“She was in love with the Great Sultan of Kad. And this was no crush. It was as real as the sun rising each morning, as the blood in her veins and the curve of the rail under her fingers. She felt the truth in every nerve, every inch of her skin.”

“He stepped closer, and her body warmed as if he were the sun.”

“Her hands wrapped around his back, bunching the folds of his kaftan, and they stayed like this, connected, as dusk settled over the market.”

“She wanted to be his everything.”

“He’d set his mouth in a feral line that could have tipped toward kindness or to cruelty in a second.”

“Oh, come now, we’re professionals. For Fate’s sake, I’m 128 years old and far beyond curfews.”

“I can’t believe I’m being coerced by a bird.”