The Selection (The Selection, #1)

by Kiera Cass

And sometimes people don’t know whether to interpret silence as confidence or fear. They’re looking at you like you’re a bug so maybe you’ll feel like you are one.”

“Are you all right, my dear?” he asked me. “I am not your dear.”

My plan is to enjoy the food until you kick me out.”

Real

“America, my dear, I do hope you find something in this cage worth fighting for. After all this, I can only imagine what it would be like to see you actually try.”

“Do you think,” Maxon asked, “that I could still call you ‘my dear’?” “Not a chance,” I whispered. “I’ll keep trying. I don’t have it in me to give up.”

Yeah, Mom, I’ll just keep telling the prince that he has absolutely no shot with me and offend him as often as I can. Great plan.

Maxon smiled effortlessly. “America Singer,” he announced, “my closest friend.”

“Are you all right? You seem tense,” Maxon noted. “You get confused by crying women, I get confused by walks with princes,”

Witty

Lots of times when girls cry, they don’t want you to fix the problem, they just want to be consoled,” I advised.

“I should have known that if any girl was going to disobey an order, it would be you.”

“So she’s still with us, then?” Gavril looked over at the collection of girls, grinning widely, and then returned to face his prince. “Oh, yes. She’s still here,” Maxon said, not letting his eyes wander from Gavril’s face. “And I plan on keeping her here for quite a while.”

Ayeeee

It was like he knew how to treat a lady, he just didn’t know how to treat a date. It was quite a contrast to Aspen.

Girllllll

When we got the notice about the Selection, he insisted that I sign up.” Maxon’s mouth dropped open.

Tea

“The last time I saw him was at my send-off,” I choked. “He was with another girl.” “WHAT?” Maxon shouted.

TEA

“I only really ever hug my mother. Is this okay?” he asked.

Ugh hes so tender

“Sure, if you like the lovable sound of an asthma attack in your ear every time you tell a joke.”

I love her

“And . . . well, don’t tell anyone this, but his arms. I like his arms.”

Real

I was so busy watching Celeste run her fingers down Maxon’s arm as she exited that a maid had to gently remind me it was my turn.

Girlllpl

“Maxon Schreave is the epitome of all things good. He is going to be a phenomenal king. He lets girls who are supposed to be wearing dresses wear jeans and doesn’t get mad when someone who doesn’t know him clearly mislabels him.”

Without a word, I could understand how excited he was to have this moment, but then afraid at the same time. And deeper than any of that, I sensed that he adored me.

So this was what it felt like to be a lady.

“I’m not so stupid as to believe that you’ve completely forgotten about your former boyfriend. I know what you’ve gone through and that you’re not exactly here under the normal circumstances. I know you think there are others here more suited for me and this life, and I wouldn’t want you to rush into trying to be happy with any of this. I just. . . I just want to know if it’s possible.

Ugh hes so precious