“And there, in the midst of blinding orange, yellow, and white flames, our forever begins.”

“Another thread snaps loose from my heart, the pain precise and acute. I embrace it, because it reminds me I'm still here. I'm alive. I'm empowered.”

“You have that boy on such a high pedestal. Its far too slippery up there for one so unprincipled as a solitary fae. Its not as if I havent tried to drag him down. I looked inside his soul. Hoped to...”

“We have regiments as innumerable as the sands...And arsenals as uncountable as the stars.”

“Im about to berate his tactics, to deny any feelings for him, when he cups the nape of my neck and presses his lips to mine, velvety soft. Its nothing but a peck, yet the flavor of the tart he samp...”

“His soft lips glide across my jaw. Im dazzled by his touch, drugged by his promises, falling deeper and deeper into him. Before he reaches my mouth, I catch his hands and roll him off until hes the...”

“Tearing down the rest of the world won't make you happy. Look inside yourself. Because finding who you were meant to be? What you were put into this world to do? That's what fills the emptiness. It...”

“Ah, God, Lys" he breathed, and she opened her eyes to look up at him. She was the love of his heart, his true partner in both work and life, and the idea of losing her to the violence of the world ...”

“Shh." I squeeze his hand. His palm feels clammy. "We have to keep it down, okay? We don't want my dad coming in."He grits his teeth against more shivers. "Always knew I'd end up in your bed . . . a...”