“Sebastian!!! Nathan!!! What are you doing here?!”
They looked up, startled, and turned toward the voices in shock. They knew both of the women very well, but they pretended not to remember them.
“Sebastian, it’s me Julia, Julia Venhousen. We dated for a very long time, you can’t tell me that you forgotten me.”
As Sebastian was thinking about how to reply, the other girl spoke.
“Nathan, it’s me Paola, Paola Gordioni. Remember?” Nathan looked at her in confusion, as if he didn’t seem to recall.
“Julia, what are you doing here?” Sebastian finally managed to say.
“I live here; or I should say we both have lived here,” she said waving her arm between her and Paula. “We’ve lived here for the past 70 years. I still look great don’t I?”
“Yes, you still look beautiful,” Sebastian allowed.
“Sebastian, I’ve missed you. What happened to you? You disappeared without a word.”
“Well, we never had anything serious going,” Sebastian said. “I didn’t think there was a need for goodbyes.”
“I sure would like to start something serious right now,” she said, fluttering her eyelashes and smiling a coy smile. “You look just as delicious as you always did.” She looked at him as if he were a tasty meal she would love to consume. She turned to look at Paola, a crude grin on her face.
“I must say he is,” Paola agreed, “but so is Nathan. I remember how great he was in bed!” she said, snorting. They both laughed, making Sebastian and Nathan feel pretty uncomfortable.
“Come on, Sebastian, let’s go out and have some fun tonight,” Julia said. “I remember very well what a great dancer you were— among other things,” she added, laughing suggestively.
“I’m sorry, Julia. We have an early flight in the morning. Besides, I’m not available any longer.”
“Ohhhh! There is a lucky girl out there? I envy her,” she said, with an exaggerated pout. “We were good together,” she added.
“That was centuries ago, Julia,” Sebastian said, standing up. “It was nice seeing you again, but we really do have to go. It was nice seeing you too, Paola. Ciao!”
“What about you, Nathan? Are you involved with someone else right now?” Paola asked.
“Yes, I am, and we do have to go. It was nice to see you again, though. And nice meeting you, Julia.”
They turned and waved as they walked away.
“We will find you again someday,” Julia called after them. “And we will talk again.”
“That was unfortunate,” Sebastian said as they got into the elevator. “Julia was one of my more steady girls. It wasn’t serious, but it was a long relationship. I would hate for her to show up around Arielle.”
“I feel the same way about Paola,” Nathan said. “I’ve been dating someone for a long time, and I’m ready to propose. She’s human, and I’m completely in love with her,” he said, heaving a deep sigh.
“I totally understand, Nathan. Arielle is human as well, and I’m getting ready to propose also. Isn’t life peculiar? We roam the earth for centuries and we finally find true love. And then it is with humans, not our kind.” They laughed at the irony, but both knew how happy they were with their choices.
“Well, goodnight, Nathan,” Sebastian said as they got out of the elevator.
“Goodnight, mate,” Nathan replied, slipping into the local style. “See you in the morning.”
Inside his room, Sebastian watched the news, had a tall drink of salve, and went to bed. But an hour later, he heard a knock and went to the door reluctantly. Julia was standing there, alone, with a sexy smile on her face. “Mmm—mm!!!” she said, staring at his gorgeous bare chest.
“What do you want, Julia?” Sebastian said, more patiently than he felt.
“But you are what I want, darling… of course! What else would I want? I want you to make love to me one more time. I fall apart just thinking about how wonderful you were in bed. I know you liked me a lot you told me so many times.”
“Things have changed, Julia. I’m not the same man you knew before. I’m in love with one girl, and I’m going to be faithful to her for eternity.”
“Sebastian,” she pleaded, “Please! She will never know, and I’ll never tell her.”
“No, Julia, I need you to leave. I’m serious about this. There’s not going to be anything else between us— tonight or any other night.”
“We’ll see about that,” she said, angrily. “You know I don’t give up that easily.” She tossed her head, turned angrily, and strode back down the hallway, hips swaying.
Sebastian shut the door. “She hasn’t been the first one to say that,” he thought. She might as well get in line, right behind Annabel. Then he chuckled ruefully as he got into bed. He knew he didn’t have much time for Julia and her issues. He had put all that behind him centuries ago. As he closed his eyes, the thought of Arielle’s beautiful eyes made him feel warm and excited. He smiled and drifted off to sleep.
The next morning the plane to Berlin took off right on time. The flight attendants made sure that Sebastian and Nathan had everything they asked for, and trying very hard to get their attention, but they weren’t interested.
They knew that their looks made people treat them a little different than everyone else. They read their books, watched a couple of films, talked about their girls, and slept. The plane landed twenty minutes ahead of schedule. There was a lot to be done and they headed to their hotel.
In his room Sebastian was still wondering about Arielle’s cryptic statement over the phone. Her voice had sounded eager, and her excitement palpable.
She had made the most important decision in her life, she had said. He began pacing, trying to discern the meaning of the unspoken words that were imbedded in that statement.
Suddenly, abruptly, his thoughts came to a screeching halt, sending a scorch of wakefulness deep into his bones. He stood in the middle of the room unmoving, in deep thought. His excitement was tangible. Could what he was thinking—hoping—be her decision? But, why would she ever change her mind about such an important commitment right now?
“Holy cow…” he thought. A burning desire inexplicably washed over him, and the thought delved deep into his soul. He needed to get home soon. The thought made him grin widely, his emotions leaped into an astounding level, and his desire to see Arielle again intensified, turning into pure passion.
Acknowledgments:
I couldn’t have written this book without the endless wisdom and love of my mother, who raised me to believe that I could achieve anything in this life if I wanted it bad enough.
To my so-incredible husband, my strong supporter through the countless hours that I spent in front of my computer working on this book.
To my amazing editor, Janet Hulstrand, for encouraging me and guiding me through the difficult parts of the manuscript, and answering my myriad questions.
To my beautiful daughter, Christy, who, never stopped believing in me.
To my wonderful niece, Jiolanda, who has supported my ideas.
To my lovely sister-in-law Leslie, who read the book, and provided constructive criticism.
And finally to my close friends, who believe in me.
About the Author
Lilian Roberts was born in Athens Greece. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband, and their two golden retrievers. She is an avid reader and loves to read novels that feature characters draped in passion, mystery, and adventure. She is especially fascinated with the concept of immortality. “Arielle: Immortal Awakening” is her first volume in the Immortal Rapture series of romance thrillers. She is now working on completing the second and third volumes. “Arielle: Immortal Seduction.” And “Arielle: Immortal passion.”
Contact Information
Website: www.lilianroberts.com
http://twitter.com/Lilian3roberts
Table of Contents
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapt
er 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Acknowledgments:
About the Author
Arielle: Immortal Awakening Page 30