Falling For My Ex's Uncle - Chapter 49: Chapter 49

Rosemary stood frozen in place, her eyes welling up with tears, staring vacantly at Alex.
She opened her mouth, ready to protest, but before she could speak, Austin stepped in front of her, shielding her with his body. His icy gaze locked onto me, full of malice and fury.
It almost seemed as though I had betrayed him.
Around us, the crowd slowly snapped out of their shock, their eyes wide with curiosity and gossip, though no one dared to speak.
Amanda huffed, casting a disdainful glance my way before turning her attention back to Alex. With a fake smile, she said, "Alex, I know you've never liked Rosemary, but some jokes just aren't funny."
"Are you suggesting that I'm slandering Rosemary to protect Laurel?" Alex's cool, almost imperceptible smile held a faint edge.
Rosemary gripped Amanda's hand, still looking utterly terrified. She muttered, "Mom, I'm fine. Laurel is Alex's guest, and I'm just an outsider."
"Outsider? You're my woman. With me here, no one will ever wrong you," Amanda replied softly, patting her daughter's back with affection.
I blinked. What a touching mother-daughter moment—honestly, it was almost moving.
Alex curled his lips into a slight smirk, narrowing his eyes as he turned to me. "You must have proof, right?"
Ah, I didn't expect him to figure out my secret so quickly.
Truly a sly fox. But what confused me more was why, knowing I had evidence, he still chose to defend me and even mentioned marrying me into the Herrera family.
I raised an eyebrow, my voice low but with a hint of excitement. "Of course. It's never wise to underestimate others, but it's just as important to be prepared. Besides, these little dramas aren't new to me."
Rosemary had often used such tricks to frame me—everything from stirring up gossip in front of Austin to accusing me of humiliating her out of jealousy.
In the beginning, Austin would gently tell me, "Laurel, Rosemary is just my sister. You can't really be jealous of her, can you?"
Later, his tone would shift to impatience. "Laurel, Rosemary is so pitiful. Can't you just get along with her? She's just a child; can't you let her have her way?"
And eventually, his words grew crueler, his grip tightening around my neck as he glared at me, snarling, "Laurel, how can you be so cruel? Can't you see she's sick?"
The truth was, Austin had never cared about my feelings. He only believed in Rosemary. He protected his mother and sister, no matter what.
No matter how much I explained, all I received in return was his disdain, boredom, and empty apologies.
Rosemary hesitated, still looking fragile and innocent, but her eyes flickered with a brief flash of fear—a look that vanished just as quickly.
"Angela, come out."
All eyes turned toward the staircase as Angela appeared, striding toward me with the grace of a proud black swan.
My best friend would never sit idly by while I was being wronged—she just knew when to step in.
After she'd picked up her parents, Angela had gone upstairs to the restroom.
And I had stayed downstairs, waiting for Rosemary. As I stepped out of the lounge, I could already smell the familiar scent of her perfume in the hallway.
She had been waiting for an opportunity—so I decided to turn the tables.
Angela's eyes locked onto Rosemary, who was still hiding behind Amanda. With a light smile, she asked, "Miss Read, let me ask you again—was it really Laurel who pushed you?"
The room fell silent. Angela's voice was calm, almost too calm.
Rosemary's face shifted slightly, and for a moment, it looked like she was frightened. After a long pause, she spoke. "I... I don't remember."
"Don't remember?" Angela chuckled softly. Then, turning to Austin, she said, "How could you forget? Just a moment ago, you said in front of everyone that it was Laurel who pushed you. You even accused her of twisting the truth."
Her tone was dripping with sarcasm, and though Angela was smiling, it felt more like she was telling a joke.
Amanda's face flushed with embarrassment, and she impatiently interrupted Angela, snapping, "Rosemary's health has always been fragile. So what if she forgot?"
Angela widened her eyes in exaggerated surprise, then placed a hand over her mouth and burst into laughter.
"Rosemary, are you forgetting things as fast as you can blink? Or maybe I'm misunderstanding, my bad! After all, the old woman Amanda doesn't have any mentally unstable relatives around her. Honestly, even if she did, I wouldn't dare bring them out in public. Oh wait—Amanda, wasn't it you who just told my friend to kneel and apologize?
"Looks like you don't really understand Rosemary's condition. Maybe you should stop dragging her around. She may be your adopted daughter, but she's still your responsibility, and it's your face that's on the line."
Amanda went pale, enraged at being called old woman, especially after spending so much on her appearance to keep it youthful.
But more than that, being publicly scolded on how to be a proper mother made her grind her teeth in frustration.
However, Amanda didn't dare lash out at Angela—not with the entire city of Nifelheim knowing that Angela wasn't just the daughter of the Adams family, but also had a formidable mother.
Even the notorious rich kids of Nifelheim City would think twice before provoking her. With Amanda's courage, she could never dare to lay a finger on Angela in front of so many people.
Rosemary lowered her head, shooting a hateful, venomous glare at Angela before she suddenly burst into sobs, gripping Amanda's hand tightly. "Mom, it's my fault. I made Laurel angry."
Austin, at this point, lifted his gaze and stared at me with eyes full of frustration and anger, though he quickly suppressed it, his voice stern. "Laurel, do you really need to be so aggressive? Rosemary's condition is just improving."
Wow, I was getting hit from all sides. Austin, that scoundrel, truly thought I was easy to bully.
But of course, he wouldn't dare touch Angela.
She was my best friend, and she'd stepped in for me. Naturally, she wasn't about to let me off the hook.
As I saw Angela on the verge of exploding with her own wrath, I stepped forward to pull her back.
A loud, sharp slap rang out as it landed squarely on Austin's face.
The entire room gasped, eyes wide in shock. Alex had wiped the smile off his face, his eyes now sharp and full of fury as they locked onto Austin.
"You little brat," Kayden Herrera spat, his breath heavy as he glared at Austin. "Apologize to Alex."