Quotes from Before I Wake

Rachel Vincent ·  339 pages

Rating: (11.2K votes)


“You're not lost, Kaylee. You can't ever be lost, because I'll always know where you are. And if I'm not there with you, I'm on my way, and nothing standing between us will be standing for very long.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“It's suspiciously quiet in here, and there's a Tod shaped dent in the bean bag. For the sake of both my sanity and my temper, I'm going to pretend I can't tell that you're in his lap, so could you pretend that this is still my house and you are still my daughter, and I'm within my parental rights to kick your boyfriend out after 11:00 p.m.?”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Hey, do you wanna go out for..." His words melted with a sigh when he noticed Tod, but then he rallied with a smile. "Hi, Tod, I didn't realise you were here. In my daughter's bedroom. With the door closed."

"Happy to be here," Tod said, and I groaned out loud.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Forever used to feel like a curse. Now it feels like a promise.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“I love you, Kaylee. More than I've ever loved anyone. More than I will ever love anyone. If I could freeze this moment in time and never have to let you go, I would do it without a second thought.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake



“But my hands are in the right place."
"Heart," I corrected. "Your heart's in the right place."
"Yeah, but my hands are in an even better place."
And so they were.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“This seems headed into girl-fight territory," Tod said. "Should I make popcorn?”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“No, you should stay right where you are, or my estranged brother and I will settle our difference by seeing who can break more of your bones."

Tod glanced at him, brows raised. "You want to settle our differences?"

Nash frowned. "No, I want to break every bone in his body, and I didn't think you'd let me do it alone."

Tod nodded. "Good call.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“But I'll be fine. I'll be with Tod. He's a good guy, you know." He just hides it under all the sarcasm and curls.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“The three of you are enough to drive a mara mad.'She can wear my shirt," she growled in an imitation of Nash."No,she can wear my shirt,"she said switching to Tod's smoother tone.Then Sabine took off down the hall without a glance at any of us."I have a spare.Come on, Kaylee,before I choke on testosterone and melodrama.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake



“How long until you have to go...reap?" I whispered as my arms slid around his neck. Like we were dancing. Only we weren't moving, and there was no music.
"Don't know. Don't care."
"Won't you get in trouble if you miss something?"
"See my previous answer.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Why? Why is this happening to me?" Sophie asked.

Sabine rolled her eyes. "Because you're the beautiful fairy princess and the evil Lord of Hell can't secure his kingdom until he's feasted from your flesh and slaked his thirst with tea brewed from the ashes of your incinerated bones."

Nash groaned, and Tod laughed out loud.

Sophie hiccuped, and turned to me, frowning. "Is she serious?”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Near-death experiences release a lot of endorphins, resulting in a natural high," Tod whispered. "And it's totally true that one passion feeds another."
"You know we're way past 'near-death', right?"
"My endorphins aren't listening to you.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“So don't. Come hang out with me at work. We can play naughty dress up with the hospital gowns and rearrange the supply closets.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“I always knew my sexual prowess has the power to save lives."
"You can turn anything into an ego boost, can't you?"
"I have a healthy sense of my own worth. But I have an even better sense of yours."
"Aww...”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake



“I spent two hours trying to question reapers without sounding like I was questioning them. What do you think it says about us as a group, that every reaper I know is either irritable, egotistical, voyeuristic, or some combination of the three?"
"That you fit in well?”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“The world lost something when you died, Tod, and I know that wasn't easy for your family. But the world's loss was Kaylee's gain. I hope the two of you have the forever her mother and I never got."
"I will do my damnedest to make sure of that."
"I know you will.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Sabine gestured to him with the half-eaten crust. "I like him. Not sure why he's wasting his time with the pole dancer, though."

Tod laughed out loud and I groaned. "Sophie takes ballet and jazz. She's not a pole dancer."
"There's more money in pole dancing," Sabine insisted.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“His gaze burned into mine, like he could see past my eyes into parts of me no one had ever seen, and I knew I was seeing the same in him. No one else had ever seen him so vulnerable before, like if I pushed him away, he might crumble into pieces that could never be put together again. Yet there was strength, too. He was strong beneath that fragile need, and I knew that I could never fall with him next to me. If I tripped, he would catch me. If I lost my balance, he would find it.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Tod's eyes widened and his irises swirled in tight twists of blue. "Well, I don't see that I have much of a choice, considering that's part of Reaper Law."
"There's a Reaper Law?"
"Of course. 'A reaper is Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous...'" He shrugged. "It gets boring after that. But this situation is clearly covered under the 'helpful' category."
I rolled my eyes. "I think that's the Boy Scout law."
"They took it from us. But they left out all the good stuff.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake



“If you want to call yourself my friend, you should know that position comes with boundaries."
Sabine frowned. "I'm no good with boundaries."
"Yes, and the ocean is damp. Can we be done with
the understatements now?”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Levi will kill me the minute he sees me, and I don't trust Madeline. There's something in her eyes..."
"I believe that's integrity and dedication in her job."
"Yeah. It's disturbing.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Why do I always have to be the one who says 'stop'?" I demanded, my voice little more than a moan.

"You don't. In fact, at this point I'm considering a petition to that word stricken from the English language." His grin was almost lazy, the gleam in his eyes an effortless challenge. "If I did, would you sign?”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Sophie glanced from me to Sabine, then back, scowling. "I'm not scared of her. I can handle myself."
"Yeah, and hissing kittens think they're badass too," Sabine said.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Of every moment I've ever not-lived through, this one is the best”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake



“I can't believe they even bothered filling that faculty position again. They might as well rename the class Defense Against the Dark Arts. I mean, seriously, who would answer an ad for this job?”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“Careful, pot" Tod said. "Someone might notice your resemblance to the kettle.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“My shirt got torn in a fight. Yours evidently has a fast-release tab.”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


“She just got out of the hospital. Why don't you go gossip behind her back, like decent people?”
― Rachel Vincent, quote from Before I Wake


About the author

Rachel Vincent
Born place: The United States
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