Arielle Immortal Passion (10 page)

Arielle forced a smile as she struggled to stand. “Can you please help me into the house and help me clean up the mess?”

“Of course, dear, that’s why we are here,” Mrs. Wilson said in a kind voice. Mrs. Wilson and Mr. Struthers helped Arielle stand up, supporting her as she unsteadily got onto her feet. A look between them confirmed what they were both thinking, that they wanted to take care of her wounds first and ask questions later.

Back in her bedroom, they cleaned the bloody mess and placed a couple of plasters over her scrapes. Then, they helped her into bed. Arielle looked down at herself in dismay.

“I guess there’s nothing I can do about the bruises,” Arielle chuckled. Relieved, they chuckled along with her.

“What happened?” Mr. Struthers asked.

“I’m not sure,” Arielle whispered. “Everything happened so fast. I think I got dizzy, lost my balance, and fell off the bench.” She didn’t want to tell them about Annabel.

Mrs. Wilson and Mr. Struthers looked at each other. They knew that her story didn’t make any sense, but they didn’t want to contradict her.

“Thank you so much for your help,” she added, appreciatively. “Mrs. Wilson, do you have anything for pain? I’m pretty sore.”

“Yes, I’ll bring something to help you rest and make the pain go away,” Mrs. Wilson said sympathetically as she smoothed the covers over Arielle. She left the room and was back in no time with a tall glass of water and a small pillbox. She handed her one pill and set the pillbox on the nightstand.

“Take this, dear. It’ll help you feel better. I’ll leave a few more pills right here,” she said. “If you wake up and you’re still in pain you can take one more.”

“Thank you so much,”

“Not at all, dear,” Mrs. Wilson said, patting her on the hand. “Try to get some rest. I’ll be back shortly to check on you.”

Mrs. Wilson walked back into the kitchen and paused at the doorway. Mr. Struthers was facing the dark huge fireplace, one hand gripping the enormous mantelpiece, the other scratching his head. She could hear his voice, faint but distinct. “What the devil happened out there?”

Mrs. Wilson cleared her throat and he turned to face her. His expression was puzzled, his lips pressed in a hard line. “Do you have any idea as to what happened out there?” he asked, searching her eyes for some kind of logical answer.

Mrs. Wilson hesitated for a moment. Then, moving into the room she said, keeping her voice steady, “I have no idea, but it was a lot more than what Arielle told us.” A long moment passed as they both looked at each again. The silence became unnerving.

“How in the world could her falling off the bench cause such chaos in the garden?” Mr. Struthers said, pushing away from the mantel and walking over to the window overlooking the back garden. “Something happened out there,” he said firmly and pointed out the window with his index finger. “I am sure of that. But what?”

Mrs. Wilson averted her gaze out the window and nodded in agreement. “We’ll have to let Sebastian handle this when he gets home,” she said, and went on to tend to her duties. She heard Mr. Struthers leaving the room, carrying on a conversation with himself.

It wasn’t long before Arielle started to feel the effects from the pill. As the pain subsided, she became very tired and drifted off to sleep. The next thing she heard was Sebastian’s velvety voice. “Arielle, what happened, baby?”

She opened her eyes and met his warm gaze. Reaching up, she tried to pull him close to her, and as she did, she felt a sharp pain shooting right through her chest. She let out a soft cry and sank back on the mattress. Sebastian climbed up on the bed and knelt right next to her. The worried look on his face filled Arielle with anxiety, and tears welled up in her eyes. It was obvious that Mr. Struthers and Mrs. Wilson had informed Sebastian about the situation in the garden, and about Arielle’s injuries.

“Did you talk to Mr. Struthers and Mrs. Wilson?” she whispered.

“Yes, I did, but they are clueless. How did you hurt yourself? And where?”

Sebastian has a strong suspicion that Annabel was somehow involved. There was no other explanation for the vast destruction in the garden. He wanted to hear the details from Arielle.

“I have some scrapes and a few bruises,” she murmured.

“Let me see, baby.”

“It was Annabel,” she whispered.

A deep crease formed on his forehead, and he shook his head angrily. Yes, he knew it, it all made complete sense, the damaged tree, and the vast wreckage in the garden that Mrs. Wilson and Mrs. Struthers hadn’t been able to explain.

“She told me she was going to kill me. She tried,” she said, pointing to her arms and legs. “But the necklace stopped her.” Sebastian looked deeply upset as his eyes took in the bruises and the bloody scrapes on Arielle’s body.

“Tell me exactly what happened, Arielle.”

