Bella could not stop her cheeks from turning pink, which perhaps was her fatal flaw when attempting to remain unaffected by teasing, flirting, or being targeted for any reason. It made her look like she was affected by his words in that way, when she was very much confident going into this meeting that she had no plans to fall victim to whatever men like Mr. Crouch did when they took young women to pubs far away from their homes.

She had a mission.

But then there was alcohol.

"I'll have whatever the Irish usually like to drink around here," she responded, her gaze wandering to the crowd of mostly men who sat around small tables and the bar. "Preferably nothing too strong."

But she was mistaken — every drink was a strong drink for her.