“She stepped forward as if to pick up the fur she'd tossed over a chair. Smoothly, she turned to hand it to him. And with perfect timing, flung herself into his arms.The sable fell as he took her shoulders to shove her back.Eve stepped to the doorway to see Magdelana with her arms locked around Roarke's neck, his hands on her bare shoulders--one of the ivory straps sliding to her elbow."Son of a bitch," she said.On cue, Magdelana spun around, her face full of passion and shock. "Oh, God. Oh...it's not what it looks like.""Bet." Eve strode in.Actually, Roarke thought, it was more of a swagger. He had a moment to admire it, before Eve rammed her fist in his face."Fuck me." His head snapped back, and he tasted blood.Magdelana cried out, but even the deaf would have caught the suppressed laughter in the sound. "Roarke! Oh, my God, you're bleeding. Please, let me just--""Don't look now," Eve said cheerfully. "But he's not the only one." She decked Magdelana with a straight-armed jab. "Bitch," Eve added as Magdelana's eyes rolled back and she fell, unconscious, to the floor.Roarke looked down. "Well, now, fuck us all.”

“Eve: "She had big plans for me. Kind of a pet, I imagine. Like William. Her little trained dog. And with you dead, she figured I'd inherit all your goodies. You're not going to do that to me are you?"Roarke: "What, die?"Eve: "Leave me all this stuff."Roarke: "Only you would be annoyed by that.”

“Who's with her?" Roarke asked, though he already knew. It was just like her."With her? Oh, ah, hmmm. Webster."Silence fell, a clatter of broken bricks. Peabody folded her hands in her pockets and prepared for the explosion to follow."I see." When Roarke simply turned back to the screen and continued, she didn't know whether to be relieved or scared to death.”

“Summerset, don't you ever sleep?""It's Lieutenant Dallas. She's--"Roarke dropped his briefcase, grabbed Summerset by the lapels. "Has she been hurt? Where is she?""A nightmare. She was screaming." Summerset lost his usual composure and dragged a hand over his hair. "She won't cooperate. I was about to call your doctor. I left her in her private suite."As Roarke pushed him aside, Summerset grabbed his arm. "Roarke, you should have told me what had been done to her."Roarke merely shook his head and kept going. "I'll take care of her.”

“When she brought Mira up, Eve gave Roarke another glance. "Don't talk to him," she warned. "He can get bitchy when he's in this deep. I don't know if we have any of that tea stuff.""I had it stocked, and I don't get bitchy. Bloody, buggering HELL."Eve just rolled her eyes and got the tea.”

“Roarke: “Our engines don't run at the same speed.”Eve: “What the hell does that mean?”Roarke: “Just that.”Eve: “It sounds like something that ought to piss me off. But I can't figure out exactly why. When I do, I might have to pop you one.”Roarke: “I'll look forward to it. If you don't sleep, eat. You need something in your stomach. And what are you grinning at?”Eve: “You. You're such a wife.”Roarke: “Now, I'm pissed off.”

“She turned toward Roarke's office, then stopped in the doorway. He was at his console; captain of his ship. He'd drawn his hair back so it lay on his neck in a short, gleaming black tail. His eyes were cool, cool blue. The colour they were when his mind was fully occupied. He'd taken off his dinner jacket, his shirt was loose at the collar, the sleeves rolled up. There was something... just something about that look that always and forever grabbed her in the gut. She could look at him for hours, and at the end of it, still marvel that he belonged to her."Someone wants to hurt you," she thought. "I'm not going to let them.”