Nalini Singh

“However," he continued when she remained silent, her throat a knot of emotion, "it seems Montgomery could not help himself when it came to this vase. I'm afraid he has a weakness for beautiful things and has been known to relocate an item if he feels it is not being accorded the proper appreciation. Once he 'relocated' an ancient sculpture from the home of another archangel.”

“Now a small woman, with dangerous curves. I could bite into her.”

“I swear to God," she muttered, fighting a laugh, "if you've dusted me with blue, I'll tie your balls in a knot and hang you up by them on the nearest sharp object I see.”

“God, I love your skin.”“My skin?” She glanced uncomprehendingly at her own arm when he rose from nibbling at her. “It’s brown.”“It’s melted chocolate and coffee with cream, exotic as the fucking desert, and so damn erotic. I have wet dreams about you naked on my sheets, your skin smooth and hot from the sun’s rays.”She swallowed, chest heaving. “You make me sound edible.”He purred. “You are.”

“Bluebell,” she said, remembering from Erotique. “Pretty name.” “I call Dmitri Dark Overlord.”“Shae,” Dmitri said and the female vampire rose at once to walk quickly into the house. “Now, pretty Bluebell”—another languid stroke across her skin—“tell the Overlord what you discovered.”

“Are you calling me your gift?" "Yes." She smiled. "How do you feel about that?" "Like it's my turn to be unwrapped." He nibbled at her mouth. "Do it slow.”

“Illium seems far too pretty to be dangerous.” Dmitri’s male beauty, by contrast, was a darker, edgier thing.“No one ever expects him to take out a blade and slice off their balls,” he said with lethal amusement in his tone as he drove them toward the GeorgeWashington Bridge. “He does it with such grace, too.”

“Holding her gaze, he closed the final distance between them and went down to his knees, that beautiful bruised face looking up at her.”

“Is your skin this tone all over?" "Only one way you're going to discover the answer to that.”

“You,” she murmured, using both hands to undo his belt, “are the sexiest man I have ever met.” He made her think bad thoughts simply by breathing.”

“After they were both done, the pile of knives and guns on the coffee table looked like they’d cleaned out an armory. “I think we have a problem, Dmitri.”

“Contact would hurt, might be fatal, and yet she couldn’t stop herself. Obsession or compulsion, she didn’t know, but she did know that before this was over, she’d either end up in Dmitri’s bed . . . or one of them would bleed darkest red.”

“Ever had a woman say no to you, Dmitri?”“Once.” He turned the corner with a smile that made her want to cup his face, trace those beautiful lips with her own. “I married her.”

“I’ll wait for you to find me again. So don’t take too long.”

“I will love you even when I am dust on the wind.”

“Honor?”“Yes.”“I’m going to do things to you now that a good girl definitely shouldn’t let a man do to her.”

“An hour of your life is worth more than a thousand people to me.”

“Illium grinned, unrepentant. “Want to try again? I’ll move extra slow — you are both so much older, after all.” The last words were a conspiratorial whisper. Galen glanced at Raphael. “How has he survived this long?” “No one can catch him.”

“Most of those men don’t want to sleep with you,” he said in blunt rebuttal. “I reserve the right to introduce my fist to the faces of the ones who do.”

“She stepped out of reach. “Go put on a shirt and get your mind out of bed.” “Impossible with you around.”“Pretend I’m holding a rifle. In fact, pretend I have you in the crosshairs.” Janvier sighed, rubbing at a jaw shadowed by morning stubble. “I love it when you talk dirty.”

“I want no blood from you--not until we're both sweaty and naked and you're screaming my name.”

“Arms wrapped around him, she kissed him, halting the flow of his words. He decided he would allow the kiss, but since he couldn’t make her naked here, he had to stop it. “Why did you change your face, Lily?” Liliana lifted her hands to her face at that quizzical question, terrified her father had cast a final vengeful spell. “Is it very bad?” she whispered to the man who held her in arms of steel. “I suppose I’ll get used to it,” he muttered, then kissed her again using his tongue and squeezing her bottom—as if his brothers and sister, and other people, weren’t standing right there. An instant later, she decided she didn’t care.”

“Dearest Matthew, We buried your father today. Do you know what his last words were to me? “Damn stubborn woman.”

