3
Claire.
I took my time getting dressed.
Not because I was trying to impress anyone. I wasn’t. But I needed to feel like I had control over something. I needed to remember who I was before my legs had trembled in a pool, before I whispered I want you to a man I wasn’t allowed to want. Before his fingers made me come beneath the surface like it was nothing.
I wore the navy dress Daniel always complimented. The one with the thigh-high slit that fluttered when I walked. The neckline dipped just low enough to expose an inhuman amount of cleavage. I curled my hair. I chose a dark red lipstick and sprayed on the perfume I used to save for anniversaries.
I told myself it was for me. A reminder that I still belonged to myself, but when I stepped into the dining room and Julian looked at me
