Bad Nights Quotes

“I’ve changed from the woman who found you outside in the woods. You’ve changed me. I’m a lot more confident of what I can do. And I hope you are too. You got us out of a lot of scrapes, and then you came up with a rescue operation nobody else could have pulled off.”
He nodded tightly, yet there was still a look of doubt on his face.
“What?”
“I’m in a dangerous profession. Your husband was shot and died. What if…”
She pressed her fingers to his lips. “There are no guarantees. I understand that better than most people. What I want with you is to live every day to the fullest.”
“Maybe you can teach me.”
“Glad to.”
And glad that this extraordinary man had stumbled into the woods near her family’s old cottage. He’d had a hard life, but it was going to be a lot better from now on. And so was hers.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“At the end of the semester, I’m going to resign from George Mason and go into clinica practice. In Rockville, so we’ll both be close to work.”
“Clinical practice? Even after what you told me about that guy who hanged himself? And--uh--the way our hypnosis session ended?”
“Oh Lord, thank you for reminding me about that. Trainer told me why it happened. Well, he didn’t know the importance of what he was saying.”
“What do you mean?”
“When he had me spread-eagled on that bed, he bragged that you weren’t breathing after the guy hit you on the head in his office. His medic had to revive you.”
He swore under his breath. “Lucky for me he wanted information.”
She moved closer and hugged him tightly. “Lucky for me, too.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“She clasped his shoulders, pulling him close, her body pressed to his, sending her blood pounding hotly through her veins.
“I never did thank you for saving my life,” she whispered.
“Leaving you there would have been like my own death,” he answered in a rough voice.
He brought his mouth to hers for a kiss that said everything he hadn’t yet put into words.
When they came up for air, she said, “I think we need to get rid of these clothes.”
They discarded jeans, T-shirts, and underwear quickly, then rolled toward each other again.
She made a small sobbing sound as he clasped her to him, overwhelmed by the feel of his naked body against hers.
He held her for long moments, then reached between them, shaping her breasts in his hands, then playing his fingers over her nipples, bringing them to throbbing points of sensation.
When he took one hard peak into his mouth, drawing on her as he used his thumb and finger on the other side, she cried out with the pleasure of it. And when he stroked his free hand down her body and dipped into the hot, slick folds of her most intimate flesh, she came to a jolting climax.
As she caught her breath, she looked into his grinning face. “That took me by surprise.”
“Me too,” he agreed. “But it was kind of fun.”
He began to kiss and caress her again, and this time she was better able to focus on each thing he did as he aroused her to fever pitch once more.
He dragged in a ragged breath, raising his head so that his eyes could meet hers. “Are you ready for me?”
“More than ready.”
He covered her body with his, and as he sank into her, emotions flooded through her.
He began to move inside her, and she matched his rhythm, her breath coming hard and fast.
Again, climax grabbed her, and she heard him gasp, “I love you” as he joined her.
“I love you so much,” she answered, as she came down from the heights, stroking her hands over his sweat-slick back.
He shifted off of her, and they lay together on the bed, both breathing hard.
“You are so good at that,” she murmured.
“I could say the same thing.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“I never did thank you for saving my life,” she whispered.
“Leaving you there would have been like my own death,” he answered in a rough voice.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“Jack pulled up in front, cut the engine, and got out. She joined him outside, steadying herself against the car door as he came around to her side of the vehicle.
“What are we doing?” she asked in a voice she couldn’t quite hold steady.
“We have to talk.”
“Are you getting ready to leave me because you think it’s the right thing to do?”
“I should.”
The words made her throat go tight.
“But I don’t think I can.”
“Thank God.”
She reached for him, pulling him into her arms.
“Oh Lord, Morgan,” he whispered as she held him to her. “What are we going to do?”
“Love each other.”
“I finally admitted to myself that I loved you when I knew Crispin had taken you.”
“I knew it before that. I knew that I’d only been half-alive for the past year and a half, and then I met you and everything changed. I wanted to live. I wanted a life with you. Starting right now.”
