Moving in an immortal speed he scaled the wooden steps, burst through the door and laid her in the middle of the bed. His mind was filled with uncertainty. She'd accepted Eva and Ian’s immortality, but how would she accept her own?
He swallowed hard at the thought, but he had no other solutions. She was dying and he wasn't going to go through eternity without her by his side. It was a promise he’d made to Arielle and he was going to keep it.
“Arielle…Arielle…I’m here, baby!” he murmured, his voice breaking. He touched his fingers to her throat. Her pulse was thready. He focused his thoughts on Arielle and felt the strength pulsing again in his veins. He rushed into the next room and came back with the Salve. He wasn't going to let her die...he wasn't going to let her die…She was the love of his life.
Lifting her head he tipped it back and quickly brought the edge of the bottle to her lips. “Drink, baby,” he murmured even though he knew she couldn't hear him. He dripped a good amount of the immortal liquid into her mouth. He then laid her head back on the pillow, and standing, pinched the bridge of his nose, a sign of extreme stress for an immortal.
The day had seemed an eternity, and now he'd have to sit and wait for the next three days through Arielle’s transformation, while drowning in mixed emotions. He visualized the terror she must’ve experienced at Annabel’s hands, and it tore him apart. He hardly noticed the passage of time, lost in his thoughts.
He decided to use that time to get rid of Annabel’s remains, clean up the stains from the bed sheets and change Arielle’s bloody bathing suit.
He then called Troy and his shock was obvious.
“What in the world happened?” Troy asked.
“Annabel followed us and waited for the right moment to try and take Arielle’s life. I was on the phone with Nathan and Arielle was waiting for me on the beach. I never thought this would happen, but it did. I got to her just in time and now she's going through the transformation.”
“Good God…” Troy muttered.
“I know she’s not ready to accept this change so I’m not sure what to do.”
“Sebastian, Arielle was wonderful in supporting Eva and Ian through their transformations. I think she'll do fine.”
“The issue I have is that Arielle is strong for others but never when it comes to her own self. I don’t mind telling you that I’m terrified to tell her the truth. But, Troy, I couldn’t let her die.” His voice broke.
“Sebastian, it’ll be okay. Trust me. Arielle is an amazing woman. She’ll do fine.”
“Thank, Troy. Please tell our friends. I want to avoid unexpected questions when we return home.”
“What did you do with Annabel?”
“Nobody will ever find that despicable woman. The guys will be happy to know that they don't have to chase her around the world any longer.”
When he hung up he felt much better. He was happy with his decision to keep the only woman he loved with him for eternity.
Her body rejuvenated and Arielle woke with a start. She opened her eyes slowly, lifted her hands and rubbed her temples. Her eyes darted around as if she was looking for someone or something and stopped when she met Sebastian’s deep green gaze. She blinked rapidly and took deep breaths.
“Sebastian!” she said softly.
“Yes, baby.”
“I had a horrible nightmare.”
“Did you now?” he asked calmly.
Suddenly strange turmoil invaded her mind. Terror and panic crashed into her thoughts and her heartbeat elevated. She swallowed hard and let the silence envelope her for a moment.
Sebastian was watching her intently. Suddenly she moved swiftly to sit up, but his hands pressed softly against her chest keeping her still. She looked up to meet his gaze, her eyes glassy with horror, as if something ungodly lingered in her thoughts. But soon her mind stirred alert.
“Oh Sebastian, Annabel…” her shaken voice trailed. Her hands moved fast and grabbed her chest. Heart racing, eyes wide, she looked down and her mouth fell open. “I would swear it was real,” she mumbled, perplexed. “She used a knife and dragged the blade upward,” she breathed, making an upward motion with her hand. “I remember bleeding profusely and I couldn’t call for help.” Her hands moved feverishly now over her body. What she thought as a dream was so vivid. She stopped to recollect her thoughts and remembered putting on her bathing suit and walking to the beach. Was it all a horrible nightmare? She looked around again, her eyes darting from one piece of furniture to the other and stopped when she glanced at the nightstand.
