When she had been young, Renata was forced to be more mature than her age would suggest. Her family was always on high alert.
Damon frowned as he looked at her. If he allowed himself to miss important details just because a seductive woman was sitting on his body, then he would be a fool.
At first glance, the setup looked sexualized on purpose, and that was correct, but not for titillation.
Renata sitting on Damon's thighs was not about desire. It was about control through vulnerability.
She was not trying to sleep with him. She was testing something far more dangerous.
'Can I be close to you without being used?'
Her physical closeness contrasted sharply with her emotional restraint. She pressed her body against him while keeping her emotions at arm's length, and that dissonance was exactly who she was.
This line was the thesis of her existence, its single summary.
"Everything you value is a handle someone else can grab."
