Arielle Immortal Journey (The Immortal Rapture Series Book 5) (32 page)

The woman frantically began twisting her hands behind her
back in a desperate attempt for some kind of control. She grabbed a hold of the sides of her dress and pulled them together. In the process, she lost her balance and fell face first onto the floor. Loud gasps filled the air and bounced off the walls when her skirt flipped up exposing her privates. Her friends rushed to her side and tried to help her off the floor, but the damage was already done.

Arielle, Eva, and Gabby pressed their hands over their mouths, trying to hold back robust laughter, and turning around they took off practically running toward the other side of the room where they succumbed, exploding into loud laughter. Tears ran down Arielle's and Gabrielle’s faces, and Eva was just coming apart with hilarity.

“She sure got what she deserved,” Arielle said between giggles.

“What goes around bloody comes around,” Gabby said
emphatically, and busted out laughing again.

“Ce qui est si drôle?”

The laughter froze mid-air as they spun around to come face to face with two elegantly dressed young men. The girls were startled
speechless. Arielle and Gabrielle wiped their eyes with the backs of their
hands. The men watched them closely. They both had blond hair ruffled up in a cute way and amazing blue eyes. Arielle thought that
the men
looked oddly familiar. She smiled as she quickly glanced at
Gabrielle. Her friend was also lost for words.

“Ce qui est si drôle?” the guy closest to Arielle asked again.

“Um, nothing important, just an inside joke,” Arielle replied in English.

“You are English?” The second guy said with a surprised tone in his voice.

“Yes,” Arielle replied.

“Would you like to dance?” they asked simultaneously.

Gabby and Arielle gave them their hands. They lifted them to their lips and gazed into their eyes. The girls noticed the pattern,
deciphering that this was some sort of ritual men went through when they asked women to dance. It was protocol. The ladies looked back at Eva as
they were pulled toward the dance floor, but she was already
engaged in a conversation with a young man. Out on the floor, they moved to a wonderful waltz, following their leads with no difficulty.

The men were fantastic dancers. Arielle thought that this was
turning out to be a lot of fun. She closed her eyes as Sebastian’s lovely face filled her thoughts, and she sighed softly. She felt her
dance
partner’s hand pressing on her lower back, and she opened her eyes to find him searching her face for a clue to what the sigh was all about.

“What’s your name?” he asked softly.

“Arielle.”

“You’re very beautiful, Arielle,” he said, still staring at her. She lowered her eyes as her face flushed, and she felt him pulling her
closer. She looked up at him.

“You have the most extraordinary eyes I’ve ever seen,” he whispered.

“Thank you,” she replied shyly. “What’s your name?” she asked, trying to make simple conversation.

“Anton, Anton Gaulle.”

Arielle shivered at the sound of his name. That’s why he looked so familiar! Anton bore a true likeness to Gustave, Sebastian’s father.
She felt the floor drop away from her, and she desperately tried to
hang on to Anton to stop her from finding herself on the floor.

“Are you all right?” Anton asked with concern.

Arielle took deep breaths. She coughed softly to clear the lump
in
her throat before she could find her voice. She couldn’t believe she
was in Anton’s arms.

“I’m so sorry, I felt a little dizzy, but I’m all right now,” she said, resting her eyes on his beautiful face. She smiled and he eased his hold on her.

“You scared me for a second there,” he said.

Arielle smiled again, and tried to clear her thoughts. He pulled her just a bit closer, keeping his eyes on her face. She felt a little
strange knowing that this was Sebastian’s brother. She was wondering if the
guy that was dancing with Gabrielle was Marcus. She gulped.
This
was just incredible,
I am dancing with Sebastian’s brother!
She took a deep breath, and decided to go for it.

“So, this is your home then?”

“You can say that,” he said. “Are you visiting here or do you live in Calais?”

“No, I’m actually here on holiday with my two sisters. They are both on the dance floor.”

“Oh, so the girls you were talking with are your sisters?”

“Yes. Do you have any siblings?”

Anton was oblivious to the fact that Arielle knew all about his family history. “Yes, I have two brothers, one is Marcus, he is
dancing
with one of your sisters, and the other is Sebastian, who is the youngest.”

