She’s 33 now. Grooming permanently damage her or could she just be legit in love with him today? Or even if so were other opportunities potential stolen from her, or what’s y’alls take?
Possibly all of the above. If I were in her shoes I'd have probably taken the deal as well. Guaranteed all-expenses scholarship in your chosen field, followed afterward by a train of effectively infinite money coupled with political power? And in return she just has to give this old man the occasional shag? It's honestly not a bad deal.
Make no mistake though, she is a victim here. Even if she may have profited off it the fact remains that she was groomed by a middle aged man while in high school and was extremely likely coerced into this relationship, either by offers or by threats or most likely some combination of both. A Faustian deal was struck here, where the opportunity for a regular loving family was given up in exchange for power, but it's not clear to me how much choice was given to her in this deal.