“Truth, honesty, perseverance, strength, love of all kinds and forgiveness are all beautiful, Tack. The most beautiful stories ever told are the most difficult to take.”

“I’m taking my mortal as my mate. You love me, I love you, we’re connected, what we have is beautiful and that’s all it’ll ever be. For eternity. Until the end of days. Until the sun falls from the sky, all you and I will share is beauty.”

“And I wake up happy, baby, because I possess beauty and I own that beauty in all the forms it can take and the least important of those are physical.”

“Tack studied him. Then quietly, he stated, “She’s my only daughter, man.”“And she’s the only woman I’ve ever loved, Tack,” Shy shot back instantly.”

“No, it was because Hawk, Brock and Mitch stormed that house at Tack’s side. This meant, to Tack, they were different kinds of brothers. Not of blood. Not of the cut. But that bond was unshakable all the same.”

“I stood there. Still. Frozen. Looking at the most handsome man I’d ever seen in my life. The man I fell in love with when he was still mostly a boy. The man who raised two great kids against the odds. The man who kept the streets of my hometown safe. The only man outside my brother and father who even tried to take care of me, he did it in a way that was beautiful, precious, so I let him. The man who made me happy. The man who was happy being with me.”

“I love you, Leah. I’ve loved you for twenty years and I’ll love you for eternity. My beautiful Leah, listen closely. What I say is pure truth. And on this truth, you have my vow.”