Arielle drew in a quivering breath, and, in a few words, she explained what had taken place. Sebastian watched her with great concern and, as she spoke, Arielle saw an expression on his face that she had never seen before. His lips were pulled back and his teeth ground together as his face took on a look of outrage and fury.

As she spoke, he got out of bed and began pacing back and forth without saying a word.

“Sebastian, please stop pacing, you are making me dizzy.”

“I hate her. She’s avoiding me, but I’ll hunt her down, that’s a promise. What did she say exactly?”

Jolted by the memory of Annabel’s presence, and the speed with which she had moved toward her, Arielle flinched. Sebastian was by her side before she had a chance to utter a single word. He framed her face with his hands and pressed his lips on hers, gently.

“I am so sorry, Arielle. It’s my fault you are in pain. I should never have left you alone.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, you can’t be with me all the time.” She quivered at the memory of Annabel’s hands against her chest. “Sebastian,” she said with awe, “Annabel lifted me off that bench as if I was made out of paper.” She groaned angrily, pressing her lips tightly together at the memory. She grimaced, but she knew she wouldn’t allow Annabel to destroy her dreams. “I’m sure the necklace shocked her into dropping me just before I saw her flying back. Her hands were on fire!” she said. She paused, replaying the horrible vision in her mind. “It was an amazing sight. I hit the ground hard, that’s how I hurt myself.”

She stopped talking for a moment and gazed into his beautiful eyes, so full of tenderness and concern for her. “I’ll have to face her someday, and I’m willing to do that. Just because I’m human it doesn’t mean I’m completely helpless,” she added, giving him a reproachful look.

He laughed, put his arm around her waist, and pulled her close. “You really are something, you know that?”

Arielle closed her eyes, happy to feel his body against hers. He was warm, and soft, and she was glad he was there with her. “Did you have a nice time with everyone?”

“Yes, it was great, but we missed you. Or I should say, I missed you, badly. I don’t do very well when I’m away from you. Eva kept asking to come back sooner, but it wasn’t easy to turn around. I asked her if something was wrong, but said she couldn’t exactly see anything, she was just worried about you. I should have listened to her and come back sooner. I’ll know better next time.” His face softened, and his lips curved into an amazing smile.

“I love you, Arielle Lloyd,” he whispered. “I want to marry you right here, right now.” Arielle smiled and nestled deeper into his arms, and drifted off to sleep.

When she woke up in the middle of the night, the pain in her arm was excruciating, so she took another pain pill. She could feel Sebastian’s warm embrace, and she settled closer, knowing that this is where she wanted to be for eternity. She drifted off to sleep as she felt the effects of the pill take over again.

Chapter 7

I
t was late in the morning when she woke up again. She actually felt pretty good. Her arm didn’t hurt as much as it had the night before. She got up to take a shower. As she was dressing, Sebastian walked into the room.

“What do you think you are doing?” he asked, a surprised look on his face.

“I’m fine. I’m not going to waste my time in bed when my friends are here.”

“How are you feeling?”

“I feel great.”

“You scared me to death, Arielle. I can’t stand seeing you in pain.”

“I am
fine
,” she said firmly, smiling brightly at him, to prove that she meant it. “I am okay, really. Don’t worry about me.”

Sebastian watched her carefully. She was so breathtakingly beautiful.

“Do you feel good enough to kiss me?” he said, moving closer and snaking his arms around her, drawing her softly to him.

Arielle’s breath seized and heat surged through her. Rising up on her tippy toes, she positioned her lips a hair’s width from his. “Just a kiss?” she breathed, whispering the question against his mouth.

His sensuous lips curved slightly, and she could smell his amazing immortal scent, a mixture of nectar and sweet-smelling flowers. Closing her eyes, she sighed deeply and her lips pressed against his. Sebastian inhaled sharply and pulled her flush against his muscled body. He inclined his head and crushed her lips beneath his, deepening the kiss. Arielle immediately became lost in the sensation of her kiss. He changed the position of his lips and deepened the kiss further, groaning against her mouth. Her lips parted and his tongue methodically explored the softness of her mouth as he groaned deep in his throat. He tore his mouth from hers and hauled in a deep breath.

“Mmmm, you bewitch me, Lizzy!”

She chuckled blissfully, breathlessly. “So it wasn’t just a simple kiss you wanted. Was it?”

“Nothing is ever simple with you. You’ll be the death of me,” he said.

“Will you ever stop driving me senseless with your touch?” She exhaled deeply.

“I sure hope not…” his voice trailed.

“Is everyone up? Do they want to do something?”

“They’ve been waiting to see how you’re doing before making any plans.”

