Tammy Falkner Quotes & Sayings

When a woman grows up, she accepts the love she thinks she deserves. — Tammy Falkner

I want you more than I want air. — Tammy Falkner

I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable asking for a kiss," I finally say. She snorts. "At least you asked." "Glad you like that because I might keep asking until I get one." She laughs as she shakes her head. "You promised Gonzo you'd only put the moves on me when he's around." "Let's go wake him up, then. — Tammy Falkner

I'm not usually this emotional," I say. He shrugs. "All women say that. It usually precedes an episode of batshit craziness. — Tammy Falkner

So, you're the last one to fall," he says. He's serious all of a sudden. "I never really worried about you. I worried more about Pete, because I knew you had more ability to love than any of the rest of us."
"What makes you say that?"
"I don't know," he hedges. "You just wore your heart on your sleeve. You love, and you love well and true. That's one of your strengths. — Tammy Falkner

He picks up the remote and turns his show back on. "This is the best part." He points at the TV and grins. I lift my feet, but he grabs them and holds tight. "Stay a few minutes. I missed you when you were gone." He grins at me again. My heart clenches. His fingers start that slow sweep up and down my foot again. I turn my head so I can watch the TV with him. He talks to the TV while the cook-off is going on, like Emilio does when he's watching sports. It makes me laugh. He looks at me, his brows raised. "Are you laughing at me?" He grabs my foot tightly and holds it, his other hand holding my middle toe. He gives it a tug and I squeal. "Let me go!" He laughs and tugs my toe until it pops. It doesn't hurt. But it's damn aggravating. "That's what you get when you mess with me," he taunts. I — Tammy Falkner

I want to be the be-all and end-all when it comes to my daughter. I want to be the man that every other man has to look up to. I will treat her like a princess because if I don't, she might go out and latch on to the first man who does. So yeah, I open car doors and I take her on dates and I buy her flowers for no reason. Because I want her to know she's worthy of all of those things. And I fix hair. — Tammy Falkner

I like bustling around Paul's kitchen. And I like it even more when he walks up behind me and wraps his arms around me while I'm standing at the stove. He pretends like he's going to try to steal a piece of chicken from the pasta, but he presses his lips to my shoulder and lingers, his hot breath blowing across my neck. I reach up and wrap my hand around his neck and bring him down so I can kiss him. Then he pops the chicken into his mouth and grins. "That's pretty good," he says, nodding. I roll my eyes. "Glad you like my chicken." "Oh, I wasn't talking about the chicken," he says, letting his eyes roam up and down my body. — Tammy Falkner

Shit," Paul says. "She paid for Matt's treatment." "What?" I'm still dumbfounded. "She went back home for you," he explains. He still has Matt on the phone, and he's talking to both of us at the same time. She did it all for me. "She did it for me," I say out loud. "You lucky fucker," Paul says, punching me in the arm. "She'll be back for the spring session at Juilliard." Warm happiness settles around me like a blanket fresh out of the dryer. Paul nods. "Matt will be home by then." We all hope Matt will be home by then. Matt has a chance to come home, and it's all because of Emily. I jump up, and Paul pulls me into a hug. "She'll be back?" I ask. I can't wrap my head around it all. "She's not gone for good?" "She just told the whole fucking world how much she loves you, you jackass." Paul punches me in the shoulder again. She's coming back. To Juilliard. To me. — Tammy Falkner

I think I could have some very real feelings for you," I blurt out. I want to bite the words back as soon as I say them. "Good," she says, and she smiles as she rolls into my chest and wraps her arm around me. She buries her face in my shirt. I think she might be embarrassed. "I pour my heart out and all you can say is good?" I jostle her in my arms. "Mmm hmm," she hums. I feel her lips against my shirt, her breath warming the fabric. She laughs. "You can't really call that pouring your heart out, Pete." She mocks my tone, making her voice deep. "I think I might have some very real feelings for you." She laughs, and damn it all, it's such a pretty sound that she can't annoy me with it. — Tammy Falkner

Life's not about the moments of pleasure you, yourself can experience. It's about pleasurable moments you share with someone else that really matter. — Tammy Falkner

I don't think I'm ever going to want to start using condoms after this baby gets here," she says. "Good. Because I'm going to get you pregnant as soon as you have this one." "Okay," she says. And I can feel her smile against my chest. I palm the back of her head and tug her hair so she'll look up at me. "Okay?" "Yes. Get me pregnant. Please. Make a baby with me. Make our family bigger." She throws her arms open wide. "I want it to be fucking huge." "Okay," I whisper. "You're in, Paul." "Yes, I'm in." I'm further in than I ever dreamed she would let me be. — Tammy Falkner

