Arielle Immortal Journey (The Immortal Rapture Series Book 5) (17 page)

“Yes…I think I am. No…no, I’m sure that I am. I just wanted to make sure I understand the important issues.”

“Don’t worry, Gabrielle, I’ll be right there, and will not let
anything happen to either one of you.”

Gabrielle sank back down into the armchair, and leaning back in the comfort of the leather she stared at Eva for a long moment. It was hard to pretend that this trip was not making her world spin, but she had to confess that Eva’s enthusiasm was contagious. She finally
took a deep breath and said, “I’m not worried, I’m just a little nervous.” She pressed her lips together. “I trust you completely, and
this whole thing is pretty exciting.”

Chapter 13

THEY TALKED MORE
about Eva’s gift to Arielle, and a bit about Loren and Paul. They decided to leave lunch for another day. Gabrielle left Eva’s house after they agreed to get together with
Arielle and discuss the details of the pretend contest. Eva would then manifest the costumes and have them try them on. She would give Arielle the actual gift the day before her birthday because they didn't want to
interfere with Sebastian's plans. Gabby was so excited about the whole thing she could hardly wait another week. Eva made her promise to keep it a secret, and that included not telling Troy.
Gabrielle never
broke a promise to her best friend, and she wasn’t going to start now, even though Gabrielle and Troy were very open with each
other.

Arielle picked up her phone and pressed the number four on her speed dial. Paul picked up on the first ring.

“Hello, beautiful!”

“Hey, Paul! Were you expecting my call?” Arielle asked with an amused tone. She heard him laugh.

“Yes, if you must know. I was sitting here wishing for one of my favorite girls to call, and what do you know? My wish came true.”

“I miss spending time with you, Paul, and listening to your
stories,” Arielle said, expressing how she genuinely felt.

“I miss our talks as well,” he replied. Arielle was touched by his words. She loved Paul like a brother.

“How is it going with Loren?”

“Oh, Arielle, I’ve found the girl of my dreams. She’s everything I
ever wanted in a girl and much more.” He sighed loudly. “But don’t be jealous, I still love you,” he added hurriedly. Soft laughter followed.

“I’m not jealous, shattered would be a better word,” Arielle joked, and then burst out into a joyful laugh. Paul’s warm laughter spilled out of her speaker. Before she had a chance to invite him
over, he surprised
her, saying, “I’m so glad that you called. I’ve been thinking about
you. I need to talk with you,” he said, his voice tense.

“It sounds serious, is it?”

“I don’t want you to read too much into this, but something happened yesterday. I’m a bit confused, and I need to talk to my best friend, you. You're the only one I trust,” he said gently. Arielle felt a
jolt as she was sure he was talking about Loren’s speed, but she
didn’t say anything.

“Is it your parents?” she asked, pretending that she didn't
suspect anything.

“No,” he replied, “even though their marriage is still an absolute
joke,
if you know what I mean…” His voice trailed. “I don’t even understand why they still live under the same roof. They don’t love
each other,” he
said in an agonizing voice. “But, that’s another problem altogether. Trust me, Arielle, I’ve learned to tolerate the situation, though it still hurts.”

“I understand,” she said gently. “But, Paul, it’s their life, they’ll find their way. You have your life to worry about.” She was acutely aware of his pain through her gift of empathy and she was sad to know that her friend was hurting.

“I agree, but it’s hard to dismiss your parents from your life’s equation.”

“That’s absolutely true. So, can you come over today?”

“What time?” he quickly asked.

“How about two this afternoon? I’ve got something I’d like to talk with you about as well.” Arielle’s voice was a little unsteady.

“Something wrong?” he asked, sensing the tone in her voice.

She took a couple of deep breaths. “No, not at all, I just want to spend some time with you,” she said nonchalantly.

“Where is Sebastian?”

“He is playing golf. He won't be back until later this afternoon.”

“What are you doing now? I could come over now.”

“I’m getting ready to go over to visit my parents. I promised to have lunch with them, but I’ll be back before two. It’ll be absolutely great to see you.”

“Then two it is,” he replied.

 She exhaled deeply with relief as she set the phone down. She tensed up again when she considered how she was going to
approach the subject of Loren's immortality. She decided that she needed to make another call. She called Gabrielle.

“Hi, Arielle, what’s up?” Gabby’s voice was cheerful.

“Gabby, I need to talk to you and Eva about Paul coming over this afternoon. I just finished talking to him, and I realized that I
really need your and Eva’s support. I should have asked earlier when you called, but I thought I could handle it myself.”

“Are you going to tell him about Loren?”

“Yes,” she said nervously.

“Let me get Eva on the phone and we can do a three-way call,” Gabby suggested. Eva was on the phone almost immediately.

“What’s going on?” she asked in a sleepy voice.

“Were you sleeping?” Arielle asked, surprised. “Eva, it’s noon,” she said laughing.

“Well, Ian went to play golf, and there isn’t much going on. I was
watching a film on the telly and I dosed off.” She said something incomprehensible followed by a soft yawn. Arielle thought back to their younger days. Eva loved to sleep long hours, and always had a
hard time getting going no matter the circumstances.

“What’s up?” Eva asked again in that amazing velvety voice.

“I need you guys,” Arielle said When she knew that she had their full attention, she continued. “I find myself doing this over and over again. I’d love to have your support while I give Paul the shock of his life.” She laughed nervously.

“I’ll be happy to come over,” Gabrielle said.

“What about you, Eva?”

“I’ll do the same, but I think you should ask Loren if she wants all of us there. Give us a call back after you talk with her.”

