Nation of the Sun (The Ancient Souls Series Book 1)

by HR Moore

  Caspar balled his fists. He hadn't lost his temper in over a hundred years, but given this was his third miserable incarnation in a row, he was beginning to fray around the edges.

  Rose put her hand on Caspar's arm. 'Maybe Jon's onto something,' she said. 'Raina wants to be angry with you. She wants to punish you, and the only way she can do that is if she's near you.

  'Let one of the others try to wake her this time. Stay away for a while. Let us focus her on more important things, then come back, move slowly, and regain her trust.'

  Caspar didn't like it, but he knew they were right… Lifetimes had taught him if you were going to capitulate, you might as well do it early. 'Fine,' he said, 'but don't ruin her wedding. Let her have her honeymoon, and start at Midsummer.'

  'Ooh, let's try and wake her at Midsummer,' said Talli. 'It would be auspicious.'

  'You'll have to fly to Lake Como and tail her,' said Caspar.

  'I've had worse assignments,' said Talli, flashing a smile. 'And Christa can come too.'

  'Subtle,' said Jon.

  'Let her have her honeymoon,' said Caspar, 'and after that, do whatever's required.'

  Chapter 3

  Amari woke in a decadent yet gloomy hotel room; stylish décor could only go so far in combating dreary weather. She pushed back the covers and padded across the plush carpet to one of three long windows. She drew the curtains and surveyed the rain-splattered street below.

  It was still early, but she hadn't been able to sleep. Something about Mr. Caspar Jackson was nagging at her. He'd felt … familiar in some way, like déjà vu. Some primal part of her had wanted to claim him as her own, had told her to kiss him, grab handfuls of his hair, rip off his clothes …

  She'd thought her feelings could be explained by the emotion of the wedding and the alcohol from dinner, but even now—alcohol long gone—she couldn't shake the feeling that his arms would feel like home. Something deep in her mind was firmly fixed on the opinion.

  He wasn't even her usual type. He was six foot, the same height she'd been in her heels, with dark skin and brown eyes. He was muscular, but not stacked. She liked it when a man could make her feel small, light, dainty; the way Dean made her feel. Caspar was attractive—there was no disputing that—but what on earth was causing this level of lust?

  The way he'd held her gaze, searched deep within her, looked into her soul. Even thinking about it made her hair stand on end. And his words. Were they Latin? She hadn't realized she knew the response to any Latin phrase … and his comment about the weather. It was irrational, but he was right, the raindrops were like little missiles sent to blow up her wedding. It made her consider that the universe didn't want her to marry Dean …

  She was crazy, she knew this. Dean was perfect. They were perfect together. He made her laugh, his mind like a razor, always parrying with hers. His family were wonderful, their parents all played tennis together, and he was a wildly successful lawyer. She loved him. She really did.

  Probably just wedding day nerves.

  But Caspar … Caspar had made her feel the way old things made her feel. Comfortable. Happy. Safe. Right. Like he could literally chase away the wrongness that had always plagued her …

  A loud knock sounded through the room. She took a breath. It's just wedding day nerves, she told herself forcefully, picking up her silk satin dressing gown and throwing it over her negligee. She tied it tightly, then opened the door.

  'Hi! I'm Talli,' said a stranger, forcing Amari to step out of the way as she wheeled a suitcase across the threshold. 'And this is Christa.'

  'How are we feeling?' asked Christa, with excessive hand movements. She swept into the room behind Talli.

  'I … uh … think you might have the wrong room,' said Amari, although the déjà vu was back, this time so strong it made her woozy.

  'Maria, your hairdresser, and Sandy, your makeup artist, had a last-minute celebrity emergency,' said Christa. 'But don't worry, we're even more sought after than they are.'

  'True,' said Talli, opening her case and placing suspicious bottle after suspicious bottle onto the dining table. 'We won't even work with celebrities anymore.'

  'They're such divas,' said Christa.

  'And they always want you to drop everything and fly around the world at a moment's notice,' added Talli. 'I'm too old for that bullshit.'

  'You don't look a day over thirty,' said Amari, her mind somehow deciding this was the most important place to start.

