Ruk Luang Jai

Rawinworakarn, or Bua (Janie Tienphosuwan), the only daughter of the owner of the largest soy sauce factory in Thailand, is shocked out of her mind when she overhears her older brother, Sia Petch (Worarit Fuangarom), talking on the phone with his best friend Run (Theeradej Wongpuapan), the First Secretary of the Thai Embassy in Prague. He is urgently asking Petch to send a woman to Prague!
Run is an older guy Bua has secretly been in love with since childhood, though they haven't seen each other in 12 years. Suspicious, Bua asks her best friend, Cartoon (Celina Pearce), to investigate. They discover the truth: Rommanee (Jariya Anfone), Run's mother, wants him to marry Asamaporn, or Aom (Chotika Wongwilas), the daughter of Permanent Secretary Sing (Sommart Praihirun) and Piangpen (Suangsuda Lawanprasert). Aom is currently traveling to Prague with Rinrada (Sara Legge), Run's younger sister, to get close to him. However, Run isn't ready for marriage, so he needs a woman to act as his fake wife to fool his mother. Anxious and worried that her dream man is about to be stolen away, Bua panics.
Cartoon comes up with a scheme: Bua will go undercover as Run's fake wife. Initially, Bua refuses, fearing it would ruin her family's reputation. However, this coincides perfectly with her mother, Niphapan (Pimpaka Siangsomboon), trying to force her into an arranged marriage with Chatchai (Chokchai Boonworametee), a minister's son. To escape the arranged marriage, Bua agrees to Cartoon's plan. Cartoon gives Bua a complete makeover, transforming her from a high-society lady into a rebellious, wild college student, and renames her "Buarawong." Cartoon then takes Bua to apply at a modeling agency run by Jay Or (Warayut Milintachinda), which is well-known among men for providing high-end escorts (sidelines). Coincidentally, Sia Petch is currently contacting Jay Or to find a woman for Run.
Jay Or accepts Buarawong and immediately ships her off to Run in Prague before Sia Petch even gets a chance to see her face. Thus, he has no idea where his sister has disappeared to. When Run meets Buarawong, he cannot deny that her looks and figure are incredibly seductive, but he forces himself to resist her charms, harboring a deeply negative attitude toward women who sell themselves. Run explains Buarawong's job: she must act convincingly as his lover to make Aom and his sister believe he is genuinely taken.
The one week before Rinrada and Aom arrive in Prague turns out to be the happiest time of Bua's life. She gets to take care of Run in every way—cooking, managing his clothes, and looking after his home—until the two grow close, acting like a real couple. Several times, Run lets his guard down, completely forgetting that she is an escort.
When Rinrada and Aom finally arrive, they are absolutely shocked to discover that Run already has a "wife." The two women immediately view her as an enemy. Deep down, Rinrada doesn't actually hate Buarawong, but she is following strict orders from her mother, Rommanee: she must do whatever it takes to make her brother marry Aom. If she succeeds, Rinrada will be allowed to pursue her master's degree in Prague. Therefore, she teams up with Aom to torment Buarawong and drive a wedge between her and Run.
When Rommanee hears that Run has a wife, she is furious. She desperately needs Run to marry into a wealthy family to save their own, which is plummeting into debt due to her severe gambling addiction. Aom is Rommanee's ideal choice for her son regarding both pedigree and wealth. She immediately begins digging into Buarawong's background.
Meanwhile, with Bua missing from home, Sia Petch, Sia Mongkol (Jakkrit Ammarat), and Niphapan are panicked and try to get information out of Cartoon. Cartoon lies, saying Bua ran away to England to escape the arranged marriage but doesn't know her exact address. In Prague, Bua faces daily, exhausting abuse from Aom and Rinrada. The two women constantly bully her, making her cook, wash clothes, and frequently framing her to make Run misunderstand her. Exhausted, Bua calls Cartoon to fly over and help her fight off the two "evil witches." Cartoon takes urgent leave from work and flies to Prague to help her best friend. This sudden trip makes Sia Petch suspect that Bua might not be in England after all.
As Run spends more time with Bua, he sees more of her loveliness, and the closer they get, the more his heart is drawn to her. Simultaneously, he spends time with Aom to study her personality, only to find that she is incredibly uninteresting and has nothing to offer beyond a pretty face. In stark contrast, Bua is an excellent homemaker, highly knowledgeable, and fluent in English. If he had to choose someone to be the face of a diplomat's wife, Bua wins by a landslide. Unfortunately, she is "Buarawong, the escort." Run often slips up and accidentally lets his heart fall for Bua.
As Run showers Bua with more love and attention, Aom’s jealousy skyrockets. She seizes an opportunity to execute a wicked plan to make Run misunderstand Bua. However, the plan backfires spectacularly. Instead, the incident makes the two understand each other better, leading them to confess their true feelings. Their bond deepens, and they end up becoming intimate, with Buarawong willingly becoming Run’s real wife.
