Arielle Immortal Struggle (The Immortal Rapture Series Book 7) (33 page)

Arielle knew that Gabby had him hot and bothered, especially when they heard his soft moan. Immortals were sexually oriented creatures with a very short fuse. In this room, there were only two humans and four immortals, so it was no surprise that Gabrielle would have to move away from Troy quickly.

“Why couldn’t you tell me about Paris and the fact that you prearranged this with Sebastian?” Gabrielle asked with glittering eyes.

“I wanted it to be a surprise, and from what I saw, it really was,” he laughed softly and coughed a couple times, trying to clear his throat. He pushed Gabrielle gently, trying to nudge her off of his lap, but she seemed to enjoy his difficulty. She wouldn’t budge.

Arielle now couldn’t hold back laughter and Eva joined her. Troy put his arms around Gabrielle and lifted her into his embrace. He rose to his feet, put her down, and pressed his lips on hers.

“You need to stop,” he whispered. Gabby laughed with delight.

She left his embrace and walked over to where Arielle and Eva were sitting. Troy’s face was flushed, trying to suppress his wolfish grin. The guys exchanged amused glances.

Gabrielle’s eyes glimmered; her gaze fixed on Troy’s face. “Chicken…” she whispered, and they all laughed again.

Troy’s eyebrows furrowed. “Payback is hell,” Troy said, his voice shaky.

“Promises…Promises…” she murmured and turned to take a seat. She was startled as Troy moved in his immortal speed, lifted her into his arms, and walked to the door.

“I guess we have to discuss this now,” he said with amusement. Arielle saw Gabrielle’s shocked face.

“No…no…no…I was only joking,” they heard her say.

“Who is chicken now?” he chuckled.

“Sorry, I was only joking,” she said again, a bit embarrassed.

“You promise no more smart remarks?” He was now completely amused with her.

“Yes…yes, I promise.” He put her down and held her into his arms, locking them into a hot kiss. Gabby blushed, a little shaken up. Troy put his arm around her waist and drew her back towards their friends. Arielle could still hear Ian and Sebastian trying to hold back laughter.

“Lessons learned,” Ian said, lovingly at Eva.

“Well, are we all done here?” Arielle asked, trying to bring the conversation back to normal. She stood up and asked Eva and Gabrielle to follow her out of the room, while the guys turned the telly onto a sports station.

“How did you like Faubourg Saint-Honore district?” they heard Eva asking.

“Have you been there?” Arielle asked, surprised.

“Yes, I went with Ian a few times, and I must say the gowns are amazing, but I’m still going to manifest my wedding gown and your dresses for my wedding, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh…no, not at all. We loved what you did for us on my birthday so I am sure whatever you manifest for us will be amazing, right, Gabby?” Arielle asked, glancing toward Gabby’s direction.

“No disagreement here,” Gabrielle replied with a smile.

“Eva, you have to come with us next time, even though you’ve been there before. It won’t feel right if the three of us aren’t together.”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” The corners of her mouth lifted into a furtive smile.

“Great,” Arielle said and proceeded to tell her about all the designers they met and how amazing their bridal gowns were. Eva seemed pleased to see both them so excited.

“When do you want to go?” Arielle asked.

“How about the weekend after next?” Gabby chimed in. “I have a couple of tests this week coming up and one the week after.”

“That’ll work for me as well,” Eva said.

“Okay, I’ll talk to Loren and Sebastian so they can make the arrangements for us.”

Chapter 22

ARIELLE, GABRIELLE, AND EVA
had made an agreement that they would stay away from their guys for a whole week before their wedding day. This was something they thought would be fun and it would make their honeymoon more exciting. The week before Eva was to be married, she moved in with her mother. Arielle and Gabby were sure that it would be a very difficult adjustment for Eva.

