.

The figure was tall and well-built, casting a shadow over Nina Thorne.

"I’m sorry."

Nina Thorne quickly bowed her head in apology without even looking at him, her gaze instinctively darting in Justin Kane’s direction.

But he was gone.

Nina Thorne froze, her eyes searching everywhere.

There was no sign of him in the main hall.

Remembering the strikingly dressed, charismatic woman from before, Nina Thorne grew restless and wanted to go find him.

Suddenly, her wrist was grabbed. A deep voice, tinged with a hint of coldness, said, "Is that your idea of a sincere apology?"

Nina Thorne’s hand was caught. She froze as she turned to look.

The man had rugged features and sharp brows, exuding an aura that warned he was not to be trifled with.

’It’s him.’

Jason Graham, the man in charge of the Graham Group.

Nina Thorne had seen him once at a banquet. She never expected him to be at a small celebration party like this.

Nina Thorne quickly pulled her hand back and offered a faint smile. "My apologies, President Graham. I was indeed too careless just now. Please allow me to offer my sincerest apologies."

She gave an apologetic bow, her sincerity on full display.

"Since you want to apologize, how do you plan to do it?"

Nina Thorne was about to leave, but the man had no intention of letting her go. "Miss Thorne wouldn’t be so perfunctory, would she?"

’?’

Only then did Nina Thorne properly raise her eyes to look at him.

The man’s powerful aura washed over her, his dark eyes sharp enough to pierce through a person’s soul.

He was tall and well-built, with a height comparable to Justin Kane’s, but he was much more muscular.

Nina Thorne frowned slightly. "How would President Graham like me to atone?"

"I haven’t decided yet."

Jason Graham’s gaze roamed over her unabashedly. "I’ll let you know when I think of something."

Nina Thorne didn’t react.

She neither agreed nor disagreed.

Then, a business card was held out in front of her.

After hesitating for a few seconds, Nina Thorne slowly took it. She then heard Jason Graham’s deep, magnetic voice again. "Miss Thorne should give me a way to contact her, so I can get in touch."

Nina Thorne felt a sense of resistance, but she didn’t want to waste any more time, so she casually recited a random phone number.

She quickly turned and went to look for Justin Kane.

But after searching everywhere, she still couldn’t find him.

Dejected, Nina Thorne gave up. As she returned to the banquet hall via the corridor, she ran into the imposing, well-built Jason Graham walking toward her again.

Nina Thorne lowered her head, trying to pretend she hadn’t seen him.

As they were about to pass each other, someone suddenly bumped her shoulder, and she stumbled, nearly falling over.

Her hand flailed out and grabbed onto something. Then, a strong force caught her by the waist, allowing her to barely regain her balance and avoid a fall.

When she came to her senses, she realized she was clutching Jason Graham’s suit jacket, while his large hand was supporting her waist.

She was already thin, and in the moment he caught her, his tall and muscular frame made her look incredibly small.

"Thank you."

Nina Thorne was quite shaken. She quickly let go and put some distance between them.

Jason Graham glanced down at her. "You ruined my suit."

Nina Thorne glanced at the wrinkled suit, then looked at him with her placid eyes. "How much? I’ll pay for it."

"No rush. I’ll tell you the price later."

Jason Graham started to walk away, then suddenly shot her a look from the corner of his eye. "Please add me on WeChat, Miss Thorne. I don’t seem to have the ’ability’ to add you."

His words were laced with sarcasm.

Nina Thorne’s brow furrowed. ’He found out it was a fake number that quickly?’

-

Back in the banquet hall, Nina Thorne spotted Justin Kane immediately.

His noble and elegant figure stood out in the crowd. With his sharply defined features and handsome face, it was hard not to notice him.

Seth Lawson and Shawn Sinclair were standing beside him, but the woman from before was nowhere to be seen.

As if sensing her gaze, Justin Kane looked over and strode toward her.

"Where did you go? I didn’t see you just now, and you didn’t reply to my messages," Justin Kane asked, his magnetic voice laced with tension.

Nina Thorne studied his face, then gave a slight purse of her lips. "I saw you were gone, so I went to look for you."

She paused, glancing over at Seth Lawson and Shawn Sinclair in the distance, the corners of her mouth still taut.

"Where did you go just now? I didn’t see you."

A smile surfaced in Justin Kane’s dark eyes. "So Mrs. Kane went looking for me. I had some business to take care of downstairs."

"Sorry, I saw you were giving a speech on stage and didn’t want to disturb you."

Seeing that he didn’t mention the woman at all, Nina Thorne forced a smile and hummed softly in acknowledgment.

Just then, Seth Lawson and Shawn Sinclair came over to say hello.

"Nina Thorne, congratulations on becoming a gold-tier screenwriter," Seth Lawson said with a grin.

Nina Thorne smiled humbly. "I’m still a long way from being a gold-tier screenwriter. I need to keep working hard."

"The market’s reaction reflects your ability. The title is well-deserved," Shawn Sinclair said, his smile gentle and his clear voice unsparing in its praise.

Nina Thorne chuckled. "With all this praise, you’re going to make me arrogant."

"My Mrs. Kane is outstanding on her own. She has every right to be proud," Justin Kane said, his tone unconditionally doting, a constant upward curve on his lips.

Nina Thorne stared at him, stunned, her mind involuntarily drifting back to the woman from before.

’That woman kissed him.’

’He said he went downstairs. What was he doing?’

"What’s wrong?"

Justin Kane noticed her low spirits and asked considerately, "Are you tired? Should we head home early?"

Nina Thorne’s mind was filled with questions. Recalling his conversation with Seth Lawson that afternoon, her mood soured completely.

Not wanting them to notice anything was wrong, she forced a smile. "Okay. I’m just going to the restroom first."

