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“The finest of pleasures are always the unexpected ones.” Erin Morgenstern, The Night Circus
loved these guys like most folks loved their dogs. A pack of good soldiers when it came to business. Otherwise, always dirty, mostly feral, often chaotic.
Walking in here, looking as fine as she did and dressed to show it off, was a language my brethren interpreted as a tacit invitation to do whatever the fuck they wanted.
Once I’m drunk enough, any one of these reprobates will do.”
Most were lost, looking for a home, or looking to be part of a family, just like the male recruits. They didn’t mind the violence; they were used to brutality, they understood it. They just wanted consistency, stability, and permanence. And I definitely understood that.
I wasn’t going to touch her, but I’d look enough to last a lifetime.
She grinned. “You know, you’re a lot cleverer than I thought you’d be.” “I find nothing surprising about that statement other than the fact that you thought about me at all,” I said,
Let me put it this way: if disappointment had been a major in college, I’d have several honorary degrees.
“Midlife is the time to let go of an overdominant ego and to contemplate the deeper significance of human existence.” Carl Gustav Jung
were on my to do list, my post-being-married-to-a-feckless-narcissist list.
“I am not young enough to know everything.” Oscar Wilde
This kid was tough as shit. He’d been stationed overseas and he’d seen action. He was also smart, but until this moment, he’d worked hard to hide it. I understood why. Being smart in a club makes you a threat to those that give the orders, and I gave the orders.
“She’s all smoke and mirrors and false bravado! It’s all fake. She’s as strong as a fucking kitten.”
“She trusts too easily. Her loyalty is unshakable, but she gives it to the wrong people. She’ll fight like hell for others with iron in her veins, but never for herself.”
No one raised their voice to me. No. One. Not for any reason. Folks spoke calm or they didn’t speak at all. I didn’t like to be yelled at and I didn’t put up with it. It didn’t bother me when my brothers yelled at each other, but anyone who screamed at me lost the ability to use their voice box. Call it an oddity, call it a quirk,
Obviously he loves you. Actually, it’s obvious he more than loves you. He worships you. And I’m glad because I don’t want you to settle for anything less.”
This last year had been all about guilt and making amends, learning to be better, learning how to do better. Next year would be all about moving on.
“You look like you don’t know whether to check your ass or scratch your watch.”
We’re both sinful in our
own way. So what? We’ll go to hell together with smiles on our faces.”
Either way, if she’d been a man, she would’ve made an excellent addition to the Wraiths. Hell, she’d probably be running everything.
“I want you the same.” She didn’t seem to realize, but I wasn’t finishing her sentence. I
stated a fact. I wanted her. I wanted what she offered.
do not have pink in my wardrobe. I don’t even have a wardrobe.” “See? I did not know that. And now I don’t know if we have a future.”
“Another belief of mine: that everyone else my age is an adult, whereas I am merely in disguise.” Margaret Atwood, Cat's Eye
didn’t own much in black—only two pantsuits for funerals. I loved bright colors. If the good Lord saw fit to give us colors, I felt the least we could do was wear them proudly.
But then I reminded myself that no man was responsible for my happiness or satisfaction, I had complete control over both, and that was that.
“I hope so.” I lifted my hands holding my Louis Vuitton clutch and rested them on the high-top maître d' station between us, ensuring my three-carat antique diamond ring caught the light. This was all part of the silly dance wealthy people played in order to signal to others that they possessed money and had no qualms spending it.
placing another kiss against my cheek as he skootched me in.
my painted nails. The color I’d chosen, aptly named Cherry Popping Red, matched the color of my underwear. I liked doing this; it was a secret source of confidence.
He was simply capable of and comfortable acting like a gentleman without artifice and stuffy formality,
was out to dinner with a man I fancied more than I fancied pie. Which was a lot.
My heart hurt. I felt beaten down, numb. Cold.
He’d be at the gates of hell thinking what lay beyond was a Denny’s.”
“Raise your voice until you are heard. Look however you want, be whoever you want, and demand people pay attention to you. Stop taking what you’re given, and demand the space in life you want.”
I trusted her and she kept me on my toes. How about that for a combo?
no one could do anything without dragging me into their dumpster fire emergencies.
No harm in buttering up the biscuit before taking a bite.
town source for all rumors, true and false—would then spread it around like jam on toast.
I want people to listen to me, to my words, I want them to mean something. Why can’t a woman’s words count for more than a man’s violence?”
“Are you saying a stork brought you to the Iron Wraiths, fully formed, wearing black leather and brass knuckles?”
Because if or when I faced demons, he was the one I wanted at my side.
“At an early age I learned that people make mistakes, and you have to decide if their mistakes are bigger than your love for them.” Angie Thomas, The Hate U Give
Because she is the best thing that has ever happened to me. She is so much light, she blinds me.
I love her. I need her more than I need to breathe.”
“I feel thin, sort of stretched, like butter scraped over too much bread.” J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
Soon we were swaying together in the middle of the kitchen; my ear against his solid chest, listening to the steady rhythm of his heart, him holding me while I caught my breath.
on his shoulder, within the nook created by the curve of his neck.
I shook my head. What? What in tarnation? Why would—and how—and why was—and—
seemed to be sending me a hundred sympathy cards with his eyes,
