“Many a housewife staring at the back of her husband's newspaper, or listening to his breathing in bed is lonelier than any spinster in a rented room.”

“I’m Jace.” He let her see his own fangs. “And you’re mine.” A claim made before all the wolves in the room. From now on, any wolf who touched her would face him—and death.She swallowed and tilted her head back to better meet his stare. “Hello, husband.”The wolf within growled…Mine.”

“Keeping his fingers locked around her arms, he stared her right in the eye, his chest rising and falling from the jagged force of his breaths. “I want you in a bed, Juliana. I want hours on top of you, under you, beside you. Hell, I want it all. And I want to be able to drift off, knowing that I can roll back over at any time and sink right back into you.” His voice dropped even lower. “So stop arguing and get back on the damn bed.”

“He hands the page to his wife and looks across the room to Colleen's picture, listening to her absence, breathing deeply the air she can't share.”

“Last night, instead of sleeping,he just lay behind her, listening to her breathe and thinking that sound was sweeter than any song he’d ever heard her sing. And his Stella had a beautiful voice, never heard better.”

“Rosa Hubermann was sitting on the edge of the bed with her husband's accordion tied to her chest. Her fingers hovered above the keys. She did not move. She didn't ever appear to be breathing.”