
"Ian cannot do something so simple as hold a woman’s hand. He moves his thumb up my wrist and under my glove, finding points that shoot wild heat through my body. He caresses the inside of my palm with soft fingers, and then he threads his fingers through mine and holds hard, as though teaching me that my hand belongs there with his."I am simply in love with this book!I am in love with Ian! I am in love with Beth! I am in love with all Ian's brothers!One of the most beautiful historical romances I've read! So magical!Ian's "madness" made me love him even more!I loved everything in this book! The story was amazing! The characters were AMAZING! The writing was simply beautiful!BETHI loved every thought that crossed her mind, everything she said, every move she made... everything! She is not like some typical HR heroines and I think that is the reason why I loved her so much. She is not shy, she is not ashamed of her past, she is proud and will not allow anybody walk over her. The way she understands Ian, the way she makes him feel better, and the way she doesn't think of him crazy is just beautiful to read. She loved once and lost that love, and she is aware that Ian could break her heart, but she still wants to explore that desire she feels with him. I loved how she didn't let anybody walk over Ian too, even his brothers. I loved how protective she was even though she knew Ian could not love her back the way she wanted.“It is the most divine thing imaginable,” she tried. “I don’t want to hear about divinity. I want to hear about flesh and bone. Is love like desire?”“Desire is part of it,” she said slowly. “The love for another’s body. But also love for their heart and their mind, and for all the silly things they do, no matter how absurd. Your world brightens when they walk into a room, dims when they leave it again. You want to be with the beloved so you can see him and touch him and hear his voice, but you want his happiness as well. It’s selfish, but not entirely so.”IANI was literally mesmerized with his mind! If this book was only his POV I would give it 10000 stars if I could! The first time he saw Beth he just knew she was unique like his porcelain bowls, and he just had to have her. But not only for one night, he had to have her forever. So even though he always says he is not capable of love because of his "madness", I think he fell in love with her at first sight. She made him calm, she made him happy and she made him laugh, which he didn't do since he got back from asylum. He thought that everything he touches brakes and he only wanted to protect her from everything, even from himself. He never looked her in the eyes long enough because he would lost himself in them and he wanted to remember everything he did with her. He wanted her to belong to only him.“Right there in the damn box, with the opera blaring on. I’d take you, make you my own.” He put his hand on her neck over the spot where he’d given her the love bite. “I branded you.” Beth smiled. “You, too.” She touched his neck. “I branded you.” He laced his fingers hard through hers and pressed her hand to the bed. “Belong to me.” “No one here to dispute that at the moment.” “Always mine. Always, Beth.” Thrusts punctuated the words. Always.""He pulled her close. “Your being with me makes it stop. It’s like the Ming bowls—when I touch them and feel them, everything stops. Nothing matters. You are the same. That is why I brought you here, to keep you with me, where you can please make... everything... stop.”“Because when I look at you, I forget everything. I lose all track of what I’m saying or doing. I can see only your eyes.” He laid his head on her pillow and rested his hand on her chest. “You have such beautiful eyes.”THE STORY I am speechless! There is nothing I could say to give justice to this beautiful story! It captured my heart from the beginning! Even though I knew it had HEA, I just couldn't stop myself from crying near the end.I think everybody needs to read this story, and needs to do it ASAP! “Is this what love feels like?” he whispered to her. “I don’t like it, my Beth. It hurts too much.”