He looked dazed, as though he’d thought she was going to object.
“I assume there’s a bed in this house,” she said, reaching for his hand and leading him toward the front door.
The door wasn’t locked, and they stepped inside. She got only a quick impression of a comfortable living room as they hurried through to the next room which was furnished with a wide bed. She took him down to the horizontal surface with her, where they clung together, rocking in each other’s arms.
She’d held back her emotions the whole time they were planning the scam on Crispin. Then she’d been afraid of what Jack was going to say.
Not now.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“Shane followed her and stopped short as he took in the room. She watched his eyes go from the metal bed to the rack of implements and back again.
“Christ. This is where he had you?”
She nodded. “And it’s probably where they were holding Jack.”
Shane looked back at her. “You need to get some clothes on.”
He unbuttoned his own shirt, shrugged out of it, and handed it to her. “Put this on.”
She did, grateful that she was no longer standing around in her underwear.
Shane turned and pointed his rile toward the door. “We’ll stay here until we hear from Jack.”
She nodded, praying that he would be okay.
“What happened? I mean, how did you get here?” she asked.
“We came in on glider planes and mostly used tranquilizer guns to put the militiamen out of commission. We’ll be out of here before they wake up.”
“Trainer and I were fighting when we both heard gunfire.”
“You were fighting him? How did you get loose?”
“I used a screw head on the bed to saw through one of the ropes holding my arms.”
“Good girl!”
“Where did Jack go?”
“Trainer’s got some kind of Doomsday device. Jack and Max have got to stop him from setting it off.”
She winced. “A bomb? He told me the door to this room was booby-trapped with a bomb.”
“Oh yeah? Let me just take a look at that,” Shane answered, stepping quickly out of the room again.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“It’s not safe for you out here. Get back inside.”
Her throat clenched as she watched Jack heading for a steel structure with a barrel roof.
“He’s in danger,” she whispered as he disappeared from sight.
“He’ll be okay.”
She gave Shane a fierce look. “You don’t know that. Give me a gun, and let me go with him.”
“Not a chance.” Shane’s expression was just as fierce as hers. “If something happens to you, Jack…” He stopped and started again, a pleading look in his eyes. “He risked everything to come back here for you. Don’t let it be for nothing.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“I have a call from Wade Trainer on the office public line.”
“Put him through.”
The voice of the militia leader came over the speaker. “Is Jack Brandt there?”
“Yes,” Jack growled.
“I guess you’re not so smug now.”
“I never was smug. Get to the point.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“She relaxed against him. “I need to sleep.”
“Good idea. Too bad we have to move to get under the covers.”
“And maybe put on some pants and a bra in case someone comes in.”
“I don’t need a bra.”
“Funny.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“Heat surged through him. Not just the heat of erotic contact--but heat that burned through his brain, hotter than any fire he could imagine.
Intense pleasure combined with a kind of peace he had never felt in his life.
He quickened the rhythm, taking Morgan with him to a high desert plateau where the air was almost too thin to breathe. She clung to him, her body trembling as she approached the summit. He fought the need to let himself go, waiting for her to reach her climax. And when he felt the inner contractions take her, he allowed his own control to slip.
She called his name as his own climax shook him, a giant whirlwind plowing through his body and soul.
When he could move again, he rolled to his side, holding her in his arms.
She snuggled against him, and when he looked down, he saw the smile on her face.
As he started to speak, she pressed her fingers to his mouth. “Don’t make any decisions about us,” she murmured. “Just enjoy what we have now. I know we can’t talk about the future until you get Trainer. But we will.”
He dragged in a breath and let it out. She wasn’t putting any pressure on him to make a decision. She was giving him space, and that was a gift he wouldn’t deny.
“Thank you,” he whispered against her fingers.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“When his fingers stroked down her body and slipped into the hot, slick core of her, she sobbed as she arched into the caress.
He was stunned by the way she responded to him. Silently he pushed her higher and higher still until she was quivering in his arms.