“She got to me.""It happens to the best of us.""Yeah? Who gets to you?" He was so strong that sometimes she worried. Everyone needed to bend a little, even a panther responsible for the lives of his entire pack."That damn wolf. He sent you a present last week."Sascha smiled at the thought of Hawke's flirting. The SnowDancer alpha did it only to jerk Lucas's chain. "I never saw any present. What was it?""How the hell should I know? I stomped on it and threw it into the deepest crevice I could find." He smirked. "Then I called him to ask how Sienna was doing."She burst out laughing. "Wicked, wicked man.”

“I ain't no Psy, Ms. Aleine, but even us dumb animals know when two people start exchanging thoughts, something's going on."She narrowed her eyes at his smug tone. "It was a coincidence.""Baby, when I think about my body, I don't focus on my cock.”

“When the darkness receded, she found herself lying on the bed, still half-dressed...and being watched by human eyes that held a very feline satisfaction. "I said slow."He smiled. "Oops."Charm.”

“A few minutes?" Feeling suddenly shy, she crossed her arms over her chest. The smile on his face widened, becoming touched with the feral wildness of the cat. It made thinking difficult. "I believed males needed a longer recovery time to mate.""Not this kitty cat." Rising to his feet, he said, "Get ready to play.”

“I heard Tammy say you could be charming. I haven't seen any proof yet."Oh, his cat like that. "I thought I was very charming when I petted you into orgasm." He shot her a look filled with sexual heat. "I plan to do more of that - right after I teach you about keeping secrets.”

“His hands clenched. "Sugar, I'm this close to tearing off your clothes and teaching you exactly how badly I take you keeping secrets from me. Your choice. Talk or get naked.”

“If he was going to be held hostage to this unwanted compulsion, then she was damn well coming along for the ride.”

“Make me forget." A whisper, a plea.Not giving her what she wanted wasn't even an option. He switched their positions so she was under him. "Aren't you afraid I'll take advantage?"She wiped away her tears. "Please do.""Ask nice.""Why don't I make you angry instead? That gets me kissed a lot.”

“A hand in her hair, wrenching back her head. "What's my name?"She scratched trails down his back. He didn't even wince. "My name, kitty. Say my name.""Mr. Mud Stick, Muddie for short," she said, even as she rubbed herself against the hard thrust of his denim-covered erection, the roughness of the fabric an exquisite sensation. She would've liked naked skin even more, but he wasn't budging."Say it, or no cock for you today."Her mouth fell open. "Fuck you.""You'll be doing that shortly.”

“Our memories make us... even the darkest of them all.”

“Where did you learn your charm—the gulag?”

“I love you,” she whispered.He stroked his hand down her back. “Yep, you do.”“You’re supposed to say it back,” she said, pretending to be offended because the silliness kept the fear/hope at bay.“Why?” He scowled down at her. “You know you’re my heartbeat.”

“Remember that,” he groaned. “And tell everyone you know.”

“He leaned down until his lips brushed her ear. “I told you to stop flinching.” And then he bit her. A slow, painless nip but there were definitely teeth involved.”

“Some wounds should be healed, no matter how much time has passed or how much time is left.”

“I tell you I'm dangerous and you want to put knives near me?"- Vaughn to Faith”

“You refused to fall in love with anyone else, Dmitri.” A whisper with the impact of a gun-shot. “So I had to come back for you . . . husband.”

“Jesus H. Christ. I have new respect for the female of the species suddenly.”

“I don’t want to be your snack, your chew-toy, your fuck-buddy. Find a vampire to sink your fang into.”

“I like everything you do to me.""In that case"- he flipped her onto her back again, spread her thighs- "I think we should explore the concept of oral sex." Her brain hazed over. And stayed hazed.”

“Hawke," he said. "That's the word you need to be saying.”

“You sure got a quick trigger, Sienna,” he teased...”

“In my time,” he said, “they believed in witches. Are you a witch, Honor, that you make me say these things to you?” Causing him to rip open wounds that had stayed safely scabbed over for so long that, most of the time, he managed to forget they existed. Her hands, so very, very gentle, continued to hold his face as she tugged him down until their foreheads touched. “I’m no witch, Dmitri. If I was, I’d know how to fix you.”

“Can I bite you here, too?”

“Raphael lifted a finger, tracing it over her cheekbone. She flinched. Not because he was hurting her. The opposite. The places he touched ... it was as if he had a direct line to the hottest, most feminine part of her. A single stroke and she was embarrassingly damp. But she refused to pull away, refused to give in." (page 33 , Gollancz edition)”

“Do I look like I want to be eaten alive after sex?”

“She wished he’d stop touching her. Not because she didn’t like it but because she liked it far too much. It made her hunger for things that could never be hers. And if someone went hungry for too long, they started to starve. Started to hurt.”