“Don't just read words,' he would tell her as he held up the latest story, 'devour them. Let the words create new worlds.”

“Let me guess - you're Grumpy?'He let out a humpf. ' And you would be too, if you'd just spent the last hour searching the forest for your wayward charge.' He walked even faster. 'We tell you to stay inside, we tell you not to talk to strangers. But oh no, you must be out singing to the animals as if the birds didn't do a fine enough job of it. And this after Queen Neferia has already tried to kill you thrice. [...] Which is why you are not to go shopping anymore, no matter how pretty the wares, remember?'Oh, right.' [...] when you looked at it that way, Snow White had to be pretty idiotic to keep falling for the same trick.”

“What was God thinking when he created a guy this handsome? He wasn't a gift to womankind, he was a torture device.”

“So what did you want to talk to Wesley about?" he asked me."Kelly likes him," I said. "So I figured while we were discussing Lady Macbeth's insanity and Duncan's murder, I could, you know, casually find out if he likes her too."Colton didn't blink. "He likes her.""He does? How do you know?"He shrugged like it was a silly question. "We talk sometimes. He told me on the drive over he hoped she would be here.""Then why hasn't he ever asked her out?""He's shy. And we're in the middle of wrestling season, midterms, and Christmas." Colton picked up the liter of soda. "Have a little patience."I reached for the bowl of popcorn, but didn't start out of the kitchen yet. "Well can I hurry him along? Is there any chance he'll ask her out before this weekend?"Colton shook his head at me, then walked toward the living room. "You're not quite grasping the nature of patience, Charlotte.”

“So what were your favorite subjects in school?""School?" He leaned back in his chair as though he needed the extra space to think about it. "Probably math. It always made sense. Unlike English, economics, and girls.""And exactly how do you plan on taking over the free world if you don't understand economics?""I'll hire advisers. I'll hire you, in fact.""Okay. Let me know when your army of junior high zombies is ready.”

“Still smiling, he leaned toward me. "You're jealous, aren't you?""Why would I be jealous of her?""Because she has what you don't.""Which would be what? A bad hairdresser, poor rhythm, or a striking lack of financial sense when it comes to buying clothes?"His smile grew. "Admit it, you're jealous.""I'm not jealous." I straightened the napkins into a tall stack. "Rich people are so arrogant. You all think everyone just sits around coveting your wealth. Well, my happiness isn't dependent on my account numbers."He gave a mock grunt. "I wasn't talking about Olivia's money. I was talking about me.""Oh." It was suddenly hard to breathe.”

“He smiled. "You’re into me, I can tell.""I’m not into you," I said hotly. Hotly, because as soon as the words left my lips, sparklers erupted on top of my head.Hudson looked at them, and a grin spread across his face. The baby cooed and reached out, trying to grab the flaring light. Hudson moved farther away. "Don’t touch. Just look at Mommy’s pretty liar hat."He was enjoying this way too much. "Okay," I said. "Maybe I like you a little."The sparklers dimmed, but didn’t go out.Hudson raised an eyebrow."All right," I said, nervously eyeing the area to make sure no one saw us. "I’m into you."The sparklers died, but I didn’t wait around for more commentary. I headed to the inn. Behind me I heard Hudson still talking to the baby. "Yes, we like Mommy’s flaming hairdo, don’t we?”