“He has a fascination with mortals.Raphael had said that to her before she'd woken with wings of midnight and dawn."Why are you starting at me, Ellie?" Illium said without taking his eyes from the blade dancing around his fingers.The words were instinctive, something she might as easily have said to rib Ransom. "You're so pretty, it's difficult to resist."A flashing grin, a hint of that aristocratic English accent in his response. "It's hard to be me, it's true.”

“You didn’t tell me she was so soft on the eyes,” he said to Patch, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. He spoke with a heavy Irish accent.“I didn’t tell her how hard you are on them either,” Patch returned, his mouth at the relaxed stage just before a grin.”

“When you've lived as long as I have," he said, eyes heavy-lidded but definitely on her, "you learn to appreciate new sensations. They are rare in an immortal's life."She found she'd moved toward him. He hooked her arm around her waist, pulling her closer until she straddled him as he sat on a ledge below the waterline, her legs wrapped around his waist.He settled her firmly against him.Sucking in a breath, she said, "Sex isn't new to you," and rocked her heat over the exquisite hardness of him. Good didn't begin to describe how it felt. How he felt."No. But you are.""Never had a hunter before?" She grinned, nibbling on his lower lip.But he didn't smile. "I've never had Elena before." The words were husky, his eyes so intent she felt owned.”

“No", she wanted to say. " I don't want you to care for me, I want to be with my husband." But nothing came out. She turned beseeching her eyes to Darcy and she saw him as if from a great distance, through a distorting glass, but his words were firm and clear. “She has no taste for your company,” he said.“No?” said the gentleman. “But I have a taste for her.”Hers, thought Elizabeth. He should have said hers.“Let her go,” said Darcy warningly.“Why should I?” asked the gentleman.“Because she is mine,” said Darcy.The gentleman turned his full attention toward Darcy and Elizabeth followed his eyes.And then she saw something that made her heart thump against her rib cage and her mind collapse as she witnessed something so shocking and so terrifying that the ground came up to meet her as everything went black.”

“In that case, it's good that you're a human Cuisinart," she said."I'm sorry?""A Cuisinart. It's an appliance from the Broken. You put vegetables into it, push a button, and it chops them into tiny pieces."Richard frowned. "Why would you need an appliance to chop vegetables? Wouldn't it be easier to chop them with a knife?""It's meant to save time," she explained."Does it?""Well, cleaning it usually eats up most of the time you save on chopping.""So you're telling me that I'm useless.""It's a neat gadget!""And I'm hard to clean, apparently."She checked his face. Tiny sparks danced in his eyes. He was pulling her leg. Well. If that's how it is... "Considering last night's argument, I think that you're remarkably difficult to clean.""There probably is a retort to this that's not off-color," he said. "But I can't think of one.”

“What the hell are you tryng to do?"She gave him an innocent stare. "Why, have a conversation. I suppose you're out of practice."He glared,narrow-eyed, then turned away. "I'm going for a walk," he muttered."Lovely." Gennie slipped her arm through his. "I'll go with you.""I didn't ask you," Grant said flatly, stopping again."Oh." Gennie batted her eyes. "You're trying to charm me by being rude again. It's so difficult to resist.”