“For now, with his emerald eyes locked on mine, where I was going didn't seem so scary.”

“Some minutes or hours or days later, when I lay boneless and well satisfied, Ethan raised his gaze to mine again. His eyes were silver, his fangs descended. "There is no going back," he said, "Not after this.”

“So as I shivered, naked and damp, in front of the bathroom mirror, I raised my eyes skyward. "I hope we're still okay."I got no answer, but then, I didn't really expect one. Answer or not, it didn't matter. That's the thing about faith, I guess.”

“His eyes widended again, then flicked to something behind me. He shook his head, looked back at me. His voice low, intimate, insistent. "Come back from this, Merit. You don't want to fight me.""I do," I heard, in a voice that was barely mine. "Find steel," she advised him.We advised him.He stood there a long moment, silently, still, before nodding. Someone offered him a blade, a katana that glinted in the light. He took it, mirrored my stance - katana in both hands, body bladed."If the only way you'll come back from this is to be bloodied by it, then so be it."He lunged.”

“I am beginning to remember what it means to need things. Laughter. Companionship. Love. "He leant forward and pressed his forehead to mine. "And I need you, Merit.”

“I stood Sentinel of Cadogan House, by God. He was mine, and he knew it, and I would claim what was mine.”

“I'm afraid,' I finally confessed.'I know.' His voice was quiet. 'I know, and it kills me that I put that fear into your eyes.”