Page 3 of The Immortal’s One (Bound to the Immortals #1)

Music blares through the speakers. My head pounds in time with the quick beat. It’s so loud, I can barely think. Based on the way the rest of the club’s patrons are smiling, laughing, and dancing, I’m the only one who feels this way. It’s a fight to resist the urge to be lame and cover my ears.

I follow Kayla and Josh as they weave their way through the crowd, feeling the bass tickle my arm hair as we walk by a speaker next to the dancefloor.

Josh stops by a tall table with four stools. Instead of sitting, he props an elbow on the table and smiles at his girlfriend. A strand of brown hair falls over his forehead. “Want something to drink?”

Drink?

It’s on the tip of my tongue to protest when Kayla answers, “I’ll have a coke.”

“Okay.” Josh turns to me.

“I’ll have a coke, too.”

“You got it.” He taps the table once then turns and strides away .

“Isn’t this great?” Kayla leans close to shout into my ear as her eyes take in the sea of people on the dancefloor. “I’m glad the IDs worked.”

“Me, too.” The club’s bouncer barely looked at the fakes before letting us in.

“I just wish it could be only us tonight,” Kayla blurts out of the blue.

My forehead furrows. “What?”

She sighs. “Josh has been a little… suffocating lately. It would be nice to have a girl’s night out, you know?”

“But weren’t you two planning on coming here before you even invited me?”

“Yeah, I guess so.” She turns to resume looking out at the crowd. “I think I’d just have more fun alone.” She ends the words with a smile.

I follow her gaze and see a cute stranger in a red polo smiling back at her.

Okay… I see where this is going.

“Why don’t you just put Josh out of his misery?” I draw my friend’s attention back to me. “You obviously want to break up with him.”

I’ve known Kayla for years. I recognize the signs that she’s done with a relationship. But she’s never been the type of person to string someone along once she’s made that decision.

“I know.” Her shoulders fall. “You’re right. I feel like a jerk, but I don’t know how to end it. He’s so great. I don’t want to hurt his feelings.”

“I think a simple, ‘we’re over’ would suffice.”

“You don’t get it,” she says. “You’ve never broken up with a guy before. It’s not so easy. ”

She refrains from saying I’ve never even had a boyfriend, but I know she’s thinking it.

I try not to take offense. “Maybe not, but it’s better than delaying the inevitable.”

She hums a noncommittal noise and continues to scan the crowd around us.

Just as the thumping music playing over the speakers lulls for a song transition, a deep voice vibrates against my ear with an unexpected greeting.

“Darcie,” my name on unfamiliar lips makes my pulse quicken. “Nice to see you again.”

Who would possibly recognize me here ?

I whirl around, and shock zips through me when my eyes land on the tall, broad-shouldered man who definitely should not be here. “Thane?”

His lips curve into a charming smile as he straightens, illuminated by the colorful strobe lights flashing around the club. “Fancy seeing you here.”

From the corner of my eye, Kayla gapes at me before her head snaps back in his direction.

“Yeah…” I fumble for a response. “What are the odds?”

Under different circumstances, I’d be wary of running into a stranger so soon after we first met.

I might even wonder if he was following me.

But Maine isn’t exactly bustling with people.

Brunswick has no clubs, and the few bars that do exist close by ten.

Anyone looking for a night out has to head to a nearby city, and Portland is the closest option.

Kayla’s stare burns the side of my face. I clear my throat and motion towards her. “This is my best friend, Kayla. Kayla, this is Thane.”

Thane holds out his hand. “Pleasure to meet you, Kayla. ”

“N-nice to meet you.” My friend’s lips part when Thane dips down and quickly kisses her knuckles.

I’d say the gesture was meant to be flirtatious, except Thane straightens and pulls his hand back quickly. If I didn’t know better, I’d almost think that’s how he’s used to greeting women.

Maybe he went to a fancy prep school or something.

Thane’s perfectly tailored clothes and flawless good looks make him look like he could be a member of the one percent.

“Allow me to introduce my brother.” Thane steps to the side, revealing that he isn’t alone. “Des.” He raises his voice to be heard over the music, now blaring at full volume again. “This is Darcie.”

The stranger is tall, at least two inches taller than Thane. He’s glancing at the crowd to his left, seeming indifferent about joining our conversation. But when his brother calls his name, he turns in our direction.

A polite greeting forms on my lips, but I freeze the moment our eyes meet.

The music around me fades to a distant hum.

The dancers and other clubgoers blur into indistinct shapes.

A strange awareness ripples through me, unlike anything I’ve ever felt. It’s so intense and consuming that I can’t tear my gaze away even if I wanted to.

