On the other side of the room Eva and Ian were talking with some of their friends. She walked up to them to get her birthday hugs. Ian handed her a small gift-wrapped box and told her that Eva had helped him choose his present for her. She could hear him thinking that the gift was a beautiful, custom-made necklace and she smiled with pleasure. She opened the box and acted completely surprised, making him smile with delight.
“May I have this dance?” he asked her.
“Why, yes, I’d be delighted,” she agreed. They waltzed around the floor together, and then returned to Eva, who was standing right where they had left her, with a concerned look on her face. She was looking intensely somewhere past her.
“What’s the matter, Eva, what do you see?” Arielle whispered in Eva’s ear, as Ian released her hand and gave her a sweet smile. Eva shrugged her shoulders, and for a moment it seemed as though she would say nothing. Then hesitantly she said, “Well, Arielle…I see extreme happiness and extreme danger both at the same time.
“Tonight?”
As she nodded, Arielle pressed her lips and looked around, as if she might be able to see something materializing in front of her. Her hands instinctively moved up to her neck and she got a chill remembering that she had taken off the protective necklace Sebastian had given her. Then she shook her head, and reminded herself that she was inside her house, protected from any one who might want to hurt her. However, the very thought that she might be in danger still made her shiver. Eva reached over and grabbed her hand, and then she glanced at the distance between her and the front door.
“Is someone coming? Who?”
“I don’t know; I don’t see a face.”
“Oh, Eva, these visions of yours are making me crazy. Can we just leave them for tonight? It’s my birthday and we’re all together. I don’t think anything bad can happen.”
“All right,” Eva agreed, and she smiled a worried smile, pressing Arielle’s hand in hers. Arielle, hugged her and whispered, “Don’t worry!” Then she started moving about the room, talking to the other guests.
Now Jane came in with her parents, and ran to Arielle with open arms.
“Happy birthday, sis!!! You look fabulous!” she said, hugging her. Arielle hugged her back and gave her a big kiss.
Next Gabrielle and Troy arrived, carrying a huge bouquet of flowers, and Arielle was so happy to see them. But when Troy leaned down to kiss her, there it was again: she could smell the sweet scent in his breath that she had never ever smelled until Sebastian. Once again this unsettled her, but she was able to find the strength to smile at them and thank them for the flowers as Gabrielle hugged her, her face filled with joy.
“Happy Birthday, Arielle!” she said, “I love you.”
“I love you too, Gabby.”
Next Paul arrived with a group of their friends. He looked fabulous! She had never seen him dressed so well. He came up and planted a big kiss on her lips, held her tight, and wished her a happy birthday. He didn’t seem to want to let go, so they lingered in their embrace. Then he handed her his present, which was wrapped in a huge box. “Thank you, Paul!” she said, and placed it in the pile with the others. Then he pulled her onto the dance floor.
“I love you, Arielle!” he said as they glided around to the music.
“I love you too, Paul. You are my best friend,” she said.
In reply he squeezed her tighter, making her giggle.
“Tonight you’ll be my dance partner,” he said.
She closed her eyes as they moved around the dance floor and his beautiful face appeared before her, making her smile with pleasure. The song was over and she walked over to talk to her mother. André Roux and his son Tristan were standing there, talking with her.
“Hi, Arielle, you look so grown up tonight” Mr. Roux said, with a smile. She thanked him and made some polite small talk as she took Tristan to the dance floor again. He held her tight and she let herself move to the music with her eyes closed. She was lost in her thoughts when a musical voice behind her made her breath halt in her throat, and her body shivered.
“May I cut in?”
She spun around and there he stood! Her beautiful dream, the love of her life!
“But… But… But… How? When?” she stuttered, unable to complete a sentence.
“Did you really think that I would miss your birthday?” he smiled.
She was so surprised that at first she almost couldn’t move. But then she flew into his arms and buried her face in his chest, crying from sheer joy. He held her tight against his chest, and then with a sudden move he pulled her even closer to him and she stopped breathing. He was the best gift she could ever wish for!
