Jennifer L. Armentrout

“Daemon pressed his forehead against mine. "Oh, I still want to strangle you. But I'm insane. You're crazy. Maybe that's why. We just make crazy together.”

“He returned my smile with a half grin. "So what do you blog about? Knitting? Puzzles? Being lonely?”

“Is this what you do with your spare time?” he asked me, ignoring his sister.“What—are you deciding to talk to me now?” Smiling tightly, I grabbed a handful of mulch and dumped it. Rinse and repeat. “Yeah, it’s kind of a hobby. What’s yours? Kicking puppies?”

“I have the feeling we just made a deal with the devil, and he's going to come back and want our first-born child or something."Daemon waggled his brows. "You want kids? Because you know, practice makes--""Shut up." I shook my head and started walking.”

“Why me?" I blurted out, and then closed my eyes briefly. "Okay. Don't answer that."The food arrived just then一thank God一and the conversation was deterred...for about two minutes. "I'm going to answer that question," Cam said, peering at me through his lashes.I wanted to face-plant my stuffed chicken. "You don't have to.""No, I think I do.”

“I want to back up to this whole caring about me thing,” he said, surprising me as he made his way back to the canvas. “I know you care about me, Mallory.”My heart started beating fast as he shook the can.“I care about you.” He knelt halfway down. A second passed and he moved his arm, spraying on the canvas. “And I think this was missing something.”Having no idea what he was doing or where he was going with this, I waited until he rose and stepped back, to the side. My lips parted on a soft gasp. Rider had spray-painted a heart between our names. I saw it with my own”

“I didn't want to spoil the mood. This was probably the longest Daemon and I had ever spoken without some statement earning him the finger.”

“I wanted Kat out. Every cell of my being demanded that I protect her, even though I knew she was hella capable of doing so herself, but I wanted her far away from here. Hell, I'd keep her in Bubble Wrap if it weren't so damn creepy and also inconvenient, considering I had a terrible habit of obsessively popping the damn things until not a single bubble was left.”

“I don't want to know about love.''But you should, my child. You need to know about love. The things people will do for love. All truths come down to love, do they not? One way or another, they do. See, there is a difference between love and need. Sometimes, what you feel is immediate and without rhyme or reason.' She sat up a little straighter. 'Two people see each across a room or their skin brushes. Their souls recognize the person as their own. It doesn’t need time to figure it. The soul always knows... whether it’s right or wrong.”

“And I learned that sometimes when someone says something so devastatingly perfect, there isn't a need for a response. The words said it all.”

“Eat it," I ordered, holding it with two hands now, making it dance in the air. "It's begging you. 'Eat me'."He arched a brow."Perv," I muttered.Aiden pressed his lips together, but when he glanced at me and my dancing bun, he burst into laughter. "All right, give me the bun.”

“I...I haven’t done a lot of this.” His cheeks flushed pink and my eyes widened. “I mean, I’ve done some stuff, but not a lot. I haven’t...had sex.”For the longest moment I couldn’t respond. All I could do was stare at him. “You’re a virgin?”One side of his lips kicked up. “Yeah. You sound surprised.”“I am. I thought... I don’t know. You were with...Paige. I just assumed you had sex before.”“That would be a negative,” he replied, picking up my hand. “You’re looking at me like you don’t understand how it’s possible.”He could really read minds.“It’s gotten close, but I just never— I haven’t wanted to go that far.” He shrugged a bare shoulder.“I haven’t done it, either,” I blurted out. “I mean, that’s super obvious since...you’re the first boy I’ve kissed, but yeah, I don’t even know...what I’m saying and I’m just going to shut up.”Rider chuckled. “Don’t. I love it when you ramble.”“Only you would enjoy that.” I curled my fingers through his. “Do you want to...go that far with me?”His lashes swept up and his eyes, with their greenish flecks, met mine. “Yeah. Yeah, I do. Someday.”Warmth swept across my cheeks as I whispered, “I...I want that, too. Someday.”The dimple in his right cheek appeared. “Then we’re on the same page.”

“I'm sure I look like a drowned cat.""You look fine. The wet look works for you."I scowled. "Now I know you're lying.”

“A smell of burned hair and cotton wafted into the air as I spun toward my desk. There was a low whine from the desk and then smoke billowed out of my closed laptop.I gaped.My precious, perfectly brand new laptop I cherished like one would a small child.Son of a mother…Friend or not, it was so on”

“Hope that had sparked in my chest now lit a fire, and I fanned it, wanting it to burn hot and bright, because hope… hope was not the enemy. It was a friend, a savior. Hope was more than a new beginning. Hope was tomorrow, and hope was the symbol that I would get better, that I would undo the bad choices that I’d made, and that I would never make them again. Hope was more than a chance of redemption. It was the promise of one day finding absolution, of forgiving my”

“I loved you when I was eight. I loved you when I was twelve. I loved you when I was twenty, and I... I love you now.”

“I glanced over to where Seth looked like he wanted to bang his head against the wall. “Hey.”The blond continued to smile, while his friend continued to stare at me.Seth sighed again. “The one grinning like he’s crazy is Deacon, and the other one is Luke.”“We’re friends of his—of Seth’s,” Deacon threw in, and Seth did not look like they were friends.“This is Josie,” Seth continued. “Please don’t be weird and scare her.”“Be weird?” Deacon rolled those gray eyes. “Ha. Whatever, dude. All you need to know about me is that I’m like a dolphin in a sea of less-smart fish,” he announced, spreading his arms with a flourish.Luke turned to him slowly as his eyebrows inched up his forehead. “What?”He shrugged. “Just saying I have a lot in common with dolphins. They’re smart. I’m smart.”Seth rubbed his hand down his face.”

“And it was knowing that I could still be ... still be afraid of everyhting, but not letting fear stop me from living”

“This is everyone's fight. Becauseit's everyone's future.”

“How...how do you feel about me?”“I think it’s pretty obvious.”“Let’s just say I need a detailed account.”His lashes lifted and his eyes met mine. “I can do that for you.”“Okay.” I leaned toward him.“I never once stopped thinking about you when you were taken away. Four years. All I could hope was that you were in a good place. Never expected you to walk into school. Didn’t even allow myself to dream about that. And then you did, and seeing you blew me away. You were just like I remembered, but different. The hints of the girl I saw in you when we were younger were now right in front of me. The moment you said my name—the moment you hugged me I knew.” Rider reached between us, folding his hand around mine. “I knew I’d fall in love with you and I did. I love you, Mallory.”My lips parted on an inhale. “What?”“I love you, and not the kind of love we had for each other when we were younger, you know? Paige knows that. So does Hector. So did Jayden. I love you.”