“What can I do?” he asked. “To start taking care of you?”

“So, for her, I'll try. I'll trust. I'll ... open myself. I'll ... be this guy I've never been before and don't even known how to be—this goofy "in love" guy, this guy who takes care of his woman, this guy who gives more than he takes.”

“You love me.”He kept gazing upward, his answer coming softly. “Yeah. I do.”

“I know you don’t like to believe you ever need to be taken care of, but I can’t stand the idea of you being sick and alone. I need to be here for you, babe.”

“What sort of look are you going for?” Damn, how did he answer this? “Something…normal,” he finally said.”

“This was maybe the first time she’d done it when she’d felt the true intimacy of it. The first time she’d done it because she wanted to express her feelings for a guy in some new way she hadn’t before. The first time it meant something.The fact was, sex with a man she cared for was making all other sex pale in comparison. No wonder sex with Mike had been the best of her life from the very start—caring for him had been…destiny.Destiny in Destiny.”

“Stay here with me, Trishy. Don’t go back to your old life. Make a new one, here. With me. I know it’s a hell of a big thing I’m asking—but I’m asking. Stay.- Joe”