“
My parents probably wanted a girl who would sit in the pews wearing pretty florals and a soft smile. They got combat boots and a mouth silent until it’s sharp as an island machete.
”
”
Elizabeth Acevedo (The Poet X)
“
I hate the way you talk to me
And the way you cut your hair
I hate the way you drive my car
I hate it when you stare
I hate your big dumb combat boots
And the way you read my mind
I hate you so much, that it makes me sick
And even makes me rhyme
I hate the way you're always right
I hate it when you lie
I hate it when you make me laugh
Even worse when you make me cry
I hate it when you not around
And the fact that you didn't call
But mostly I hate the way I don't hate you
Not even close
Not even a little bit
Not even at all
”
”
David Levithan (Ten Things I Hate about You)
“
The next morning-at least, I assumed it was morning, since we were all waking up- I felt like one of those twelve dancing princesses, who danced all night, wore holes in their shoes, and had to sleep it off the next day. Except, oh yeah: a)I'm not a princess; b)sleeping in a subway tunnel and having another brain attack aren't that much like dancing all night; and c) my combat boots were still in good shape. Other than that, it was exactly the same.
”
”
James Patterson (The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride #1))
“
My sister, with her ratty red-highlighted hair and her linen pajamas and her combat boots—how could she possibly worry about being possessed by a goddess? What goddess would want her, except the goddess of chewing gum?
”
”
Rick Riordan (The Red Pyramid (The Kane Chronicles, #1))
“
Last night, Dixon had suggested combat boots in place of Carrow’s own—her two-thousand-dollar, gathered-leather, over-the-knee boots. “Do you want me to go in as an enchantress or a warrior?” Carrow had asked testily. “Pick a caste, any caste, mortal. I myself think I have the best chance as an enchantress. And fuck-me boots are standard-issue.
”
”
Kresley Cole (Demon from the Dark (Immortals After Dark, #9))
“
What Vera doesn’t know is: I’d kill to be a pickle on her Big Mac—ground to relish between her perfect white teeth.
I’d kill to be a bug she squishes with her holey Army-issue combat boot.
But she’s too good for me. She always was.
”
”
A.S. King (Please Ignore Vera Dietz)
“
He could do this. He'd survived boot camp. He'd survived combat and the harsh weather of Afghanistan. He could survive broccoli. Probably.
”
”
Shannon Stacey (Yours to Keep (Kowalski Family, #3))
“
Well, I’ve been a musician my whole life. When I was two, I would sing the theme from Star Wars in my crib; my mom taped it for proof. Then, when I was five, I asked for a violin. No one knew why I would want one, but my wish was granted and I ended up a classically trained fiddler by age 12. The only problem with that was, when you’re a classical violinist, everybody expects you to be satisfied with playing Tchaikovsky for the rest of your life, and saying you want to play jazz, rock, write songs, sing your songs, hook up your fiddle to a guitar amp, sleep with your 4-track recorder, mess around with synths, dress like Tinkerbell in combat boots, AND play Tchaikovsky is equivalent to spitting on the Pope.
”
”
Emilie Autumn
“
Looking mighty fine, if I do say so myself: red v-neck, dark denim, designer combat boots, and enough testosterone rolling off me to satisfy Nicki Minaj. Pow!
”
”
Victoria Scott (The Liberator (Dante Walker, #2))
“
And what was to become of what he had taken from her? He had dashed her heart to the ground and danced on it with combat boots. Did he sit in that seditious palace day after day and not even bother to scrape it off of his soles with a passing thought of her?
”
”
V.S. Carnes
“
Because she’s Jade fucking Daniels. And a thousand men like you can’t even reach up to touch her combat boots.
”
”
Stephen Graham Jones (Don't Fear the Reaper (The Indian Lake Trilogy, #2))
“
As for Sadie, she didn’t appear interested in strategy. She leaped from puddle to puddle in her combat boots. She hummed to herself, twirled like a little kid and occasionally pulled random things out of her backpack: wax animal figurines, some string, a piece of chalk, a bright yellow bag of candy.
