The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

you,” I muttered.
A dimple appeared in his right cheek as I turned away
from him. Not even a second later, he was next to me,
kissing the corner of my lips. “I like that,” he said, placing
his hands on my hips. “A lot.”
Flushing to the roots of my hair, I said nothing as I
gripped the saddle. This time, Casteel gave me the boost I
may not have needed. He swung up behind me, taking the
reins. I honestly didn’t know what to think about the
possibility that I was stronger. I didn’t have the headspace
for it. So, I added that to the list of things to dwell on later
as I turned to Naill. “Thank you.”
He stared at me, his forehead creasing. “For what?”
“For helping Casteel in Irelone. For helping me,” I said.
A grin appeared as he glanced between Casteel and I,
shaking his head. “You’re welcome, Penellaphe.”
“You can call me Poppy,” I said, thinking that all who
aided were those I could consider friends. It didn’t matter if
they had helped because they felt obligated to Casteel or
not. It didn’t matter to me.
His grin grew into a striking smile. “You’re welcome,
Poppy.”
Feeling my cheeks heat again, I looked around. “Where
are Delano and Jasper?” I asked as Casteel steered Setti
toward the woods. “And the rest?”
“They’re all around us,” Casteel said, nudging Setti
forward.
“They don’t have horses?” I frowned at the top of
Kieran’s head. “Where is your horse?”
Kieran shook his head. “The trip through the Skotos will
be fast and hard. It takes less energy for us to be in our
wolven forms. Plus, we cover much more ground this way.”
Huh. I hadn’t known that. I watched Kieran walk ahead
of us. As he neared the trees, he reached down and gripped
the hem of his tunic. I realized that he was already barefoot.
He pulled the tunic over his head and off. Lean muscles