"Alright."

Justin Kane’s eyes followed her until she disappeared from the hall.

Seth Lawson followed his line of sight and couldn’t help but ask worriedly, "Nina Thorne doesn’t look very happy. Do you think she saw you with April Graham?"

Shawn Sinclair shot him a look. "That’s something we should be asking you. Why is April Graham here? Even Jason Graham showed up."

"How should I know?"

Seth Lawson looked at them defensively. "It’s just a small celebration party. You don’t actually think I’d invite them, do you?"

As a young master of the Lawson Family, despite being a hedonistic slacker, he really wasn’t that unreliable.

Shawn Sinclair looked at Justin Kane and concluded, "I’m afraid they all came here for you."

Justin Kane’s pupils contracted slightly, his dark eyes unreadable.

At the mention of their names, the atmosphere suddenly grew heavy.

"Kane, April Graham has always been the type to do as she pleases. If she finds out about you and Nina Thorne, I’m afraid she won’t let it go."

"That’s right. You need to figure out a way to deal with this."

Both men fixed their worried gazes on Justin Kane.

Justin Kane’s deep eyes narrowed, a cold light glinting within them.

-

「In the restroom.」

Nina Thorne was about to flush the toilet and leave when she suddenly heard a curious voice from outside. "April, how did your chat with Justin Kane go just now?"

Hearing this, Nina Thorne froze.

Angel Anson’s voice sounded again from outside. "You’ve been abroad these past few years, and you two haven’t really been in touch. Could he have fallen for someone else?"

Angel Anson asked nosily as she dried her hands, looking at April Graham.

April Graham was elegantly touching up her makeup. She scoffed, "Fallen for someone else? Impossible. If he was going to fall for someone else, it would have happened years ago."

"True. A lot of people know you two were on the verge of getting married back then." Angel Anson suddenly let out a sarcastic laugh.

"Looking at it that way, Serena Kane is such a fool for thinking Nina Thorne and Justin Kane are actually a couple."

"The way I see it, if even Cole Kane didn’t want her, there’s no way Justin Kane would. Good thing I wasn’t fooled by her."

"Nina Thorne? You mean that girl who used to chase after Cole Kane?"

April Graham put away her powder compact and let out a disdainful laugh. "Just some naive little girl. Justin doesn’t like her type."

"Besides, no one can steal him away from me."

Seeing her arrogant and confident look, Angel Anson quickly chimed in, "With Miss Graham around, Justin Kane wouldn’t even look at other women."

"Him being with Nina Thorne? That’s just a joke..."

The two of them left the restroom, laughing mockingly in their high heels.

After hearing everything, Nina Thorne felt as if all the strength had been drained from her body.

She numbly pushed open the stall door and walked to the sink to wash her hands.

Her mind was a buzzing blank. After washing her hands, she looked at her reflection in the mirror and suddenly gave a bitter smile.

’So, I really am just the woman Justin Kane chose for a marriage of convenience.’

’It has nothing to do with love.’

’It’s only because I’m the heiress of the Thorne Family, because I’m suitable.’

’Most importantly, it’s because Mr. Kane likes me, and a marriage alliance between our families has only benefits and no downsides.’

Nina Thorne started walking out. With every step, her heart grew colder and colder.

’It’s a good thing I heard all that today. I didn’t confess on impulse. Otherwise, I would have made a fool of myself.’

-

On the way back to the villa, Nina Thorne was completely devoid of spirit.

The car window was halfway down.

After getting in the car, she leaned against the seat and closed her eyes, letting the evening breeze brush against her cheeks.

It was as if the wind could blow away all the good feelings she had accumulated for Justin Kane over the past two months.

Justin Kane saw how exhausted she looked and couldn’t bear to disturb her, but he still couldn’t resist reaching out and taking the hand that rested on her lap.

But the moment he took it, she snatched it back without hesitation. Her detached and cold attitude made Justin Kane’s heart sink.

"What’s wrong?"

He lowered his voice, unable to tell if she was unhappy about being disturbed or if something was weighing on her mind.

Nina Thorne slowly lifted her eyelids and turned to look at him, seeming to contemplate how to put her thoughts into words.

Justin Kane’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, a tightness gripping his chest. "What happened? You seem to be in a very bad mood."

"Are you not feeling well?"

As he spoke, he reached out to touch her forehead. "You don’t have a fever. Are you just tired?"

His actions were gentle and considerate; he seemed very concerned about her.

The more clearly Nina Thorne felt his concern, the worse she felt inside.

It wasn’t because he was a bad person.

It was because he was too good, but he didn’t belong to her.

Suddenly, as if all her energy had vanished, Nina Thorne said, "I’m fine."

"Are you really fine?"

Justin Kane clearly didn’t believe her.

Just then, the car came to a smooth stop in the villa’s driveway.

Nina Thorne pushed the door open, quickly got out, and walked toward the house.

Justin Kane’s brows knitted together. Certain that something was wrong, he immediately got out of the car and followed her inside.

"Nina Thorne..."

Justin Kane grabbed Nina Thorne’s hand, forcing her to turn around. He looked into her eyes and pressed, "What on earth happened? Tell me. Don’t just stay silent."

Nina Thorne stared straight into his eyes, remaining silent.

For the first time, Justin’s expression changed with urgency, becoming worried and anxious. "Did I do something wrong? Did I make you unhappy?"

Nina Thorne looked into his dark, deep gaze and almost found herself falling for it all over again.

It was that very gaze that made her overthink time and time again, making her fall for him against her will.

This feeling was really driving her crazy.

Since he liked April Graham, she didn’t want to pretend she knew nothing anymore. It would be better to just lay all the cards on the table.