Lisa Kleypas, Blue-Eyed Devil

"There's only one thing a bully respected: bigger bully."

"Bad divorce" Hardy asked, his gaze falling to my hands. I realized I was clutching my purse in a death grip.“No, the divorce was great,” I said. “It was the marriage that sucked."

"I had to admit the man looked amazing in jeans. The ancient denim clung lightly to his hips and followed the long lines of some remarkable thigh muscles. And although I made a point of not checking out his rear view, my peripheral vision was having a very good day.” ~ Haven Travis on Hardy Cates"

"The look of experience suited him, especially because somewhere deep in those eyes, there still lurked a dangerous invitation to play. He had a quality of masculine confidence that was a thousand times more potent than mere handsomeness. Perfect goodlooks could leave you cold, but this kind of sexy charisma went straight to your knees. -Haven Travis"

"What you should really be sorry for," he continued, "is that for the rest of my life, I'll have to avoid wine cellars to keep from thinking about you."Why? Was kissing me that bad"A devil-solf whisper. "No sweetheart. It was that good."

"I wanted more of those sweltering kisses. I felt terrible about that. But the warm sunny fragrance of him...he smelled better than any human being I'd ever met. "Okay" I said unsteadily, "forget what I said about not exchanging names. Who are you"For you, honey... I'm trouble." -Haven & Hardy"

"I guess it's over now," I said bravely. "Right"Is that what you want"My throat clenched. I shook my head."What do you want, Haven"I want you," I burst out, and the tears spilled over again. "But I can't have you."Hardy moved closer, gripping my head in his hands, forcing me to look at him. "Haven, sweetheart . . . you've already got me."

"I no longer believed in the idea of soul mates, or love at first sight. But I was beginning to believe that a very few times in your life, if you were lucky, you might meet someone who was exactly right for you. Not because he was perfect, or because you were, but because your combined flaws were arranged in a way that allowed two separate beings to hinge together."