?


    "Anyway, intimacy is important for women. Ack of a good sex life can mess with your hormones," Vrie warned.


    N mulled over her words. There might be some truth to it, though she wasn''t entirely convinced.


    "But he''s so busy... I don''t want to add to his stress," she replied.


    "Stress? Please. It''s not stress, it''s bonding. It''s the most direct way for you two to connect," Vrie said matter-of-factly.


    "Fine..." N relented.


    Vrie raised an eyebrow, refusing to back down despite N''sck of enthusiasm. "Let''s eat quickly, and then we''ll go shopping. We''re getting some clothes."


    Before long, Vrie had dragged N into a boutique specializing in lingerie-and not the ordinary kind.


    Vrie selected a set and held it up against N, grinning. "This one is perfect for you."


    N nced at the sheer fabric in Vrie''s hands. The material was practically transparent, covering only the bare essentials. Her face flushed bright red.


    She walked over and whispered, "Vrie, we don''t need this. Let''s go look at coats instead."


    Just imagining herself wearing this in front of Damon made her want to dig a hole and hide in it, overwhelmed by embarrassment.


    Vrie raised an eyebrow but refrained from teasing her further. Turning to the sales assistant, she said, "I''ll take this one in size S, please."


    After paying with her card, Vrie took the bag from the sales assistant and smoothly pulled N out of the shop.


    It took more than ten meters before N could breathe a sigh of relief.


    The mall was huge, but she was still worried about bumping into someone she knew. That would be awkward!


    Vrie couldn''t help but tease her. "Why are you acting like you''ve got something to hide?"


    N red at her. "Well, thanks for taking me to that kind of boutique."


    "What kind of boutique? Please, are you from thest century? This is normal now," Vrie replied.


    "As if you have tons of experience..." N muttered.


    Vrie scoffed. "Not like I haven''t seen things. Besides, it''s about entertaining both the other person and yourself. If you don''t want to wear it, just have Damon wear it."


    N nearly choked. Asking Damon to wear lingerie? Right, unless she was tired of living.


    Despite herself, certain images


    shed in her mind-images she definitely didn''t want to entertain.


    She quickly shook her head, trying to dispel the disturbing thoughts.


    "Are we still shopping or not?" she asked, trying to steer the conversation elsewhere.


    Vrie grinned. "Nope, let''s go."


    Back at the vi, Vrie handed N the lingerie. "Here. It''s yours. The rest is up to you."


    N instinctively wanted to reject it, but Vrie shoved the bag into her hands. "I can''t fit a size S, and this was over 700 dors."


    N''s eyes widened. Just a few pieces of sheer fabric, and it cost over 700 dors? They might as well have just robbed her... "Can we return it?" she asked, shocked.


    "How''s that possible? Just take it. Not like I''m asking you to wear it right now. You''ll know when the timing is right. And if you really don''t want to wear it, just toss it," Vrie assured her.


    "Fine..." N replied, resigned.


    When she entered the vi, she felt like she was carrying a ticking time bomb.


    As soon as N stepped into the living room, however, she froze.


    Damon was sitting on the couch, reviewing some documents.


    rmed, she instinctively hid the bag behind her.


    Damon nced up just in time to catch her frantic movement. He raised an eyebrow and asked, "What''s that you''re hiding?"