The Matchmakers Choice

Mine to protect

Ziva hadn't even noticed when Rain arrived. She had been too focused on Phayu, her mind occupied with the man she believe belongs to her. But now, Rain was standing between them, his presence undeniable and his glare burning with a fury she had never seen before.

Rain's heart pounded in his chest, not with fear but with pure, unfiltered rage.

He was furious!

How dare she touch his husband like that? If it had been before, he might have ignored it and not have reacted this way. Back then, he had always felt like an outsider, like a third person coming between them. Being in this contract marriage rain had always knew his place...knew that Phayu had been forced into this, knew that he had lost his girlfriend because of it. Rain had tried his best to stay out of the way, accepting whatever was written in the contract—staying away from Phayu, letting him do whatever he want, even if it meant meeting his girlfriend. He never complained, never demanded more. Even when he saw Ziva, he didn't resent her. He understood her pain and sympathized with her.

But that sympathy was gone.

After everything that had happened, after the way she had humiliated him, after the way she had tried to make him feel small and insignificant. He would not let her walk over him, not anymore. Especially not now, when he had finally realized his own feelings for Phayu.

Rain shot Ziva one last glare before turning to Phayu. His expression softens instantly when he notices Phayu's lower lip...swollen, still bleeding.

He didn't mean to bite him so hard. But what else could he do when Phayu wasn't listening to him.

Lifting his hand rain brushed his thumb over Phayu's lip with the lightest touch, as if even the smallest pressure might hurt him.

"I am sorry…" He whispers lightly tapping his thumb on the lip.

Phayu holds Rain's hand and pressed it against his lips, lightly pressing a kiss over the tips of his finger. "It's not hurting," he reassured him, letting him know he wasn't hurt and he didn't need to feel guilty.

Their eyes met and for a moment, everything else faded. The world around them disappeared...it was just them.

They didn't even notice Ziva standing there seething in anger.

Her fists clenched at her sides, nails digging into her palms as she watched the way Phayu softened for Rain. She had never seen that look in his eyes before. Not for her. And it wasn't just his expression—it was his body language, the way he leaned into Rain's touch, the way he held his hand pressing his lips on them, the way he allowed himself to be touched.

Phayu had never let Ziva touch him so easily. He had always flinched away, always avoiding unnecessary skin contact.

She always told herself that this was just how he was—not affectionate, not touchy. And it wasn't a lie. Phayu hated being touched. 

But now? Watching him with Rain? It felt like she had been living a lie all along. 

Right now, she felt invisible, like a ghost in the room, while they existed in their own world.

But her anger grew even more when she finally took in Rain's disheveled state.

His messy hair. His half-open oversized shirt, which didn't even seem like his. His swollen and red lips. And not to miss that fresh red mark on his neck.

Her blood ran cold.

She knew what that meant.

They had been together before she arrived. And by looking at their lips, it was clear they had been kissed deeply. And from the way they looked, it wasn't just a kiss....it was more than that.