Arielle Immortal Journey (The Immortal Rapture Series Book 5) (34 page)

Eva had a wonderful smile on her face. “Don’t worry Arielle, we have ample time,” she said. “I am having a great time, aren’t you?”

“Yes! It’s amazing,” Gabrielle chimed in. “I wouldn’t trade this experience for all the money in the world.” She laughed. Gabrielle’s
attention shifted from Eva to Arielle. “Marcus asked for us to do
some
horseback riding with his family tomorrow.” Gabrielle’s gaze
roamed over Arielle’s face. “What do you say, Arielle?”

Eva chuckled, and Arielle gazed at Gabby totally stunned. “Well,
when will we ever get the chance again to ride in the sixteenth century?”
She sounded so excited that Arielle tried not to say anything to spoil her
pleasure, so she just smiled tightly.

“I’m going to move around and look for Sebastian,” Arielle said eagerly. “I know that you’ll have no problem in getting some of these gorgeous guys to dance with you and…oops! Here they come now, so I am leaving.” Arielle started to walk away as she saw a couple of
guys approaching Eva and Gabby with wide smiles spread across
their handsome faces. Gabrielle reached over and grabbed Arielle’s wrist, turning her back around.

“What do you think about horseback riding tomorrow? You ride well, Arielle, Please do this for me.” Her voice was full of eagerness, and Arielle couldn’t help but give in.

“Don’t worry, Gabby. Riding will be fine with me. I’m still a
little afraid of horses, but I can hold my own thanks to Sebastian. I’m not going to ruin your pleasure.”

She saw a grateful look in Gabby’s eyes as she released her wrist.
Arielle laughed thinking about Gabby’s obsession with horses. It was but a short moment and then both Gabrielle and Eva were on the dance floor.

Arielle scanned the room filled with women in fabulous silk
gowns and handsome men dressed in their attractive attire. An outlandish
feeling that she had been pulled through the telly screen while
watching
a period film overtook her. She trembled at the thought.
What an extraordinary sensation!
The huge band was creating the most
incredible music. Despite the soothing music and beautiful costumes, Arielle could not control her deep longing to see that one special face. She searched the crowd desperately, but she couldn’t find Sebastian.

Chapter 25

“BEAUTIFUL GIRLS LIKE YOU
should be on the dance floor, not
standing alone.” The soft musical voice caressing her ear was extremely familiar. Her body shivered with desire and a smile
spread across her face. She spun around ready to get lost into Sebastian’s emerald eyes and froze in place. Her smile slowly faded away when her eyes locked with the striking blue eyes and the flawless face belonging to
Gaston. He moved closer and everything about his immortality
poured
over her. He was determined to compel her, using every bit of his immortal power. His gaze was intent, and his eyes pierced right
through to her core. Hot waves washed over every pore of her skin, touching every nerve. She couldn’t understand the undeniable attraction to
him. Their eyes were still locked, and she shivered. His eyes pulled
at
her like a forceful magnet, gravitating her into his arms. He pulled
her
close and she moved into him with pleasure. Their eyes were still
engaged and he had a triumphant look on his face.

“I asked you to save a couple more dances for me, and I’m going
to make sure that you keep your promise.” He watched her carefully
with a self-satisfied smile on his face. She breathed in his splendid immortal scent and momentarily forgot about Sebastian.

Arielle mesmerized Gaston, and he was determined to use every power he possessed to keep her interested in him and him alone. He sensed a special passion in Arielle’s incredible sapphire eyes, and he craved to direct some of that passion toward himself. He moved her away from the dance floor, and out the balcony door to the terrace. He leaned down and brushed his lips against her ear. “I missed you while you were touring the house with the Gaulle brothers.”

Compelled and unaware of her actions, she welcomed his touch.
They continued to walk toward the end of the terrace where they
were
alone in the dark. He pulled her closer into his arms, and she looked up toward the sky. Gaston didn’t want her to look away. He knew that if enough time passed she would be free of his compulsion, so
he cupped her chin with his hand and lowered her face until their gaze locked once again. He sent another large dose of persuasiveness into her. He could see her react to him as desire spread across her body. She appeared ready for him. He bent down and pressed his lips hungrily on hers.

“You taste delicious,” he murmured, and squeezed her tighter.
His kiss didn’t appear to arouse her, but his compulsion made sure that she would be reception to him kissing her again.

“Did you like the house?” he asked.

“It’s quite beautiful,” she replied as if in a haze.

Gaston was unable to explain Arielle’s appeal, but he knew that
by using his immortal power he could have this gorgeous girl to
himself. There was something about Arielle that made him feel complete. He
had never experienced this kind of feeling with another girl, and
Lord knows there had been many.

“Yes, it is quite beautiful. I spend a lot of time here. Anton and Marcus’s younger brother, Sebastian, is my best friend.”

“Is he now?” she asked mechanically, unable to think straight because of the effects of his compulsion.

“Yes, we are great competitors in just about everything we do,” he said, and laughed joyfully. Lost in his own thoughts, he didn’t notice that Arielle had turned her gaze away and was coming out of her fog slowly until she asked, “What do you mean?”

He quickly found her eyes again. “It’s a silly game that Sebastian and I play all the time. We started when we were very young, and it has now grown to bigger and better things.”

“What kind of game?” she asked.

“The game is very interesting, and sometimes there are large
wagers at stake. I place a bet that I can take something that he has, and he bets that he can take away from me something that I have.” He took
a couple deep breaths, and brushed the back of his hand softly
against
her cheek. Arielle remained still. He chuckled between the words of his next statement. “Girls are the best game of all,” he said, smiling sinfully.