You don't get to pick who you fall in love with. — Tammy Falkner

God, he's so handsome when he smiles. And when he's not smiling. And when he's sleeping. And when he's awake. And when he's breathing. — Tammy Falkner

You're like a Christmas present," he [Josh] sais
"How so?" [Star]
"Wrapped up really pretty on the outside with bows and glitz."
"You think I'm really pretty?" I grin. I can't help it. — Tammy Falkner

Loved you then. Love you now. — Tammy Falkner

I help her into the cab with a hand at the small of her back and slide in behind her. She rattles off an address, but I can't see her lips in the darkness. Her few miles feel like twenty, and I watch the cab rate go up and up and up. I am not sure how much money I have in my wallet. Shit. This is bad. "Next time, let's take the subway," I toss out. I scrub a hand down my face. "Not at this time of the night," she scoffs. "I'd keep you safe." I tip her chin up. "The Emily who left here was fearless. What happened?" "The Emily that left here was dirt poor. I didn't have any choice but to ride the subway at all hours of the night. Now I don't have to. — Tammy Falkner

Emily is sitting up in bed staring down at their daughter. Logan has his arm wrapped around them both, and he's holding them close, talking softly to Emily. She turns and kisses his cheek. He smiles at her, and there's so much love there that it makes me ache inside. They're all wrapped up in one another, so I leave the room much more quietly than I arrived. But outside the door I stop and think about the way they looked together. Their family is perfect. Is it safe for me to want that, too? Or is perfect something I'll just never have? — Tammy Falkner

Do you cook like this every day?" A girl can hope, right? He shakes his head. "Only when I have someone to cook for." "God, if I lived here I'd never be able to keep the weight off." He grunts. "You could stand to gain a few pounds." I almost choke on my pasta. "That is so not funny." "I'm not trying to be funny." He shrugs. "I like curves." He looks down at my thighs and licks his lips. "I like your curves a lot." "Stop teasing." My heart thumps in my chest like a drum. "If your brothers heard you say that, you'd never live it down." "My — Tammy Falkner

He wasn't in a lot of pain, was he?" he asks. "Not that I could tell." He was convulsing but not in pain. I doubt he was feeling much. "That's my biggest fear. That he'll be in a lot of pain when it happens. It scares me to death." "So you've thought about it," I blurt out. I want to take it back immediately, but it's too late. "Thought about it." He snorts. "It's all I ever fucking think about. Ever." His voice cracks on the last word. "I'm his big brother. I'm supposed to be able to save him from anything that could hurt him. But I can't save him from this." I just listen because there's nothing I can say to comfort him. A teardrop rolls down his cheek, and he brushes it away with a hurried swipe. "He knows how much you care," I say. It's probably the wrong thing to tell him. "The fucker better know how I feel about him. I'd die for every last one of them. I wish it was me instead of him. I'd trade places with him in a heartbeat." "He wouldn't let you." It's the truth. — Tammy Falkner

He reaches into his pocket and pops a handful of jelly beans into his mouth. Logan does the same. Logan points to Sean's mouth. "Dude," he says. "That color's not great on you." I look at Sean again, and my lipstick is smudged all over his lips. I laugh. I must look a sight if he looks like that. He wipes at the corners of my lips with his thumbs. "Next time, I'll wear pink," I whisper. "I don't care what you wear," he says. His gaze is hot, and my belly flips. "I'd like to see you wearing nothing." He looks into my eyes, his expression full of longing. He presses his lips to mine briefly. "I can't get used to the fact that I can kiss you whenever I want." "Says who?" I taunt. "That's what boyfriends do, Lacey," he says, as if he needs to remind me. My stomach flutters again. I step onto my tiptoes and pull his head down to mine. I kiss him, holding onto the back of his neck, until we're both breathless, and I'm whimpering. "Yea," I agree. "That's what boyfriends do. — Tammy Falkner

The Reeds take people in like they're family. Anyone. The only requirement is that you have a pulse. And if you don't have a heart, they'll give you theirs. — Tammy Falkner

That's when I know I've raised a good man, when he learns something new and doesn't judge." Then — Tammy Falkner

I've been locked in my own world for a really long time," he says. I have an excuse to keep people away, because of my disability. And then I saw your tattoo..." I turn his wrist over and trace my finger across it. He shudders at my touch, closing his eyes tightly. "And I felt like maybe, just maybe, we were locked in our own little worlds and could let each other out. — Tammy Falkner

He squeezes my hand. "I'm pretty sure I'm in love with you, cupcake," he says. "I just wish you could love me back. — Tammy Falkner

