"Hey, is everything all right?" Emilia looked at the girl eating beside her.
Mimi took a bite of the French roasted potato and tilted her head.
"Hmm? Why do you ask?" She said through chews.
"You seemed a little down after you came back. Did something happen?"
Mimi swallowed and could not contain the teasing smile on her lips.
She snickered, laughed naughtily, and said to her, "Oh? How thoughtful of you for paying such close attention to me. You know doll face, I'm starting to believe more and more you're falling in love with me."
Emilia had a cynical expression on her face, the kind that showed total disbelief to what she had said.
Through gritted teeth, she seethed. "Andras, you idiot! Stop spewing such ridiculous, perverted nonsense!"
Mimi gave her a wicked look and cunningly smiled with an eyebrow raised.
"Why? Am I wrong? How could I be, especially after the last farewell you gave me?"
Hearing these words, Emilia stiffened. She recalled the last they saw one another. They were at the mall when that strange man suddenly appeared, and before she left, she had kissed Mimi on the cheek.
However, that had all been innocent! She merely did that out of worry for Mimi! With the way the man was staring at her, she was afraid he'd eat her up!
Furious, her delicate face burned red.
"You…shut up!" She snapped, lightly hitting Mimi on the arm.
In return, Mimi laughed. At the same time, Louis Yimo - Emilia's father, approached the two with raised brows.
"What's so funny?" He turned to look at his daughter's face and quickly came to an understanding.
He sighed with regret. "It's a shame you two aren't interested in one another. If I didn't know any better, I would think you were already together. After all, you're the only one who can make my daughter look redder than a tomato."
"Daddy!" Emilia retorted ferociously, her face burning even brighter.
"I wouldn't be too disappointed, Mr. Yimo. The chances of your daughter falling in love with me are higher than you think."
"Andras!"
Emilia couldn't refute her words to be false as her father was unaware of Mimi's gender. All she could do was listen to their teasing while hiding her face, even as she died a little on the inside. Mimi and Louis laughed at the red-faced Emilia.
One hour into the night, a sudden commotion appeared.
The Hirogori family had arrived.
Sitting at their assigned table, Mimi turned her head in the direction of the commotion. Her face turned somewhat overcast.
The entire Hirogori family walked into the building, their aura filled with arrogance and intimating authority.
Intertwined tightly onto his arm was his third wife, Lillian Hirogori. Her body was curved in all the right places and dressed in very thin clothing that exposed her large bosom. She leaned into Henry Hirogori's body, her alluring eyes looking highly coquettish.
Standing at his side was Kenji Hirogori. Like his father, he bore a face as cold as stone. Indifferent to everything and everyone within his sight.
He radiated power.
Meanwhile, on the other side was Alec and Seth, both appearing unresponsive to the gazes on them. Although Seth could hardly hide the slight gloom in his eyes.
Mimi could assume he got into a fight with her father before their arrival. While she studied the family for a few moments, she suddenly heard a startled gasp beside her.
Looking at the golden beauty beside her, Mimi's brows furrowed. Emilia's father also seemed to notice her reaction and looked at his daughter with concern.
"What is it, sweet pea?"
Realizing she had reacted loudly, Emilia covered her mouth before looking at her father with a smile.
"Nothing daddy. I was just a little surprised that's all."
Louis Yimo hummed and looked in the Hirogori family's direction.
"Mm, they're a rather intimidating family, aren't they?"
Unable to deny it, Emilia bobbed her head in agreement. Her father chuckled and patted her head gently.
"Don't worry, with the route you're going in I doubt you'll ever encounter people like them. If you do, you have your father to support you."
Touched by the unexpected words, Emilia's cheeks grew warm as she once again nodded her head. Lowering her head, Emilia quietly stole a glance at the Hirogori family before looking at Mimi.
She leaned over to Mimi and in a low voice whispered, "Mimi, isn't that man with the Hirogori family the one we saw at the mall?"
"Hmm?" While chewing on her food, Mimi jerked her head in the direction of the Hirogori family.
As Emilia said, standing beside her father and Lillian was none other than Shen Jue. She suddenly burst into a fit of coughing, causing a few important eyes to turn in her direction, including Henry Hirogori.
"Andras, are you all right?" Startled, Emilia looked at her with concern.
Mimi covered her coughing with one hand and reached for the glass of water across from her. Pouring the water down her throat, Mimi cleared her throat to suddenly feel a chill run down her spine.
Glancing up, Mimi was met with a pair of dark, penetrating eyes.
Henry Hirogori was now staring at her.
There was an unprecedented shock reflected on Mimi's face. She widened her eyes as her face turned stiff and she was lost in a daze. Only after a long time did she recover her voice. She looked back to Emilia, a smile on her face.
"I'm all right. I guess I just forgot to chew properly."
Emilia huffed. "Jeez, you should slow down when you're eating. I swear you'll choke to death one day."
"Haha, I'll keep that in mind." Mimi scratched the back of her head.
As the matter settled, Emilia turned back to look at her father. The instant Emilia turned her back to her, Mimi's expression turned cloudy. Taking a sip of her water, she secretly stole a glance in the Hirogori's direction.
They were currently surrounded by a few businessmen. On the side, Shen Jue was quietly smiling. Mimi was in utter disbelief at everything that had happened in an instant.
What was going on?
Why was Shen Jue with her father? Wasn't he supposed to be working behind the scenes for their plan to work?
These turn of events caused Mimi's mood to darken. Beneath the table, Mimi's hands were trembling with force from her anger.
For a brief moment, while everyone was talking, Shen Jue's eyes shifted in her direction. The moment his eyes met hers, his smile widened before he looked back at her father.
Mimi frowned slightly. What was that?
While Mimi was in the midst of her thoughts, she had missed the cold pair of eyes on her.