Arielle Immortal Fury (The Immortal Rapture Series Book 6) (24 page)

“Oh my God, something must be wrong.”

“What are you saying?” Loren asked.

“I’m saying that she might be hurt,” he said flatly.

“Do you mean Annabel?”

“No, Loren. I have bigger problems than Annabel right now.”

“What kind of problems?”

“There are people out there that are threatening to hurt Arielle if
I don’t surrender the company designs to them,” he said, his voice
filled with wretchedness.

“Sebastian, maybe she stopped somewhere and forgot about the time.”

After a moment of hesitation, he said in a painful gasp, “That’s not like Arielle, but I hope that you’re right.”

“Sebastian, do you want me to come over?”

“No, not yet.”

“Please don’t think the worst. She’ll be home soon. Call me if you need me.”

“I try not to think of the worst. I just want to know that she’s all right.”

“Call me,” Loren said.

“If I don’t hear from her soon, I’ll be calling you.”

“Love you,” Loren said softly.

“Love you, too,” he said and put the phone down.

He collapsed into the leather chair, emotionally exhausted. He stared at the clock on the mantel, and the ticking noise grated on his nerves. Impatience crept in insidiously as he watched the hands of time barely move. Loneliness enveloped him, and the blood began to boil in his veins. Wild thoughts started to swirl in his head. If she were kidnapped, he was sure that they would contact him with their demands. He just didn’t know what else to do except sit and wait. He covered his face with his hands and wished that he could cry. The pain and anguish was so deep that he could hardly stand it.

A sick, painful feeling settled in the pit of his stomach. His mind
whirled around as he tried to understand why he should feel the
effects of human emotion so strongly. Why was it that irrational thoughts invaded every corner of his mind? As an immortal, he should be able to analyze this emotion.

He closed his eyes in shock and disbelief. What if someone
actually took her? What if she was in pain, scared and alone? Sebastian felt
numb. He felt angry and resentful. He was at fault. He was the
reason
that her life had become chaos. Pain overwhelmed him, the kind of
pain that would never end. He didn’t want to exist in this world if she wasn’t in it. His senses went reeling, and his fears became palpable. His stomach was tense with uneasiness. He decided that he needed to snap himself out of this horrible state.

He rose to his feet and strolled across the room to stand in front of the window. His eyes traveled across the water. This had been a troublesome day, and he was trying hard to suppress his temper. “Damn it; where is she?”

Chapter 14

TWO MORE HOURS
had passed since he last talked to Loren, and Sebastian was going out of his mind. He knew that he needed to stop obsessing by invoking the worst case scenarios, so he didn’t allow the debilitating emotions to drain every resource he possessed. He stood up, determined to stay stoic as he drew a line to his obsession, prepared not only to cross it but to endure the danger. He walked to the kitchen and pulled a bottle of salve from the fridge. He took several sips, needing the energy and strength. He stopped breathing as he heard a car engine approaching and gasped in relief as the car pull into the garage.

He flew to the door and yanked it open hard enough that it
sprang against the wall. Elation made his body tingle with joy. He drew in a shaky breath and felt the blood thudding against his temples slowly dissolve. Arielle stepped out of the car, looking unruffled. She had a huge smile painted on her beautiful face, eyes sparkling like brilliant
sapphires. She had no idea of the fierce war he had been waging
inside himself as he waited for her to get home.

“Hey, baby,” she said, her voice soft, sweet. It caressed every
corner of his soul. He stepped into the garage and swept her off the floor, pulling her into his arms. He twirled her around with eagerness, and passion. She was startled as he set her back on the floor, and bending down, he crushed her lips beneath his.

“Where the devil have you been?” he asked breathlessly. He
swept her into his arms one more time and carried her inside, shutting the door behind them with his foot.

“Shopping,” she called out softly. “There are bags in the back of the car.” She threw her head backward and stretched her arm out, pointing toward the garage.

“You can get them later,” he said. “Why didn’t you answer your phone? I’ve been going out of my mind.”

“Um, I didn’t hear it ring. The battery must be dead, but why? What’s wrong? You look upset,” she said, clearly surprised by his frustration.

“No, I’m not upset,” he said, trying to cover up his crazy
emotions. “I was just worried about you.” He strove to appear relaxed even though he had been dying inside, waiting to see her home safe.

“What are you worried about?” she asked, eyebrows arched.

“All kinds of things,” he said, waving his hand in a dismissive way.

“Such as?” she pressed.

“Such as an accident, or…or something else major,” he said
humorously in a poor attempt to cover his anxiety. His eyes rested on her beautiful face, trying hard to seem nonchalant.

“All I did was go shopping, and trust me the damage is quite
major
.” She emphasized the last word and laughed joyfully.
Sebastian held her warmly, happy to have her home and in his arms where she belonged. He looked to heaven with a silent prayer and smiled wide.
He set her feet on the floor and pulled her into his embrace,
unwilling to let her go.

“My bags,” she stressed again. She leaned back and stretched her arm, pointing toward the closed door.

“I’m not ready to let you go, so please forget about the bags. Can you do that for just a moment?” He pulled her back into a hot kiss until he felt her melting against him. “
Je t’aime,
Arielle.
Je t'adore
.”

“Oh, there is something wrong. You are speaking French.” She
looked at him quizzically. “Spill it; what is it?”