Reaching down, she closed her fingers around his erection, squeezing as she moved her hand up and down, driving him toward the edge, the way he was driving her.
“Jack. Please. Now.”
It was a plea he was helpless to deny.
“God, yes.”
As he slipped inside her, he made a hoarse sound deep in his chest--unable to express in words what he was feeling. How much he was feeling.
All he could do was whisper her name.
She gazed up at him, reached to gently touch her fingertips to his cheek, his lips.
He went still above her, the two of them joined and absorbing the moment--until the longing to move his hips became more than he could bear. As he thrust into her, their mutual need flared.
Sexual need. Emotional need that was more than he had a right to expect.
Heat surged through him. Not just the heat of erotic contact--but heat that burned through his brain, hotter than any fire he could imagine.
Intense pleasure combined with a kind of peace he had never felt in his life.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“Gently he rolled her to her side, so that he could climb off the bed. He pulled off his shirt, then his jeans and briefs in one quick motion, his erection springing free.
When he turned back to Morgan, he saw that she’d also kicked away her pants. Now she lay naked on the bed, her ivory skin luminous in the dim light and her eyes focused on him.
“You are so beautiful,” she whispered.
He laughed softly. “I think that’s my line.”
“It depends on your point of view. Come here.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“Come on inside, and take the chair across from the big television screen on the wall. Are you sitting across from the TV now?”
“Yes.”
“Use the remote to turn it on. We’re going to watch the Wade Trainer militia program. Three days ago. That’s the day that somebody caught you sneaking around the compound. You won’t actually be there, but you can see everything that’s happening. Just like it happened before. But you’ll be at the beach house. Nothing you see can hurt you.”
He grunted.
“There’s no threat to you. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
“Do you see yourself in the picture?”
“Yes.”
“What are you doing?”
“Peeing.”
She made a low sound. “I don’t need to know about that. Skip to breakfast.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“Now I’m just going to help you relax. Relax. Relax now.” Morgan continued in a soothing voice. “If you could get away from your problems and go on vacation--where would you go?”
He laughed. “I wish.”
“We can do it here.”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. A beach, I guess.”
“You like the beach?”
“I did when I was a kid. Not much time to lie around since then.”
“Well, you can now. Imagine you’re in a sling chair staring out at a beautiful blue ocean. The waves are rolling in, breaking on a horseshoe stretch of white sand.”
She saw the tension ease out of Jack’s face.
“It’s nice, isn’t it?”
“Um.”
“Can you talk to me?”
“Yeah,” he answered in a slow, drowsy voice.
“When I tell you to wake up, you’ll come right back to this room.”
“Uh huh.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“I should show you how the alarm system works.”
“Okay.”
He led her down the hall to a small office. “The control panel is in here. It’s not just for the house. There’s no fence around the place because that would be conspicuous, but we have sensors set up all around the property. If anyone approaches, we know.”
“What about animals?”
“We do have a deer fence. A low voltage system that keeps them away. Anything smaller could get under, but we figure anything smaller isn’t going to be a threat.”
“Unless someone sends in a cat with a bomb strapped to its back,” Max said as he entered the room.
“Very funny.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“Finally she spotted Jack, with his friends, Shane and Max. When she’d first spotted them, she’d thought they were very similar to Jack, tough-looking men who did what it took to finish a job. Now, to her surprise, all three men were grinning like little boys who had just raided the neighbor’s watermelon patch.
Jack waved when he saw her staring at them. “I met Max and Shane on the way.”
“What was that glass-breaking sound?”
“A rock through the window of one of the vehicles. I couldn’t resist.”
“And we got all the tires,” Shane said.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“You want to gather up brush first or return fire?” Shane asked.
“I’ll gather brush.”
“The dangerous part.”
“You’ll get your turn.”
They alternated scooping up handfuls of the dry weeds, with one of them returning fire while the other worked. They also collected dry branches and small tree limbs, all the time exchanging fire with the militiamen in the cave.
