Josephine Angelini

“When she got downstairs, the whole family was in the kitchen, including Lucas. His face lit up like Vegas when he saw her. She automatically went straight to him and sat down, her hopes of a quiet escape ruined by what felt like a knee-jerk reaction. She hadn’t intended to stay for breakfast, but it was almost as if she needed to be near him.”

“Bathroom, huh? OK.’ she tittered nervously. ‘I’ll carry you. Just don’t pee on me.’Helen laughed gratefully. Aridane was making an embarrassing situation as humorous as possible so Helen would feel more comfortable. It was something Claire would have done. Helen was still embarrassed, but with a few jokes and little bit of tact they both made it through.”

“She was worried and came to check on me, but by the time she made it here she was practically falling over. I didn’t want to wake Cassandra to carry her back to the guest room, so I had her lay down with me. Obviously, we just slept. Now, can everyone but Hector or Jase get out of my room please? That includes you, Mom. I need Jason to help me out of these casts so I can take a shower.”

“I only have so much willpower, Helen," he whispered. "And since you apparently sleep in the most ridiculously transparent tank top I've ever seen, I'm going to have to ask you to get under the covers before I do something stupid.”

“Do you know how marriage was defined in ancient Greece? Noel said in a calmer tone. Its really simple. A virgin goes to mans house with the family gathered as witnesses. The virgin and the man share a fire, a meal, and a bed. If the girl wasn't a virgin in the morning, then the couple was considered married. That's it”

“Primero, es asquerosamente atractivo. Segundo, es tan asquerosamente atractivo que necesitas decirlo dos veces. Tercero, vio que te caías y abandonó su entrenamiento para comprobar que estabas bien. Eso es… como devoción. -Claire”

“—¿Una charla? Sí, claro. Estoy segura de que vuestras lenguas hicieron un gran trabajo, pero, por alguna razón, intuyo que no fue precisamente para hablar -Claire”

“I was a little worried she might try to drag me off to hell and drain my essence at some point, but I figured that was still better than having Gretchen for a best friend.”

“She would have to leave the country, or at least Nantucket, because there was no way she could live down the fact that she had tried to strangle the hottest boy on the island.”

“You know what? I take it back. You did do something to me. You led me on.”

“So what are you doing next Friday night?""What have you got in mind?""We could try hitting each other with cars," she suggested cheerfully."Did that last weekend with Jase," he said with mock regret."Go to the zoo and throw ourselves to the lions?" she fired back quickly, desperate to keep him focused on her rather than his caved-in chest. "The Romans sort of wore that one out. Got anything original?" "I'll think of something," she warned him."Can't wait!”

“They dragged the air mattress up to the widow's walk and eventually figured out how it was supposed to inflate, but Lucas had to read the instructions in Spanish because the English ones were nearly incomprehensible. Hilariously so. "Insert mouth to the purpose inflation," Helen whispered. ... "Expel lung into inflator tube," Lucas whispered back. "That sounds like it would hurt.”

“Do you have any idea how late it is? Go to sleep," she scolded as she hurried past him. "I know, I'm going to bed right now ... Hey! YOU go to sleep," Jerry scolded back, belatedly remembering that he was the parent.”

“Los destinos están obsesionados con los ciclos; repiten el mismo patrón una y otra vez en todos los lugares del mundo, en especial cuando se refiere a los tres pilares: la Guerra, el Amor y la Familia.”

“Is that how tall you are without those ridiculous shoes?' he said derisively. I think I was born bigger than that.''I bet you were. Five feet of fat head and two inches of a**,' Claire muttered, standing up.'Claire!' Helen blurted out, shocked. Lucas's shoulders were shaking with laughter. Jason pretended to take the joke OK, but Helen suspected his feelings were hurt.”

“You certainly do heal fast. But you'll still have some impressive bruises, so if I were you I'd avoid your father for the rest of the night." "I'll just tell him you abuse me," Helen said with a shrug. She jumped off the examining table. "And I'll tell him you like it," he teased back.”

“How do you know all this about me?" Helen sputtered. Claire sighed."After I pushed you off the roof..." she began."After you WHAT?" Lucas yelled.”

“What are you doing?'Helen put her hand over his to stop him from shifting. 'I'm going inside to talk to your dad. I don't want him to feel like he can't trust me with his daughter.''Lucas, I swear to whatever god you think is holy that I will get out of this car and walk to school if you go inside and talk to my dad.'Lucas smiled and shifted back into first, driving away from her house. 'Who told you the gods were holy?”

“You and I are way to fabulous to be ordinary.”

“You've got the killer instincts of a houseplant.”

“The Gods know what it is to be eternal, and they love to toy with mortals who use absolutes.”

“So, what can't you take? Decide which of the two options is harder, and do the other. That way, no matter how hard your choice turns out to be, at least you can find comfort in knowing you're avoiding something even worse.”

“I don’t care how hard being together is, nothing is worse than being apart.”

“Yeah, but damn!" Kate said, fanning herself with her hand. "When I was your age all of the guys were trying to prove how anti-establishment they were by out-uglying each other. I so got robbed!”

“Get this. So he comes up to me at lunch, right? And he starts asking me all these questions about you. Like, how long have I known you, where are you from, did I ever meet your mom before she skipped town...''My mom? That's weird,' Helen interrupted.'And I start answering him with my usual flair for clever repartee,' Claire said, a bit too innocently. 'Translation: you insulted him.”

“He's not going around telling everyone you're monkey-butt crazy, so at least you brutalized a seriously sweet guy.”

“What the holy hand grenade was that?”

“She looked so cute wen she was apologizing that Helen couldn't even pick up a grudge, let alone carry one.”

“She decided that if Lucas was gay then she was going to have to get a sex change operation. He would be so worth it.”

“Helen felt as if the whole world had turned into some gigantic punch line that she had waited patiently for, and then when she heard it she found it insulting. If she had been in a comedy club she would have gotten up and walked out, but instead she had to go to the comedian's house after school and let his cousin beat the crap out of her.”

“I was right." She dropped the sword and grabbed Helen in a hug. Then she started jumping up and down, making Helen jump with her. "You're not dead! This is... You have no idea how happy I am I didn't just kill you!" she squealed.”

“[...]Since then it’s been passed from mother to daughter, along with The Face.”“The Face?” Lucas asked.“That Launched a Thousand Ships,” Daphne said, repeating the title automatically. “It’s our curse.”

“Never say never,” he said urgently, rolling back on top of her and using all of his unusually heavy mass to press her deep into the cocoon of her little girl bed. “The gods love to toy with people who use absolutes.”