Dangers of a Saint || Ryeji

11

The events following the dance were more of a blur for Ryujin.

She almost felt as if she was floating after she separated from Yeji but she kept her composure as much as she could. The incident with Henry was long forgotten when Elizabeth approached them. As promised, Ryujin introduced Yeji to her grandmother and they sat with her over dinner along with Elizabeth's friends. Lydia was there as well and Yeji couldn't stop herself from blushing since the Kingstons didn't miss the opportunity to compliment her. They obviously liked her and their thrilled reactions flattered Yeji greatly when she told them that she owned a café racer. Ryujin admired the cat-eyed woman's honesty instead of worrying about the expectations of the people around them.

Ryujin was also proved wrong when Yeji seemed to be actually enjoying the lusciousness of her dinner and the experience itself. She seemed to be getting along well with Ryujin's family and Elizabeth's friends appeared to be enthralled by the cat-eyed woman's charisma too.

Every once in a while, Ryujin would steal a glance from Yeji just to check on her if she was somehow showing signs of discomfort with the questions being asked by the people at their table as they tried to get to know her better. Instead,  she witnessed her shivering. Ryujin ignored it at first, assuming that she would probably be warmed up later on when they were served with tea or coffee. However, before they could even get to the main course, the hair on Yeji's arm visibly stood up, followed by a shudder that she tried to hide by chuckling. It was too late though. Ryujin already saw it.

Without giving it too much of a thought, the billionaire subtly leaned forward to slip her blazer off before wrapping it around Yeji's frame. Luckily, Lydia was talking and the gesture went unnoticed. Ryujin saw Elizabeth looking at her suspiciously but she chose to ignore it, anticipating a conversation later about the particular act of kindness.

"Thank you," Yeji said shyly, failing to meet Ryujin's eyes with her flushed cheeks.

After dinner, the guests were given the privilege to do whatever they wanted. Some came back to the dance hall, some stayed at their tables to converse with each other, while some headed to the bar just like Ryujin and Yeji did. As usual, they got their glasses of whiskey.

"I really liked the Amaretto Sour that you made when you invited us for dinner," Yeji said before taking a quick sip from her drink.

"Why didn't you get one?"

"Aren't you afraid that someone will make it better than you?"

Ryujin chuckled, bringing the glass up to her lips. "I'm confident that I'm the best with what I do."

Yeji tugged on the billionaire's blazer that still hung around her shoulders. "Did you work as a bartender?"

Ryujin shook her head. "I used to party a lot before. When I went to the university, I stopped so I could focus on studying but I still craved the taste of liquor so I learned how to make the best ones myself."

"You're that type of person—the one who only goes to parties for the drinks."

"You wouldn't want to know." Ryujin's eyes traveled around the room and saw a group of people coming. She wasn't exactly in the mood to be stuck in a crowd now. "Come on. I'll show you something."

With their drinks in hand, Ryujin led Yeji to the back of the manor, which was a more secluded area, until they reached a flight of stairs that had red velvet stanchions blocking the first step. Ryujin lifted it up before stepping aside to give Yeji space to go first.

"I'm not even going to ask if you're allowed to do that," the cat-eyed woman said while chuckling before climbing the stairs.

Moments later, Ryujin was watching Yeji from behind as she rushed towards the spacious balcony that gave a panoramic view of an enormous hedge maze as the full moon granted a dreamy light to the labyrinth.