Kristen Simmons

“I knew the truth about us: I could not be okay if he was not okay. Pain, nightmares, fighting- all of it aside- he was a part of me.”

“Once he'd been an open book and the days had been too short to hold all our words.”

“Hush. Listen now. I need to say a couple of mom things.Listen, because this is important. Eat more- you're getting too skinny. And smile. Oh, and don't believe anyone who says they'll pay you back later; they never do.And one more thing, I have never loved one single thing in my life more than you. You were worth living for, and Ember, you were worth dying for.”

“I got almost eighteen years with you. The best eighteen years of my life.”

“You didn't lose everything.""Neither did you.”

“I remember who you are. Even if you forget.”

“Let's see that wrist."I held it out, and Chase's jaw tightened."Look at that!" the medic shouted, staring over my shoulder behind us. The moment I turned my head he grabbed my hand and jerked it toward him, hard.A crack as the bones in my wrist realigned.”

“Sean," I forced a smile, but it might have looked a little scary. "When have I ever done anything stupid?""Perfect," he muttered.”

“I love you, Em. I've loved you since I was eight years old, and I'll love you my whole life.”

“Chase Jennings, I love you. I love the boy you were and the man that you've become and even when I don't like you at all I still love you because you are you, kind safe and good, because you understand me and are not afraid.”

“I'm not fine," he said. "Not without you.”

“How cold and foreign this city seemed, that even death could pass unnoticed.”

“You married me while I was sleeping?" I asked in amazement. They sky was beginning to bruise with the purple haze, and in it, I could see Chase's face glow a little deeper copper."You hit me for kissing you. It seemed in my best interest to marry you while you were passed out.”

“You won't forget me, right?" I tried to play it light so maybe he wouldn't see just how scared I was for tomorrow.For a second, the corners of his eyes pinched. Then he sat up, and I backed onto my knees. His hands straightened my T-shirt, tugging it down."No," he said. His face darkened. "I don't think it's possible to forget you.”

“There were plenty of ways to hurt someone without using your fists.”

“His green eyes blazed with desire; such a different look than I'd known before. Chase had studied me, reading my feelings. Tucker was only trying to see his own reflection. Disturbing on several levels.”

“He was my anchor in the hurricane, yet at the same time, the hurricane itself, so that I nearly always felt safe and afraid simultaneously. There was nothing in the world as confusing and powerful as being close to him.”

“Still, his scars, combined with the serpentine wound now visible without the bandage covering his shoulder, made him all the more dangerous.He was, to me, terrifyingly beautiful.”

“He tilted his head, eyes peering deep inside of me in a way that made me feel exposed, like I'd never really been seen before, yet at the same time safe, like he'd never tell a soul what he'd found.”

“I wondered what he'd done that had been so terrible that he wouldn't accept even an ounce of kindness from another person. It seemed impossible just then that I could ever hate him more than he hated himself.”

“Losing your family... it puts fear in a different perspective, Chase had once told me.”

“Ember, you're the only piece of me I have left. Everything else-my family, my home, my soul- they're all gone. I don't know who the hell I am anymore. If it weren't for you... I don't know.”

“I could not fall back in love with Chase Jennings. Doing so was like falling in love with a thunderstorm. Exciting and powerful, yes. Even beautiful. But violently tempered, unpredictable, and ultimately short-lived.”

“I jerked instinctively. I couldn't stay here. I couldn't die in this closet. "No one is going to touch you," Chase murmured into my hair.”

“It was you," I say softly. "It's always you I think about."The intensity in his gaze took my breath away. I could feel him. Every part of him. His soul was sewn to mine. His heated blood flowed through my veins. I'd thought that I had been close to my mother, and I was, but not like this. Chase and I barely touched- our hands, mouths, knees- but there was no part of me that was not his.”

“He put a hand on his throat, as though trying to stop the words, but they came anyway. "You're home. To me.”

“I promise I'll come back. No matter what happens." Though his voice was only a whisper, there was a fierceness behind it. I believed him completely. "I'll wait for you," I told him.”

“Don't do that again! Not ever again!" I told him."I should say the same to you," he said. I could feel his breath, warm on my neck. "Promise me!" I demanded."I... I promise.""I can't lose you.”

“The fear, momentarily paused, returned with full force, and in this frantic, baffled state I ran to him, and leapt into his arms. He seemed surprised at first but soon was squeezing back. "It's all right," he soothed. "No one's hurt. You're okay."His words sliced through me, and for the first time since he'd taken me from school, I knew the truth about us: I could not be okay if he was not okay. Pain, nightmares, fighting- all of it aside- he was a part of me.”

“Losing your family….it puts fear in a different perspective,” he said. “Besides, I got by all right. I stayed on the fringe around Chicago, hoped around tent cities and Red Cross camps. Worked for some people who didn’t ask questions. Avoided case-workers and foster care. And thought about you.”“Me?” I huffed, completely unsettled. In awe at how vanilla my life seemed. In awe of what he’d endured, He turned then, meeting my eyes for the first time. When he spoke, his voice was gentle, and unashamed. “You. The only thing in my life that doesn’t change. When everything went to hell, you were all I had.”

“It's them, Miller. Not us. It's the FBR that should be sorry.”