“She closed her eyes. “Okay, here’s the thing. We have some chemistry,” she allowed.“Some? Or supernova?”“Supernova. But,” she said to his knowing grin. Good Lord, he needed to stop doing that. “I really did give up men.”“Forever?”“My gut says yes, but that might be PMS talking. Let’s just say I’m giving up men for a very long time.”“You going to try out women?”

“Give me,” she said.“Don’t you mean please give me?”“You want me to beg?”That smile spread slightly. “Nah. I just heard you beg plenty.”“I did not beg.” But she had. She so had. Still grinning, still naked, he pulled her against him and pressed his mouth to her shoulder. “My panties, Mark.”

“I’ve given up men.”At that, he arched a brow.Be strong. Be confident. Be… Neytiri from Avatar. Okay, so Neytiri was a mythical creature, not to mention animated, but still. She was strong andconfident, and that’s all that matters at the moment. “It’s true. At first, I was just going to give up attorneys, but that seemed immature—and far tooexclusive, so I’m playing it safe and giving up all the penis-carrying humans.” Because that was so much more mature.”

“I love you, Mallory," he said very quietly, very seriously. "So damn much."Warmth and affection and need and so much more rushed her. "I know.""You know?""Yes.""Well, hell," he said with a small smile and a shake of his head. "You might have told me and saved me a lot of time.""How about I tell you something else?" she said. "I love you, too.”

“She ran her gaze over his chest with frank appreciation. Then he shivered, realizing he hadn't really considered the weather. It was forty-five degrees max, but Chloe was giving him a go-on gesture with her hand."All I have left is my pants," he said."Yes, please.""It's cold, Chloe."She tilted her head. "Are you worried about shrinkage?"Well, he was now.-Chloe and Sawyer”

“Why do we always fight?” she whispered.“You know why.” Yeah, she did. “It’s science.” “Combustible chemistry,” he agreed. “Dangerous.”

“It’s good to see you as well,” she said, her mouth against his ear, her lips brushing the lobe.He went still at the contact, then instead of trying to pull free, merely folded her into his arms, trapping her against him. And damn if her body didn’t burst to life, as if all this time it’d been just waiting for him to come back.“Yeah, you’re different,” he murmured, doing as she had, pressing his mouth to her ear, giving her a shiver. “The little kitten grew up and got claws.”