Page 4 of Overdosed: Her Dark Side
It can’t be.
Icy chills ran down my back as my gaze met hers.
I prayed to God, unsure whether I believed in His existence, to help me find her or at least give me a chance to talk to her one more time. It seemed like my prayers had just been answered.
My eyes narrowed as I scrutinized the dark-haired woman. She slowly, sultrily took off the Venetian mask as if making sure I would recognize her.
Doesn’t she know that I’d recognize her with closed eyes from the farthest corner of the world?
I knew every inch of her body, every millimeter of her face, by heart. No matter the fact that her perfect, soft skin was one shade darker than I remembered. Despite that her long platinum waves were now chocolate brown, cascading down her shoulders. But her eyes… the beautiful, deepest shade of onyx hadn’t changed a bit. The corner of her soft lips quirked into a definite, one-sided grin, but her gaze remained emotionless and calm, disturbingly calm. In that moment … the world stopped turning. It felt surreal to gaze into her eyes, finally, after three long years. And her smile… that smile brought back a million memories.
She kept staring at me, smirking the entire time, alluringly. Fuck, she was stunning, like a goddess, with what I would call a dark feminine energy that rendered her irresistible.
All the beauty from the entire universe could not compete with her. In my eyes, she was perfect. I blamed love for making me this way. Love made us blind. Love made us see no one but the person we adored. And without a doubt, I still loved her. And now, the sight of Melanie… fuck, for a second, I forgot about the pain, the unbearable three years of insane, excruciating pain after she left with no word. As she started walking in my direction, seductively swaying her hips in a perfect rhythm to the clicking of her heels that echoed in my ears, I forgot about the past, the pain, everything. I let myself believe that it was over now, that the three years of agony had just come to an end. It didn’t take more than a minute to make me realize how wrong I was.
TWO
Melanie
Three years. It had been three years since I last set foot in New York. The city I went to for love. The city where I spent some of the most beautiful moments of my life. The city where I experienced the most devastating heartbreak. I sat in the leather backseat of a luxurious limo, gliding through the glistening streets of the city that never slept. I stared numbly through the tinted window. My eyes were fixed on the passing landscape, yet I only saw the images of him… of us together. The mere thought of him made my body shiver. The thought of actually meeting him was even worse. My stomach was tied in a knot.
How will he react when he sees me?
What if I want to throw myself into his arms when I see him?
Three years. Supposedly enough time to forget. Enough time to fill my heart with hatred. Yet I still couldn’t forget his face. I couldn’t forget the way my heart used to skip a beat whenever I saw him. I could swear whenever I closed my eyes, I could still feel his touch lingering on my skin. How his fingertips teasingly brushed over my bare skin. The way his lips felt against mine. I saw him, and I felt him in every second of my existence.
Goddammit. I shook my head to clear it. I tried to dispel the haunting thoughts of the man I was supposed to loathe. I glanced past the driver’s arm and through the front window. We’d arrived. I squeezed my purse in my hands and took a deep breath. Collecting my strength.
“Miss.” The driver opened the door, offering his hand to assist me.
“Thank you.” I smiled softly.
The car door slammed shut. I tossed my thick, dark waves, adjusting the Venetian mask adorning my face. Its ruby-red shade matched the high-split dress with a brush train and sequined see-through sleeves. My choice of attire was not by chance. On the contrary. It was meticulously planned. Red symbolizes blood and peril. Like the dangerous game I was about to begin this evening. It was also a color of passion and sexuality. I wanted to exude the aura of a seductress. A temptress. A strong, independent woman who could have any man falling at her feet. I wanted to command attention. Especially his. To reignite the fiery passion that was running high while we were together. Remind him that I was once a rose that had awoken an insatiable lust within him. Maybe he had not loved me, but I was sure, in his twisted, possessive way, he lusted after me. I wanted to use that against him.
I swayed through a dazzling ballroom. The venue was breathtaking, decorated with shimmering ornaments in black and gold shades. All the influential, filthy rich figures one could think of were present. All dressed up, their faces disguised under enigmatic Venetian masks. My gaze wandered around in search of that one special person whose sight could stop me in my tracks. Stop the world from turning around. Him. Shane Vergoossen. The man who I hated with every fiber in my body. The man who still owned my heart.
Then my eyes met his, and my heart stopped beating. It became harder to breathe. The world around me seemed to freeze. He was there. Just a few steps away from me. His deep ocean-blue eyes were still as hypnotizing. I kept glancing back at him, tilting my head just enough to steal glimpses from over my shoulder. He was surrounded by his family, but I could only focus on him. I only saw him. He looked exactly like that night when he crashed my engagement party. Still so dangerous. So irresistibly handsome. In an instant, all the memories came crashing back. If it wasn’t for Shane, I might’ve ended up marrying a man I didn’t love—a man chosen for me by my father, a man who had been cheating on me with my friend. Shane said he was my savior that night. In a way, he was. What a shame his intentions weren’t genuine, and he turned out to be the villain of the story instead—my undoing, my personal kryptonite.
I took another look at him. Forget what I said. He was way more alluring than I remembered. How could someone be so perfect? How could such a dark, devilish man be so heavenly?
I noticed a dark stubble he didn’t have before. It suited him.
Focus, Melanie.
Never breaking eye contact, I walked towards him. My moves were slow and sultry. Seductive. He stood still as if mesmerized. His gaze was stuck on me. His expression was unreadable. Nothing new. This man had always been like a mystery to me. An unsolved puzzle. An impossible-to-decode enigma. I’d die to know what was running through his mind. Certainly, he was surprised to see me. Did his heart skip a beat like mine did? Or perhaps, he was glad his catch came straight to the devil’s claws. His enemy’s daughter. His target. A task gone wrong.
Finally, I reached them. The Vergoossens. My heart rumbled like a hummingbird. I thought it would tear my bones and spring out of my chest. The anxiety was hard to bear. But I tried to keep a poker face. Not to show even a trace of emotions. I smiled mischievously, watching all of their faces go snow-white pale.
Except for Anders’ face, his lips quirked into a satisfied grin.
“Mom. Dad. Aaliyah, my lovely sister,” Anders said as I reached his side. He reached for my hand, his eyes glimmering with twisted triumph. I was the trophy he desperately wanted to shove into his brother’s face. “Shane,” he said last. A menacing grin twisted his bow-shaped lips. His hazel eyes fixed on his brother. “Let me introduce my fiancée.” Anders threw an arm around my waist, pulling me close.
Shane’s teeth gritted. His temples pulsated. “Is this some goddamn joke?” His low voice sent a shiver down my spine. His gaze bounced between his brother and me.
“Joke?” Anders’ tone couldn’t have sounded more sarcastic. “Did you hear that, babe?” He stressed the pet name.
Shane’s gaze turned black. Wrathful. His gaze followed Anders’ hand moving lower on my body. Another shiver swept my body.