He pushed her away from him softly, and looked her up and down.
“You look absolutely fabulous,” he said. “That dress makes you look very sophisticated; and with the high heels your face is closer to mine. How about that? I don’t have to bend down to kiss you tonight,” he added, smiling at her tenderly. He looked so pleased, and she could hear the satisfaction in his voice.
Then he pulled her back into his arms, bent down, and pressed his lips on hers in a long, hot kiss.
“Happy birthday, baby,” he murmured, without moving his lips from hers. Suddenly she noticed that Tristan was looking from her to Sebastian and back again, apparently wondering what was going on and who this guy was!
“Oh!! Tristan I’m so sorry, this is Sebastian, my boyfriend. Sebastian, this is Tristan, one of my dearest friends.”
They shook hands and smiled a bit awkwardly at each other. Then Tristan excused himself and walked off, looking a bit shaken. But she couldn’t spend much time worrying about Tristan: all she could think of was the fact that her own personal miracle was here.
She fell back into his arms and as he held her they started to move to the music.
“Dancing with you has been a dream of mine ever since the first day I laid eyes on you,” he said. “And now here we are. Dreams do come true!” He held her at arms’ length and gazed at her again with complete satisfaction. “You seem to become more beautiful each time I see you, Arielle,” he said. “How do you do that? You are going to drive me mad, you do know that, don’t you?” he added, smiling.
“I wish I could believe you,” she said. “But as it turns out, you are the beautiful one and I’m…well, I’m just me.”
“Just in case you haven’t noticed,” he said, “there are a lot of guys here that would like to be in my place. If you don’t see that, then you must be blind.”
“Sebastian, that’s not true,” she protested.
“Remember, I can read everyone’s mind,” he said, and suddenly he went very still as an unsettling realization seeped into his bones, and shook him. His eyes dropped down to her neckline, and he frowned.
“What?” she asked, anxiously.
“I can read you thoughts...” he said, his words trailing off. “Where is your necklace, Arielle?” he asked, his voice tense.
“Sebastian, nothing is going to happen to me inside my own home,” she insisted. “And further more, how lucky can I be? You’re here! So stop worrying about me.”
“Arielle, I’m not joking. Why don’t you have it on?”
“Whatever for? I’m not going outside,” she said, stubbornly. But glancing up at his worried face, she added gently, “It didn’t go with the dress, and I felt safe enough inside my house.”
“Well, I don’t like it,” he said. He cradled her chin in his hand, and lifting her face to his, peered into her eyes. “But I’ll let it go this time, since it’s your birthday,” he murmured, and took her mouth in a passionate kiss. He pulled her back into his arms and held her tightly. After a long pause, he sucked in a deep breath, and added, more seriously, “What about Tristan? Do I have to compete with him?”
“Tristan is just a friend,” she answered.
“That’s not what he thinks,” Sebastian said. “He is in love with you, Arielle. And so is the guy that is standing over at the b
ar looking at us.”
“Paul? He’s my best friend at school besides Eva and Gabrielle. He’s in my chemistry class.”
“What about Tristan? I’ve never heard you talk about him.”
“Tristan is the son of my parents’ best friends, the Roux. He’s a surgeon, and he lives in Paris. He’s leaving for Africa on Tuesday with a group called Doctors Without Borders. They help poor people in other countries. I’ve read about them, have you? Tristan is a very nice guy,” she added.
“I am very familiar with that group of doctors: that makes it even harder to compete,” Sebastian said, a bit sulkily.
“Please, Sebastian! You know how I feel about you.” She closed her eyes, blissful just to be with him, and moved to the music, feeling the warmth of his beautiful body, not quite believing yet that he was really here. But then suddenly Eva’s words from earlier in the evening made her body go stiff. Sebastian felt her tension, and pushing her softly he held her at arms’ length. She smiled, trying to hide her fearful thoughts from him, but she knew there was no point since he knew exactly what she was thinking. So she fell back into his arms, and he tightened his grip on her.
“I can see that Eva has warned you about someone. What exactly did she say?”