“What are you looking for, my love?” he asked.
“Sebastian, where's my book?”
“What book, love?”
“The book that was right here,” she said, and hit her fist on the small nightstand a couple of times.
“I’m not sure, baby, I haven’t seen it.”
“Sebastian, it was here this morning. And… I remember putting it in my beach bag, I remember reading on the beach…” Her gaze flickered to a chair across the room and her body tensed. “Where’s my beach bag? It was on that chair,” she said, pointing across the room. Abruptly she went still as a statue. Anxiety hovered in the air between them. Her hands moved quickly and touched her hair. It was in complete disarray. She always combed her hair before bed. Horror ripped through her body and the familiar nausea rose.
Sebastian tried to probe her mind but soon realized he couldn’t do that any longer. She was now an immortal. Her body had rejuvenated to its perfect condition.
“How long have I been lying here?”
“Awhile.”
“Awhile? How long is awhile?”
“Awhile,” he repeated forcing himself to stay calm.
Her breathing elevated and she didn’t look at him. “How did my hair get like this?”
There was a long silence. She finally lifted her head and stared at him intently and he had to say something.
“Arielle…”
“How?” she was now screaming hysterically.
“Arielle, baby, calm down please,” he pleaded. “Do all these questions really matter? You’re here now, and you’re all right,” he said, his voice breaking.
Instantaneous shock melted away her hysterics. Her fingers twined and her lips moved in a griping sound. “What in bloody hell do you mean I’m ‘all right now’?”
“Arielle, we need to talk.” The way he looked into her eyes spoke volumes, his warm loving eyes boring right into hers. He was sure reality hadn’t caught up to her yet. She had no idea that she'd transcended from the human world.
But it didn’t take long. Her lips started to tremble. She shut her eyes and pressed her hands against her temples one more time, and her expression dissolved into a frown. “It wasn't a dream, was it?” she asked without looking up.
He moved to sit on the bed and took her hands into his. “Look at me, baby,” he demanded.
Arielle looked up and their gazes locked. “It wasn't a dream,” he whispered. She remained utterly unmoved and he saw how deeply his words had sunk into her mind.
She shut her eyes tightly and took a few deep breaths. She then let a narrow strip of light slip through her eyelids and stared up at him through horror-stricken eyes. Her lips were still trembling, and her body shaking. She swatted his arm away and clamped her hand over her mouth. She was panic-stricken and he couldn't read her thoughts.
“But…” she mumbled. “If this wasn’t a dream, then I should be dead.”
“You're very much alive!” Sebastian said.
“Where's Annabel?”
“Annabel is dead.”
Arielle jumped out of bed ready to run, but to where? She wasn’t sure. Suddenly her legs buckled and she started to fall. Sebastian’s arms moved like whirlwind and kept her upright.
She leaned against his muscled chest for a moment gathering her strength. She wasn't sure what to do next and she didn’t know what questions to ask. She pulled away making her way to the balcony. Sebastian followe
d. Stepping outside chills prickled down her spine. She turned to face him. “Sebastian, I want to cry but I don’t seem to be able to.”
He nodded without saying a word.
“I’m not…” her voice trailed off. “Am I…”
He hung his head low, unable to look into her eyes. Silence enveloped them like a blanket. He finally looked up and reaching out pulled her back into his warm embrace.
Her eyes widened in disbelief. “What happened?” she asked.
“Oh God, Arielle, I thought I was going to lose my mind. I was sure that I’d finally created a safe haven far too steely for anyone to penetrate and hurt you. I failed you again. I can’t remember any woman being such a huge part of my life until you. I was looking for you and one day I just turned around and there you were. I couldn’t possibly let you go now.”
