"She put her hand in his, and he smiled. It was as if for her, the sun came out. His smile took her breath and made her inexplicably happy because, she sensed, he rarely smiled and it was like a gift."

"Once he had told her he wanted her to stay, she'd been lost in the wonder of that. No one ever wanted her. No one."

"She didn't want to see the condemnation in his eyes, but she had to warn him. [...] She would lose everything. She would lose him. His family. This place. Her hideout. Most of all, she would lose an important ally."

"Fear wasn't the problem, she could deal with nerves, it was the excitement welling up in her that frightened her most. The unfamiliar emotion was too strong. Too needy. Too everything she was unprepared to deal with."

"For one moment his mask slipped and she saw his eyes go dark with desire. Every line in his face was etched with a sensuality that kept her breath trapped deep in her lungs. No one had ever looked at her like that in her life."

"Communication is very important between us at all times." He bent his head as he lifted the hair from the back of her neck. "For instance, I find your neck incredibly sexy. You look both vulnerable and sensual with your hair up. With it down, you look wild and beautiful. Just as sensual, but in a completely different way."

"For the first time in her life she felt weak with wanting. With need. Yet at the same time, she did feel sort of attractive. She was aware of herself as a woman, as feminine, when she'd always felt masculine. He'd given her that, and she'd be forever grateful."

"Her courage humbled him. The immense trust it took to allow herself to be tied by him, even in the name of art, was astonishing for a woman like her. It was a true power exchange between them and he loved that. Even craved it."

"He needed a woman strong enough to accept that he would always need his ropes. They anchored him. Centered him. The moment he touched them, those dark shifting shadows inside him subsided."

"His expressionless mask had slipped and she saw him, his fierce demons and turbulent needs mixed with dark, ferocious passion. He would never be like other men. He would always be dominant, scary to enemies and yet gentle with those he loved."