“Will you pose for the nude?” I askedbreathlessly, as he jostled me on hisshoulder.“Yes. With a condition.”“What condition?”“I want you naked, as well, while youpaint.”

“I asked him, "Do you know the difference between nude and naked?"He shook his head. "Nude is artistic. Naked is defenseless.”

“The best time to complain is right after you’ve come up with a solution to the problem. Pose the questions, present the answers, and then pose nude while the people make statues out of you in veneration.”

“I love you because you’re the only person I want to make love to without any conditions and—and I love that you need me.”

“The thing I got to thinking about,' he said, 'is--what are the conditions that lead to larger portions of society being generous, humble, and selfless? While we have the conditions for economic opportunity here--and that is a blessing--do we have the conditions to learn how to self-regulate our own passions for the good of the whole?”

“Tell me what you want?” His breath was warm against her lips.“I want you.”“How? Give me permission, tell me it’s okay to strip you naked, kiss you wherever the need takes me, and f**k you until you can’t see straight.”“Yes, yes, please, all of that.”