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| Link | Quote | Stars | Tags | Author |
| d053afd | Nobody ever won a race by standing at the starting line. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 8dda14b | Think she'll stay on awhile?" Preacher quietly asked Jack. Jack was frowning. "I think what she does to a pair of jeans ought to be against the law." He looked at Preacher. "You okay here? I'm thinking of having a beer in Clear River." It was code. There was a woman in Clear River. "I'm okay here," Preacher said. *" -- | Robyn Carr | ||
| 2bbd6b9 | For now, they were inseparable. The three of them. Preacher kept Paige and Christopher under his protective wing, as though danger loomed nearby and might strike at any moment. When there were no patrons in the bar, Preacher and Paige sat at one of the tables and talked or played cribbage; if Christopher wasn't napping, he was on Preacher's knee. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 2e2fbe1 | She felt that hand that had been on her hip slide stealthily around her, holding her at her waist, pulling her just slightly back against him. "You're distracting me," she said, casting again. "Good," he said, lowering his lips to her head, inhaling. "Jack, there are people!" "They could care less," he said, holding her against him. She looked around and saw that what he said was true--the other fishermen didn't even glance their way. Their.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| df7f3f0 | Let me make you some coffee," he suggested. "And ruin this perfectly good buzz? Hell, I've earned it." She took a step and wavered. "Besides, I don't think it'll make me sober. Probably just wide-awake drunk." Jack tightened his hold around her and laughed in spite of himself. "All right, Mel. I can put you in my bed and take the couch..." "But sometimes I have deer in my yard in the morning," she said, a little whiny. "I want to go home. T.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 2a70928 | He unbuckled her and lifted her out of the truck. He whacked her head on the door frame. "Ow!" she yelled, her hand going to her head. "Sorry," he said. And thought to himself, Foreplay that was not. "S'okay." She laid her head back on his shoulder. Now," | Robyn Carr | ||
| 0bd2997 | Something hit him, and it didn't feel particularly good. He picked up the picture and looked at the man's face. So, you're the guy, he thought. He didn't look like a bad guy--but clearly he had done something to Mel. Something she was having trouble getting beyond. Maybe he'd left her for another woman--but that seemed impossible to imagine. Maybe he left her for a man. Oh, please let it be so--I can make that better--just give me five minu.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| c29ef3d | And he thought--Just give me time. I'm going to get that picture put in storage. * | Robyn Carr | ||
| b57455d | Mel was fascinated by the way they talked about their women with lusty smiles and glittering eyes. No jokes about the old ball and chain here. Rather, they sounded as though they couldn't wait to get home to them. "How's Patti doing?" someone asked Josh. He curved his hands over his flat belly to indicate a pregnant tummy and grinning boastfully, said, "She's ripe as a tomato. I can hardly keep my hands off her." "If she's ripe as a tomato,.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 27b2f9f | Jack threw back the shot and when he brought back his head, his eyes were misting over. "My wife," he said in a whisper. "You have no idea the strength that took. She was amazing. I watched her face--she went to a place of power I've never been. And then, when I handed her the baby, when she put my son against her breast..." He took another swallow. "When she nursed my son, she was in another place--there was such peace and love.... God," h.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 53575c2 | I might never be really free of him, and I brought this into your life. Insanity and trouble. Maybe even danger. Oh, John... What a bad deal you got with me." He smiled at her, touched her lips with his. "You can't believe for one second that's how I feel. Paige, I don't care if you have an army of loaded Huns on your tail. The day you and Chris came into my life, that was the biggest miracle of my life. I wouldn't trade you for anything." .. | Robyn Carr | ||
| ecb95d8 | Oh, my God," she said, looking at Jack's face. "It's much worse than it looks," he told her. "What in the world happened?" "I got too close to the rear end of a mule." | Robyn Carr | ||
| b1ee28a | It was the story of her life and probably how she had survived this long: with a little talent and a lot of flair. | Fannie Flagg | ||
| 2e676ef | He put his hands on her waist. "Kiss me," he said. "No," she said. "Come on. Haven't I been perfect? Haven't I followed all your rules? How can you be so selfish? There's no one around--they're busy drinking." "I think you should go back to your reunion," she said, but she laughed at him again. Boldly, he picked her up under her arms and lifted her high, holding her above him, slowly lowering her mouth to his. "You're shameless," she told h.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| b8a34ce | You thinking of messing with my little sister?" he asked. "Because she's been through a tough time and doesn't need--" "No, Jack." He laughed. "I'm not messing with anyone, trust me. But I figured if I kept her busy for a few hours, maybe you could mess with the baby's mother." Jack's eyes narrowed. Mike sipped from his mug. "I'll keep her out there through nap time," he said. "Maybe a couple of nap times." Jack leaned closer to Mike. "You'.