Everything you do or say interests me."
"Really," she said skeptically. "What about Lord Westcliff's claim that I'm shallow and self-absorbed?"
As she faced him, Simon braced one hand on the wall near her head and leaned over her protectively. His voice was very soft. "He doesn't know you."
"And you do?"
"Yes, I know you." He reached out to finger a tendril of damp hair that clung to her neck. "You guard yourself carefully. You don't like to depend on anyone. You're determined and strong-willed, and you're decided in your opinions. Not to mention stubborn. But never self-absorbed. And anyone with your intelligence could never be called shallow.

Lisa Kleypas