“Well, then, let’s go,” Arielle smiled, as she grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the door.

“Wait… wait… give me a minute. You don’t want me to be embarrassed in front of our friends.”

Arielle’s eyes dropped down below his waistline and she burst into laughter.

“Oh, so you think it’s funny,” Sebastian said, and pulled her back into his arms.

Arielle pretended to struggle. “If you want to get out of this room, I think you’d better let me go,” she giggled, and he knew she was right. He walked into the bathroom to throw some cold water over his face while Arielle kept enjoying his predicament. Emerging back into the room, he clasped her hand and pulled her toward the door. “You’ll pay for this when we get back,” he chuckled, as they went down the stairs to meet their friends.

They didn’t talk much about what had happened the day before. Arielle didn’t want to talk about it, so nobody brought up the subject. One thing Arielle loved about her friends was that they were always instinctively sensitive to her needs, and respectful of her desires.

It was another glorious day; the sun felt hot and welcoming. They spread their beach towels out on the soft sand. The warm water eventually was too tempting to ignore, and they swam for hours. Between swims they lay on the beach and exchanged stories, enjoying the pleasure of the moment, without concern for the future. Arielle was surprised to find, when they all shared their childhood stories and games, that there was little difference between the childhood experiences of herself and her friends, and those of Sebastian and Troy despite the fact that their childhoods had been centuries ago. That “detail” was not something that Eva or Ian knew about, or even imagined at this point.

The jokes they had played on each other were the same as the ones she and her friends had played on each other when they were children.

Arielle’s heart was overjoyed to see Sebastian and Troy being able to share something of their lives with the girls. They seemed so happy and relaxed, just enjoying getting to know each other. She thought that this would have been the perfect moment for Troy and Sebastian to tell Ian and Eva the truth about themselves, but she didn’t bring it up.

Troy pulled Gabrielle into his arms, and bending down he pressed a sweet kiss on her lips. When he finally pulled back he announced that he and Gabrielle had decided to take a long walk on the beach. They all chuckled as they watched them walk away in each other’s arms.

A long moment passed. Suddenly Ian rose to his feet, and taking Eva’s hand he pulled her toward him. “Let’s swim out to that platform,” he said, pointing to a square platform several hundred meters out in the middle of the water. “Are you game?” he asked again, pulling her in for a kiss. Eva giggled, and pulling back she took off running toward the water, leaving Ian startled for a short moment. Then, he took off after her, laughing blissfully.

Their laughter was heartwarming and Arielle laughed out loud as she watched them trying to beat each other to the platform. Once there, they fell into each other’s arms and lay down to soak up the sun in what it seemed to be their own private little universe in the middle of the ocean. Arielle sighed, and turning toward Sebastian she found him watching her attentively. Their gaze met, blue eyes against green, and locked. “What?” she asked softly.

His lips curved, and leaning in he took her mouth in a scorching kiss. She closed her eyes and her body quivered. “What’s that for?”

“That’s because I love you,” he breathed into the kiss. “And that’s because you are the most beautiful creature on this earth, and you make me happy,” he added, joyfully.

“Oh.” Arielle feigned surprise and teasingly she ran her tongue over her lower lip in a slow, painful motion. Sebastian’s eyes went wide, and she chuckled.

He shook his head and excitement flared in his eyes. “Did you arrange this with your friends?”

She raised her shoulder in a nonchalant shrug, “Whatever do you mean?”

“I mean this,” he said chuckling, and pointed first in the direction Troy and Gabrielle had taken, and then toward the platform in the water, where Ian and Eva were now sunbathing.

“Oh, nonsense,” Arielle said, and waved her hand dismissively.

Sebastian snorted. “Um, let’s say that I believe you. What do you want to do now that we’re alone?” he asked, and leaning in, his voice draped over her senses like a hot promise, as he brushed his lips against her ear. She heard his soft chuckle, and her heart raced, as heat flickered across his eyes.

“I guess we just enjoy being together,” she said, for lack of having anything better to say. She lay casually on the beach towel and reaching up, she ran her finger down Sebastian’s beautiful jaw line. Sebastian gazed down and couldn’t help himself from admiring the girl that was going to be his wife. The thought made him giddy.

His finger traced a circle around her breasts, trailed down, and stopped below her flat stomach. Pleasure poured over her and she moaned quietly. Her eyes fluttered open and met his gaze filled with pure emotion. Reaching up she ran her fingers through his hair and pulled him down for a kiss. There was no resistance, just desire. Their lips met, and they sank into each other with hunger, with unrestrained lust. Their pleasure made their thoughts scatter into oblivion. Pulling back from the kiss he let his gaze sweep over her body, savoring the sensation that was possessing, every nerve end in his body. “You look awfully sexy in a bikini,” he said She giggled softly. When his mouth found hers once again, she parted her lips and he thrust his tongue into the softness of her mouth. He licked her sweetness like a hungry man. She moaned, and he let out a low sigh.

