The Strongest Steel Quotes

“Any time. Tattoos and hugs. I’m great at them both.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Trent Vincent Andrews!” came a voice from inside the condo. “What was that?” Harper jumped. Trent grimaced. The morning was about to get a lot more entertaining. “Are you home, sweetheart?” Harper’s eyes went wide. “Vincent?” Trent jumped off the bed and threw the cover over Harper. “My mom shows up, you’re naked, I have a raging hard-on, and yet you focus on my middle name?”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“He slammed his cup down. Coffee splashed over the rim and puddled around the base. “What on earth gave you the idea I want space? I want you here. With me. All the time. I want to come home and hear the shower running and get excited because I know you’re in it. I want to struggle every morning to get up and go to the gym because I hate the idea of leaving your warm body behind in bed. I want to hear a key turn in the lock and feel contented knowing you’re home. I don’t want fucking space, Harper.”
Harper laughed.
“What’s funny?”
“I didn’t mean space. I meant space, like closet space, a drawer in the bedroom, part of the counter in the bathroom.”
Trent’s mouth twitched, a slight smile making its way to his lips.
“Like a compromise. A commitment that I want more. I seem to recall you telling me in the car about something being a step in the right direction to a goal we both agreed on. Well, I want all those things you just said, with you, eventually. And if we start to leave things at each other’s places, it’s a step, right?”
Trent reached up, flexing his delicious tattooed bicep, and scratched the side of his head. Without speaking, he leapt to his feet, grabbing Harper and pulling her into a fireman’s lift.
“Trent,” she squealed, kicking her feet to get free. “What are you doing?”
He slapped her butt playfully and laughed as he carried her down the hallway.
Reaching the bedroom, Trent threw her onto the bed. “We’re doing space. Today, right now.” He started pulling open his drawers, looking inside each one before pulling stuff out of the top drawer and dividing it between the others.
“Okay, this is for your underwear. I need to see bras, panties, and whatever other girly shit you have in here before the end of the day.”
Like a panther on the prowl, Trent launched himself at the bed, grabbing her ankle and pulling her to the edge of the bed before sweeping her into his arms to walk to the bathroom. He perched her on the corner of the vanity, where his stuff was spread across the two sinks.
“Pick one.”
“Pick one what?”
“Sink. Which do you want?”
“You’re giving me a whole sink? Wait … stop…”
Trent grabbed her and started tickling her. Harper didn’t recognize the girly giggles that escaped her.
Pointing to the sink farthest away from the door, she watched as he pushed his toothbrush, toothpaste, and styling products to the other side of the vanity.
He did the same thing with the vanity drawers and created some space under the sink.
“I expect to see toothbrush, toothpaste, your shampoo, and whatever it is that makes you smell like vanilla in here.”
“You like the vanilla?” It never ceased to surprise her, the details he remembered.
Turning, he grabbed her cheeks in both hands and kissed her hard. He trailed kisses behind her ear and inhaled deeply before returning to face her. “Absolutely. I fucking love vanilla,” he murmured against her lips before kissing her again, softly this time. “Oh and I’d better see a box of tampons too.”
“Oh my goodness, you are beyond!” Harper blushed furiously.
“I want you for so much more than just sex, Harper.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“I tried to stop her but it’s like getting a feral cat into a shoe box.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Like the person who felt the draw of the ocean but couldn’t swim, she felt the pull of another but didn’t know how to respond and stay safe.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“I want to be the one cheering you on, not stopping you from making it onto the field.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Not discussing it with you dude because: a) We don’t have vaginas, and b) You’re a dumb-ass.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Unacknowledged fear is a weakness,”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“I'll try. That which does not kill us makes us stronger, right?" "You're quoting Kelly Clarkson?" "No, Nietzsche," Harper replied with a quiet laugh. "Wouldn't have pegged you as a Kelly fan." "Never. And if you ever mention this conversation, I'll deny all knowledge of it."

