Billionaire: Bridegroom From The Streets

Kick Them Out

Janet didn't know what to do or say. She stared at Kelvin in shock after the crazy thing that just happened. Why had he actually carried through with physically striking Charles, just because she had suggested it in a moment of anger? The unexpected violence made Janet's head pound as she tried to process what had happened.

Kelvin had slapped Charles - the privileged firstborn grandson of the wealthy and powerful Alexander family. Janet knew this brash act was going to create major waves and bring unpleasant consequences raining down on them.

"Pause...just wait a minute!" Charles shouted, struggling to pull himself up from the ground. Rage contorted his face as he yelled at Kelvin, "You dare strike me just because this gold digger is your wife now? How insolent!"

In the Alexander family, Charles was utterly untouchable - no one would ever dream of laying a finger on him. Yet here was this man they had just welcomed into their elite circle, boldly slapping Charles across the face for all to witness. When Charles tried to retaliate with a clumsy punch, Kelvin deftly caught his fist just inches from making contact. With a swift, practiced movement, Kelvin twisted and bent Charles' arm backwards, applying excruciating pressure.

"Owww! You broke it! Ow ow ow!" Charles shrieked in agony, tears starting to well up in his eyes. The pain was intense and searing.

"From now on, no one disrespects or bullies my wife," Kelvin stated coldly, letting go of Charles' mangled hand and turning to walk away, still gripping Janet's hand tightly in his own.

"You're dead meat, you piece of trash!" Charles howled through gritted teeth, cradling his wrist which already started to swell grotesquely. He was in utter disbelief that this poor, uneducated nobody they had charitably taken in had dared to physically assault him in such a brazen, disrespectful way.

Dazed and in shock himself, Charles stumbled away back towards the main auditorium where the family event was still going on. He didn't even notice the trickles of blood seeping from the fresh scrapes on his hands after his hard fall to the ground during the scuffle. Scanning the crowd, he spotted his father Michael chatting with several important business partners.

"Dad!" Charles shouted loudly, rudely interrupting the conversation without a second thought. All eyes turned towards the commotion.

Michael's face twisted in an angry scowl as he glared at his son. "What is so damned important that you need to interrupt me in the middle of business dealings?" he hissed in a harsh whisper.

Undeterred, Charles whined, "That psycho you idiots brought into our family, Kelvin, he attacked me!" He gestured frantically at the welt forming on his face and the grotesque swelling around his wrist. "Janet told him to hit me, and that's exactly what the lunatic did!"

As Michael leaned in to inspect the extent of Charles' injuries up close, his expression turned instantly apoplectic with unbridled rage. "Janet put him up to assaulting you like this?" he growled, the anger barely contained behind clenched jaws.

"Yeah, she told her new psycho husband to slap me across the face!" Charles reiterated. "Can you believe her?"

Michael sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to maintain his composure. The background information they'd received had warned that the down-on-his-luck Kelvin potentially had mental health issues and a history of unstable behavior. "I told you to be careful about provoking people like that who are unhinged. But don't worry, I will handle Janet and Kelvin accordingly over this."

As a family doctor was called over to tend to Charles' clearly broken wrist, he protested vehemently, "C'mon Dad, just kick them out immediately! Hitting me has to be grounds for expulsion from our family, no questions asked. When Grandpa Mark finds out what they've done, he'll insist they're gone for good!"

"Janet is still working on a crucial, high-stakes project for our company that's nearing completion," Michael stated sternly. "Firing her in the middle of it could risk derailing the entire initiative."

Though he didn't admit it, Michael and Charles both harbored grave concerns over how talented and capable Janet had proven herself to be at the company over the past year. She had rapidly risen to take on important responsibilities that stretched far beyond her years and experience level. If she continued advancing at her current pace, she could easily become a major powerhouse calling the shots - a threat that neither Michael nor Charles wanted to deal with.

"Who even cares about her stupid project?" Charles scoffed petulantly. "I could easily take it over and complete it myself to make Grandfather value me more than ever. Let's get rid of those trashy, disgusting losers for good! They've gotten way more than they deserve already from our family's generosity."

As the doctor tended to Charles' wrist, outfitting it with a temporary splint and sling, Kelvin remained stonefaced as he escorted Janet back towards her parents' modest townhome. Janet's head continued to swim, awash in conflicting emotions in the aftermath of Kelvin's shocking display of violence. On one hand, she was reeling from the trauma of witnessing such an aggressive physical altercation firsthand and feeling disgust towards Kelvin's brutish behavior.

But a small part of her admittedly felt an unfamiliar pang of gratitude towards Kelvin for seemingly trying to defend her honor and standing up to Charles' ceaseless torment and bullying. It was a strange new sensation that made her extremely uncomfortable and just compounded the massive emotional turmoil roiling within her. More than anything, she pushed those feelings down and tried to brace herself for the inevitable retaliation that Charles would soon seek to inflict, now that his family superiority had taken such a rare hit.

