The Prince Who Loved Me - Chapter 9

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 9

Bada, who had been looking at the men’s shirts hanging on the wall, pointed to a pink shirt with a loud flamingo pattern.

“How about that one? I think it would suit you quite well.”

“Sure, fine. As long as it looks good to you.”

When the joke didn’t land, Bada shook her head.

“Aren’t you trusting your face a bit too much? Well, I suppose even a potato sack would look good on you. Let’s go with that cream-colored linen shirt. This man will be wearing it, do you have the right size?”

“The largest size should be somewhere here… Just a moment.”

The store owner pulled out a new one from under the table and handed it to Bada.

Bada held the shirt up against his body to check the size.

“This should… fit well. How much is it?”

“1.4 million rupiah.”

Bada’s eyes widened when she heard the price.

‘Over 100,000 won for just that one shirt? That’s way too expensive compared to Indonesia’s cost of living.’

But River casually pulled out his wallet from his back pocket without much thought.

Bada’s eyes widened as she stopped his hand. Then she made an exaggeratedly shocked expression toward the owner.

“1.4 million rupiah? Mahal, mahal!”

When she spoke Indonesian, the owner laughed with amusement and brought over a calculator.

“How much do you want?”

Bada tapped 400,000 rupiah on the calculator.

This time the owner’s jaw dropped as he waved his hands dismissively.

“It’s a handmade linen shirt, so if I sell it at that price, there won’t be any margin left. No, No!”

“Then please give it to us for 500,000 rupiah.”

“1 million rupiah. I can’t go any lower.”

“How about 600,000 rupiah? Come on, you should at least leave me enough money to buy nasi campur.”

River watched the scene with his arms crossed, looking amused.

“Then I’ll give it to you for 800,000 rupiah.”

“…If you insist, I’ll look around some more and come back…”

When Bada pretended to leave the store, the owner hurriedly grabbed her.

“I give up, I give up! Just for you, miss, I’ll give it for 600,000 rupiah.”

“Really? Terima kasih!”

At that moment, River smiled and tried to pull out his wallet.

Bada quickly stopped him and pulled out cash from her own pocket to hand to the owner.

“I’ll pay for this as bodyguard fees.”

“What? Don’t be ridiculous. I don’t have a hobby of making my date spend money.”

“Oh come on, I said I’m buying it. You already bought expensive food.”

The owner smiled at their bickering over who would pay.

“What a smart young lady. You must feel secure having such a girlfriend. You should marry a woman like this, yes!”

“Oh, we’re not that kind of…”

As Bada tried to wave her hands in denial, River suddenly wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

Startled by the unexpected contact, Bada reflexively tried to pull away.

Peck.

His lips lightly touched her cheek and pulled away.

Bada drew in a surprised breath. The warmth that brushed her cheek spread as heat rose throughout her body.

Despite her bewildered gaze, River paid no mind and kept his arm around her shoulder.

“So as you can see, I’m the one who’s more clingy.”

Bada couldn’t continue speaking at his shamelessness.

The terrible scene she had encountered in the restroom earlier and the cold advice not to trust him flashed through her mind.

He was a man who seemed playful on the surface but had something mysteriously chilling about him that created tension.

Which side was the real him?

Fear and confusion, yet despite it all, an intense attraction she couldn’t shake off mixed together, making her dizzy.

* * *

The two people who left the store were now walking side by side.

This was because River had parked his bike in front of the store and stubbornly insisted on walking her to her accommodation, which wasn’t far from here.

Bada’s silky hair was now pinned up with a frangipani flower-shaped hair clip.

It was a gift from River in return for buying him the shirt.

He said he couldn’t shamelessly stand still after receiving a gift from a lady, or something like that.

To calm him down when he seemed ready to buy the entire store, she had hastily picked up a hair clip from the street vendor’s display.

After passing through the busy road and entering an alley, the surroundings had become quiet.

In the silence, they became overly conscious of each other’s breathing.

Their arms brushed against each other, making slight contact, but neither pulled away.

Feeling awkward for no reason, Bada blurted out anything.

“You were about to pay full price for everything earlier. In Bali, bargaining is basic. Everyone asks for three times the actual price.”

“Really? I didn’t know.”

“I thought you were some crown prince from an oil-rich country or something.”

River found this so amusing that he chuckled. Annoyed by his unserious attitude, Bada asked.

“Do you do any financial planning?”

“Maybe?”

“Maybe…? Let me give you some advice as someone from an investment bank. Financial planning isn’t complicated. Just buy VOO and QQQ among US stocks and accumulate them. Don’t buy all at once, but monthly installments. That’s called dollar cost averaging…”

“…”

Seeing him just looking at her with an interested gaze made her sigh automatically.

What am I going to do with this guy.

He casually buys expensive meals for a woman he just met. He rides around on a Ducati. His sense of money is completely broken.

“You’re not listening to me, are you?”

“Then just marry me. I’ve been having headaches about managing so many things anyway. I can just leave the financial matters to you.”

Bada narrowed her eyes and lightly hit his shoulder.

“I don’t like jokes about marriage out of nowhere.”

“The store owner earlier said you should marry a woman like you. I’m a bit easily influenced.”

Then he continued with a serious face.

“The most beautiful woman in the world with excellent bargaining skills.”

“…”

“Where have you been hiding all this time before appearing now?”

“In the left corner cubicle on the 16th floor of Yeouido Finance Building.”

“Ah, so that’s the address where God sends angels down to earth.”

“You’re impossible.”

As the atmosphere lightened, the two continued walking down the night street, bickering.

Soon, a sign reading ‘Oka’s Home Stay’ came into view not far away.

“This is my accommodation.”

The two stopped walking and faced each other without words.

Because they were backlit by the moonlight, they could only see each other dimly, but she could feel his intense gaze wandering over her face.

Everywhere his gaze touched seemed to burn.

“Bada.”

“Yeah?”

After hesitating, he slowly parted his lips.

“Can I see you again?”

Under the foreign moonlight, his eyes shone seriously.

Bada bit her lower lip gently.

The fact that she was very attracted to him was undeniable.

Rather than being afraid of him, she was afraid of falling for him so deeply that she wouldn’t be able to escape.

It was as if all her nerves were sending out warnings.

‘If you get involved with this man, your entire life will change completely. Can you handle it?’

River, reading Bada’s hesitation, nodded as if he understood.

“It was nice meeting you today. Thanks for the shirt.”

He carefully lifted her hand, and soon his soft lips touched the back of her hand.

Tense, Bada unconsciously let out a shallow breath. A burning heat spread throughout her entire body from the back of her hand.

At the same time, throughout the kiss, his gaze remained persistently fixed on her eyes.

Like a courteous knight treating a queen, he slowly pulled his lips away and whispered meaningfully.

“See you again.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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