  'Thank you, but I'm much older than that. It's these products; they keep me young.'

  'Speaking of which,' said Christa, pulling a few more bottles from Talli's bag and shuffling Amari towards the bathroom, 'we need to get going if you want to be ready in time.'

  Talli and Christa weren't trying to stop the wedding, per se. They were merely encouraging Raina to the surface. And to do so, they left no stone unturned, from scented candles in the bathroom, to homemade hair products that smelled of rosemary, because that was Raina's favorite herb.

  They massaged her hands and feet, stimulating all the right spots. They did her hair as she'd had it for two of her previous weddings; Amari had protested a little at this, but had quieted down the minute she saw the results in the mirror. They applied the perfume they'd made for her. They even had her eat an oat and nut mix she'd once loved for breakfast, accompanied by a special blend of Lapsang Souchong and Earl Grey tea.

  For their final touch, Talli retrieved an ornate metal hair pin from her bag and gave it to Amari. It had belonged to Raina in a previous life, but they told her it was just something old for luck. Talli placed it near the front, so Amari would be able to see it every time she checked her reflection in the mirror.

  Talli and Christa stood back and admired their handiwork, smiling wistfully at their creation. They looked meaningfully at each other, wishing the marriage was to Caspar, but congratulating themselves nonetheless.

  Amari's sense of rightness, belonging, and familiarity gained in strength as the two women worked. Amari felt comfortable, almost like she knew them. She supposed it was just … like that with some people. She'd almost cried when they'd produced the pin. She had no idea what came over her, whether it was pre-wedding nerves, or that she loved old things, or that it too felt oddly familiar.

  By the time her mother, Grace, arrived, her face worryingly grave, Talli and Christa were preparing to leave.

  'You look beautiful. Truly beautiful,' said Grace, staring at Amari's face.

  'Um, thanks?' said Amari, taking a step back and ushering her mother into the room. 'Is everything okay?'

  'Yes,' said Grace. 'Although, there's been a development with Dean's latest case, and I'm afraid you're not going to like it.'

  'Oh God,' said Amari. She'd known something was going to happen. Between the rain, her stylists not being able to make it, and the off feeling … it was like the universe didn't want her to get married today.

  'It's not that bad,' said her mother, guiding Amari to a chair. 'You'll just have to delay your honeymoon for a few weeks. Dean has to fly back to the States to deal with something that can't wait.'

  Yep, the universe hated her. 'What am I supposed to do? Sit around and wait for his return?'

  Grace looked flustered. 'It's not like that. I suppose you could go to the states with him. Or you could fly to Lake Como as planned, and take a longer holiday. That would be nice,' she said, searching desperately for a silver lining.

  Not likely. Holidaying among loved-up honeymooners while her husband was absent didn't sound like much fun to Amari. She caught sight of the card sitting on her bedside table.

  'It's fine. If Dean's going to spend our honeymoon working, then so am I. Mum, I'll see you down in your room. Are the bridesmaids there?'

  Grace nodded, but looked as though she might protest.

  'I'll only be a minute. Thank you Talli, Christa, you've done a great job. I love it.'

  Talli and Christa shared a beaming smile, spritzed Amari one more time, then practica
lly skipped from the room.

  Caspar waited in the hotel's lobby. The concierge—noting his agitated body language—glanced nervously at him a few times a minute. He paced back and forth, balling and unballing his fists, furious that his friends had conspired to ruin Amari's wedding day, when he'd specifically told them not to.

  It was Jon who'd let it slip, pouring some of the surplus oat and fruit mix Talli had made into a bowl, and asking Elliot if he thought some boring old oats could wake her. Caspar had entered the kitchen at that moment, and his blood had run cold.

  'Oops,' Jon had said, flippant as ever.

  Elliot had rolled his eyes. 'It's not what you think.'

  But Caspar hadn't stuck around to hear any more. He'd raced to the hotel, trying desperately to come up with a plan. But he couldn't think of anything that wouldn't make him look like a stalker. So instead, he hovered in the entrance, waiting for inspiration to strike.

  Talli and Christa sauntered across the wide expanse of the lobby, whispering excitedly like schoolgirls.