A tense silence hung in the air as she regarded him in disbelief. She appeared to be coming out of her haze and refused to meet his eyes.

“I think that’s appalling! Betting on human beings doesn’t say much about your character or Sebastian’s,” she said with a choked voice. She turned on her heels and tried to pull away, but he held her to him, and tried to catch her eyes.

“I’m only joking, Arielle,” he said, amused. “I only wanted to see your reaction,” he added, but she remained silent.

Arielle shuddered from the awareness that she had been
compelled. Sebastian was the only man who was allowed to kiss her the way Gaston had just kissed her.

“There is one thing I’m very sure of,” he said. The smile dropped from his face, and his voice was no longer velvety soft. Her resolve faltered knowing the powers of an immortal. A strong dose of panic rushed in like bile, and she wavered.

“Sebastian will never have a shot with you. I found you first, and
I’m going to keep you. There’ll be no bargains and no negotiations
when it comes to
you
.” Gaston cupped her chin again and forced her
eyes to meet his gaze. She tried to pull away, but his grip was firm and soon she was under his immortal power. He looked excited,
eager, and pulling her closer he bent down and covered her lips with intensity.
She did respond to his kiss, but only because he was compelling her to participate. She shut her eyes, and remained silent. Slowly, she began to regain her faculties again. She let her mind whirl frantically
trying to
find a way to escape this immortal’s command.
God, what is
happening to me?
She was looking for someone to help her out of this incredible situation, and the answer to her prayer came in Eva’s warm voice.

“Arielle, can I see you for a moment?” She spun around still in
Gaston’s arms, and faced Eva with a wild look in her eyes. Relief
surged through her veins, and she swallowed hard. Eva had walked outside looking for her.

Arielle saw Eva dismiss her wild look and smile at Gaston.
“Please excuse my sister for a moment, I need to talk with her.”

Gaston bit back a reply and smiled politely, letting her go. She walked away without looking back. Eva pulled her through the
doors
and together they crossed the dance floor to the other side of the
room. Arielle let out a loud sigh as tears welled up.

“What is it? I felt your anxiety,” Eva said, voice full of concern.

“Eva, I couldn’t resist Gaston,” she said. She felt frightened. “He compelled me to feel unbelievable desire for him. I wanted him to
kiss me, and I was longing for him to hold me, and tell me that I was the
only girl he wanted to be with.” She gasped for air as she was
realizing that his strong hold on her had turned her emotions upside down.
“But the most disturbing part of it all is that I almost forgot
completely about Sebastian until Gaston brought his name up, and even then the sound of his name didn’t stir any passion at all.” Her heart raced and
she felt horrified realizing that Gaston could make her forget the man that she was hopelessly in love with, the man she was planning to marry next year. She held Eva’s hand and looked at her with deep
appreciation for breaking Gaston’s concentration in willing her to his desires.

“What am I going to do if he comes back for me?” She was
having
a hard time breathing knowing that she was dealing with an
immortal. Eva put her arms around her.

“Arielle, Gaston is not going to do anything that will reveal his true identity,” she whispered in her ear. “Remember that in this
century the immortals are being hunted down and killed. He would never take a chance by creating problems for you. Don’t be afraid just be careful, and don’t—look—straight—into—his eyes. An immortal’s willpower
can’t affect anyone unless their eyes are engaged for a reasonable
amount of time.” Eva gave Arielle a reassuring smile. Arielle pressed her hand one more time in appreciation. They talked for a little while longer. Arielle was coming back to her old happy self as she remembered her reason for attending this gala. Her quest was to see Sebastian as a mortal.

Eva and Arielle scanned the dance floor once again and saw Gabrielle dancing. Brandon was back with a drink and they were engaged in a joyful conversation together. Arielle was looking
around desperately to catch a glimpse of Sebastian. They were standing next to a group of young girls who appeared to be in their late teens. They were totally animated, giggling, and whispering to each other. Eva
leaned close to Arielle and said, “They seem to act exactly like we behaved during our own parties.” Arielle laughed and nodded in agreement.

“I guess it makes no difference what century you live in, young girls will always act the same way,” Arielle whispered.

They were still discussing their activities when suddenly the
whispering and giggling stopped. Silence fell among the young
group followed by soft murmurs. Eva, Arielle, and Brandon averted their
gaze to the group wondering what drew the chattering to a stony
silence. They noticed that their eyes were focused toward one of the balcony doors, and soon enough the whispering and the low
giggling
started again. Eva and Arielle followed their gaze and Arielle fell speechless. A roaring wave of passion and desire hit her. All she
wanted was the man that stood in front of that balcony door. Sebastian
wasn’t alone, two young beautiful women were standing on either side of him, and his arms were wrapped around their waists,
holding them tightly against his amazing body. He was stunningly beautiful. His
white shirt was of crisp silk that was gathered in the front and
pinned
with a spectacular broach. His black, narrow jacket hugged his
muscular body like a glove. His cuffs and the neck opening were edged with a single row of silk stitch and silk buttonholes. His pants molded to his muscled thighs and disappeared into knee high, black buckskins. He was faultless, and for Arielle time stood still.

Her thoughts seized and sensation coursed through her skin like fire. After a long, painful moment she realized that she had stopped
breathing all together. She dragged a huge breath and used every
piece of strength she possessed to stop herself from running and falling into his arms.