“She laid her head against his collarbone, and he kissed her temple. To her shock, she felt a shudder roll through his body about the same time she registered wetness against her skin. Tears. His tears.
She started to turn around, but he tightened his grip.
“Stay,” he said in a choked voice. “Just let me hold you, baby. Just let me hold you.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“Never be afraid to tell me anything,” he whispered against her hair. “No matter how ashamed you might feel. I’ll never judge you, Rachel. I love you.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“Trying to drown me woman?"
'You can't drown a SEAL,' she said. 'How embarrassing would that be?'
'God yes. Shoot me, hang me, let me die of infection from a hangnail, but don't let me die in the water. They'd send me to hell on principle.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“Is there something wrong?” he asked.
She gave a short negative motion with her head. And then words, so sweet, like a cool northern breeze blowing off the lake. “You could hold me now.”
It was almost his undoing.
“Ah baby.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“But a woman will only go so long putting her heart on the line without getting anything in return.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“Bastard had the bad manners to die before we were through talking to him.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“I won’t let it happen again. I protect what’s mine.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“Sometimes second chances are the very best chances,” she whispered. “Because this time we’ll get it right.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“Everything okay, sweet pea?” Garret asked as he walked over.
“Yep. Just talking to Sean and getting some fresh air.”
Garret shoved his hands into his pockets. “You mean you’re hiding out here with this pussy who’s here for the same reason.”
Sean grunted. “Yeah, the exact same reason you’ve run outside like a damn girl.”
Garret grinned. “Too many damned people. Ma eats that shit up, but I swear it makes the rest of us crazy.”
“So at what point is she going to figure out we’ve fled the premises?” Rachel asked. The last thing she wanted was to hurt Marlene’s feelings.
“Not to worry. Mom is well used to having to round us up. She usually gives us ten minutes or so to get the crazed look from our eyes, and then she’ll come out all sweet-like but with a glint in her eyes you know better than to ignore.”
“And at that point, she drags us back inside by our ears,” Sean finished.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“First rule of seduction. At least one of us has to get naked. Preferably you,” he murmured.
Nervous apprehension replaced some of the excitement. It was silly. He’d seen her naked. Many times. They’d made love before. But for her it was like the first time all over again.
“Hey,” he said softly. He drew away and tucked a finger under her chin, prompting her to look up at him. “We’ll take this as slow as you need. If I could make love to you with you fully clothed, I’d do it, but I think we both know that’s not an option.”
She giggled and felt some of her unease leave her.
“Let’s not take it too slow or we’ll both be old and decrepit before we ever make love.”
“Mmm, I plan to make love to you until they put me in the grave. That’s what they make Viagra for.”
She leaned into him and hugged him fiercely as another laugh escaped.
“Make you a deal. We undress together. Last one naked is a rotten egg.”
She yanked away as she said the last and immediately began peeling her clothes off.
“Oh hell no,” he sputtered. “Maybe you don’t remember what a competitive family you married into.”
“While you’re talking, I’m getting naked,” she taunted.
A wicked glint sparked in his eyes. “I fail to see how I lose either way.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“If I interrupted violence, by all means I'll step back. Always nice to see bloodshed first thing in the a.m.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
“Hey, have you guys seen Rachel?”
“I’m looking at her,” Sam said.
Ethan stepped out, and relief settled over his face. He stopped beside Garret and glanced between Rachel and Sean and then at the others.
“You okay?” he asked.
She smiled, not wanting him to worry. “I’m fine. I stepped out for some fresh air not realizing this was a time-honored tradition of escaping Marlene’s get-togethers.”
Ethan relaxed and stuck his thumbs in his belt loops. “Yeah, it’s become something that rivals war games. He who survives the longest without being hauled back in by Mom wins.”
― Maya Banks, quote from The Darkest Hour
Maya Banks
Born place: in The United States
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“Fiction is like a spider's web, attached ever so lightly perhaps, but still attached to life at all four corners.”
― Virginia Woolf, quote from A Room of One's Own
“He was the only person making his way into the city; he met hundreds and hundreds who were fleeing, and every one of them seemed to be hurt in some way. The eyebrows of some were burned off and skin hung from their faces and hands. Others, because of pain, held their arms up as if carrying something in both hands. Some were vomiting as they walked. Many were naked or in shreds of clothing. On some undressed bodies, the burns had made patterns—of undershirt straps and suspenders and, on the skin of some women (since white repelled the heat from the bomb and dark clothes absorbed it and conducted it to the skin), the shapes of flowers they had had on their kimonos. Many, although injured themselves, supported relatives who were worse off. Almost all had their heads bowed, looked straight ahead, were silent, and showed no expression whatsoever.”
― John Hersey, quote from Hiroshima
“Jesus thrown everything off balance. It was the same case with Him as with me except He hadn't committed any crime and they could prove I had committed one because they had the papers on me. Of course they never shown me my papers. That's why I sign myself now. I said long ago, you get you a signature and sign everything you do and keep a copy of it. Then you'll know what you done and you can hold up the crime to the punishment and see do they match and in the end you'll have something to prove you ain't been treated right. I call myself the Misfit because I can't make what all I done wrong fit what all I gone through in punishment.”
― Flannery O'Connor, quote from A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories
“He knew that beauty faded quickly when embodied by selfishness,”
― Francine Rivers, quote from A Voice in the Wind
“I carry my awareness of defeat like a banner of victory.”
― Fernando Pessoa, quote from The Book of Disquiet
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The Christmas Sweate...BookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.
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