  'What the hell are you two playing at?' he hissed, as they capered down the steps towards the door.

  He pulled them outside, because the concierge's fingers were hovering over the phone, probably seconds away from calling security. He dragged them down the steps on the outside and away from the entrance. The ground was littered with rose petals, presumably from the arrangements for the wedding.

  'You can thank us later,' said Christa.

  'What did you do?' said Caspar.

  'Her hair and make-up,' said Talli.

  'We did an excellent job,' added Christa, as Talli pulled out an oddly shaped blue glass bottle and spritzed Caspar.

  'What? Oh my Gods,' he said, closing his eyes against the memory.

  'Made especially for you for wedding number four, if I correctly recall,' said Talli.

  'What did you use on Amari?' he asked.

  'You'll just have to wait and see,' sang Christa. 'As I said, you can thank us later.'

  'Did she wake up?' he asked, desperation in his tone.

  Talli put her hand on his arm, her demeanor suddenly calm, compassionate. 'Not yet, but her fiancé postponed the honeymoon, because he has to go back to the States.'

  'I'd expect a call any minute,' said Christa, smiling conspiratorially. 'Good luck!'

  'Wait, what?' Caspar's phone vibrated in his pocket. He snatched it up. 'Hello?'

  Chapter 4

  Amari hung up her phone, then knocked on the door of her mother's room. She braced herself for the frantic chatter emanating from the other side. The door swung open, and her future mother-in-law's face crumpled. 'You look so beautiful,' she said, trying to hold back tears.

  Amari entered the room and took in the scene. Her cousin, Leila, lounged back on the elaborate four-poster bed, sipping a glass of champagne, her hair and makeup already done. Amari and Dean's mothers were being beautified by hairdressers and makeup artists near the windows. Dean's mum returned to her seat, the makeup artist chastising her over the tears. Dean's teenaged sister, Jade, sat in a chair near the fireplace, earbud in, typing frantically on her phone. She barely even looked up as Amari entered.

  'You look nice,' said Jade, her eyes already back on the screen.

  A sense of wrongness crept through Amari's veins.

  'You okay?' asked her cousin, getting up and handing Amari a glass of champagne. She was an inch shorter than Amari, with dazzling, naturally blonde hair and blue eyes. 'Last-minute nerves?'

  Heads swung to look at her, and even Jade flicked her eyes up for a second.

  'No, of course not,' she lied.

  Everything about today felt wrong. Only the call with Caspar, and the hair and make-up artists, had felt anything other.

  'Just disappointed about the honeymoon.'

  'I know, total nightmare,' said Leila, topping up her glass. 'At least he's starting as he means to go on.'

  'Hey! Don't slag off my brother,' said Jade, her angry grey eyes trained on Leila.

  Leila dismissed her. 'Seriously though, Amari. This is going to be your life; his work will always come first.'

  'It's not like that,' said Amari, quietly, not wanting to have this conversation at all, but especially not in front of Dean's mother and sister.

  A knock on the door saved her, and Amari rushed to open it. 'Callie!' said Amari, wrapping her arms around her neighbor's five-year-old granddaughter.

  'I'll see you downstairs,' said Callie's grandmother. 'Good luck darling, and do exactly what you're told. Okay?'

  She hugged Callie and the girl promised to be good.

  Amari felt a strange affinity to Callie. It was the weirdest thing. She usually found kids repulsive, avoiding them at all costs, but Callie was different. She had this soothing quality.

  'You look wonderful,' said Amari, turning the girl in a circle under her arm.

  Callie giggled, delighted. 'You look pretty,' she said, 'but you need to put your dress on.'

  Amari laughed, clapping her hands together. 'My goodness, you're right! I'm so glad you're here! I knew something was missing.'

  Amari took a step towards the closet where her dress was hanging, but Callie stopped her with a hand on her arm. 'What's that?' Callie asked, pointing to Amari's hair.

  'My hair?' said Amari, confused.

  'The thing in your hair.'

  'Oh!' said Amari, remembering the old pin. 'That was a gift from two very kind ladies. They said it was something old for luck.'

  Jade's eyes flicked up from her phone, scrutinizing Amari's hair.