Eating wasn’t something Eva or Ian enjoyed doing since becoming an immortal. Ian’s family flew in from Germany for the ceremony and they were staying with Ian at their house. Ian was unable to keep salve in the house, afraid that his parents would wonder about the strange substance, so they moved Ian’s supply to Gabby’s house and Eva’s supply to Arielle’s house to keep them from running into each other before the wedding day. Gabrielle and Arielle were sure that this separation was hard on both of them, but an agreement was an agreement, and they were going to honor it. They were very familiar with the way immortals loved and that powerful encounters were part of their existence.

Eva’s wedding dress was absolutely amazing. The beautiful strapless, bone color silk gown was to die for. It was magnificently decorated with roses and jewels. Her veil was trimmed with diamonds. The train was several yards long. She looked just like a princess — stunningly beautiful. Gabrielle, Loren, and Arielle wore the dresses she manifested for them, and they did love them. They were also strapless, made out of rich, shiny blue taffeta trimmed with floral designed lace and tastefully decorated with jewels.

The day of the wedding was thought to be the most important day in Eva and Ian’s lives and a joyous one for their friends and family.

They all arrived at the church in plenty of time for dress and makeup. There were rooms designated for the bride and the groom. The wedding dress and the tuxedos had been delivered the day before and were placed in the rooms, creating a lax atmosphere.

The hour after their arrival was busy in the bridal room. The girls wore their fabulous dresses and then helped Eva with her wedding dress, veil, makeup, and hair. She was so perfect that Gabrielle and Arielle were speechless. She was just like a porcelain doll, stunningly gorgeous.

“Good God! Eva, you are spectacular!” Arielle cried out in excitement. Eva gazed in the full-length mirror and blissfully laughed out loud.

“How about you!” Eva said, gazing at the three of them and pointing at the exquisite dresses she manifested for them. They were lovely, especially Loren who had that special immortal appearance. Gabby glanced at Eva and then averted her gaze to Arielle, holding a playful smile.

“What?” Eva asked.

“A far cry from the girl on the beach searching for the bottom of her bathing suit,” Gabby said. Her voice was breaking with laughter, which sent Eva and Arielle into heartfelt laughter.

Loren watched them clueless, unable to grasp the joke. They took a moment to explain and soon she was laughing with them. When they finally stopped laughing, Eva made sure the girls’ appearances were perfect before making some final adjustments to her dress.

Ian was already waiting at the altar with Troy, Sebastian, and Paul lined to his left side, waiting for the bride. Loren was the first to walk down the aisle. This was the first time she was asked to be in a wedding and she seemed to be glowing with pleasure.

Gabrielle was next and Arielle was right behind her. Her eyes fell on the four men standing at the altar next to each other and her breath held in her throat. She gasped quietly. They were all striking. She knew that every female eye inside the church was locked on them. Sebastian’s eyes immediately fastened on Arielle and she saw his lips quirk in that smile that made her heart beat faster. He was the type of a man whose presence would suspend discussions. She felt so completely happy as she kept her eyes on him. She couldn’t believe that this man was hers to love for eternity. He seemed like a fabrication of her imagination. He was rich, distinguished, and outright imaginary.

She took her place next to Gabby, and shortly after that, she heard the bridal music. Everyone’s eyes turned to the entrance. Eva walked in on her uncle’s arm, and both Gabrielle and Arielle gasped out loud. Tears welled up and they reached for each other’s hand. Their gasps were loud enough for the guys and a few of the guests at the front row to turn and stare at them.

Arielle felt a lump climbing slowly up her throat. Eva’s uncle was the twin of Mr. Winters, and it was as if her father had come back to life to walk her down the aisle. Both Gabby and Arielle gulped and tried to control their emotions. They noticed Sebastian and Troy’s concerned looks. Eva was an angel as her immortal face was flawless and her body was that of a goddess. Ian’s eyes were sparkling and his stunning immortal face was jubilant.

