“Her voice was a thread, but still she managed to sound acerbic. “I believe it’s the devil’s job to tempt me. Not yours.”“And the difference between the devil and I would be . . . ?”“None that I can detect.”

“The sound of the surf mingled with the wind rushing in his ears, and still it did not drown out the sound of her voice: “Can you think of any reason why I should not stay?”A thousand. None of them good enough.”

“Hello Rush," she said, breaking the silence. The sound of her voice almost sent me to my knees. God, I'd missed her voice."Blaire," I managed to say, terrified that I'd scare her away just by speaking.”

“Can I tempt you? Go on, be a devil.”

“I am of a different mind ten times in the course of a day. But I resist the devil, and often it is with a fart that I chase him away. When he tempts me with silly sins I say, 'Devil, yesterday I broke wind too. Have you written it down on your list?”

“If it was a sin for you to choose me . . . then I would go to the Devil himself and bless him for tempting ye to it.”