- Harper & Trent”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Harper walked over to her reception desk. “What’s with the Tyson look-alikes out there? I almost couldn’t get in here.”
Pixie frowned. “Better go ask your boy-o. Famous rock star in the house.” Pixie accentuated her comment with the poke of her pen.
Jeez, he was huge. And built. And shirtless. Okay, enough staring. Well, maybe just for another second. Trent was leaning over the guy, and she could tell from the wide-reaching spread of purple transfer lines that he was just beginning a sleeve on the other man’s lower arm. The guy in the chair might well be a rock star— although Harper would never admit she had no clue who he was— but he was wincing. Harper could totally feel for him.
Trent was in his usual position— hat on backward, gloves on, and perched on a stool.
Harper approached them nervously. The big guy’s size and presence were a little intimidating.
“I don’t bite.” Oh God. He was talking to her.
“Excuse me?”
He sucked air in between clenched teeth. “I said I don’t bite. You can come closer.” His blue eyes were sparkling as he studied her closely.
Trent looked up. “Hey, darlin’,” he said, putting the tattoo machine down and reaching for her hand. “Dred, this is my girl, Harper. Harper, this is Dred Zander from the band Preload. He’s one of the other judges I told you about.”
Wow. Not that she knew much about the kind of music that Trent listened to, but even she had heard of Preload. That certainly explained the security outside.
Dred reached out his hand and shook hers. “Nice to meet you, Harper. And a pity. For a minute, I thought you were coming over to see me.”
“No,” Harper exclaimed quickly, looking over at Trent, who was grinning at her. “I mean, no, I was just bringing Trent some cookies.” Holy shit. Was she really that lame? It was like that moment in Dirty Dancing when Baby told Johnny she carried a watermelon.
Dred turned and smiled enigmatically at Trent. “I see what you mean, man.”
“Give.” Smiling, Trent held out his hand. Reaching inside her bag, she pulled out the cookies and handed the container to him.
“Seriously, dude, she’s the best fucking cook on the planet.” Trent paused to take a giant bite. “You got to try one,” he mumbled, offering the container over.
Harper watched, mortified, as a modern-day rock legend bit into one of her cookies.
Dred chewed and groaned. “These are almost as good as sex.”
Harper laughed.
“Not quite,” Trent responded, giving her a look that made her burn. “You should try her pot roast. Could bring a grown man to his knees.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“I don't know what to say. Thank you seems so inadequate." "Wait until it's done, Harper. You can thank me later. But you're going to hate me to start with."

- Harper & Trent”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“I love you, Harper. Everything else is details.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“You know what comes next, right, Harper?” “Yes,” she said, slightly breathless, running her tongue over her lower lip. “And you aren’t stopping me?” “No, I’m not.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“You need to remember that you are worth defending. You need to have courage, in the moment of attack, to take action. You might not like those actions. Hurting someone else doesn’t come naturally to most of us. But in that moment, you need to remember that you have a God-given right to defend yourself and do it unflinchingly.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Ouch.” The yelp came out by accident as Trent went back over the bumps of her spine. Harper winced. Trent was doing his best to move the needle location around, she could feel that, but it was really starting to hurt.
She heard Trent put down his equipment and slide the stool around in front of her.
“This is the worst it’s going to be, Harp. You’re being so incredibly brave. I’ve had grown men cry at this point.”
He paused for a moment before kissing her gently on the temple. “We have two options. I can stop in a minute and we can pick it up next time, or I can keep going for another twenty minutes and it will be done. The final appointments, then, will be short and sweet. Not to mention a whole lot less painful.”
Harper took in a deep breath and blew it out harshly. Determined not to cry, she bit down on her lip hard. It stopped the pending deluge, but the tears still threatened.
“Oh darlin’.” Trent kissed her softly. “I’d switch places with you in a heartbeat if I could. I know it hurts where I’m working.”
Harper nodded. He understood. “Can you make it fifteen?”
Trent kissed the side of her eye, where a single tear was making a break for freedom.
“I’ll do it in ten.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Pulling back, he gave her a little space and grinned as she found her balance again.
“Do you think that will ever get old?” Harper asked with an embarrassed blush.
“Christ, I hope not. Just remember how you feel right now because you might be really mad at me in about one minute.”
“Uh-oh. I don’t think I like the sound of that.” Harper raised an eyebrow at him.
He took her hand and led her toward the studio before pulling her in front of him, her back to his chest. It was the safest position to avoid a kick in the nuts and the best position to block a fast escape.
He felt Harper’s quick intake of breath as she turned to face him with a hand over her mouth.
“What did you do?” she said through her fingers.
“Happy birthday, sweetheart.” He pushed her through the door as everyone inside shouted, “Surprise!”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“She looked at the strong hand holding hers. “Oh my goodness, what did you do?” Harper asked, eyebrows raised and mouth open as she studied the cuts and bruises.
“Had a conversation with a streetlight once you got into the cab,” he said, pulling her closer to him.
“I’m sorry, Trent. I really am. If I blew you and me because of all this, I get it and I don’t blame you. I’m done running. I’m done being scared. I’m done doubting whether you and your friends will help me if I need it. I am done with everything except being in love with you. I—”
Harper was flipped onto her back and underneath Trent in the blink of an eye.
“Say it again.” His dark eyes were fierce as he held each side of her face in his big, safe hands.
“I’m sorry, I—”
“No.” He cut her off. “Not that part. The ‘I love you’ part.”
“I love you.” Harper had barely gotten the words out of her mouth before Trent’s lips descended on hers. Their mouths clashed together, banging teeth before soothing bitten lips with soft tongues.
Trent pulled away, taking a deep breath before staring deep into her eyes. Harper could feel his very soul merging with hers.
“I love you, Harper. Everything else is details. A lot of fucking details, granted, but just details.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Pixie was still looking a little shell-shocked when they walked over to the desk. “This is Pixie, our studio manager. She’ll take your details when you’re ready.”
“Hey, Pixie, pleased to meet you.”
Trent had never seen Pixie so inanimate. She didn’t move to take the hand Dred had offered.
“Pix?” Trent smirked as she quickly collected herself with a shake of her head, reaching her hand out.
“Sorry. Miles away. Welcome to Second Circle.”
“Nice tattoo you got there, Pixie. What are those?”
“Flowers,” she mumbled. What the hell was up with Pixie? They’d had famous people in the studio before.
Dred laughed. “I can see that. I was curious what kind.”
The phone rang and Pixie jumped all over it, effectively cutting Dred off.
“Sorry,” Trent apologized. “Fortunately, we’re generally pretty busy here. Want to take a seat and we can figure out what you’re looking for?”
Trent started to walk to one of the beds toward the back of the studio. “We have a setup in the room back here if you want a bit more privacy.”
Realizing Dred was no longer with him, he turned to see him still staring at Pixie’s back.
“Hey dude,” he whispered, “we charge extra for checking out the staff’s asses.”
“What? Oh … right, yeah. How much? I’d definitely pay extra for a closer view.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“I want you here. With me. All the time.
I want to come home and hear the shower running
and get excited because I know you're in it. I want
to struggle every morning to get up and go to the
gym because I hate the idea of leaving your warm
body behind in bed. I want to hear a key turn
in the lock and feel contented knowing you're home.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“There's good news and good news. Which do you want first?" "The good news, I guess." She sounded uncertain, which was a lot better than sounding scared. "There's plenty we can do to hide this." "What's the other good news?" Harper asked. "That I want to do it."