The guy, Des, wears a white V-neck that clings to his chest, emphasizing an impressive physique. Rolled-up sleeves reveal muscular forearms, and his chiseled jawline and strong brow make him look like he could step right off the pages of a rugged, manly fashion magazine.

My mouth dries. My heart races. Thane is good-looking, but this man… there’s no denying it. He’s the most attractive man I’ve ever seen in person—no, ever , full stop.

My gaze drifts lower, taking in the way his dark blue jeans hug his muscular thighs like they were custom-made for him.

“And this is her friend, Kayla,” Thane’s voice snaps me out of the haze that descended over the room and my mind.

What is going on with me?

I force my gaze up, mortified that I’ve so blatantly checked out Thane’s brother. When our eyes meet again, I suck in a sharp breath. Familiarity punches me in the stomach.

A torn ball gown…

A bloody toga…

Thick lashes frame eyes that look sharp enough to pierce my soul. Thane’s brother watches me with intense focus, making me wonder if he can read my thoughts.

It hits me that his eyes resemble the green irises that haunt my dreams.

But that’s all it is… a resemblance.

Because the bright irises that pierce through hazy clouds of mist in my dreams are green, and his… are hazel.

That doesn’t mean they are any less stunning, but it does rule them out as the ones I’m convinced are a figment of my imagination, caused by a source I haven’t identified. Though, I have some theories.

One is that the eyes that haunt me belong to my mom. I haven’t seen the woman since I was a child, but her eyes are green.

Or maybe the unsettling eyes belong to someone else I met during my life, someone who left an impact on me that my subconscious morphed into my unwanted nightly companion .

Whoever’s eyes they are, I’m confident the person’s influence in my life lies in the past.

Still, the pull to the stranger in front of me is undeniable.

“Hi, Des. Nice to meet you.” Kayla brushes against my side as she shifts forward.

I exhale the breath I’d been holding and silently thank my best friend for her interference.

Des turns to my friend. A bereft feeling washes over me to no longer have his attention.

“Hello.” The timbre of his voice sends a shiver down my spine.

Get it together, Darcie.

“I met Darcie in Brunswick,” Thane tells his brother with a smirk.

Des’s face is expressionless. “I see.”

Tension simmers between the two men, impossible to miss, even with the laughing and dancing crowd in the club around us.

“Where are you guys from?” Kayla asks, seemingly unaffected by the presence of the two imposing, attractive men. Either that or she’s an even better actress than I thought.

“Europe,” Thane replies.

“Oh, wow.” Kayla’s eyes brighten. “I never would have guessed. I don’t hear an accent.”

“Thank you.” He gives an award-winning smile. “We practice.”

I clear my throat. “Where in Europe are you from?”

Thane turns to me. “Around the Mediterranean. Our family is spread out, so it is difficult to pinpoint one place.”

The bass thumps from the speakers overhead, raising the hair on my arms.

“What a coincidence! Darcie was just in Greece.” Kayla shoots me a pointed look, her smile tight. “Isn’t that right, Darcie?”

“Yeah.” I keep my gaze locked on Kayla, ignoring the urge to look at Des. “Athens, mainly.”

“Really?” Thane’s voice takes on a note of interest. “Did you have a chance to visit any smaller towns while you were there?”

“A few. I went wherever my dad needed to go for his research.” I add, almost automatically, “He’s a professor of ancient cultures at the university in Brunswick.”

“Is that so?” His eyes glimmer with curiosity. “How fascinating.”

Before I can ask what exactly he finds so fascinating, Des clears his throat—a sharp, deliberate sound that manages to cut through loud, music-filled air.

My thoughts snap back into focus, zeroing in on the figure standing silently beside his brother.

Des doesn’t say a word. He doesn’t need to. His stern expression speaks volumes.

“Alright, alright.” Amusement laces Thane’s voice as he casts a sidelong glance at Des before shifting his focus back to me and Kayla. He offers an apologetic smile. “I’m afraid we’ll have to cut this short. My brother and I have… an engagement to attend to.”

“So soon?” Kayla frowns, clearly disappointed. “But the night is still young!”

“Yes, but unfortunately, my brother and I are not,” Thane replies with a self-deprecating chuckle. The sound fades as his attention lingers on me. “It’s been a pleasure seeing you both. I do hope we’ll cross paths again.”

“Same here.” Kayla leans forward with a mischievous glint in her eye. Thane returns her smile, though it’s noticeably less flirtatious than hers.

I nod and force an awkward grin. Then, driven by some impulse I’ll never understand, I turn my body to face Des and take a deep breath. “And it was nice to meet?—”