He pulled back, took her face in his hands and brushed her cheeks softly with his thumbs. He then snaked his hands around her back and held her tight against him. “You scared the hell out of me. I thought I wouldn't get to you in time. I love you so much. I can’t live without you, you’re my whole world, the center of my universe.”
She took in the seriousness of his voice, but couldn’t reason with what Sebastian was trying to say. The anxiety was building up inside her and she felt she was suffocating. She couldn’t breathe, still trying to process what was happening inside her body.
He watched her intently. “Please...” he started to say but she cut him off before he could finish his statement. She wanted badly to cry but how strange, no tears would form in her eyes. Her heart leaped into her throat, and she couldn't form a sound thought. I can’t cry. The thought made her shiver.
“I’m not ready for this… I’m just not ready for this…” she muttered. She stepped back and scanned his face. “Sebastian, I’m scared,” she murmured.
“Don’t be scared, baby. Nothing can hurt you anymore.”
“Oh God! I wish I could cry. I think I would feel better,” she whimpered. “What am I to do now?”
“Arielle, please, love!” he begged. “You've been strong for everyone else, why can’t you do that for you?”
“But I’m not ready,” she stated inflexibly.
“It was either this or let you die. I thought you wanted to be with me forever. Have you changed your mind?”
She looked lost. “No, Sebastian, I haven't changed my mind, but this?”
“There was no other way. I’m sorry. I love you way too much and I wasn’t going to let you slip out of my life. You’ll continue to be you, only more powerful, utterly unbreakable. You will be mine for eternity and you’ll never be afraid of anything or anyone. Arielle, you know everything about immortality. You've heard all the details from me in the last year plus and you helped Eva through her countless questions when she went through her transformation.” He pressed her hand. “You have to do this Arielle, and I know you can.”
She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She wasn't ready, she wanted to go back to how things were, but she knew there was no turning back now.
“I wonder how this is going to work when we get home.”
“Arielle, it worked for Ian and Eva. No one but our friends sees them as being different. It'll be the same for you.” His voice was calm and reassuring.
She watched him carefully as she considered what he was saying.
“Are you all right, baby?” He gazed into her sapphire eyes trying to see the answer he needed before she even said it. His devastatingly beautiful face was pleating for reassurance and his eyes were blazing with love and passion for her and her only. His hands came up and held her face gently, running his thump across her bottom lip.
“I love you, baby, and you’re all mine now and forever.”
“I love you, too,” she replied gently. His lips were mere centimeters from hers.
His arms came around her and pulled her flush against him. His embrace felt warm and powerful as his muscles shifted and she moaned.
She stood on tip-toes and brushed his lips. Sebastian closed his eyes in a silent prayer and thanked God for making this transformation a little easier than he thought it would be.
Arielle wrapped her arms around his neck and drew him down to her. Sebastian’s lips covered hers and fused them into a blistering kiss. The sensation was so much stronger than she remembered. Something was different; her knees nearly buckled.
Sebastian felt it and a smile tugged at his lips. “What is it, baby?”
“I’m not sure. It's a strange sensation.”
“It’s the immortal sensation,” he replied, his voice amused. “Much more potent than that of a human.”
Arielle skimmed her hands across his muscled shoulders and stepped even closer. “Now I understand what Eva was trying to tell me. Now I understand your unending desires.”
Sebastian grinned. His gaze fell on her lips just as she ran the tip of her tongue over the bottom lip and he groaned. “How are you feeling?”
“I feel great, but I still don’t understand how this can be.”
“It'll take time.” His voice was hushed.
“Am I going to need Salve from now on?”
He nodded as his mouth came down on hers once again and kissed her with unleashed passion. He felt her body respond and heard her soft moan. She drew back breathless and pinned him with her eyes. She needed a reply.
“Yes, you’ll need Salve just like we all do, for strength, but you’ll be able to enjoy human food just as you did before.”
Her eyes widened in surprise. “Just as I did before?”
