Then something unexpected happened. Seraphine smiled.
The quiet curve of her lips appeared so suddenly that Ravyn's confidence faltered for the briefest moment, because the reaction was nothing like what he had predicted.
Instead of fear or humiliation, her expression carried a strange composure that stirred an uneasy feeling in his chest while he watched her closely.
And for the first time since this confrontation began, Ravyn felt the unsettling suspicion that the situation might not unfold exactly the way he expected.
Seraphine had already planted the trap for Ravyn long before this night ever began, and the quiet satisfaction of knowing that every step he took from this moment forward would lead him closer to his own destruction gave her a strange sense of calm that steadied her nerves even in a room filled with powerful men who believed they controlled the world.