“What are you doing to me?” he gasped, and wrapping his arms around her he pulled her tightly against him, enjoying the mind-numbing sensation that her body heat was providing.

“What’s wrong?” Arielle managed to ask.

“You’ll be the death of me,” he sighed, again. It was his favorite sentence, every time they got intimate with each other.

She giggled and he squeezed tighter. “You’ll pay for this later,” he added, breathlessly.

“I’m looking forward to your promise,” she whispered, seductively.

They lay quietly for a long time, enjoying the sun’s warmth and the sound of the waves lapping the edge of the shoreline.

They must have dozed off because suddenly Ian’s voice startled them. “This has been the best vacation ever!” he exclaimed, shaking water over Sebastian and Arielle. They both shrieked and sat up laughing. “I can’t believe that we only have a few days left. I don’t know how to thank you, Sebastian. But I’ll try to find a way,” he said. Eva was already perched next to Arielle, chatting away.

“It’s my pleasure,” Sebastian replied. “I’ve had a great time as well, and I owe that to all of you.”

Troy and Gabrielle returned as the sun began to set. The sky looked like a huge fireball had started to move slowly towards the edge of the water and slip away. It turned first orange, then red. There are no words to describe this beautiful miracle that happened right before their eyes and caused their breath to stop for a millisecond. When the sun went down, twilight arrived and the sky turned gray. They decided to leave.

It had been a wonderful, sentimental ending to a gorgeous day. As they were walking to the car, Sebastian put his arm around Arielle’s waist. He leaned over and whispered to her with a low chuckle, “I haven’t forgotten.” She feigned inquisitiveness, but finally she just giggled happily.

They had a wonderful dinner and talked for a while, not wanting to let the day end. But eventually, fatigue took over and they all went to bed. Arielle was so tired she could hardly keep her eyes open, but Sebastian indeed hadn’t forgotten the beach and the desire that had sparked between them, and he didn’t let her go to sleep. He seemed to be tireless, and she was sure she could never keep up with him even if she tried. She surrendered to him, and then slept in his arms, as she did every night, completely sated and satisfied.

With just five more days left of their stay, Arielle was determined to explore the house before leaving. She had wanted to do this since the first time she set foot inside this magnificent place. It had been like a magnet that kept pulling her to embrace all the secrets it had held for centuries.

She knew that Sebastian would not like her request based on Annabel’s last attack, but she didn’t care, she was ready to do it.

They were still in bed when she asked him if she could stay behind that day while the others went out, and explore the house. “I need to find out all I can about a place you’re saying will be mine one day,” she said.

He was quiet for such a long time that Arielle thought he hadn’t heard her.

“Sebastian, did you hear me?”

“Yes, I did. And this
is
your house now, but I don’t feel good about you staying here alone after what happened the last time you remained behind.”

“I won’t go outside. I’ll stay inside. And maybe Eva would like to stay with me. You can go horseback riding with the others. I would just love to become more familiar with this house.”

Sebastian wasn’t happy about the plan, but he wasn’t going to argue with her. He could see that she was determined to stay. He rolled on his side to face her, and his eyes were serious. He pulled her close, so close that his mouth was touching hers. “All right, then. I’ll stay here with you, and the others can go and explore on their own.”

“No!” she protested, as his mouth landed on hers and stopped her from talking. She tried to pull away and complete her sentence, but his hand held her firmly and didn’t let go. It didn’t take long and soon she gave in to his warm kiss, delicious scent, and hot, toe curling desires.

When they finally lay spent, she smiled, savoring his love, glowing in the idea of this stunning man being hers and hers alone. She regained her wits slowly, and when she was able to speak again she protested. “You are not playing fair,” she whispered. “You are my fiancé, not my bodyguard,” she added. Meeting his gaze, she saw a slow smile curve his gorgeous lips, and she almost forgot what the conversation was about.

“I’m not just your fiancé,” she heard his soft voice saying. “I’m the man who is determined to keep you for eternity. I’m the man who wants you safe, just the way you are right now. You have bewitched me body and soul, and I love you, Miss Lizzy.” He laughed softly, and she couldn’t help laughing with him, as he quoted
Pride and Prejudice.
She pressed a hot kiss on his lips and, pulling away she sat up on the bed.