Dumping My Fiancé For His Uncle

Thea just looked at Nicolas, noticing his eyes were kinda spaced out. "You-" Nicolas tried to say but got cut off by a knock at the door.

Then came Madelyn's voice, sounding all frustrated. "Uncle Nicolas, are you okay? I messed up with what I did before, and I wanna say sorry face to face."

It might've been Thea's imagination, but it seemed like Nicolas got even more ticked off the moment he heard "Uncle Nicolas." His eyes went ice cold.

"Mr. Hendrix, chill here. I'll handle this," said Thea, taking the chance to stand up.

Opening the door, she saw Madelyn looking all teary but trying to keep a brave face.

Thea couldn't help but smirk. "Still got some nerve, huh? I wonder how you've got the guts to worm your way into the Hendrix family. Doesn't it feel weird calling Mr. Hendrix 'Uncle Nicolas'?"

Madelyn's response was to bite her lower lip, looking defiant yet somehow innocent. "I get it, you think low of where I come from. But aren't we all supposed to be equal? There's no high and low in people, right?"

Thea chuckled at that, stepping aside to let her in. "Wanna bet you'll be shown the door by security? Go on in if you're feeling lucky."

With that, Thea turned and strolled off. Madelyn clenched her teeth and followed up before grabbing Thea's wrist.

The soft, vulnerable look she usually had around others was gone, replaced by a steely determination in the dim corridor light.

"You've really changed a ton since you hit sixteen. That whole mess really got to you, huh?" Madelyn challenged, locking eyes with Thea. "We need to have a chat. Just us."

Thea, caught off guard, felt a flicker of surprise, wondering why Madelyn would know about that incident. Despite her reservations, she agreed, "Okay, follow me." She led Madelyn to her room, a silent agreement to this private talk.

As soon as they were inside, Madelyn dove straight in. "If you want to keep your secrets safe, you need to leave Jake. He's been over you for ages. Can't you tell?"

Thea, ever the picture of carefree grace, took a seat and faced Madelyn head-on. "Since we're laying things out, let me be clear. I'm calling off my engagement with Jake. But it's my call. I don't want him anymore. If you're so keen on picking up leftovers, be my guest. Just quit sneaking around."

Madelyn's face twisted with a mix of anger and envy, a clear sign she'd hit a nerve.

Suddenly, this weird smell just wafted through the air. Thea barely had a moment to think that something was off before it was way too late.

The sky started doing this crazy dance, and Madelyn morphed into a dark, ominous blur. Thea tried to stand and bail, but her body was weak, and she just crashed, out cold.

It took a moment for her brain to clear before Thea was roughly dragged off the bed and onto the floor. The fall was hard.

She heard a woman's anguished scream and Jake's low growl of rage. "I didn't think you'd stoop so low as to do this! You're a woman too. Your methods are too vicious."

Thea was still weak on all fours. She sat up, propped on the floor, looking sorry.

She met Jake's gaze, which was cold and filled with intense disgust. "What's going on?"

Her head was spinning, and her heart was suddenly pounding as she took in the chaotic scene before her.

Jake reached out and gripped her chin tightly, his tone indignant and icy. "What's going on? Hadn't you plotted all this? If I hadn't been there in time, Madelyn would have been raped by the thugs you arranged.

"I knew you were up to something when the champagne tower collapsed, but I didn't expect you to stoop so low!"

Jake's outburst had completely clued Thea into what was going on. She spotted Madelyn, all messed up and crying, looking like she'd been through the wringer.

Right then, Thea wasn't about to waste time guessing if Madelyn was faking it. Her mind was racing with the shock that she was being set up.

Summoning all her strength, she shoved Jake's hand aside and got ready to stand her ground. "Are you out of your mind? Why would you even think I did this? I just woke up, and I'm also a victim."

Jake gave a sarcastic sniff and mocked her, "You don't know why you passed out? Wasn't it just a slick move to throw us off your scent? We're in your room. Who else would be behind this but you?"

Madelyn took Jake's hand, her eyes brimming with tears she fought to keep at bay. "Jake, let's not jump to conclusions. It might not be Miss Rowland's fault. She was knocked out at the same time I was. Guess my bad luck just made me a magnet for those thugs." Jake was getting madder by the second. "Thea, how can you be so evil?"

His words hit Thea hard, making it tough for her to breathe. She never imagined a day when he would call her "evil."

There was a time when he would shield her from any criticism or hostility, no matter what. But now, he was all about another woman, turning into the deepest cut she had ever felt.

Thea looked at Jake with a cold, detached gaze, feeling like he was a complete stranger. "Why would I even bother playing games with you? Is it worth throwing away my future over a man I'm already over?"

Perhaps it was the clarity in Thea's eyes that threw Jake off, making him think she wasn't just lashing out.

His panic started to creep up until Madelyn's shaky hand found his wrist, snapping him back to reality. He was all Madelyn had left.

A pair of cool, deep eyes observed the chaos unfolding in the room. Nicolas was standing quietly in the hallway, not wanting to butt in, yet he couldn't take his eyes off Thea's helpless, sad figure inside.

Next to him, Darwin spoke up in a hushed tone, "Mr. Hendrix, want me to go in and give a hand? She was the one "

Before he could finish, Nicolas gave a slight twitch of his lips, a hint of a smirk, and asked, "Got nothing better to do?"

Darwin was promptly left without words.

A gasp of shock echoed from the doorway. "My God, what is happening here?" Emmalie rushed in, her dress trailing behind her, with a bunch of people in tow.

Ivy was so thrown by the mess in front of her that she nearly froze on the spot. Thea's brothers, Max Rowland and Duncan Rowland, came barreling in to tackle the chaos head-on.

"Thea, are you okay?" Emmalie looked super worried, her eyes all red. Thea just made a face and sidestepped a comforting hand.

Emmalie, trying not to show how hurt she was, bit her lip and said, "Why's everyone assuming Thea's behind this? Got any proof?" Jake slowed at the memory and turned to command, "Bring those thugs here."

A few minutes later, several men with swollen noses entered the room, all tied up.