“Payne nailing him in the face woke him up.George brought him back his independence.But Beth handed him his crown.”

“Al brought his attention back down from the ceiling. “You really don’t want to have sex with him? Why? What’s wrong with him?”

“When Livia turned, she had to tip her head back to see his face as she handed him his cardboard. He’s beautiful.”

“And maybe it wasn't his love that brought him back, but hers. How seductive being loved could be.”

“As she watched him she understood the quality of his beauty. How his labor had shaped him. How the wood he fashioned had fashioned him. Each plank he planed, each nail he drove, each thing he made molded him. Had left its stamp on him. Had given him his strength, his supple grace.”

“The corner of his mouth lifts, and then I kiss him. Not so gently this time. His hand drops from my face and grab at my waist and pull me to him. A small soft groan escapes him, and that noise makes me absolutely crazy. I lose it. I wind my hands around his neck and kiss him without holding anything back. I can feel his heart thundering like mine, his breath coming faster, his arms tightening around me.”