Chapter 32

Nari

We had been home for three days, and he was back to being his attentive, sweet self that previously sucked me into a false sense of security. As much as I wanted to be a bitch to him, he was being far too agreeable. I looked at the lunch he had delivered for me. He texted me to let me know he was stuck in the city for a meeting and couldn't meet me for lunch. It wouldn't be the same eating alone.

"No husband today?" Warren asked.

I glared at him for stating the obvious.

His grey eyebrows jumped up, and he held out his hands.

"Sheesh, I thought that extended honeymoon slash holiday would have made you more relaxed," he said with a snicker.

I sighed and sat down to eat. I'd avoided the girls because I didn't want to tell them about Tae. There wasn't any point when he made it clear that he wouldn't accept me leaving him. On the second night after we returned, I'd tried to sleep in the spare bedroom, and he had been furious. I smiled faintly as I remembered him tossing me over his shoulder to carry me back to his bed.

Warren walked out of the staff room whistling the tune to Let's Face the Music and Dance, which made me think of the lyrics.

There may be trouble ahead.

I glanced at the empty doorway because I didn't get the chance to tease Warren about liking the same ancient music that my parents enjoyed. I thought about the lavish gifts he had given my family at the wedding and felt a pang of sadness that his Mum wasn't there. My parents bought their gifts, but they didn't come.

Tae said he wanted a family, and the more I thought about his words, the more I understood because family was an integral part of our culture. I opened up all the tubs of food he'd sent for me. They were my favourite dishes. My eyes began to well up. He hadn't had much of a family life in his thirty-one years. It made me grateful that he had Kwan.

I might need to go easy on him and give our marriage a chance after I set some ground rules of my own.

◆◆◆

On the way back from my parent's house, I rested my hand on Tae's thigh. From the corner of my eye, I saw his head whip around to look at me, but I ignored him. It was the first time since I found out about his stalking that I voluntarily touched him. My eyes barely left him all night. I scrutinised his every word and action to find he had genuine affection towards my family, especially with my sister. He faced the road again and relaxed in his seat before he covered my hand with his.

"If you ever cheat on me or break my heart, I will walk out on you so fast that you won't know what hit you. I don't want you spying on my phone. If you have anything you want to know, ask me like a normal person. Don't betray my trust, Tae," I said in a firm voice.

He suddenly took a left turn and drove up a residential street until he found a parking space in front of someone's driveway, but London parking was horrendous. He took his seatbelt off and turned the light on in the car before he faced me.

His eyes were soft but full of tumultuous emotions when he reached for my hands. It was usually difficult to get a read on him unless he was irritated. I glanced down to see my fingers in his much larger hands. He stroked the top of my hands with his thumbs.

"Baby, I only want us and our family. This includes your family. I already see your little sister as mine," he said before he lifted my hands to kiss them. "Forever mine," he whispered with a faint smile as his thumb ran over my rings.

I relaxed and looked at the messy hair I loved so much, and for the first time, I thought about my potential pregnancy. A vivid picture of a tiny boy with spiky hair running around our home hit me, pushing my ovaries into hyperdrive. When I checked online, I knew I had another week to wait until I could take a pregnancy test.

Tae leaned over and kissed me, but all I could think of was that he probably had the pregnancy tests at home hidden away somewhere. I smiled against his lips and ran my fingers through his hair. He held my face and deepened our kiss until I kissed him back. When he pulled back the light shone in his dark eyes. He looked happy.

My thoughts went to Dr Zieburg and his disgusting proposition. It was because of Tae he was facing multiple charges and awaiting trial.

"Would you tell me if you did something similar to what you did with Zieburg?" I asked hesitantly.

"No," he said as his eyes hardened. "It's my job to protect you and our family."

It was an honest answer. I'd give him that, but I wasn't over the moon about it. I guess if I wanted to find out what he was up to, I would need to be as sneaky as he was.

His hand brushed my stomach before he kissed my cheek.

"I should be irate with you. You ruined me without even knowing it," he said with a smirk.

I shoved him back with a snort. For all his talk, Tae wasn't built like the typical men I'd met. He wanted every kind of commitment there was with me. Before he started the car, he placed my hand back on his thigh.

We still had a long way to go, but this was a start.