They were awfully close there by the fire," Mom says. "I was watching out the window." There's a quiet pause. "Did she let him touch her?" "No, but she touched him." He heaves a sigh. "She didn't even try to punch him in the throat." Fine. I can be a little aggressive. It all started after my attack with some self-defense classes. Then I realized I'm really good at martial arts. I can't help if it some people make me want to drop-kick them. "That's a start," Mom hums. I shake my head. I'm not starting anything. He's just a man that doesn't make me want to run in the other direction. That's all he is. He's nothing more than that. It's strange, because if I judged him based solely on his appearance, I'd be running away as fast as I could. "He's a good kid, it looks like," Dad says on a heavy sigh. "He made a stupid mistake." "He's kind of hot with all the tattoos," Mom says. She giggles, and I hear my dad growl. She shrieks, and I walk away. They don't need an audience for that part. — Tammy Falkner

Real men bake cakes. And pies. And cookies. And other shit. — Tammy Falkner

You did everything they needed." "Can I be what you need, too?" I ask. I feel her nod against my chest. And my fucking heart takes flight. She can keep her secrets if she needs to. But I'm here to take her burden if she wants that, the same way I take theirs. Because she's family. My family. — Tammy Falkner

He lifts my arm and kisses the tattoo on my inner wrist. I look down at the tat that started it all. He set me free when he unlocked my world. He's the peace in my soul. He's the one who opened my shackles, and I'll love him forever. — Tammy Falkner

Use a condom. Those Reed men breed like rabbits." Then she walks into the booth with the others and we get set up to record some vocals. Rabbits. Little Reeds. I have to say, that's not an entirely bad thought. — Tammy Falkner

Pete," I say. "Beg your pardon?" He glares at me. "My name is Pete," I say. "We should probably be on a first name basis if you're going to get intimate enough to chop my nuts off." I motion to his hatchet. He blows out a quick breath, grins, and shakes his head. — Tammy Falkner

You sorry fucker," Paul says. "If I didn't love your sorry ass so much, I'd have to hate you. — Tammy Falkner

There are some girls you sleep with. And then there are other girls you want to sleep with so badly that you hurt, but you don't because they're special. — Tammy Falkner

Hey, Hayley," I say as I sit down and pick up one of her action figures. She has Barbies, too, but she would rather play with her Legos and building blocks. Maybe she'll be an engineer one day. Or maybe she'll be an amazing tattoo artist like her dad. I make her action figure kiss her Barbie, and she giggles. "I think they're in love," I whisper. "Like you and my daddy," she says back quietly. I nod. And emotion clogs my throat again. I turn my head and cough, and then I dump a box of Legos on the floor. "I think Barbie needs a fortress," I say. She nods, and we start to build a plastic fortress together, because sometimes a girl just needs a fucking fortress. — Tammy Falkner

We can make little cupcakes together. You can be my plus-one. Or it can just be me and you. But you and me is not negotiable. I kind of need you, cupcake. Have ever since I met you." I — Tammy Falkner

The movie starts and he motions for me to sit down next to him. I don't, though. I pat my lap so he'll lay his head down, and then I thread my fingers into his hair. He tenses immediately. "What's wrong?" I ask. "No one has ever done that before," he says quietly. He rolls to face the TV so I can't see his face. "I'm going to do it all the time," I promise. And I mean it. I'm going to do it every time I'm with him. He deserves to have someone show him how wonderful he is. I can tell when he goes to sleep. He gets soft in my lap and his face gets heavy against my thigh. But I don't stop rubbing. I keep touching him, because giving him comfort feels better than any kiss I have ever had. — Tammy Falkner

Why do you have Pete's name tattooed on your neck?" I ask. He grins widely. "When we were twelve, our dad still couldn't tell us apart. So, he decided to tattoo our names on our necks." He smiles even more broadly. "When he sat us down in the chair, he asked which one I was, and I said Pete. And then he put my name on Pete's neck. Our mom was so angry. You have no idea." He rubs at the back of his neck. "I kind of like it." "I do, too. — Tammy Falkner

the true definition of manhood is doing what needs to be done when it needs to be done. It doesn't matter if it's fixing hair, changing the oil in the car, or washing dishes. If it needs to be done, it gets done. That's manhood. It's instilling in our daughters that dads can and will do anything that needs to be accomplished. — Tammy Falkner

Chill, dudette," he says. He grins. "Did I say that right? I learned it from Pete." I shake my head. "You really shouldn't repeat what Pete says, Henry. It's not healthy." I laugh at his crestfallen expression. — Tammy Falkner