Sebastian pulled her back into his tight embrace. “Well, not just as before, but you'll be able to tolerate the food. It'll make it easy for you to function among humans.” He was staring at her lips, eager to plunge back into the kiss.
She slipped away from his embrace. “I want to taste it.”
Sebastian’s eyebrows furrowed, but he walked into the other room and came back with a small glass filled with the special immortal nourishment.
She stared at the glass for a moment, and then took a small sip. She closed her eyes, letting the liquid trickle down her throat. Sebastian watched her intently. He saw no changes in her expression and waited eagerly to hear what she had to say.
Arielle stood, thoughtful. The liquid was sweet with a fruity kind of aftertaste. “I like it,” she whispered into the glass and glanced at him over the brim.
He moved to take the glass away from her but she pulled back and smiled. “I’m going to finish it,” she stated. “How long have I been going through the transformation?”
“It has been four days since…” he voice trailed. He didn’t want to bring back bitter thoughts.
“I wonder what this new life will be like,” she muttered into the glass.
“It will be amazing. You and me together forever.”
She walked toward the bed, zillions of thoughts swirling in her head. This is what she'd envisioned from the moment she met Sebastian. Why am I so worried about it now? Maybe I’m not ready for such a huge step, but ready or not I’m here now and there's no going back. Her next thought was about the man she loved beyond any limits. He saved her life and she needed to make sure he knew that she was very much in love with him. What if he hadn’t found her in time? The thought of Sebastian moving on through the centuries without her weighed her down. She didn’t want to think about that any longer. She was now an immortal and they would be together for eternity.
He came around and stood in front of her. His hands cupped her face and his fingers caressed the curve of her jaw. “What are you thinking?”
She looked into his emerald eyes and smiled. “I told you before that my thoughts are always about you.”
“As they should be,” he said and his smile widened.
Suddenly Sebastian scooped her up into his arms, and carried her to bed. “Let me show you about immortal love,” he said cradling her against his chest, his lips soft against hers, his love enfolding her like a
warm blanket. He laid her on top of the sheets and their clothes came off with maddening speed. He let his gaze wander over her naked body and his breath held at the splendor of it. She was beautiful before, but immortality gave her a stunningly exquisite touch. He climbed on the bed and pulled her flush against his bare body. “You’ll be mine always,” he whispered against her lips.
She gasped at the feel of his skin against hers. His mouth came down on hers with unrestrained passion and his tongue plundered the softness of her mouth. Arielle moaned as blistering fire shot down her spine, curling her toes, leaving her breathless. His lips warm against her flesh moved down her throat, kissing and nipping her soft silky skin. His mouth moved lower and pressed further kisses along the curve of her breasts.
Arielle took a tremulous breath as his hand cupped and kneaded one breast while the tip of his tongue flicked over a taut nipple and then his hot mouth closed over it suckling fervently. A seductive quiver shot down her spine and she felt her body sinking into immeasurable pleasure. She made groaning sounds as his hands and his mouth moved down her body. His fingers stroked and teased every naked spot and his mouth kissed, suckled and tasted every part of her body. Her pulse rocketed and she melted into his touch when she felt his erection pushing against her thigh.
Sebastian moved over her body like a panther after his pray. He stretched on top of her and tilting his head, laid claim to her mouth. His tongue delved into its softness and he plundered hard pulling all the stops and sending waves of blistering fire across every single muscle of her body.
He slipped his hands around her hips, pressed her thighs wide and drew her up to him, jetting wild anticipation across her nerves. With one swift move and a loud groan he buried himself inside of her to the hilt. Arielle hissed a gush of air between her teeth. The filling was exquisite, the sense of fulfillment indescribable. Their encounters were always beyond anything she could ever imagine, but this was different; no mistake about it. The passion was glorious, overpowering, the strength was vast cloaked with primitive urge. He invaded her body and possessed her mind setting her flesh on fire.
Arielle Immortal Resolve (The Immortal Rapture Series Book 8) Page 31