“Traveling at night toward the stars, I thought yet again how very far away they were, and how you could travel your whole lifetime and never reach even the closest one. But even if you knew you couldn’t have something, it didn’t stop you wanting it. I wondered if Kate was to be my star, and I’d spend my life gazing upon her but never reaching her.”

“Marry me." I said.She lowered her teacup, shaking slightly, to the saucer. "Aren't you going to get down on one knee?"I got down on one knee and took her hand."Will you marry me, Kate?"You can't propose properly without a ring." She said.I reached into my pocket and took out James Sanderson's ring, which I'd picked up off the floor of the Starclimber when we'd crash landed."That's a nice looking ring." said Kate with a grin."Cost a fortune." I said. "And now, for the third time. Kate de Vries, will you marry me?"She leaned forward and took my face in her hands and kissed me."Yes," "Yes, and yes and yes. But it will probably be terrible.""Probably," I agreed."Honestly," she sighed, "I don't know what kind of life we'll have together, with me always flying off in one direction and you in the other."I smiled. "It's a good thing the world's round," I said.”

“You two were in a cave together?’ said Miss Simpkins in horror.‘Yes,’ said Kate, ‘and it was very, very dark.”

“I felt like I was seeing Shannon through a new lens, undistracted by Jennifer's nuclear glow. I could see how pretty she really was, how kind her eyes were.”

“Nadira gave Kate a long hard look. "Mr. Slater has the ship. Mr. Cruse has the coordinates. I have the key. What exactly do you have?"For the first time Kate looked flustered.”

“IMBECILE!" the chef shouted. "Next time why don't you just put your whole HAND in the food, hey? Yes, your whole hand, or maybe your FACE! I arrange the food on plates with care, are you understanding what I am telling you? It is part of the art form of cooking, yes? A lovely plate of food is a thing of beauty! And then you, NUMBSKULL, come along and put your fat greasy FINGERS all over my plate, and SHAKE the plate, and move my food all around the plate until it looks like pigs' vomit!""Chef Vlad!" I cried out in delight.”

“Everyone watched, wondering if this could be the same lunatic who'd nearly berthed his ornithopter in the restaurant. I swallowed, for it seemed he was headed straight for my table. He pulled off his helmet and a mass of dark auburn hair spilled out. Off came the goggles, and I was looking at the beaming face of Kate de Vries.”