Sure enough, as Janet and Kelvin arrived home, her mother Debby answered the door with puffy, reddened eyes - clearly she had been crying inconsolably for who knows how long. Her face instantly contorted with rage as she fixed her gaze intensely on Kelvin.

"Don't you DARE come into this house!" she screamed at the top of her lungs through choked back sobs of anger. "Because of you and the sham of a marriage you've forced my daughter into, she's going to be a laughingstock and social pariah in this entire town! You've utterly ruined and disgraced her life!"

"Just get out of my sight and leave, right now!" Debby managed to sputter out between wracking cries before slamming the door forcefully in their faces. Though Janet couldn't see him, she knew her father James was likely sitting nearby, opting to stay silent as usual in the face of his wife's understandable hysterics.

Kelvin turned to leave, sensing he was clearly not welcome, but Janet quickly grabbed his arm to stop him. She knew that if Charles really wanted to retaliate against Kelvin for defending her honor, leaving him alone unprotected could put the man's safety at great risk from her cousin's vicious wrath.

"No, wait...please come inside," Janet instructed hesitantly, her grip remaining firm on Kelvin's arm. For better or worse, he had fought for her out of some semblance of noble intention. She couldn't rightfully abandon him to be further victimized just for that.

"Janet, he is nothing but...a..." her mother began to protest again loudly, before trailing off.

"He's my husband now, Mom. Like it or not," Janet stated plainly, still getting Used to the outlandish reality of being married off to a destitute stranger against her will. The word "husband" felt foreign and uncomfortable as she forced it out.

Her mom threw up her hands in disgust. "Do what you want, I want no part of this!" She stormed off. James silently wheeled his chair after her, carefully avoiding getting in the crossfire.

Janet quickly ushered Kelvin inside and up the narrow staircase to her small but tidy bedroom. She took a mat from her closet and spread it on the floor.

"For now, you'll need to remain inside and not leave the house," she said in a serious tone.

"Charles is probably going to be furious after what happened and may try to retaliate against you. Don't worry though, he won't try pulling anything with you here under my parents' roof."

Janet studied Kelvin carefully, still having trouble wrapping her head around the idea that she was now considered legally married to this complete stranger. His motivations and background were a mystery to her.

"You'll sleep on the floor, I've got the bed. We'll just live like we don't know each other, okay?"

Kelvin gave a small nod of acknowledgment. He knew Janet felt deeply conflicted - likely still harboring resentment towards him for the unexpected marital arrangement she had been forced into. At the same time, her kind-hearted nature wouldn't allow her to simply kick him to the curb after he had clumsily attempted to come to her defense against her bully of a cousin. Janet was clearly a good person at her core, treating him with more dignity than his current circumstances would normally afford.

An awkward, tense silence hung in the air as the unlikely newlyweds avoided eye contact. Kelvin briefly considered revealing the crumpled candy wrappers from their childhood connection, but quickly thought better of it. Now was definitely not the time to drop such a bombshell.

The silence was finally broken by the harsh buzz of Janet's cell phone ringing. She felt her body tense up as she glanced at the caller ID. It was Charles. Bracing herself, she reluctantly accepted the call and brought the phone to her ear.

"H-hello?" she answered tentatively.

"Well hello there, Janet!" Charles' mocking voice crowed from the other end. "I've got some good news for me, but I'm afraid it's very bad news for your miserable existence!"

Janet felt her chest tighten with dread. "W-what are you talking about?" she managed to choke out.

"I'm talking about you being FIRED from your cushy job at the Alexander Group company, effective immediately!" Charles cackled with delight. "That's right, you're totally done there. Let's see how you and your pathetic loser family are going to survive without our money to leech off of anymore!"

Janet's head spun as she processed Charles' words. They had actually fired her? Just for the perceived transgression of telling Kelvin to stand up for her against Charles' torment? It was utterly unfair and unjust. She was being punished while her wretched cousin continued to terrorize her with impunity, as he always had.

Unable to suppress her emotions any longer, Janet burst into tears of anguish, harsh sobs wracking her body as the gravity of her dire situation sank in. The prestigious Alexander Group had been her family's lifeline, their sole source of income. With that gone, how would they possibly get by?

Kelvin looked on somberly, his jaw clenched tightly as he seethed with anger toward Charles for causing Janet such immense pain and distress. He felt helpless, with no options to strike back against the malicious bully who continued to make his new wife's life a living hell.

But in that moment, Kelvin silently vowed that if Charles took his retaliation too far and crossed another line, he would not hesitate to meet fire with fire. Protecting Janet, the woman who had once showed true kindness to a scrawny, starving urchin all those years ago, was his highest priority now. No more would she suffer disrespect and abuse, not on his watch. The gloves would well and truly come off if needed to safeguard her honor.