“She said that someone was coming, but nothing specific,” she murmured.
“Well, she was right about that,” he grinned, and looking down at her, let his gaze rest on her beautiful face.
“What do you mean?”
He chuckled, and pulled her even closer. He ran his fingers along her spine, spreading a blistering shiver through her muscles. “I’m someone—and I’m here,” he purred, brushing his lips across her ear.
“Yes, you are,” she replied. “And nothing could be more wonderful,” she sighed, tightening her arms around his neck.
“Why then, do you keep thinking about danger?” he said, and lifted her face again to his until their lips met.
“Well, she did say there would be danger,” she whispered. Suddenly Annabel Draper’s sickening face filled her thoughts, and her heartbeat speeded up. She hoped that Sebastian couldn’t feel that, but he did. His lips pressed into hers.
“What is it?” he asked without moving his lips away from hers.
“Annabel. I thought of Annabel, and I got scared,” she admitted.
“Why would you ever think of her on a night like this?” Sebastian asked.
“I’m not sure; I can’t explain it,” she replied, and looked up to meet his eyes.
“Please don’t worry about Annabel,” he added, with a teasing smile. “This is the best night of your life. You are officially a woman, and you are all mine.” There was an amazing smile on his sensuous lips as he spoke those words.
When the music stopped he took her by the hand and pulled her out onto the balcony. “I love you, baby. Happy birthday,” he said, and drew her into a scorching kiss. Arielle smiled in complete ecstasy. She loved him so much! What an amazing man! He was so absolutely beautiful! And he was all hers. That had to be the best birthday gift ever!
Pulling away from his arms she took his hand and pulled him toward the doors to the ballroom. “You are about to meet my friends, and maybe I’m crazy, but I do want you to talk to Troy. I told you my theory about him; but I may be wrong.”
“Wrong about what, baby?”
“Sebastian, he’s an immortal. I’m almost sure that I’m right about that. However, he doesn’t dazzle me like you do when I look into his eyes.” She paused for a short moment and went on. “I can see by the look in your eyes that you don’t believe me, but please do this for me, go talk to him.”
“Arielle, I choose to dazzle you because I enjoy looking at your face when you become disoriented. Every immortal has the same power, and they can use it by choice. If he’s an immortal, he probably just chose not to dazzle you.”
“Can you please talk with him?”
“Sure,” he said, “I’m just as curious as you are.”
At this point Sebastian didn’t know how much Annabel knew about his relationship with Arielle. He had been sure that she would find out eventually, but he didn’t think it would be this soon. However, Annabel did know that Sebastian’s love for Arielle was the real thing, and that he was planning to marry this “horrible human.” And so she was determined to hurt both him and Arielle; and her plans were already in the works.
Annabel had met with Savanna and Julia, two other women who detested Sebastian just as much as she did. They were willing to put into place all the powers they possessed to exact revenge on Sebastian, by hurting Arielle. So Annabel had been watching Arielle, and she had decided that her birthday party was the perfect place for her to strike. She arranged with Savanna, who had been waiting for centuries to take revenge on Sebastian, to show up at the party with the sole purpose of killing Arielle, and Savanna was elated at being given the chance to destroy someone that Sebastian truly loved. Like Annabel, Savanna was pure evil, and like Annabel, she had only one thought. Retaliation!
Now Arielle and Sebastian moved over to where Gabrielle and Eva were standing. She had given Sebastian permission to dazzle them, and she could hardly wait to see their reaction.
“Gabrielle! Eva! This is Sebastian,” she said.
They both turned toward him at the same time, and as soon as they met his eyes they both went numb. They could hardly talk; they looked dazed, unable to move. Arielle could hardly control her laughter.
“Sebastian, these are my best friends since fourth grade,” she said giggling. He smiled at them with his amazing smile, and as he took their hands they both seemed to forget where they were and what they were doing. They both tried to say something, but neither was able to utter a single word. Arielle took Sebastian’s hand and they walked away, leaving Eva and Gabrielle flustered and confused. “We’ll be back soon, don’t worry,” Arielle promised her friends, knowing that they needed a break to recover.