“I think you and Marcus look a lot like your father,” Arielle said.

“Yes, we’ve been told that many times, however Sebastian looks exactly like our mother. Girls seem to pursue him beyond belief, and I’m sure he’s somewhere with some young lady just as we speak.”
He threw his head back and laughed as if this was a common
occurrence.

Arielle felt a pang of jealousy, but she had to remind herself that this is centuries before she met Sebastian. She tried to turn her mind away from Sebastian since she couldn't get over the jealousy issue.

“I’m very much into Renaissance architecture,” she said out of
the blue. “Your home is a beautiful piece of architecture. I would
love to see some of the rooms,” she said, hoping, but not expecting, that he would actually agree to give her a tour of the house.

“Do you now? I’d be delighted to show you around,” he replied excitedly. “Do you think your sisters might want to join the tour?”

“Thank you, that would be wonderful,” she said. The possibility of touring the house exhilarated her. The music came to a stop and
they walked off the dance floor. She introduced Gabrielle and Eva to Anton. Anton in turn introduced his brother Marcus to Eva and Arielle. The surprised look on the faces of Eva and Gabrielle didn’t escape Arielle.

“Anton has agreed to give us a tour of this beautiful house,”
Arielle
said. “Would you like to come along?” she asked her best friends. Gabrielle and Eva appeared enchanted at the thought. Marcus
smiled
softly, and taking Gabrielle’s hand pulled her closer to him. Arielle noticed the movement and glanced at Eva. She succeeded in hiding a chuckle.

They were standing by the balcony door making small talk when
Arielle felt the weight of an intense stare. She looked around and
saw Gaston watching her vigilantly. He was pushing his way through the
crowd on the dance floor trying to reach them. She knew why he
created
such an unsettling feeling in her. Even the reasonable part of her
couldn’t erase the sensation that Gaston was generating. She was sure that
Gaston liked her a bit too much. The edgy sensation burned her
throat, but she knew she had to endure it.

Anton took her hand, a move that made her a little
uncomfortable,
but she didn’t want to become obvious, so she rested her hand in his and smiled. They all started to walk forward when she heard Anton’s voice.

“Gaston! How are you? I’m so glad to see you.” Her heart raced at the sight of Gaston’s intense gaze. Anton reached over and gave Gaston a warm hug, and so did Marcus. They seemed friendly with each other.

“Anton, Marcus.” Gaston’s voice was velvety soft but full of
pleasantness toward the Gaulle boys. However, his eyes never left Arielle’s face. Marcus introduced Eva and Gabrielle to Gaston.

Anton introduced Arielle while putting his arm around her waist.

Gaston smiled. “We’ve already met,” he stated calmly.

“Oh,” Anton commented, the tone of his voice that of surprise.

“We just met,” Arielle quickly inserted. “He asked me to dance.”

Anton watched her intently. “Did he tell you that he’s
Sebastian’s best friend?”

“No, we didn’t talk very much.”

“Well, you’ll never see one without the other,” Anton said,
laughing joyfully.

“Speaking of Sebastian, where is he?” Marcus asked.

“We were together a little earlier,” Gaston replied with an obvious smirk on his face. “But he’s a little occupied right now, if
you know what I mean.” Marcus, Anton, and Gaston broke out into laughter.
Arielle felt a pang of jealousy shoot right through her heart. She
understood exactly what Gaston was trying to say. She succeeded in keeping her balled fists by her sides. She reminded herself again that this was happening way before she ever set eyes on Sebastian.

“We’re going to take a tour of the house, would you like to come with us?” Anton asked Gaston.

“No, thanks, I’ve seen it way too many times.” His gaze returned
to Arielle. “I’m going to look for Sebastian. I’ll be back a little later. Arielle has promised me a couple more dances, am I right?” he
asked, capturing her hand. Arielle caught her breath, her nerves on edge.

“Yes, I did promise,” she said, and bit her lower lip.