“Persistent bunch,” Max muttered. “You think we’ve got a big enough pile?”
“Depends. Do we want to roast them or keep them from coming out?”
“Good question. I think we can’t gather enough for a militia barbecue. We’d better settle for pinning them inside while we get away.”
“Agreed.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“The cave goes back for a long way. With low narrow tunnels. You could get lost back there easy.”
“There’s some kind of vertical passageway.”
“They could have gotten out that way.” The speaker was Trainer. “Preston, you climb up there and see.”
“And if he’s up there?”
“Shoot him.”
“He’s in a better position to shoot me than I am to shoot him,” the troop protested.
The militia leader’s voice turned dangerous. “Are you refusing a direct order?”
“No, sir.”
The kid was right, of course. Well, not about getting shot. The minute he got to the top, Jack was going to kick him in the face and send him tumbling back down the shaft, hopefully onto Trainer’s head.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“I’ll come after you as soon as I take care of them.”
“Where does that thing go?”
“I’m not sure. It was too dark to see last night, but whatever it is, it’s better than being caught in here.”
She looked back toward the cave entrance. “There are two of them and only one of you.”
He gave her a cocky grin. “One of me is better than two of them.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“As they ate, Morgan eyed the man sitting across from her. A while ago they’d been in the sleeping bag together and that hadn’t worked out too well. Now they were sitting facing each other, and she didn’t think that was much better.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“Glenn reached for her, and she came into his arms, kissing him, stroking her hands over his broad shoulders. It was so good to be with him. It had been so long since she’d held him, touched him.
She stopped to question that last thought. So long? No, they’d been together every moment on this trip.
She pushed any doubts out of her mind. A smile curved her lips as she felt him harden against her. She didn’t have to tell him what she liked. He knew. When she pressed her center against his erection, he slid his hands to her bottom, anchoring her more tightly against himself as his other hand cupped her breast, stroking across her nipple.
She moved closer, moaning as the blood raced hotly through her veins. Why had she thought she’d lost Glenn? He was here with her, wasn’t he?
Yet something didn’t seem right.
She’d been dreaming, and she didn’t want to wake up. But she forced herself to raise her lids--and she found herself staring into a man’s smoldering eyes. But not Glenn’s blue eyes. The dark eyes belonged to Jack Brandt.
She had her arms around him. She was moving her body against him, and he was lying absolutely still, his erection rock hard against her middle and an expression on his face that told her he was fighting the physical sensations she was generating.
She pushed at his chest, and he rolled away from her, flopping to his back on the cold stone floor of the cave.
“Oh, Lord. I’m so sorry,” she mumbled as she stared at him, trying to explain to herself and to him what had happened. “I...I was…I was dreaming about my husband.”
Jack answered with a tight nod. Pushing himself up, he turned away and stood up, breathing deeply, his shoulders rigid and his back straight. She watched him walk to the front of the cave and push the vines aside so that he could look out.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“He was in a dark place, illuminated only by the glow from a flashlight sitting on the floor. In the dim light, he saw Morgan picking herself up.
“Shit.” He wasn’t back in Trainer’s clutches. His brain had made up that scenario when an explosion shook the house, and he fell down the ladder and blacked out.
“Morgan?” he asked in a strangled voice.
“Yes.”
He ran a shaky hand through his hair as he thought about the short amount of time they’d spent together. “I attacked you before, didn’t I? When you first found me, right?”
“You were out of it.”
He snorted. “Don’t make excuses for me. I’m having flashbacks to that torture session.” The moment he mentioned it, he wished he hadn’t reminded himself of the pain. Grimly he added, “I’m dangerous, and you need to ditch me.”
Her answer was swift and decisive. “No. I won’t last a couple of seconds out there without you.”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights

“For all she knew, he could be a criminal, although she didn’t think so.
She repressed a hysterical laugh. Did she think he had an honest face? Black and blue and honest all over?”
― Rebecca York, Bad Nights