He laughed at the tone of her voice and pulled her closer, as if that was even possible. He slipped both his hands to her backside as he pressed against her while shifting his lower body. He was excited.

“
Je t'ai manqué
,” she whispered, out of breath.

“
Moi, aussi
,” he replied breathlessly.

“
Montrez-moi
.” It was all she could say. She moaned softly.

“Mmm.” His eyes were closed. Passion burned in the pit of his stomach.

“
Je tu veux en ce moment
.”

She threw her arms around his neck, and he carried her to bed.
He handled her with a wild hunger. His hands caressed every inch of her body. His mouth and tongue ran wildly, savoring every inch of her, making her cry out in ecstasy. He moaned. Nothing mattered except pleasing her. She kissed the hollow of his throat in the place
she knew
he liked. He smiled, liking that she knew what set him off. His
lovemaking was powerful. It wasn’t just need, it was eagerness.

He was breathless, his face full of intense passion. There was something different about the heat that overwhelmed their bodies. He knew that she must feel it.

Silence fell as their encounter ended. Sebastian was unable to utter a single word. He rolled off of her onto his back and placed his
hands behind his head as he watched her. Arielle laid her head on
the crook of his shoulder and pulled her body as close to him as
possible. She wrapped her arm around his chest. He sighed

“You have absolutely no idea how much I love you,” he
murmured, voice velvety soft.

“I think I do,” she whispered. She ran her tongue around his lip line, and he moaned. He parted his lips, knowing that she wanted to taste the sweetness of his immortal scent. They stayed in each other's arms for a couple of hours.

It was getting dark outside when she decided to get out of bed.
They took a warm shower, chatting away about this and that. She
laughed blissfully. He knew that she was unable to understand his immortal desire, but she wasn’t complaining.

While drying her hair, Sebastian saw that she had something to
ask
him. He had tried to hide his emotions, tried to appear like nothing
was out of the ordinary, but she must have noticed.

“Can you tell me what was all that about?” Arielle asked.

“What do you mean?” Sebastian smiled seductively.

“I mean the way you made love to me,” she said, sighing.

“What was strange about that?”

“Sebastian, I know that you don’t think of me as a fool. I know and you know that there was something extraordinary about the way you made love to me tonight. Did something happen while I
was gone?”

“No.” He pulled her to him for a kiss. “I just missed you,” he
said without leaving the kiss.

“You are holding something back, and that’s all right, but I want
you to remember this moment,” she said emphatically. Sebastian
gazed deeply into her eyes.

“What do you mean by that?” he asked curiously. He walked slowly toward the bed and laid back down, putting his hands behind
his head. He watched her carefully. She followed him, propping
herself on her elbow and gazing down at him.

“I know that there will be a time when you ask me what I’m thinking, and I won’t tell you,” she said. She turned and jumped
back
out of bed. She tried to walk away, but he reached out with his immortal speed and grabbed her wrist. He drew her back to him as
she
swayed on her feet. She turned to face him; his emerald eyes
sparkled as a wide smile spread across his face.

“What am I going to do with you?”

“I think you’ve already done it,” she said with a smile, and he
laughed. “But you still haven’t answered my question.”

Sebastian thought that was a great moment to tell her about the trip.

“Arielle, I have to leave for Brussels in the morning.” He closed his eyes, expecting an outburst or a protest, but he heard nothing but silence. He opened his eyes reluctantly. She was out of bed, standing over him, watching him carefully.

“Well, there it is! I knew that you were hiding something.” Her unruffled voice stunned him. He hadn’t expected that at all. Did she
really think that he made love to her because of the trip? She was
so…wrong, but he wasn’t going to discuss the various issues and the dangers he was dealing with.

“When were you planning on telling me about this?” Her voice was soft, matter of fact.

“Now. Is this a bad time?” He chuckled as his eyes pleaded for understanding. Arielle couldn’t possibly stay mad at him.

“Are you going alone?”

“No, Troy and Nathan are going with me.”

“How long this time?” Her voice was full of wretchedness.

“A couple of days; not long at all,” he said quickly.

“How am I going to make it without you at night?”

“If you feel that this will be a major issue, I’ll come home every night.”

“How? Why? That will be ridiculous.”

“You know…” his voice lingered, “I can use my own powers and return to Brussels in the morning,” he said and burst out laughing.

He pulled her down into his arms and held her close. Of course,
he was hoping that she would say no. He never liked this kind of disruption when he was involved in a key problem. Arielle was a
major
distraction for him. She occupied each and every cell in his brain,
each and every nerve in his body. He had to be away from her to be able to concentrate on what needed to be done.

“Don’t be silly,” she said. “I’ll never ask you to do something like that. I know that all three of you can come home in a blink of an eye, but I also know that you have to handle your business. So I’ll have to get used to it.”

“I love you, Arielle, and I hate being away from you. Sleeping
without you is something I’m not looking forward to.”

“Yes, I think the nights will always be the hardest to get used to,” she said.

“I know. I hate that as well, but I’ll call you every night.”

Arielle was quiet as her eyes rested on his face.

“Do you love me?” he whispered. She jumped back on the bed, making him laugh. She kissed him passionately, so deeply he
moaned in ecstasy. She broke the kiss and pulled back to look at him.

“Do I have to answer your question?” she asked with a giggle.

“No, I think that you love me,” he said with a playful look in his eyes. She got out of bed again, and picking up her mobile, she called Gabrielle. Sebastian listened in.