Jeb moans, wraps my legs around his waist, and holds me tight. He breaks contact just long enough to whisper, "Where'd you learn to kiss like that?"" You taught me." I recover my senses and realize what I said. "In my dreams."" Oh, yeah?" He nudges the indentation on my chin with his nose. "Been dreaming of me, too, huh?"" Ever since the day we met." Finally, the truth. He flashes his dimples. "Guess it's time for us to make some dreams come true, skater girl.

— A.G. Howard

Maybe being here won’t be so bad after all… as long as I can avoid the music, the bloodthirsty diva duo, and the phantom’s shadow lurking around every corner.

— A.G. Howard

Memories, real and irreplaceable, all of them. The happy ones, the bitter ones, the terrified and the poignant.

— A.G. Howard

Now, you listen, Alyssa Victoria Gardner. Normal is subjective. Don't ever let anyone tell you're not normal. Because you are to me. And my opinion is all that matters. Got it?

— A.G. Howard

Oh, but my nether ling side did, and she casts my human armor aside. She guides my hands, knots my fingers through his hair, teases his tongue with hers. She won’t let me pull away, because she wants to be there again. In Wonderland, where his tobacco-flavored kisses always take us. . . Because the things I loathe are the things she adores: His snark, his infuriating condescension. His menacing mastery of half-truths and riddles. The way he shoves me into the face of danger, forces me to look beyond my fears and reach for my full potential. Most of all, because he encourages me to believe in the madness ...in her. . . The darker side of myself: the queen who was born to reign over the Red kingdom and to give Wonderland a legacy of dreams and imagination. His gloved palms seek the bend of my waist, the bow of my hips. He moves me on top of him, so close there’s not enough space for a blade of grass between us. His kisses grow insistent, desperate. His flavor winds through me, fruit and smoke and earth, and other things born of shadows and storms. . . Things I can’t put a name to.

— A.G. Howard

Oh, I stand by that statement, little blossom. For you see, there’s the chance you will break down and come between the two of you. Every night we’re together, I will tempt you to the edge of madness. I will tease you to torments. You will have to earn Jedediah’s happy life by being strong and unbending, as all good queens should be. Though this night, I’m giving you a lull.

— A.G. Howard

Salty tears stream down my face—coating my lips as I mutter senseless apologies for so many things. So many irreversible things. Morpheus peels the vines off and lifts me, cradling me to his chest.

— A.G. Howard

Shh." I squeeze his hand. His palm feels clammy. "We have to keep it down, okay? We don't want my dad coming in." He grits his teeth against more shivers. "Always knew I'd end up in your bed. . . And hear you say those words one day." He manages a smirk. Jeb snarls. "Unbelievable. Even when he's at death's door he's a tool." He arranges a pillow beneath Morpheus's neck. "Why don't you keep your mouth shut while we help you." Morpheus laughs weakly, his skin flashing with blue light. "What say Alyssa"--his breath rattles--"give my mouth something else to do?

— A.G. Howard

So many emotions flicker over him—astonishment, concern, remorse. . . And the always-present adoration. I raise my hand toward his face, and he winces, as if anticipating a slap. Instead, I stroke his cheek and those beautifully expressive jewels under his eyes, then lift to my toes and press my lips to his. His flavor and warmth envelop me. He moans and cups my face on either side, kissing me deeper, but I pull

— A.G. Howard

Tearing down the rest of the world won't make you happy. Look inside yourself. Because finding who you were meant to be? What you were put into this world to do? That's what fills the emptiness. It's the only things that can.

— A.G. Howard