Midnight Silpper

Chapter 15

Zayne,

Rage.

The violent whirling of the black emotion, simmered in the core of my being, until it consumed me, drowning me, until I was seeing red. I glared down at the woman who had eluded me for twelve goddamn years. Did she think I wouldn't know that she'd be at Riley's wedding?

Who did she think convinced Riley to ensure that she'd be here?

While I was tempted to give in to the darkness within me, I knew that it would serve no purpose here, because Adrienne wouldn't give me the answers I sought if I threatened her for them. A silent war waged within, between crushing the woman in front of me and fucking the answers out of her. Either one was suitable, but I remained still, shoving my hands into my the pockets of my slacks so I wasn't tempted to pull Adrienne against me.

My gaze silently roamed the length of her body, cataloging all of the changes in her. She was stunning. Her dark, voluminous, long hair flowed down to her ass, in a straight waterfall, highlighting its delectable curvature. Her dress clung to her, highlighting her figure. She was still as athletically toned as she was in high school and her features were even more exotic as a woman. She was no longer the young girl from years before, but instead in her place was a woman who had seen some shit in her life.

It was the same look of someone who had been on the brink of such damage to their psyche that you'd consider whether they were capable of coming back from the precipice. Somehow, not only did Adrienne decide to pull herself back from the edge, but she had used it as her secondary armor, shielding herself from the idiocy in this world that was determined to break her down.

She had successfully accomplished what I had failed to do for so many years.

While my own damaged past had broken me and turned me into the monster that I was, so unfeeling and unsympathetic to many who regarded me, Adrienne had taken her pain and her injustice done to her and turned it into her shield. She had somehow transmuted it, until it became a part of her. It was clear that she had battled through life's disillusionment to find some sort of inner peace, when many would have given up and possibly off'd themselves.

Adrienne hadn't.

It was actually quite astounding and I had to admit I was impressed that she had managed to endure it all and still come out as a functioning member of society, let alone a functioning human being with friends. You would think someone who had experienced what she had, would've hidden herself away from the rest of the world.

Everything about her looked fierce and it echoed in the blue-gray gaze of hers, an unimpressed glare directed my way. Her bronze-tanned complexion remained the same and her full lips looked even more succulent than I remembered. If anything, her exotic features looked even more pronounced and I could even admire the cleavage of her generous breasts, exposed by the deep V-neck of her dress.

The dress clung to her body like a second skin, before it flared out to the floor in a mermaid style, showing off her model-figure. She was absolutely stunning and I had a hard time keeping my gaze off of her, if it wasn't for the roiling anger. She was toned and lean, evidence that she worked out. At twenty-eight years old, she had grown into a sensually-alluring woman, which made nearly every man at the reception wanting to risk it all.

Which only drove to piss me off further.

She shouldn't have even been wearing that damn dress. It highlighted all of the provocative angles on her. The sight of it on her had me wanting to rip it to shreds, wishing I could fuck her into oblivion, bury myself in her cunt—