“As long as I’m in your arms, I’ll be at home anywhere.”

For years, the dungeon beneath my bedroom taught me what happened to men who defied my father. Then they dragged in the Irishman—blindfolded, beaten, and chained—and, for the first time, the dungeon held a man who refused to beg, bargain, or break.

My father could hurt and humiliate him, but he couldn’t make him kneel.

For the first time in my life, hope had a voice—and it was Irish, furious, and defiant.

A dangerous escape, bullets in the air, and Lachlan still manages to wreck Isabella with two words.

“Good girl.”

Under any other circumstances, those two words would have done terrible things to my concentration.

At the moment, I was mostly trying not to get shot.

“Am I joining The Syndicate?”

“No.” His answer came with quiet amusement. “You’re doing something considerably more dangerous.”

“Oh?”

“Loving one of its men.”

“So yeah,” she continued, her voice softer now, “I’m not some coldhearted killer who loves this shit. But I’ve had to become someone who could survive it. And if that means you and everyone else see me as the villain, so be it. At least now I’m finally fighting for something that matters.”

~Daria Melnichenko, Mission Shift

“No one owns you. But anyone who comes for you answers to me.”

“That sounds a little like ownership.”

“You can walk away from me once you’re safe. There’s a difference.”

“I don’t think I mind being yours in that way.”

She turned toward me slowly—eyes wide and wild, chest heaving.

And for one savage second, I forgot everything but my hunger for her.

She wasn’t just beautiful.

She was a fucking Valkyrie. A goddess. A queen.

I wanted to drop to my knees right then and there. Bow before her. Swear my loyalty to whatever realm she came from.

My little lamb had become a force of nature.

And I would die trying to save her.

~Nikolai Volkov, Eyes on You

“Conan, you make me feel…safe. More than that, you make me feel valued. You’re the first person who has ever made me feel truly alive. Before I met you, my life was on a course dictated by others. You’ve shown me what it means to be cherished, to matter. Every moment with you is a gift I never thought I’d get. I don’t have the words to express how much you mean to me, but know this: you are my strength and my courage. I trust you with my life—with my heart. I’ve never experienced anything like this, and I never will again. You’re everything I never knew I needed.”

~Anastasia Volkov, Day Shift

“I love you, my little bird. With everything in me. I love every part of you—your red hair, your sharp tongue, the strength you hide behind that fire. There will never be another woman for me. I’ll die with your name on my lips.”

~Lucian Byrne, Eyes of the Unholy

Kol seemed intent on savoring every moment, stretching time until it became a malleable, pliant thing in his hands. His deliberate and precise way of claiming my body would leave an indelible mark on my memory. It was both exciting and a little terrifying, the thought of this confident, possessive pilot taking command of my pleasure.

~Noelle Nichols, Christmas Cancellation