- Trent & Harper”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“I believe there’s a bigger plan
for all of us. I guess the universe
conspires to give us what we need,
not what we want.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Well, as the saying goes,
life isn’t about finding yourself, it’s
about creating yourself. Ready to be
recreated as a bad-ass?”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Harper’s eyes went wide. “Vincent?” Trent jumped off the bed and threw the cover over Harper. “My mom shows up, you’re naked, I have a raging hard-on, and yet you focus on my middle name?”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“I’ll try. That which does not kill us makes us stronger, right?” “You’re quoting Kelly Clarkson?” “No, Nietzsche,” Harper replied with a quiet laugh. “Wouldn’t have pegged you as a Kelly fan.” “Never. And if you ever mention this conversation,”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“The irony kept hitting him. Yasmin had left because he couldn’t give her anything she wanted. Harper had left because he was trying to give her everything.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“I see a woman who made it through whatever she had to do to put him away. I see a woman who created a new life for herself somewhere else so she could feel safe. I see a woman who is getting past this one step at a time, doing the best she can, and who, with each step reclaims a little bit of herself.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“I don’t give a shit who you think she can see. I am her best friend. Let me in there.” Drea’s protest carried down the hallway.
Cujo stood up, smoothing down the legs of his jeans. He took a deep breath, and creaked his neck from left to right. “I’ll go get the feisty one,” he said, flipping his head in the direction of Drea’s raised voice.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“Trent,” Harper choked, “Is … Is Anton okay?” Her voice was hoarse, reminding her of the red marks that the doctor had told her covered the outside of her throat.
“He’s fine, Harper. A bit shook up— he’s a hero. Ran straight to Frankie’s. Gave the police all kinds of details.” Trent squeezed her hand hard. “Christ, Harper, when Frankie called and told me Nathan had abducted … abducted…” The word stuck, and Harper’s resolve not to cry wavered as tears filled Trent’s eyes. He dropped his head gently onto Harper’s stomach and wrapped his arms around her, softly, and she was filled with gratitude that she was still here with him.
“I’m fine, Trent,” she soothed, running her fingers through his hair. “I was scared shitless, but I had something to live for.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t get there sooner. I love you, sweetheart. More than you can possibly know.”
“I know, baby,” she cried, finally letting go in front of him. “I love you, too.”
When her tears turned into full-blown sobs, Trent gathered her gently into his arms so they could comfort each other.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“If he doesn’t come out soon and tell us what’s going on, I am going in there.”
A rush of relief flooded Harper at the sound of Drea in the hallway.
“As much as you think she loves you, shortcake, she loves him a bit more. Give them a minute.”
Trent laughed. Harper opened her eyes and looked at him. “My money is on Drea,” she whispered.
“Can you get your stupid frigging arms off me?”
Drea and Cujo burst through the door. Cujo’s arms were wrapped tightly around Drea’s middle, and the angle she was bending his fingers back to release his grip had to hurt.
“I tried to stop her but it’s like getting a feral cat into a shoe box.” Cujo let out a grunt and let Drea go. Harper looked from Cujo to Drea, desperate to bury the laugh she could feel brewing.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel

“You should go home and get some sleep,” Harper said drowsily, letting the pain medication help take her under.
Trent stood up, lowered the head of the gurney, and lifted Harper’s head to fluff the pillow before gently lowering her back down.
“I’ll see you in the morning,” Harper said, refusing to acknowledge the fear she suddenly felt at being left alone. The light went off in the room and Harper’s heart started to race. She needed the light on.
The mattress sagged as Trent sat down on the side of the bed. She felt him lean forward and heard him kick off his shoes. He pulled his legs up onto the single gurney and lay down on his side, carefully putting his arm around her. The warmth of his breath behind her ear, the sweetness of his lips against her skin eased the pressure she’d felt building inside.
“Yeah, you will, darlin’. I’ll be right here.”
― Scarlett Cole, The Strongest Steel