“Thank you, miss …?”“Annabelle.” She dropped a napkin onto his lap and smiled. “And might I say you are a handsome gent. Beautiful green eyes! I can see why Miss Ayden fancies your company!”Kane frowned. “Miss Ayden? Is this the same creepy woman with the gray eyes and weapons arsenal dangling from her hips?”“Why yes, sir. Although, she’s not so scary, once you get to know her.” Anna backed away and clasped her fingers together. “Bit of a sweet spot she has.” She winked.“Yeah. I noticed.”

“Celaena." She looked back at him, her red gown sweeping around her. His eyes shone as he flashed her a crooked grin. "I missed you this summer."She met his stare unflinchingly, returning the smile as she said, "I hate to admit it, Sam Cortland, but I missed your sorry ass, too.”

“Steeling herself, she rose out of her chair, looped her arm around Kenny’s neck, and planted herself in his lap.He lifted an eyebrow. “Have I missed something?” She curled her mouth into what she hoped was a seductive smile and tried to speak without moving her lips. “Kiss me at once.”“No,” he said indignantly.“Why not?”“Because I don’t like your attitude.”She had been a bit bossy, but that was only because she was nervous. “I apologize.”His eyes settled on her mouth. “Okay, I’ll kiss you.”The burly man turned away, and she immediately ejected from Kenny’s lap.”

“His voice dropped to a low murmur, and he leaned down so that he was almost whispering in her ear. “You see, there’s this woman.”She wasn’t going to look at him. She wasn’t.“Normally, one might say that there was a beautiful woman—but I don’t think she qualifies as a classical beauty. Still, I find that when she’s around, I’d rather look at her than anyone else.” He set two fingers against her cheek, and Minnie sucked in a breath. She was not going to look at him. He’d see the longing in her eyes, and then…“There’s something about her that draws my eye. Something that defies words. Maybe it’s her hair, but I tried to tell her that, and she told me I was being ridiculous. I suppose I was. Maybe it’s her lips. Maybe it’s her eyes, although she so rarely looks at me.”

“I missed her smile…the way she would roll her eyes when she thought I was being ridiculous…the quiet way she almost tiptoed when she walked that gave her away as a ballerina…the fact that she could probably give me a fairly decent ass-kicking if she set her mind to it. I missed it all.I missed her.”

“I miss everything. I miss talking to her, hearing about her day. I miss her voice all gravelly and smoky, I miss hearing her laugh, I miss getting her letters, writing her letters. I miss her eyes, and the smell of her hair, and the way her breath tasted. I fucking miss everything. I miss knowing she was around, because it helped me to know that she was around, someone like her existed. I guess most of all, I miss knowing I would see her again. I always thought I'd see her again.”