“Forgiveness is a funny thing. We act like it has to be earned, as if there are a certain number of hoops someone can jump through to make us forget that they hurt us. But forgiveness can't be earned! It can only be given freely, as a gift!”

“And all Wes could think, before pure, unadulterated lust draggedhim under, was: Hey, which one of us was supposed to be thestarving lion, again?”

“Winslow bounced over on the balls of his feet, clearly not experiencing any sort of crash. 'Aren't your guys nervous? I'm nervous as all hell.''There's nothing to be nervous about,' Beck said, joining them. 'Nerves are only useful when they can spur you on to work harder, faster, better. Once the work is done, they become pointless.”

“Uncomfortable.Lord. I’ve been doing the comfortable thing my whole life, it seems like. And what did it get me? I think it’s about time I did something a little uncomfortable.”

“Love was the ultimate act of courage, he understood now. Because you had to go into it knowing it could be snatched away by forces beyond your control. and if that happened, you'd be a shell of a person, a shadow of yourself, and nothing would be any good again.”

“His head was thrown back, his chestheaving, and the look on his face was more indicative of pain thanpleasure.Rosemary snatched her fingers back, certain she’dmisunderstood the technique somehow.But he whimpered piteously and she realized, no, she couldn’thave misunderstood. Because (a) she was a genius, and (b) it justwasn’t that complicated”

“I need to pull away from this - She gestured between them languidly - "because When I'm with you, I lose my balance. I don't feel calm and happy.She leaned forward, and Kane swallowed down his immediate urge to leap across the table and crush her thin lips under his."When I am with you," Claire said, her accent rolling through the words like thunder, "I am a starving lion, raging at my captivity.”