The church was charmingly decorated, the flowers were amazing, and the ceremony was lovely. Their vows were so warm and affectionate that Gabrielle and Arielle became quite emotional. When Ian and Eva were pronounced husband and wife, they locked each other into a loving kiss, and with big smiles, they took each other’s hand and walked out beaming from exuberant pleasure. Troy was next. He took Gabrielle’s hand tenderly and walked toward the exit followed by Paul with Loren and Sebastian with Arielle.

“You are stunningly beautiful,” Sebastian murmured.

“I was just about ready to say the same thing to you,” Arielle said. Their eyes locked, and the curve of his lips deepened, and she felt surrounded by his strength.

“What happened in there with you and Gabrielle?” he asked.

“Sebastian, we almost lost it when we saw Eva walk in with her father’s brother by her side. It almost seemed that Mr. Winters was walking Eva down the aisle.”

He leaned over and gave her a peck on the cheek, squeezing her softly. “I love you, Arielle, and I can’t wait to make you my wife. Your compassion for people is astounding to me, and that is one of the so many qualities I love about you.”

“You do know that every girl here would love to be with you, don’t you?” she whispered in his ear with a soft chuckle.

“I don’t see any other girl here but you.” His arm was now around her waist as they walked into the reception hall.

The reception was magnificent and the decorations were absolutely lovely. Each table had a fabulous floral center piece that carried Eva’s wedding theme and each seat was designated with a beautifully designed name tag. The food was delicious and extraordinarily prepared, followed by scrumptious desserts. Eva's uncle took Eva to the dance floor for the father-daughter dance. It was quite an emotional moment. Eva’s mother was openly crying and that emotion seemed to spread like fire among their guests.

Arielle took a quick look around and didn’t see a single person who didn’t have moisture in their eyes or an expression of sadness on their faces. She averted her gaze to Eva and she felt tenderness for her best friend. Eva couldn’t cry anymore, but distress was clearly spreading across her face. She was trying to carry the memory of her beloved father the best way she knew how.

Gabrielle came up holding Troy’s hand and stood next to Arielle and Sebastian. When the dance was over, Eva left the dance floor and made a point of going to where Gabby and Arielle stood to give them a hug and let them know how much she loved them. Everyone had an amazing time. Gabby and Arielle saw some of their secondary school friends that were attended other universities and hadn’t seen them for a couple years. They chatted and danced for hours.

Paul and Loren never left each other’s arms while Eva and Ian shared their time between the guests, their friends, and their families. Gabrielle and Arielle were on the dance floor with their friends and felt extremely amused watching Sebastian and Troy being surrounded by single girls in a desperate attempt to pick them up. Their guys appeared to be totally overwhelmed.

It was quite amusing to watch the sexy mannerisms used by the girls to entice the immortals to some sort of an exchange back without success. Frustration painted their faces as they stepped away. Arielle and Gabby had been on the dance floor for a while when Sebastian and Troy walked up and cut in.

“Where you ever going to stop dancing and come talk to me?” he asked Arielle quietly.

“Well, I was getting ready to do that when you came up.” Arielle chuckled.

“Not true…it appeared that you forgot all about me.”

“How can that be possible? You aren’t exactly the type of a man that can be forgotten. I saw all those girls that came up and wanted to dance with you. Why did you not dance?” she asked.

He snaked his hands around her waist and pulled her flush against him. “I don’t want to dance with anyone but you,” he said firmly.

“Really?” Her giggling was like remedy for his soul.

“Yes, really.” His arms tightened and she stopped breathing.

“Troy and I waited to see how long it would take you both to come back and dance with us, but we finally realized that we may have to wait all night, so here we are.”

The lighting was soft and the music really amazing. She stretched up on her tippy toes, searching for his lips, and he was more than happy to accommodate her. Their lips melded, their tongues twisted, and they both moaned softly.

“I love you, baby,” he breathed without leaving the kiss. “You make me a happy man.” His scent was intoxicating, and his lips tasted like sweet honey. The kiss deepened and they moved to a slow song with their eyes closed. When the song was over, the four of them walked back to their table.