“People are crying up the rich and variegated plumage of the peacock, and he is himself blushing at the sight of his ugly feet.”

“The man was goggling. His entire map was suffused with a rich blush. He looked like the Soul's Awakening done in pink.”

“A person’s authentic nature is a series of shifting, variegated planes that establish themselves as he relates to different people; it is created by and appears within the framework of his interpersonal relationships.”

“He unbuckled his beltand pulled off his blue jeans and boxers. I guess I had forgotten hisactual size and I blushed at the sight of him. This was gonna hurt.”

“He didn't deserve someone like Lorcan. He'd turned Lorcan's pure and wonderful feelings into something ugly, something to be ashamed of. He stepped into his room, shutting the door quietly behind him, sitting on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands as he listened to Lorcan move around his room. He did something he hadn't allowed himself since his daddy had passed. He cried—for his loss, for what could have been... but mostly, he cried in shame.”

“He was ugly, himself. Weird-ugly. But ugliness in a man doesn't matter, much. Ugliness in a woman is her life.”