“Samantha, you’re okay. I promise. The orgasmic cocktail of oxytocin, endorphins, dopamine, and serotonin is just messing with your emotions.” He kissed my shoulder. With a soft chuckle, and added, “I knew you just needed the right man to please you. God, you’re so fucking amazing.”

~Samantha Sheridan, Night Shift

I had never been with a man who reached for me simply because he wanted to. Not out of dominance, not to stake a claim, not as a prelude to sex. Just a touch, a connection, as natural as breathing.

Butterflies—actual butterflies—fluttered in my stomach, something light and unfamiliar stirring in my chest.

I’d always thought that was just some romantic notion, a dreamy fantasy only found in books.

~Daria Melnichenko, Mission Shift

“Hey, Mr. Captain!” she puffed, weaving through the crowd. “You training for the Reindeer Games or something? Some of us have short legs, you know! Or do you just like dashing through the airport like you’re a one-horse open sleigh?”

~Captain Kol Vinter, Christmas Cancellation

“No one will ever hurt you again, not on my watch. I’ll stand between you and the world if I have to. You’re my heart, my soul, and I’ll spend every last breath ensuring you feel loved, cherished, and safe.”

~Dr. Atticus Thorin, Night Shift

She was perfect. Beautiful and defiant, soft in all the right places, and strong in ways that sent my imagination spiraling. I loved the way her voice had cracked when she’d told me to let her go…and then moaned when I didn’t.

~Nikolai Volkov, Eyes on You

The moment I’d turned and caught the fury radiating off him, dark and lethal. I’d known the universe had jolted then. I’d felt it. But never in my wildest dreams had I imagined Mr. Shadowman being that unhinged for me.

~Scarlett Hayes, Eyes of the Unholy

And when she’d met my eyes—when she’d chosen defiance, chosen provocation—something inside me detonated.

Not romance. Not tenderness.

Claim.

Possession.

A dark, ruthless certainty that she was going to be mine to protect, mine to keep, mine to ruin the world for if I had to. And she had no idea.

~Lucian Byrne, Eyes of the Unholy

“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

She was so touch-deprived it bordered on cruelty, and I planned to make up for every stolen moment—to hold her, to care for her, until every fiber of her body and every corner of her soul recognized she was loved by me.

~Lucian Byrne, Eyes of the Unholy

As I held her, I made a silent vow. I would be there for her, no matter what. I would help her through this, help her find her strength, her courage. I would be her rock, her safe haven, her home because she deserved it. She deserved to be loved, to be cherished, to be protected. And I would be the one to give her that. No matter what it took, no matter what it cost me, I would be there for her. Always.

~Captain Kol Vinter, Christmas Cancellation