In the few seconds Keith spent "explaining," Elinalise swept her gaze around the room, then locked unerringly onto their table.
Or, more precisely, onto Cui Ciyou's handsome, aloof face, which stood out far too much in the tavern.
Oh my? What a... rare, exotic catch.
Black hair and black eyes... That pure, restrained air of youth makes him a prize I've never tasted before.
An undisguised, burning gleam instantly flared in Elinalise's emerald eyes, as though she had discovered the finest prey.
She licked her full, scarlet lips.
Then she stepped forward on her long legs, swaying her slender waist in a way that set pulses racing.
She walked straight toward Cui Ciyou's table.
"Hey! You old woman! What do you think you're doing?!"
Alice noticed the predatory gaze she had fixed on Cui Ciyou almost immediately.
She slammed a hand on the table and sprang from her seat!
Like a young lioness whose territory had been invaded, she planted herself in front of Cui Ciyou.
Her fiery eyes glared fiercely at Elinalise as she approached.
"Hehe, where did this little redheaded girl come from? Such a temper."
Elinalise looked at Alice, who stood blocking her path.
She studied the... well... girl hovering somewhere between childhood and adolescence.
Rather than getting angry, she seemed amused and let out a coquettish laugh that rang like silver bells.
"Little girl, all I want..."
"Is to have a nice chat with the handsome young man behind you about the deeper questions of 'life.'"
"So don't interrupt us!"
As she spoke, Elinalise even cast Cui Ciyou a flirtatious wink.
Her mature, seductive air was enough to unsettle any man without sufficient self-control.
"You!" Alice's pretty face flushed bright red with anger at her frivolous behavior.
"Stay away from Ciyou! He's my... my... fiancé!"
In