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 714addc | Brie, you're beautiful and brilliant and strong. A man who would cheat on someone like you, just flat-ass doesn't deserve you." He reached out and covered her hand with his. "You are too valuable, Brie, to be stuck with a man like that." She pulled her hand out from under his. "And what did you do to screw up your marriages?" "I was completely irresponsible," he said. "I knew how to be a lover, not how to love. Men take such a long time to .. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 11ff00d | You always know what to do," she said. "Not always," he said, holding her close. "Right now, for example. I'm not sure what to do." "Why?" she asked, her eyes still closed, her face buried in his chest. "When are you going to tell me?" She lifted her head. "Tell you?" "About the baby." "But Jack, you know the baby and mother are--" "The baby inside of you," he said, placing a large hand over her flat tummy. A startled look crossed her featu.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| ec34f29 | I don't know what to say. You just accept everything. You're amazing. I thought you might be very pissed." "Nah. The only thing that disappoints me is that it took me this long to find you." "Even with all my baggage?" she asked. "I don't consider this baggage." He leaned over and kissed her belly. "I consider this the grand prize." "You want it?" she asked. "I told you," he said. "I want it. It makes me happy." "God," she said in a breath... | Robyn Carr | ||
| b92a357 | So, he thought, probably the best day of my life, turned to total shit. She's still back there, with him. She can love you like she's yours, but she's not. Not yet. Hadn't he always known this was the risk he was taking, as long as he loved her? That she might not be able to let go of him? Ever? What the hell, he told himself. She might never really belong to me; good thing he can't come back from the grave and snatch her away. But that bab.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 4e02069 | Jack had known from the beginning that Mark was still there, in her life, in her heart. He would never have all of her. Well, then, he'd make the most of what he did have. He wasn't going to make her grovel; he was just going to love the heck out of her. He could manage this, even if it wasn't the most ideal situation. In time, maybe she'd come around. Mark's memory could fade enough so that even if Jack wasn't the only man in her life, he .. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 93fce6a | She turned, looked up at him, and they both jumped back in surprise. She was likely startled because Preacher looked intimidating--he was six foot four, bald with bushy black eyebrows, a diamond stud earring and shoulders about as broad as an ax handle was long. Under | Robyn Carr | ||
| ba8f9ad | Somewhere in the night, sounds came from Jack's bed. He was fitful, rolling around, muttering in his sleep. Mel went to the bed, sat on the edge and touched his brow. He grumbled something unintelligible and curled toward her, grabbing her and pulling her into the bed. He rested his head against her. She took his head in the crook of her arm and lay down beside him. "It's okay," she said to him. And he quieted at once, draping an arm over h.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| bae3b07 | Jack," she said, snuggled up against him. "I hate that I hurt you." He buried his face in her hair and inhaled the sweet scent. "Let's not talk about that anymore. It's behind us. We have a lot in front of us." "Would it be a good idea for me to go to Joey for a little while? Give you some space? Try to get my head together?" He rose over her and looked into her eyes. "Don't, Mel. Don't run just because we hit a rough patch. We'll work thro.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 155064c | He frowned and reached out, lifting a lock of her hair off her shoulder. "Do you have mud in your hair?" "Probably," she said. "I was standing on the porch, appreciating the beauty of this nice spring morning when one end gave way and spilled me right into a big, nasty mud puddle. And I wasn't brave enough to try out the shower--it's beyond filthy. But I thought I got it all off." "Oh, man," he said, surprising her with a big laugh. "Could .. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 199396d | He stopped chopping again and, looking at her, asked, "What made you decide?" "Bear's new leg. That old blue plaid flannel..." "Old?" Preacher asked, smiling slightly. "That was a perfectly good shirt." *" -- | Robyn Carr | ||
| b616c79 | Can I throw in a load of clothes for you?" she asked. "I'll take care of that. Listen, you don't have to clean up after me." She laughed at him. "John, I spend all day in the kitchen, collecting your pots, pans and dishes. It's becoming a habit." She laughed at his shocked expression. "You look after my child all day long--you're pretty much helpless, since he won't leave you alone. The least I can do is help out." "I'm not looking after hi.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| c3ad42b | He looked over the counter to see Christopher standing at the bottom of the stairs, stark naked, book under one arm, Bear under the other. Preacher lifted one bushy brow. "Forget something there, pardner?" he asked. Chris picked at his left butt cheek while hanging on to the bear. "You read to me now?" "Um... Have you had your bath?" Preacher asked. The boy shook his head. "You look like you're ready for your bath." He listened upward to th.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 81de336 | She looked over at him as he drove; he was grinning. "Why are you smiling?" she asked him. He turned to look at her. "I've never been shopping with a woman before," he said. "I didn't hate it." | Robyn Carr | ||
