“Seeing him like this, dressed just for her in so patent a manner, she could not hold back the fiery blush that rose to her face. She was embarrassed when she greeted him, and he was more embarrassed by her embarrassment. The knowledge that they were behaving as if they were sweethearts was even more embarrassing, and the knowledge that they were both embarrassed embarrassed them so much that Captain Samaritano noticed it with a tremor of compassion.”

“She reached out and touched the king’s face, cupping his cheek in her hand.“Just a nightmare,” he said, his voice still rough.The queen’s voice was cool. “How embarrassing,” she said, looking at his maimed arm.The king looked up then, and followed her gaze. If it was embarrassing to wake like a child screaming from a nightmare, how much more embarrassing to be the reason your husband woke screaming. A quick smile visited the king’s face. “Ouch,” he said, referring to more than the pain in his side. “Ouch,” he said again as the queen gathered him into her arms.”

“Nothing embarrassed her. I admired that so much, because everything embarrassed me, and that hurt me.”

“People don’t blush when they’re embarrassed. White people blush when they’re embarrassed. Why so embarrassed, white people? Any skeletons in your closet? Oh yeah, that’s right—we’ve got more skeletons in our closet than anybody.”

“She grimaced. Her mother and father were probablygiggling and whispering and ducking into a darkenedcorner. Good heavens. It was downright embarrassing.”

“She is embarrassed to be alive and no one on earth can fully console her.”