  'Don't worry,' Leila said to Jade, 'it's not more exciting than Instagram.'

  'TikTok,' said Jade, her eyes lingering on Amari's updo.

  'I love it,' said Callie, pulling Amari down so she could get a better look. 'It's so pretty.'

  'You can have it after the wedding,' said Amari, worried Callie would try and pull it out right then and there.

  Callie's face lit up and she giggled again. 'Thank you.'

  'You're welcome. Now, I should put my dress on, don't you think?'

  Callie nodded her agreement, her face suddenly serious. 'You can't be late for your wedding.'

  'Luckily, we don't have far to go,' said Amari. 'Why don't you take a seat by Jade while I put this on.'

  Callie went still. 'No,' she said, with a forcefulness Amari hadn't seen from her before.

  'Come sit by me,' said Leila, shuffling over on the bed.

  Callie skipped to the bed and climbed up. She took Leila's hand, shot a wary glance at Jade, then watched closely as the stylists helped Amari into her dress.

  After the finishing touches had been applied to everyone, and a photographer had held them hostage for an hour, finally it was time.

  The mothers left first, each of them doing their best to keep their tears at bay. They gushed about how wonderful Amari looked, and how happy she and Dean were going to make each other.

  Amari smiled, trying to will the smile into her eyes. She was glad when they departed.

  Amari stood at the window, looking at the raindrops that jumped as they hit the puddles. Not even a rainbow … or lightning. Lightning would provide dynamism at least …

  'Ready?' asked Leila, appearing at her shoulder.

  'Ready,' said Amari, although she knew she didn't sound sure. 'You guys looks amazing,' she said, taking in her two bridesmaids and flower girl.

  They wore dainty flower crowns and flowing white dresses, cinched in at the waist with gold ties. Leila was a voluptuous goddess, Jade a younger, ganglier version; a gazelle still learning how to use her body.

  'So do you,' said Leila. 'There aren't many people who could pull that dress off, you know.'

  Amari's dress was a halter-necked sheath of white silk. It was cut low at the back, skirting tight over her behind before billowing to the floor. It somehow showed off her waist, creating an alluring silhouette, yet didn't cling, allowing her to move freely.

  'Kind of provocative if you ask me,' said Jade
, who had sulkily put away her phone.

  'Have you met Amari?' joked Leila.

  'I think it's beautiful,' said Callie, taking Amari's hand.

  A wave of warmth radiated through her. 'Thank you, Callie. You look beautiful too.'

  'Come on, we're already fashionably late,' said Leila, shepherding them out of the room and into the ornate elevator. 'We don't want to give Dean a heart attack.'

  Amari's heart sank. Something inside was screaming at her not to do this. It was like there was something just out of reach, something she didn't understand. Whatever it was, it was yelling at her to run away … to … oh my God … to find Caspar. She had to be insane. Legitimately, certifiably insane. She'd met Caspar one single time. They'd had two conversations; she didn't know anything about him.

  She breathed deeply, shaking it off. Evidently wedding day nerves are a real thing.

  'Amari? Are you okay?' asked Leila.

  Amari looked up to find the doors open, the hotel's wide lobby stretching out before her. 'Uh, sorry, yes. Just taking a moment.'

  Jade strode out into the lobby, huffing at the delay. Callie still had hold of Amari's hand.

  'Amari, you know you don't have to do this, right?' said Leila, her voice low. 'If you're having second thoughts …'

  'I'm not,' Amari snapped, her tone harsher than she'd intended. 'Wait, can you smell jasmine?'

  Leila looked at her like she might be losing her mind.

  'I'm fine, Leila, really, I just need a minute alone to … savor the moment.'

  'Savor the moment?'

  'To be present and in the moment and all that other bullshitty stuff people tell you to do on your wedding day. If I go in there now, I'm not going to remember a single thing. I need to get … centered, or something.'

  Leila raised an eyebrow. 'Centered? Amari, are you okay? I mean, I know the wedding magazines go on about this stuff a lot, but it's not very you.'

  'I'll be back before you know it,' said Amari. 'Callie, stay here with Leila. I'll only be a minute.'