“I’ll call Loren right now. I just feel like a broken record,
repeating the same things over and over again.” Arielle laughed, and she heard both her friends laugh too. As soon as their conversation ended, she called Loren.

“Hello,” her musical voice echoed in Arielle’s ear.

“Hey, Loren it’s Arielle.”

“Hi, is there something wrong?”

“No, not at all,” she replied. “The reason I called is that I would like to ask Gabrielle and Eva to come this afternoon. The three of us are very close to Paul. He’s like our brother, and I know he considers us family.” Arielle took a deep breath and continued. “I’m sure it’ll
be a lot easier if he knew the complete truth about all of us, and that includes Eva. I know he’ll be shocked, just like Gabrielle and I were, but finding out the truth about Troy and Sebastian made our
relationship stronger. I believe the same will happen with you and Paul. What do you say?” Arielle took another deep breath and hoped that Loren would say yes.

“I don’t mind,” Loren said. “I know that you’re all very close. And you’re the closest thing to a sister I have ever had. Whatever
you decide
is good with me.” Arielle heard the sincerity in Loren's voice and
smiled, thinking that the feeling was mutual.

“All right then, come on over around three,” Arielle said, and ended the call. She then called Eva and Gabrielle back, and asked them to be there around two thirty. Arielle wanted a little time to
talk with Paul alone before everyone showed up for Loren’s disclosure. How ironic, she thought to herself, that she had become the center of confessions
for everyone, and the link between their issues. She certainly had never imagined something this when while growing up. On the other hand, she never thought she would fall in love with an
immortal.

Arielle considered how Paul might take the news. She was sure that it would be difficult for him to accept as it had been for her. He was going to have the same conflicting feelings that Arielle, Eva, and Gabrielle had. She wished she knew how Paul was going to react,
but at least it would bring a sense of relief for Loren. Sebastian had told Arielle that hiding his true identity because of his fear of rejection was the hardest thing he ever had to do. Arielle suspected
that Loren felt the same way. Fear and confusion would be the main feelings that
would hit Paul first. He would have to acknowledge the fact that he fell in love with someone who belonged to a completely different
world.

Arielle was still feeling anxious about the upcoming meeting
with Paul as she drove to her parents' house. She tried to think of ways to make the disclosure a little easier. Maybe it was just her imagination, but she felt extremely nervous about revealing Loren’s
identity. She
was troubled at the thought of telling Paul that the girl he was madly in love with was going to live forever. She shook her head and
absentmindedly touched the amulet on her necklace.

Arielle arrived at her parents' house as promised. She parked in the garage, and walked through the kitchen door, surprised to see an empty room.

“Mum! Daddy!” she called out.

“Up here, honey, in the bedroom,” her mother answered. Arielle scaled the staircase two steps at a time, and when she reached their bedroom, she found herself in the middle of barely contained chaos. There were open drawers everywhere, clothes spread across the bed, and open luggage on the floor – some suitcases empty and some half full. Her mother was standing in the middle of the mess, resting one hand on her hip and the other on her forehead, looking completely lost. Arielle glanced around the room, her face a mixture of shock and amusement.

“What’s going on?” Arielle asked. Her mum walked over and
embraced her tightly.

“I’m so glad to see you, dear.”

“Mum, what are you doing?” Arielle asked, suppressing a laugh.

“I’m trying to pack for our trip to Spain,” she replied as if Arielle had asked an absurd question. Arielle fought not to roll her eyes.

“Where is Daddy?”

“Most likely in the study reading. You know I don’t want him getting involved when I pack.”

“Are you sure that today is a good day to have lunch together?”

“Of course, I already prepared your favorite sandwiches,” her
mother said with a warm smile. “Your dad and I would love to
spend a little time with you alone.”

“Can I help?”

“Yes, you can go find your dad and get him to the table. I’ll be right down.” Arielle choked back laughter as she walked out. Part of her was relieved that she didn't have to help with the arduous task of
packing made more difficult by her mother's bizarre style, but
another part felt guilty leaving her mother to clean up such a mess. Her mum could get carried away when she prepared for a tip. That
was why her dad always left the particulars to his wife, wisely choosing to stay out of the way. Arielle decided to join her father in hiding out from Hurricane Mum. She walked back downstairs and into the study. Her father was sitting in his favorite chair reading a book.

“Hi, Daddy,” she said, and leaned down to hug him warmly. She planted a kiss on his forehead and experienced a mix of pride and joy that she always felt looking at her dad, her hero. She loved him so much.

“Hi, pumpkin,” he replied. “I’m so happy to see you. How have you been? How is Sebastian?”

“We’re doing fine, Daddy. Sebastian is playing golf today, and
I’m here to spend a little time with you.” She hugged him again. “I see that mum is at it again. Are you hiding?” Her eyes held a glint of
humor

“What makes you think that I’m hiding from your mother?”
Arielle
heard the chuckle in her father’s voice. “You know your mother. I
just do my best to stay out of her way.”

Arielle snorted. She smiled. Even with the chaos, there was a certain familiarity and warmth about the house when both her parents were there. Sometimes, Arielle missed living in the safe
cocoon her parents had created for her growing up. She resolved to enjoy spending this quality time with her parents as much as possible before they left.

The lunch was delicious, and they had a great time chatting
about the upcoming trip to Spain. When lunch was over, Arielle and her
father took a long walk in the garden. They took the narrow path covered with decorative step stones to the bench by the lily pond.
The
path was bordered on either side by beds of roses and freesia. A broad canopy of beautiful trees covered the path. Arielle smiled, filled with pleasure and contentment. They walked slowly, giving
Arielle a chance to notice several new bird feeders nestled between the flowers and the trees.