Chapter 23: Chapter 23

<Azaria>

"You're so cheesy now. You weren't like this before," she irritates me when I hear her speak because it doesn't suit her!

"Mind your own business, Dawn," his voice became more serious.

"I'm not shy about owning my wife in the world," Nik added.

I was about to feel thrilled, but then I remembered that I'm angry with him.

I didn't expect him to suddenly kiss me on the cheek, right in front of his sister.

"I'll make it up to you later. I'll erase your anger towards me," he said huskily. I just rolled my eyes at him.

All of my courage suddenly disappeared when facing that kid.

While eating, Dawn gives me a disdainful look, and I reciprocate it. She's just a kid, and I won't back down from her.

Nik is caught in the middle of our little feud.

"Brother, I want spicy sauce. Can you put it in my plate, please?" She uses her sweet voice and puppy eyes.

"And I don't like this tomato. I'll just give it to you," she puts the tomatoes on Lanvin's plate.

She doesn't even know how to speak Tagalog, so why is she attempting it? It's me who's annoyed and irritated by her.

"Have you eaten at a five-star restaurant? Why are you eating like a slob? You eat like a woman who just came from having sex!"

Oh, she's really pushing my buttons! I'm close to snapping. I still have some self-restraint left.

When a bit of sauce spills on my clothes, she immediately mocks me. Nik wipes the side of my lips and cleans my clothes where the sauce got on, but it's not visible because I'm wearing black.

I take a deep breath to calm myself. She's getting on my nerves.

"Azaria," Nik calls me in a deep voice.

Is he going to stop me again?

And Azaria? He never calls me that way. He's been using my full name all along. If I call him by his full name, let's see if he won't get irritated.

"You know what, I know something about you that you don't know. I know your secrets," Dawn suddenly said with a grin, thoroughly enjoying her meal.

"Eleanor Maeve," Nik threatened her, giving her a stern look.

"Shut your mouth if you don't want us to fight," Nik said in a menacing tone.

The child seemed scared and just bowed her head.

It seems she's afraid of her brother. Nik just scolded her for the first time, and she immediately got scared.

"Excuse me, I'll just go to the restroom," I said with a cold goodbye to both of them.

"I'll accompany you-" Nik started to say.

I ignored him and quickly left the table. I wanted to strangle his annoying little sister.

Wait, was that Markie?

I was about to call him, but he was with four guys and a girl. I passed by their table.

I'll just go to the restroom. Maybe my beauty has been affected by that annoying little brat!

I was on my way out of the restroom when I bumped into Mark.

"Ria!" he exclaimed as soon as he saw me.

He's Markie, my first love, and my first crush.

"Markie, what are you doing here? What a coincidence," I pretended not to have seen him earlier.

"I was with my friends, catching up. How about you? Who are you with?" he asked.

He's taller than me, broad-chested, with long hair, and has a tattoo on his neck. He has a bad boy vibe. He also has bangs that suit him, and his skin is so fair and smooth. He must have swallowed a bottle of glutathione to be that fair. He's broad-chested but still slim. He's sexy.

"Family," I replied, smiling at him.

"You haven't changed, still petite!" I teased him, "You've changed a lot, huh! But you're still ugly."

He just laughed at what I said.

"I miss you, Ria. Wait, do you have a boyfriend now? Someone might suddenly punch me here," he joked while laughing.

I secretly looked behind him.

"Let's catch up soon. My friends have been waiting for me," I hurriedly said to him.

I saw Nik approaching, and he might cause trouble.

"I have to go now. I'll introduce you to my friends next time."

He accepted my calling card.

"Okay, until next time. They've been waiting for me for a while now," I quickly said to him.

I saw Nik coming over, and he might create a scene.

"Wait, Ria!" He called out to me.

I walked briskly.

"Why did you take so long?" Nik asked with a frown.

"Women things," I told him, trying to avoid his gaze, and we both went back to our seats.

"What?" I asked him, noticing that he was looking at me differently.

"Are you telling me the truth?" he asked seriously.

"You're overthinking too much," I replied.

We arrived home, and Dawn and I got injured inside the car because Nik insisted on letting me sit in the front seat. Dawn also cried, and Nik comforted her.

It seems like she's been excessively spoiled. She gets everything she wants.

"Wife, let's talk. Talk to me. You've been cold to me since earlier," Nik said as we entered the room, trying to stop me from going to the wardrobe to get a change of clothes.

I wanted to take a bath. It was an irritating day after all.

"Talk to the kid. Talk to her. Since she's the one you've been defending all day," I couldn't help but be bitter.

I got even more annoyed when he smiled at me.

What if we have a child? Then all his attention and time will be on the child. He'll give everything to our child, and there will be very little left for me. Damn! What am I even talking about, having a child?

"Are you jealous of her?" He asked with a smile.

"You have some nerve, Mr.," I retorted.

"Why are you mad, hmm? Tell me, so I'll know and won't do it again. I don't want you to be angry at me. I don't want us to fight and have misunderstandings. I want you to sleep without any grudges," he said in a deep and serious voice, but his eyes showed a hint of happiness.

"Is this because of my sister? I'll talk to her. Don't you want her to be here? I'll send her away now, I'll have her picked up."

I didn't reply.

"Tell me why you're treating me coldly. I won't do anything that will upset you, I'll avoid it."

"You won't do it anyway. What if I want you to stay away from your sister?" I challenged him.

"If that's what you want, I'll do it. I won't see her forever. I won't let her enter our house, I'll also ban her from my company," he said seriously.

He wasn't joking, right? His expression was so serious, and he looked into my eyes while saying those words. When he looks into my eyes, I know he's serious, and he'll follow through with what he says.

I laughed in disbelief.

"You're crazy! You're a scam! You can't do that because she's your sister. No sane brother would do that to his sister," I said disappointedly, "you only said those things to fool me and make me feel better."

“Then I am stupid brother for doing that. I’m stupid, Azaria.”

He still had a serious expression on his face.

I know Nik doesn't know how to joke, but I still don't want to believe him.

"I'll take a bath first," I changed the subject.

"You won't take a bath until you tell me why you're acting so cold," he said firmly.

He's such a control freak.

"You're so controlling! You always want to be in charge!" I retorted. Suddenly, I got angry, maybe because he's the one I'm releasing my anger on.

"Yeah, I like controlling people, and I want to be in charge. I only follow my rules," he said with a demonic tone.

Suddenly, his horns came out.

He's gone crazy.

"And why did you take so long in the restroom earlier? There was no line in the restroom," he said firmly.

"You're overthinking. I probably took a long time fixing my makeup, I was also combing my hair and thinking about things, duh!"

"Why did you think?"

I just slapped my forehead because of his questions. He's asking so many questions.

"I'm thinking if I should break up with you - just kidding!" I quickly took it back as he gave me a stern look, and his demeanor changed.

"I'm not joking with you, Azaria," his voice became more serious.

"Are we going to fight? Just tell me so I can be prepared," I informed him.

"Can you be serious?" he pleaded with annoyance in his voice.

"I'm going to take a bath," I grabbed my towel again.

"You won't take a bath until you talk to me properly," he restrained me.

I glared at him.

"I'll take a bath now, master," I said sarcastically, forcing a smile at him.