Chapter 65

The tension in the car was suffocating.

Vivian's voice sliced through the storm, sharp as broken glass. "Release me this instant!"

Rain lashed against the windows, her damp hair clinging to pale cheeks that made her look like a drowned kitten. The storm outside mirrored the tempest between them.

Adrian didn't flinch. With one fluid motion, he slammed the car door shut, his glacial stare pinning her in place. "If you're determined to end your miserable existence, pick a cleaner method. Tumbling from a moving vehicle will only leave you broken, not dead. Spare me the inconvenience of dealing with your mangled remains."

Her laugh was bitter. "How considerate, Mr. Blackwood. Once those divorce papers are signed, my wellbeing won't concern you - whether I'm whole or in pieces."

Something dangerous flickered in his eyes. Before she could react, his mouth crashed against hers in a punishing kiss, swallowing her gasp of outrage.

Ethan's grip tightened on the steering wheel. Without missing a beat, he activated the privacy partition, sealing the warring couple in their velvet-lined battlefield.

The kiss was all teeth and dominance, Adrian's hands like steel bands around her wrists. Vivian twisted against him, humiliation burning through her veins. After two years of marriage, this was the closest they'd ever been - and it tasted like punishment.

She remembered the silk negligee she'd bought during their first month together, the way it had ended up in the trash bin by dawn. The discreet doctor's visit that confirmed her worst fear - her husband's revulsion was personal, not physical.

Now, on the precipice of freedom, he'd suddenly developed the appetite of a starved man. His lips moved with bruising intensity, his body pressing her into the leather seats. The scent of rain and her jasmine perfume seemed to intoxicate him, his grip shifting from restraint to possession.

Vivian bit down hard.

Adrian jerked back, a droplet of blood blooming on his lower lip. His eyes darkened with something primal. "You'll pay for that."

"Try me," she spat, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "I'm not your obedient little wife anymore."

A dangerous smile curved his lips as he reached for her again. This time, his touch was different - deliberate, almost tender. His thumb brushed the pulse point at her wrist, feeling it leap beneath his fingers.

The contradiction made her breath hitch.

When his mouth found hers again, the kiss transformed. No longer about punishment, but something far more dangerous. His tongue traced the seam of her lips with devastating patience, waiting for her surrender.

Against her will, her body remembered what her mind refused to acknowledge - this was the man she'd loved desperately for years. A soft sound escaped her throat, barely audible over the rain.

Adrian made a rough noise of satisfaction, his hands sliding up to cradle her face. The gentleness was worse than violence. It unraveled her defenses, made her fingers clutch at his shirt instead of pushing him away.

The partition remained firmly closed as the car sped through the storm, carrying them toward an uncertain future. Outside, lightning split the sky - a perfect metaphor for the electricity crackling between them.

Neither noticed when the rain stopped.