And for all he had learned to bandage himself up on the outside, the wound remained just as bad and deep as the moment it had been made - when it became obvious that the one male he wanted above all others was never, ever going to be with him.

You're so very naked," she whispered against his shoulder. He smiled into her hair. "So are you.

As her eyes scanned his face, he feared that she saw everything, right down t the core of him. Where his obsession with her was the strongest. -Butch and Marissa

She was staying. A little longer. V smiled to himself. So this was what winning the lottery felt like.

I will not fall in love with you," she said. "I can't let myself. I won't." "That's all right. I'll love you enough for the both of us.

Great rationalizations. All of which her adrenal gland middle-fingered and then carried right on.

You don't go after what's mine. Now be a good boy and gut yourself." -Xhex, Lover Mine.