| effbfb7 | At first it appeared to be an intense need to right a wrong, to protect--typical of Preacher. He was that kind of man--tough on the outside and soft on the inside. Justice and loyalty--those values were everything to him. But in the days since what he saw had evolved. Preacher watched over Paige with an intensity that spoke of something more than the goodness of his heart. He would glance at her and his eyes would grow dark. Glow. He'd shak.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 70c4b4b | He moved behind her and slipped his arms around her. His hands went under her jacket, under her sweater to where the jeans she could no longer close were gaping open. He put his large hands over her tummy and she put her hands over his, leaning back against him. They stood and looked out across the beautiful land, and then there was a little movement within her. These tiny flutters had just begun. "I'm sorry you can't feel that yet," she wh.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| aac7dd3 | The common good before the individual good. (Gemeinnutz geht vor Eigennutz) | Adolf Hitler | ||
| 00b5f8e | Everyone was at one time a Social Democrat. | Adolf Hitler | ||
| 5aa64c8 | What's bothering you?" "I've been watching Preacher," he said. "Ah. Lots of people have." "What's up with that?" "Well, it seems pretty apparent. He's growing very attached to his houseguests." "Yeah. That's what I think, too. I have a feeling he doesn't know what hit him." She reached for Jack's hand. "He'll work it out." "Mel, I'm not sure the looks Paige gives him mean anything but thank-you. I mean, Preacher--he's the kind of guy you wa.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 5f4f61a | Jack's right--you shouldn't be getting yourself into this mess. We can still get away, me and Christopher. I can get to that address in Washington, get things in order. Get into that underground that gives women and children new identities..." "Don't be afraid," he said again. "It's going to be okay. I talked to Judge Forrest and he's optimistic about working this out." "There are alternatives to taking this kind of chance, is all I'm sayin.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 0ddc30f | Are you so scared you were going to run?" She nodded, and he ran a finger along the line of her jaw. "Let's try to get through this," he said. "Even if it works, there's no way I can ever repay you," Paige said. He just shook his head. "I don't want anything from you, Paige. Except that no one ever hits you again. Ever." Paige just had to touch his face. She put her small palm against his cheek and whispered, "You are such an angel." "Naw. .. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 45d3f7b | In the early morning as dawn was just beginning to streak through the cabin windows, Jack was stirred awake by the soft sound of slightly off-key humming. He found Mel nestled into the crook of his arm, her breath tickling his chest. She was purring, humming, her lips moving slightly, as though singing. It might've troubled him if her expression had been sad or disturbed. But she was smiling. She snuggled closer, throwing a leg over his. An.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 7c236d6 | One of these days, he said to himself, I'm going to tell her. Tell her I love her more than I thought I could love a woman. Tell her that my life started when she walked into town. But not yet. He didn't want to back her into a corner and make her feel she had to either say she loved him, too, or run. "Well," | Robyn Carr | ||
| df8b0fb | Jack was back to his old self. It was either the Scotch or the fact that he woke up to a pretty blonde in his bed. He bet on the blonde. He never did ask Preacher precisely what he had told Mel. And he didn't ask Mel to be more specific. It didn't really matter. What did matter was that he had bonded with Mel on a new level that night without planning to. That she knew he was tortured over something terrible from his past and instead of shy.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| f1d2adb | He was completely smitten. Jack was forty and this was the first time that he had a woman in his life he couldn't imagine giving up. * | Robyn Carr | ||
| a5352fd | Uncomfortable, but safe, | Diana Gabaldon | ||
| 68c044f | Joey," she said quietly, in almost a whisper. "I think I have a man in my life." "You found a man in that place?" "Uh-huh. I think so." "Why do you sound so...strange?" "I have to know something. Is it okay? Because I'm not even close to being over Mark. I still love Mark more than anything. Anyone." Joey let out her breath slowly. "Mel, it's all right to get on with your life. Maybe you'll never love anyone as much as you loved Mark--but t.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| cdc8938 | She woke up crying three days running. Jack had asked her if anything was wrong, if there was anything she wanted to talk about. "PMS," she told him. "It'll pass." "Mel, have I done anything?" He wanted to know. "Of course not. Hormones. I swear." But she was starting to think that the brief reprieve she seemed to have experienced lately was now officially over and she was on her way back to the darkness of grief and longing. Back to the st.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 9fda3a9 | Mel?" he called. "Sit with me a minute." "I should go to Joey. She came all this way..." "Maybe we should talk. About what's been going on with you." She had been on this precipice for days, teetering on the fine edge of losing it. The only thing that seemed to take her mind off the violent event that changed her life was work. If she had a patient or an emergency, she could lose herself in it. Even the day with her sister, showing Joey the.. | Robyn Carr | ||
| 8bec64f | The sound of her anguish broke his heart; no way could he let her go, no matter what she said about being alone. This crying made her weeping over baby Chloe look like a mere rehearsal. She was wracked. She started to crumble to the ground and he put his arms under hers and held her upright as the rain soaked them. "Oh God, oh God, oh God," she howled. "Oh God, oh God, oh God!" "Okay," he whispered. "Let it go, let it out." "Why, why, why?".. | Robyn Carr |