The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

I dragged my thumb along his bottom lip. “But I do know
that I would be… I would be less. I wouldn’t feel like this—
like I’m whole. And that’s because of you.” I took another
breath. “When I first saw the Pillars and stood in the
Chambers, I did feel like this was home. It was like a sense
of rightness—like what I feel for you. It felt right to be here.
And maybe that has to do with my ancestry. I…I don’t know
what Atlantia is to me now or what it will become, but that
doesn’t matter.” I realized how true that statement was in
the moment, and the sudden knowledge of that lifted so
much weight from me. Having Atlantia’s acceptance and
that of Casteel’s parents would be wonderful, but our
acceptance of one another was so much more important.
That was what mattered when I closed my eyes at night and
opened them again in the morning. “You are the foundation
that helps me stand. You are my walls and my roof. My
shelter. You are my home.”
His lashes swept up, the amber of his eyes churning
wildly. “As you are mine, Poppy.”
“Then please don’t blame yourself. Please. If you do,
I’ll…I don’t know what I’d do, but I’m sure you wouldn’t like
it.”
“Does it involve stabbing?”
I stared at him.
“Because I’d probably like that.”
I sighed. “Cas.”
A faint smile appeared. “I will try not to blame myself.
Okay? The guilt that I feel isn’t something that will go away
immediately, but I will try. For you.”
“For us,” I corrected.
“For us.”
Exhaling softly, I nodded even though I wanted it to go
away immediately. “I knew I would see you again, even as I
was held captive.” I slid a hand down the satiny hardness of
his chest. “I knew I would either get free, or you would find
me. And you did. You found me.”