“All right then, I’ll be back to collect.” He stroked her hand gently and then walked off, but not before giving her a glance filled with amusement. His last words echoed in her ears. “I’ll be back to
collect.”
She had no idea why she felt guarded. The fact that he was an
immortal shouldn’t be of great importance. He hadn’t given her any reason to feel cautious, but somehow she did.
I wonder if Sebastian knew that his best friend was an immortal?
she thought to herself. Inwardly cursing, she cleared her throat and looked up at Anton.

Anton pointed toward a luxurious staircase at the opposite side of the room leading to the upper floor. He took her hand and pulled her softly along next to him as they made their way around several guests. Gabrielle, Eva, and Marcus followed close behind. Just before
they reached the stairs they heard a strong, deep voice calling for Marcus. Suddenly they halted and turning around, they watched a
tall, striking man make his way toward them with large strides. He was elegantly dressed in a blue coat, black pants, and a crisp white shirt. When he
stopped in front of them, the guys reached out to shake his hand cheerfully. Arielle paled and a wave of shock washed over her. She
turned abruptly and gazed at Eva. Nobody noticed but Eva. Leaving Marcus' side she moved closer to Arielle.

“Hey, Brandon! When did you get back?” Marcus asked.

“I came home last evening. I wasn’t going to miss this ball,” he said blissfully. His attention fastened on the three girls, his gaze
cruising
over each in turn. He then glanced at Marcus and Anton
inquisitively. Marcus stepped forward and made the introductions.

“Brandon, let me introduce you to the Young sisters, Gabrielle, Eva, and Arielle. And ladies, this is my best friend, Brandon Burgejion.”

“Bon soir,” Brandon said softly. He took each of their hands one at a time and bowed. Eva and Gabrielle were unable to resist a smile. Oddly enough Arielle managed to allow something like a smile to touch her lips.

“Good evening,” they replied almost in unison, making the guys chuckle.

“They are here on a holiday from Hampshire, England,” Marcus said.

“Oh, how wonderful!” he exclaimed. “I just returned from England.”

“Where did you go?” Eva asked, smiling lightly.

“I had some business to conclude in London.”

“Do you spend a lot of time in London?” Gabrielle chimed in.

“Not much. I arrange a trip once a year.” His gaze held
Gabrielle’s and his lips curved.

While Gabrielle, Brandon, Marcus, and Anton became engaged in a lengthy discussion about England, Eva took the chance to lean closer to Arielle and nudged her softly in the arm.

“What’s wrong?”

“I know him, Eva,” she said breathlessly.

“Brandon? How?”

“He’s the head of the secret society that I attended with Olivia.”

“Are you serious?” Eva whispered, stunned.

“Yes, I’m dead serious. I remember him talking about the fact
that he was sure we had met before, and now I understand.” She pressed her lips together anxiously.

“How about that…” Eva’s voice trailed. “I guess we are going to his next class. It will be a lot of fun,” she said softly, easing Arielle’s anxiety.

“How strange is that?” Arielle mumbled, a little more relaxed.
Eva snorted quietly.

“What?” Arielle asked.

“Arielle, how is this any stranger than our lives all together? Look where we are. We’re in Calais in the sixteenth century. Look at
you, Gabby, and Paul, you are going to be married to immortals. Look at Ian and me, did you ever expect for us to achieve immortality?” She snorted again.

“You’re right, you’re right,” Arielle whispered. “I don’t know what in bloody hell I was thinking. This is just another normal
occurrence in the weird world we live in.” They both snorted quietly and turned to join Gabrielle’s conversation. Anton’s voice captured their attention.

“Brandon, we are taking the ladies on a tour of the house, would you like to come with us?”

“Yes, I would love to come with you,” he replied, and soon they were climbing the steps that would led to the library, sitting rooms, and bedchambers.

They walked down a great hall filled with sculptures from the
French Renaissance period. Tapestries were draped over the walls
with coats of arms and figurative emblems. The floor was made out of tiles sampled with fleur de lis and swords. Above the doors of each room were marble medallions. Arielle became lost in the beauty of the decorations, her eyes drinking in each detail. She soon forgot her anxiety, her mind completely filled with joy at seeing Sebastian's childhood home.
What an amazing sight!