“This has to be the most self-centered thing I've ever said, but no, I think you just wanted to vex me.”

“No. Haven’t you been listening?” Marcus would always remember that moment. It was to be the first time he would ever be faced with that most vexing of female quirks: the question that had nothing but wrong answers.”

“Click. The door swung open."Three," James said with a slightly self-satisfied smile."Well done," Caroline said.He smiled back at her. "I've never met a woman or a lock that didn't love me.”

“Not that I knew who you were until last month. But now that I've got you, I'm not letting you go.""You're not?"Blake stared at her in irritated confusion. What was her game? "Do you think I'm an idiot?" he spat out."No," she said. "I've just escaped from a den of idiots, so I'm well familiar with the breed, and you're something else entirely. I am, however, hoping you're not a terribly good shot.”

“Very well,” he said with a small sigh. “Ladies today are so very capable. It breaks my hea rt,really.” He leaned in, almost as if sharing a secret. “No one likes to feel superfluous.”Grace just stared at him.“Rendered mute by my grace and charm,” he said, stepping back to allow them to exit. “Ithappens all the time. Really, I shouldn‟t be allowed near the ladies. I have such a vexing effecton you.”

“I--" She swallowed, perhaps summoning her courage, then continued, "I would not lie to you and say that I did not want this.""Me," he cut in peevishly. "You wanted me."She closed her eyes. “Yes,” she finally said, “I wanted you.”Part of him wanted to interrupt again, to remind her that she still wanted him, that it wasn’t and would never be in the past.“But I can’t have you,” she said quietly, “and because of that, you can’t have me.”And then, to his complete astonishment, he asked, “What if I married you?”

“He’d spent his life being a perfect gentleman. He’d never been a flirt. He’d never been a rogue. He hated being the center of attention, but by God, he wanted to be the center of her attention. He wanted to do the wrong thing, the bad thing. He wanted to pull her into his arms and carry her to her bed. He wanted to peel every last inch of her clothing from her body, and then he wanted to worship her. He wanted to show her all the things he wasn’t sure he knew how to say.”