As she and Sebastian walked away they both broke into laughter, knowing what had just happened. It was just too funny to watch.
Arielle continued to lead Sebastian around the room, introducing him to everyone. He seemed to create an astonishing reaction in the women, and she knew that his good looks were the reason for that. She had seen the same thing happen when Troy had come into the room.
Finally they made their way to her parents, and Sebastian instantly fell into an easy and very pleasant conversation with them. Arielle’s parents too had fallen in love with Sebastian, just as she had thought they would. Her father made a point of coming over to her and telling her that she had made a great choice. “Well done, Arielle,” he said. “He is charming, and I feel we can trust him to take good care of you. You can’t know—yet—what a great relief that is to a father.” He smiled and kissed her gently on the cheek. She was so happy to hear him speak these words! She respected her father immensely, and his opinion mattered a lot to her. She was sure that nothing would ever change her mind about Sebastian, but all the same it was great to have her parents’ approval. At that moment, Arielle felt as if her life just couldn’t get any better.
Next they moved over to where Paul, Ian, and Troy were standing, and she introduced them all to Sebastian. They all shook hands and made polite conversation. Ian was always animated, happy and laughing. Troy was a bit more reserved. Sebastian took the time to stay and talk with them, and by the end of the evening she noticed him talking with Troy alone on the balcony. They seemed to be in deep conversation for a long time and she could hardly wait to hear what they had been talking about. But she stayed close to Gabrielle and Eva, and they chatted about this and that, but all the while she kept looking at Sebastian’s direction. Finally the men all shook hands and smiled at each other. As the guys walked back towards her and her friends, Arielle saw Troy look directly at her, a warm smile on his face. She smiled back, took Sebastian’s hand, and moved back onto the dance floor with him.
“Well, was I right?” she asked, as soon as they were out of ea
rshot.
“Yes, you were….” he said, with a smile. “I think he is a bit shocked to find out that I’m an immortal also; and that you recognized his scent. He’s a very nice guy. I’m really happy to know that he will be near you when I’m not here.”
“Sebastian, this is huge!” she said. “How in the world did he end up here?”
“Let’s talk about that when we’re alone,” he said, smiling over her shoulder at someone who was dancing near them.
“All right, I’ll wait. I can’t say that it will be easy, but I’ll wait.”
Sebastian laughed out loud, squeezing her tight, and twirled her around the floor. She rested her head on his beautiful chest: he was her best birthday present and she wanted to enjoy him. She was daydreaming of bliss to come when she felt a light tap on her shoulder. Startled, she looked over and saw her father asking to take Sebastian away for a few minutes to meet some of his friends. She let go of him reluctantly; he gave her an adoring look and one more squeeze as he leaned in and whispered, “Miss me!!” Then he walked away with her father.
Arielle was so happy about him being here that she could hardly contain her emotions. As she walked dreamily back towards Ian and Paul, she caught a glimpse of Eva in the corner of the living room, looking extremely worried, and motioning anxiously for her to come over. As she got closer Arielle could see that Eva was having difficulty breathing. Her hand reached over and held Eva’s hand.
“What is it, Eva?” she asked, staring at her face. She looked as if she were in a trance. She leaned close to her ear and whispered, “Danger. I can see danger approaching the house!”
Terrified, Arielle’s body went rigid. She stared towards the ballroom entrance, but saw nothing unusual. Her mind began to race as conflicting feelings overwhelmed her. Eva’s visions had always been accurate before. Who was coming? Could it be Annabel? She looked around in a complete panic. Her breath was coming in uneven gasps, she was trying to decide if she should run and find Sebastian. She looked back at Eva, and Eva’s expression gave her warning only a second before panic did. She pressed her eyes closed and gulped mouthfuls of air, trying to calm herself down. She felt she was being totally irrational. She was in her own house, among her family and friends, what could possibly go wrong?
Arielle: Immortal Awakening Page 23