I think I liked you better when you didn't speak," Pete says. Then he grins. I flip him the bird, and he flies at me, jumping on my back. He bounces up and down and leans over my shoulder so I can see his lips. "My feet are cold," he says, batting his golden lashes at me. "You should carry me the rest of the way." He's latched onto me like a koala. And he's fucking heavy. It's like carrying a load of bricks. But I hitch him up higher and start walking. Sam turns his back to Kit and bends down. "You look tired, Kit," he says. "Want a ride?" He waggles his eyebrows at her. She laughs and jumps onto his back. "I'm not sure I got the good end of this deal," I croak as we all walk along together. — Tammy Falkner

This girl will shred me. I already know she will. And I'm jumping in with everything I am anyway. — Tammy Falkner

You see her as this broken little thing that needs you to take care of her. She doesn't need that. She might have been broken at one time, but she's not fucking broken now. She's put it all back together. She's made a life for herself, and you're trying to change it. It's kind of like she's built this fortress around herself, brick by fucking brick, and you might think a fortress is too much, but it's not. Do you know why?"
I can only sit and stare at him.
"Do you want to know why?" he asks.
I nod. My heart is in my fucking throat.
"Because she fucking lives there, Paul. It's home for her. It's safe and it's secure and it's hers. And she built it with her own two hands. So for you to swoop in and not only try to move her out of her fortress but also to tear it down, you're fucking up everything she's worked for. — Tammy Falkner

You need a lesson on the birds and the bees?" Paul asks. "You put tab A into slot B." He makes a crude gesture with his fingers. "Or tab A into slot C." He grins. "Or Tab A into slot D. But some girls don't like that, so don't start there. You might even save that for a birthday or special occasion. Yours. Not hers. — Tammy Falkner

My family means the world to me. Without them, I am nothing. — Tammy Falkner

Suck every moment from life. We should all do more of that. — Tammy Falkner

Every woman is someone's daughter. Someone at home loves her. And you devalue her and every other female by referring to women as bitches and hos." I'm from the neighborhood. I could spout off a lot coarser words than they could probably imagine. But they get the idea. "The girl you're with is someone's daughter. You have to remember that when you treat a woman poorly. — Tammy Falkner

He's the peace in my soul. — Tammy Falkner

He takes my hand in his and starts up the stairs. I kind of like holding hands with him. It's nice. He pushes me up the steps before him, and I turn around to say, "Do you know this is the first time I've ever walked up these steps of my own free will?" He turns me around, slaps me on the ass, and I hear him chuckle. It's more of a murmuring sound, but it's all Logan, and it warms my heart. — Tammy Falkner

Why would he go to that?" Reagan asks Pete, and she looks at him like he's grown two horns. "To prove that he's ov - " Pete grunts and shuts up when Reagan elbows him in the stomach. I would have gone for his nuts, honestly. "The invitation was for all of us," Pete grumbles. "We should at least go and eat all their food and drink all their drinks. Just saying." "Did you want to go?" Sky asks me. I shake my head. "Not really." "You said it's an old friend, right?" she asks. I nod my head. "Sort of." "I think you should go." "You could take Sky with you," Pete says. "Rub that shit - " He grunts again when Reagan hits him on the back of the head. "Go for his nuts next time," I tell Reagan. "Good idea," she says as she shoots daggers at him with her eyes. "Your nuts are mine the next time you open your mouth," she warns, pointing a finger toward his crotch. "My nuts have been yours since the day I met you, princess," he says. — Tammy Falkner

I sit down next to him, and he pulls me to his side. Then he lies down so that I'm draped across him. My hip is tucked between him and the back of the couch. "I don't want to go home yet," he says quietly. He pulls my head down to his chest, and I press my face against it. His hand settles on the back of my head, and he starts to stroke down the length of my hair. "Then don't go," I say quietly. He doesn't. He just threads his fingers into my hair and drags them down my back, over and over, until my eyelids grow heavy and I fall asleep on his chest. I wake up the next morning tucked into my own bed, the covers pulled up to my chin. I sit up and look around. Beside me on the pillow is a note. I open it up and read. Are you in love with me yet? — Tammy Falkner

She gets up, and I want to grab her and pull her to me. "I had better get to bed." She stretches, and I can see the little strip of skin between the bottom of her shirt and her jeans. I reach up and tug her shirt down. She covers her belly with her hand, like she wants to block my touch. She stares into my eyes. She doesn't say a word. "Can I kiss you yet?" I blurt out. God, you'd think I'd never seen a girl before. "No." She laughs. "Can I keep asking?" She nods. — Tammy Falkner