Page 14 of Liam

That broke his intense gaze. His brow furrowed. "Your parents?"

"More like immediate family. We have a large six-bedroom house. My sister, her husband, and their son live in a two-bedroom suite on the main floor. My one-room suite is down there as well. Our parents and two of our grandparents live upstairs. My dad's parents. My cousin has a room up there too. He moved in after I had my accident. He'll be the one to head our household one day. That would've fallen on me … but the accident. I can't be what my family needs."

I was rambling.

"So, they brought in your cousin to fill your place?"

"He comes from a family of multiple sons. He was the youngest."

Liam furrowed his brow. "Huh."

"It's a cultural thing. My parents will have someone to take care of them when they get old."

He looked confused, but that was to be expected.

"That's a lot of people," he said.

"It doesn't feel like it. Multi-generational family living is what I've always known."

"Do you find it difficult to get any privacy?"

"I spend most of my time in my room, but we all eat dinner together."

"Who cooks? That's a lot of food."

"My mom and my dadi … my grandma."

"The most number of people I've cooked for are theSalish Sea Societyguys. We typically go to Owen's for dinner but sometimes I have them over to my place. I like to cook."

I loved food. I was a card-carrying foodie. "What are your favourite foods?"

Liam hummed, making my heart patter. "I'm partial to Thai food. A good Tom Yum Goong can cure all that ails you. Or a Khao Soi. And I wouldn't say no to sampling someone's Pad Thai."

"You like your soups."

"Soups and salads make up a large part of my diet."

"That's how you stay so lean?" I hadn't planned on commenting on his body. But the conversation had naturally landed on it. I was curious how he achieved such beauty.

"Yeah. Carbs are my nemesis, and I eat so much blanched chicken breast that I should have sprouted wings by now. I allow myself to eat as many vegetables as I want."

"That's very restrictive."

"I'm used to it."

I sat back as my linguine with cream sauce and grilled chicken was set in front of me. Liam was given a massive salad. I suppose it was possible to fill up on something like that.

I began dividing up my meal, pasta on one side, and chicken on the other. I looked up. Liam was staring at my plate. He raised his gaze and looked at me.

"You eat one thing at a time?" he asked.

"I know. It's a peculiar habit. I've been doing it for as long as I can remember. When I was a kid, I didn't even like when different foods touched. I drove my parents a little crazy at mealtimes."

"I do that too," Liam said. "Eat one thing at a time."

I raised my eyebrows. "Seriously?"

"Since I was a kid."