Sia Petch investigates Cartoon's trip and eventually uncovers the truth from Jay Or’s modeling agency: Bua was sent to be Run’s fake wife. Horrified, Sia Petch rushes to Prague, only to discover that his sister has already become Run's actual wife. Furious, he intends to destroy his best friend. However, Bua begs him to stop, explaining that it was completely consensual and that she genuinely loves Run. She pleads with her brother to help eliminate the obstacles to her love: Rinrada and Aom. Seeing his sister's tears, Sia Petch softens and agrees to help by plotting to distract Aom away from Run.
Run is delighted that Sia Petch has come to visit, entirely unaware that his best friend is secretly furious with him. Run introduces Sia Petch to his sister, giving Petch the perfect opportunity for revenge by secretly flirting with Rinrada while simultaneously pretending to be interested in Aom. Sia Petch's plan works brilliantly. Aom, growing tired of Run's indifference and seeing that Sia Petch is incredibly wealthy, immediately shifts her attention to him.
Rinrada, meanwhile, has secretly developed an interest in Sia Petch. However, when she sees him paying attention to Aom, she acts indifferent while secretly seething with jealousy. Sia Petch covertly questions Run about his true feelings for Buarawong. Run admits he loves her but regrets her shady past, explaining that he cannot elevate her to the status of his official wife because his career demands a flawless spouse for his future advancement. Sia Petch leaves him with a thought-provoking question: Does he love her for who she is, or does he love her for her status and pedigree? Run ponders Sia Petch's words and finally arrives at an answer: He loves her, simply because she is Buarawong.
As time passes, Sia Petch realizes his feelings for Rinrada have become genuine. He meets her secretly until she finally softens and confesses her feelings for him. Relieved to see his sister's love life falling into place, Sia Petch decides to return to Thailand first, leaving Bua to reveal her true identity to Run herself. Before leaving, he promises Rinrada that he will have his parents officially ask for her hand in marriage, making her heart soar. Meanwhile, Aom, consumed by resentment and jealousy over Buarawong and Rinrada's successful romances, packs her bags and returns to Thailand.
Rommanee calls Run, falsely claiming she is severely ill and urging him to return to Thailand immediately. Upon arriving, Run discovers the truth: his mother is over 50 million baht in debt. Run is overwhelmed with stress, but eventually, Petch, Bua, and Cartoon pool their money to pay off the debt for him. Cartoon advises Bua to quickly tell Run who she really is so his mother will accept her. Before Bua gets the chance, Rommanee and Aom uncover "evidence" from the modeling agency proving Bua was sold as an escort. Rommanee is livid that her son took an escort as his wife. Run tries to explain that it was Bua's first time, but Rommanee refuses to listen. Aom adds fuel to the fire, claiming that before Bua was Run's girl, she had slept with multiple rich men, including Sia Petch. Run is stunned. Rommanee then forces him to speak to Jay Or on the phone. Jay Or solidifies the lie, confirming that she did indeed send Bua to sleep with Sia Petch.
Bua denies the accusations, claiming she is being framed, and finally tells Run that she is Sia Petch's younger sister. But Run, blinded by fury, refuses to listen to any explanations. Devastated and feeling betrayed by both his best friend and the woman he loves, he banishes Bua from his life, telling her he never wants to see her again. Heartbroken that Run doesn't believe her, Bua leaves him with a shattered heart.
Rinrada is equally devastated upon hearing that Sia Petch is supposedly a womanizer. She swears to never get involved with him again. Aom and Rommanee are thrilled to have finally eliminated Bua from Run's life. Rommanee arranges for her son to formally propose to Aom. Run doesn't object, but Rommanee is left utterly humiliated when Aom's family demands a multi-million baht dowry that she cannot afford. Run then reveals the truth: his family is completely broke. Hearing this, Aom shows her true colors and immediately refuses to marry Run.
Sia Petch desperately tries to contact Rinrada, but she refuses to see him. Eventually, he tracks her down, explains everything, and takes her to meet his family, finally proving that Bua is indeed his younger sister. Rinrada and Sia Petch then hatch a plan to reconcile Run and Bua. Rinrada takes her brother to a fashion show, where he finally comes face-to-face with Bua in her true element: Rawinworakarn, the high-society sister of Sia Petch.
Run is both stunned and overjoyed to see Bua again and finally realizes who she truly is. He apologizes and takes full responsibility for being gullible and believing others over her. But Bua refuses to forgive him, mocking him by saying he only accepts her now because she is a wealthy socialite, implying he is just after her money. Bua kicks Run out of her life, just as he once did to her, and demands he repay the debt they covered for him. Determined, Run sells his house and car to repay the debt, refusing to grovel for reconciliation.
Run returns the check to Bua and heads back to Prague, his heart just as broken as the one Bua is inflicting upon herself. Sia Petch, Rinrada, and Cartoon try to persuade Bua to forgive Run, but to no avail. Finally, a remorseful Rommanee personally comes to apologize to Bua, begging her to forgive Run. She admits she now knows her son loves only Bua, regardless of whether she is Rawinworakarn or Buarawong the sideline girl.
Eventually, Bua's heart softens. She travels to Run in Prague, presenting herself as Buarawong once again. The two promise to love and trust each other for eternity...
Follow the drama "Ruk Luang Jai" (Love Deceives the Heart) every Wednesday and Thursday at 8:30 PM on Channel 3. Premieres Wednesday, August 31st.