Maura had decided sometime before Blue's birth that it was barbaric to order children about, and so Blue had grown up surrounded by imperative question marks.

Nobody ever sees this part,” I said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s pretty.” “So it’s like track six on an album,” Cole said.

Sean looks at me then, his eyes bright, in a way that makes me feel out of sorts. I glare back.

The Boy should watch where he’s going,” she said. “Rachel should not manifest in doorways,” I replied.

This time of year, I live and breathe the beach. My cheeks feel raw with the wind throwing sand against them. My thighs sting from the friction of the saddle. My arms ache from holding up two thousand pounds of horse. I have forgotten what it is like to be warm and what a full night’s sleep feels like and what my name sounds like spoken instead of shouted across yards of sand. I am so, so alive.

I can't tell the difference," I said. "Between not fighting and giving up.

Hello, lovely. You're as pretty as pretty today.