“But for now, she would lie in her husband's arms, her eyes closed and her body still against his, thinking that if this was all she ever had, it would be enough.”

“It would require careful planning and execution, but Marina always accomplished everything to which she put her mind. She made a lot of spreadsheets.”

“Better stand her ground than back down and apologize, she thought. If I apologize, he'll feel justified in being pissed off, and then he'll be even more difficult than usual.”

“Lack of control, he once told her, was worse than anything in the world.”

“Still, it felt a little strange, as though he had joined a preexisting family instead of beginning one of his own.”

“The constant mental fight made him irritable. He had never had a temper before. Some days, he felt as if his entire body were a raw nerve, its membrane receptive even to the smallest passing slight.”

“This was an unfortunate misstep, and one that could have been avoided if only she had remembered never to take to heart the words of a drunken man.”