Shanghai
They said nothing on the way to the airport. They said nothing as they boarded the private jet Dmitri booked for them. Two sets of seats faced each other on the far end away from the door. The back wall housed a full bar, a bar which split the path to the bathroom on the left and the bedroom to the right. Gaspard and Nathalie sat opposite each other and buckled in their seats, her looking out the window while he stared straight ahead-Not a word.
The plane took off with a little turbulence but got in the air all the same. After the pilot turned off their seatbelt light Gaspard headed straight for the bar, pouring himself a whiskey. Then another. And another. Just what he needed after these past few days; a stiff drink! Or three.
Nathalie remained in her seat, gazing out of the window, her mind swirling with a mixture of frustration, regret, and curiosity. The silence between her and Gaspard was thick, suffocating almost, but she found herself unable to break it. Her thoughts raced as she tried to make sense of this mess.
What have I gotten myself into?
Her gaze flickered to Gaspard, who was now pouring himself yet another drink at the bar. The sight of him triggered a surge of anger within her, but beneath it lay a hint of something else, something she couldn't quite place.
Mangy bastard, she thought, clenching her fists. Just when she thought she'd left the political power struggles behind in her mortal life here she was again. Never did she imagine she'd be helping out the other side, especially against her will.
As the plane continued its journey, Nathalie's thoughts on her current situation triggered a trip down memory lane, to the life she once had as a queen. Memories of her husband, Ramses, flashed through her mind, mingling with the pain of loss and betrayal.
Power, she thought bitterly. It ruins every bloody thing. She watched it turn the first man she loved into an unrecognizable monster. Cain had that same ruthless side to him, and he tried his best not to show it to her, but it would always win out in the end. She glanced at Gaspard again, her eyes narrowing slightly as she studied him.
He didn't seem in that same vein; there was a method to his very evident madness. And he didn't seem too thrilled to be stuck in this predicament either. Despite their differences, she couldn't deny the strange connection she felt with him, the way his presence seemed to both infuriate and intrigue her.
With a sigh, Nathalie leaned back in her seat, her mind still buzzing with questions and uncertainties when she noticed him staring into space, towards one of the shuttered windows.
"If you open those shutters I won't be responsible for my actions," Nathalie warned.
"As long as you don't try to strangle me we should be fine," Gaspard sniped. He paused and held up his hand, dropping the attitude for a second. He couldn't help it; she burrowed under his skin like a bot fly. "I'm sorry-it won't happen again." Among other things.
"And how do I know that?"
His shoulders fell with a heavy sigh. "I vow that it won't. How do I know you won't try to strangle me again?"
"...I vow it as well."
Awkward silence settled over the cabin once more, the Lycan settled at the bar with his drink while the vampire watched the clouds roll past. She glanced at his hunched figure before returning her gaze to the window.
"I'm sorry about your wife," she said carefully. "She was very beautiful."
"...thank you." Gaspard quietly sipped his whiskey, the fiery liquid warming his chest.
YOU ARE READING
Forbidden Desires : The Immortals Book One
Romance"You know what? Go ahead--be his queen if that's what you want. But know this: you'll be lying next to him still thinking about me." Lycan King Gaspard Garou has been a shell of himself since his wife was killed during a vampire siege in Paris. His...
