But the guilt didn’t vanish completely. It lingered in the background. I was still bringing danger to the very place that had sheltered him when he needed it most.
I traced the angle of his jaw with trembling fingers. “You’ve already survived so much. I don’t want to be the reason you lose everything you’ve built here.”
Kastiel caught my hand, pressing a kiss to my palm. “You matter more than my duty to The Abyss. The bond isn’t a burden, Isolde. It’s a gift. And I’m not letting anyone take it—or you—away from me.”
His words wrapped around my heart, loosening the knot of guilt just a little more. I felt safer in his arms than I had in years. Resting my head against his chest, I listened to the steady beat of his heart and let it be my anchor.
For now, I let myself believe him. But deep down, I knew the guilt wouldn’t disappear until I learned to trust myself the way he seemed to believe in me.
10
KASTIEL
The emotional heaviness of our conversation weighed on me as I held Isolde close, her head resting against my chest. I could feel the tentative hope blooming inside her, mixed with the lingering fear that refused to let go completely. Her aura brushed against me. It was calmer now but still carried that underlying tension she couldn’t quite hide.
My beautiful mate was starting to believe she could be more than the harm she feared she’d cause. But the guilt was still a quiet shadow in her eyes, and I knew it would take more than my words alone to help her let it go.
I pressed a kiss to the top of her head, my arm tightening around her waist. “We don’t have to figure this out alone. Adan and Calliope have been through something similar. Calliope’s awakening to the powers she never knew she had wasn’t easy. Hearing her story might give you the hope you need right now.”
Isolde tilted her head back to look at me, her emerald eyes searching mine. “You think they’d be willing to talk to me?”
“It was their idea.” I tapped a finger against my temple. “Adan messaged me while you were still sleeping. He wantsto see us. Calliope insisted on being there too. She thinks her experience might help you feel less alone.”
“Messaged you?” she echoed, her gaze darting up before meeting mine again. “Are you telepathic?”
“Sorry to disappoint, little spark.” I flashed her a rueful smile. “Adan is the one who opened that pathway.”
“Darn.” Trust flickered in her gaze. “But we should go. If there’s even a chance Calliope can help me understand this, I want to try.”
I pressed another kiss to her forehead, my demon purring with satisfaction at her willingness to lean on me. “Good. Because I’m not letting you face this alone. Not anymore.”
After we showered, got dressed, and ate the breakfast I insisted she needed, I took Isolde’s hand in mine. Her fingers were warm in mine, but I could feel the faint tremble she tried to hide. The mate bond hummed between us, and I squeezed her hand gently, hoping she could feel my reassurance through it.
With Adan’s private quarters only a floor above us, it didn’t take long to get there. He opened the door before we even knocked. “Come in. Both of you.”
Calliope was on the couch, one hand resting protectively on the gentle curve of her belly. She smiled warmly as we entered. “Isolde, I’m so glad you’re here. Please, sit. Can I get you anything?”
“No, thank you. I’m okay.” Isolde shook her head, shy from her kind attention. “Kastiel made sure we ate before we left his quarters.”
“Good.” Calliope beamed at me as we settled on the comfortable couches in their living area.
Adan sat beside her, his arm automatically wrapping around her shoulders in a protective gesture I understood on a new level now that I found my fated mate.
Calliope leaned forward, her voice gentle. “Kastiel told us a little about what’s been happening with your aura. I know how terrifying it can feel when you have no idea how to control your power. When mine started to wake up, it was so scary. I don’t know what I would’ve done without Adan to help.”
Isolde nodded, her fingers twisting in her lap. “I’ve spent years trying to suppress my aura because I was afraid of what it might do to people. Especially to my fated mate.”
Calliope’s eyes softened with understanding. “I can only imagine how hard that must have been. I had no idea I had latent demonic blood until I stumbled into The Abyss during a storm. All of a sudden, I had this power that triggered a curse.”
“A curse,” Isolde echoed, her eyes going wide.
Calliope nodded. “I summoned a supernatural assassin and everything.”
Adan’s hand stroked Calliope’s shoulder. “Only because she didn’t fully understand her power. Once she started learning how to work with it, everything changed.”
Calliope nodded, her smile warm. “Adan helped me see that my power wasn’t a curse. It was part of me. I can feel the hotel’s magic now, sense when the wards need strengthening. It’s not always easy, but it’s mine. And I’m not afraid of it anymore.”
Isolde swallowed hard, her green eyes wide. “It really felt that terrifying for you too?”
