His tall frame pulled me hard against his chest. With a height difference of twenty-one centimeters, my head barely reached his chin. "You really don't know what my grandmother gave your family as a bride price, do you?"
"What bride price? We just registered our marriage that day. There was no discussion about any of that." Something smelled fishy now.
"Shares in the Rojanakarn Group worth over one hundred million baht, along with an additional ten million in cash."
"What?!" My eyes nearly popped out of my head. So that's why they pushed me so hard to marry him. Mom, can I have half? I swear I'll never be mad again.
"If you don't believe me, call your family and ask. I consider you fully under my rights as a husband. Try to live up to the price that was paid."
He flung my hand away. My legs went weak, and I had to steady myself by sinking onto the sofa. The man who held all the power tossed his suit down beside me before heading straight for the dining room.
"I don't like waiting," he said without even turning back.
He must be enjoying this—winning again. It's always like this. Just you wait. One day, this I-Tim right here will turn Lord Panin into one of those obsessive male leads from a romance novel—hopelessly devoted to his wife, agreeing to everything she says. One day!
"Why does everyone treat me like this?" I muttered to myself. I sat there for a while to calm down, then grabbed the suit and headed to the dining room.
The food was set out on a round table with a Lazy Susan, with six chairs around it. As the wife, I naturally had to sit next to my husband. Jao Peem and Jao Pat sat on the opposite side.
"You told me, 'don't ask the monk when giving alms,'" I said first, marking my territory before the tall man could complain. "I hope you can handle Isaan food, because I'm not stepping into the kitchen twice in one day. If you want something, say it clearly. If I can make it, I'll make it. If I can't, you don't eat. End. Of. Story."
"I'm not a picky eater," he replied. Oh, sure. Not picky? Acting like he owns my life and everything in it.
"This is really good, Jao Peem. This tastes great," Jao Pat said after taking a bite. "What kind of chicken is this, Teach? It's amazing."
The two cool, quiet types—father and son—didn't say much, just kept eating. Hmph.
"Just simple local food," I replied casually. "Eat up. I put my heart into it. I guarantee you won't find this flavor anywhere else. Even restaurant food can't beat my cooking—not that I'm bragging."
"Gross," Jao Pat scrunched up his face.
So I got back at him by scooping a generous heap of spicy stir-fried rat onto my husband's plate.
"I think you're way too skinny, Khun Panin. If you put on a bit more muscle, you'd look even better."
"I work out every day," he said mildly, clearly implying: I'm not skinny—this is the ideal body.
Tch. That's what I'm supposed to think, right? Well… fine. I'll admit it. His abs—when I accidentally touched them when we… Ugh. Forget when. The point is, they were rock hard. Like a brick wall.