I sit on a boulder, with sand under my feet. It’s cold on the town beach of Langdon, RI in December. The icy wind blows all around me. My full length wool coat and mile-long scarf is not enough to block entirely the frigid air.
But I’m excited. Sorcerer Gabriel Callan, my hero, has agreed to meet with me. I’ve dreamed about him, spent months writing about his smoky green eyes and dark curls. And today I get to meet him in the flesh. My heart thumps at the thought.
The ocean waves before me crash in a low rumble and I can taste the salty air on my lips. The long stretch of sand is practically empty but at the corner of my eyes, I catch something.
It’s him. The long black coat, the curls blown by the wind. Apparently immune to the cold, he strides with purpose towards the rocks where I sit.
My breath is a little short now. Oh boy, I can’t wait to talk to him. But I am a little scared too. Even at a distance, I can feel his raw power. If I didn’t know he would never harm me, I might even be slightly fearful.
He sits beside me and I am surrounded by his masculine scent.
I swallow. Okay I can do this.
“Gabriel. How are you?” I try not to stare at his wide shoulders and feel warmer suddenly to have him so close.
“Marie-Claude.” He nods. Why am I surprised that he pronounces my name the French way? Of course, he’s Acadian.
“Thanks for meeting with me. I’m so excited, this is so great.” Oh man, am I talking too much?
“Sure. No problem.” He looks at the ocean now. Oh no, he doesn’t like me.
“Well. I just wanted to know, Gabriel. Can you tell me and the readers a little about you?”
“What?” He raises his eyebrows at me then looks back at the stormy sea.
“Oh. Okay. Let me asks specific questions then. Tell me. Are you happy now? After all these centuries, you finally found her. You’ve spend a whole week-end with her.”
He glances back at me. A faint smile curls his lips. “Evangeline.”
“Well, I meant Lily.”
“Same thing.”
“Of course. Lily is Evangeline reborn. But she doesn’t remember.” I hear him sight briefly as he stare in the distance again.
“I know. She doesn’t know about me either.”
“You mean your magic.”
He looks at me fully now and his features harden. “The whole thing. The power, the immortality. I don’t want her touched by this. Morag is a monster for having trapped Lily like that.”
“Yes, Morag is the one who forced Lily to your bed with a spell.”
He winces. “I didn’t want it like that. Lily deserves more. More time.”
“But now Gabriel, you’ve slept with her. She has to mate with you at Beltane. Or you’ll lose your soul.”
His gaze turns dark. “I don’t care about my soul. Only her.”
“But she has powers. Don’t you think Morag has to train her, make Lily a priestess of the Coven?”
He looks at the ocean again and I feel I went too far. I know how he hates Morag who controls him. I’m losing him now. “I don’t know. I don’t know if I can tell Lily about me, about us, the Priory. But, I also can’t live without her.”
He grabs a rock at his feet, stands up and in one mighty swoop throws the stone in the ocean. Then he drops his dark gaze down at me.” Time’s up. Got stuff to do. A plus, Madame l’Auteur.”
I feel a little sad inside. I guess I won’t get any more from him. “Au revoir, Gabriel LaJeunesse Callan.”
He walks away now. His dark and dangerous figure gets smaller and smaller. His black coat, which I know is full of spell components, flaps in the wind behind him. He’ll jump on his motorcycle now, probably go for a long ride down the New England coast, as he always does when he’s bothered.
My heart feels for him. I want to call him back and tell him all will be fine, eventually. That he’ll let go of his tragic past, find happiness with Lily, that he’ll save his soul from Theuron Keir’s dark forces.
I want to tell him, but I know I can’t. He has a lot to learn on his journey and has to figure it all out, by himself and with the love of his soulmate.
Hopefully, we’ll all get to read how he gets there in ANCIENT WHISPERS. If you haven’t read it yet, you can download your free copy now.
MARIE-CLAUDE BOURQUE 
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