She reminded me of someone …
Then it occurred to me. She looked like a younger version of Annabeth, but her fidgeting and hyperness reminded me of … well, me. If Annabeth and I ever had a daughter, she might be a lot like Sadie.
Whoa.
It’s not like I’d never dreamed about kids before. I mean, you date someone for over a year, the idea is going to be in the back of your mind somewhere, right? But still – I’m barely seventeen. I’m not ready to think too seriously about stuff like that. Also, I’m a demigod. On a day-to-day basis, I’m busy just trying to stay alive.
Yet, looking at Sadie, I could imagine that someday maybe I’d have a little girl who looked like Annabeth and acted like me – a cute little hellion of a demigod, stomping through puddles and flattening monsters with magic camels.
”
”
Rick Riordan (The Crown of Ptolemy (Demigods & Magicians, #3))
“
We make the things that matter, matter.
”
”
Teresa R. Funke (Dancing in Combat Boots: And Other Stories of American Women in World War II)
“
You can't judge a book by its steel-toed combat boots.
”
”
Lauren Oliver (Before I Fall)
“
And NONE of you noticed?” The Ares campers developed a sudden interest in their combat boots.
”
”
Rick Riordan (The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, #5))
“
Her long platinum blond hair fell in loose waves past her shoulders, with a few black peekaboo strands. She wore a black minidress and combat boots.
”
”
Jamie McGuire (Beautiful Oblivion (The Maddox Brothers, #1))
“
Nobody messes with a girl in combat boots, particularly when she's also a vegetarian.
”
”
Meg Cabot
“
The writer is an infantryman. He knows that progress is measured in yards of dirt extracted from the enemy one day, one hour, one minute at a time and paid for in blood. The artist wears combat boots.
”
”
Steven Pressfield (The War of Art)
“
For example today I was wearing a black corset with matching lace around it and a black leather miniskirt, pink fishnets and black combat boots. I was wearing black lipstick, white foundation, black eyeliner and red eye shadow. I was walking outside Hogwarts. It was snowing and raining so there was no sun, which I was very happy about. A lot of preps stared at me. I put up my middle finger at them.
”
”
Tara Gilesbie (My Immortal)
“
Her décor style matches her schizophrenic personality to perfection. A combination of Barbie meets Marilyn Manson. She’s the only person I know who can pull off pink combat boots, black nail polish, and dark black smoky eyeliner with a pink sundress and have it look adorably sexy.
”
”
Randi Cooley Wilson (Revelation (The Revelation, #1))
“
Postfeminism, as a term, suggests that women have made plenty of progress because of feminism, but that feminism is now irrelevant and even undesirable because it supposedly made millions of women unhappy, unfeminine, childless, hairy, lonely, bitter and prompted them to fill their closets with combat boots and really bad India print skirts. Supposedly women have gotten all they could out of feminism, are now "equal," and so can, by choice, embrace things we used to see as sexist, like a TV show in which some self-satisfied lunk samples the wares of twenty-five women before rejecting twenty-four and keeping the one he likes best, or like the notion that mothers should have primary responsibility for raising the kids. Postfeminism means that you can now work outside the home even in jobs previously restricted to men, go to graduate school, pump iron, and pump your own gas, as long as you remain fashion conscious, slim, nurturing, deferential to men, and become a doting, selfless mother.
”
”
Susan J. Douglas (The Mommy Myth: The Idealization of Motherhood and How It Has Undermined All Women)
“
If people are going to single me out, I might as well give them something to stare at. Red stripes in my hair? Why not! Combat boots with the school uniform? Absolutely. Headmaster says, “I’ll have to call your parents, young lady.” I say, “Good luck.
”
”
Rick Riordan (The Red Pyramid (Kane Chronicles, #1))
“
but the combination of colorful tights and black combat boots was something I couldn’t resist.
”
”
Sarai Walker (Dietland)
“
Hike up your combat boots, let your mind run loose
”
”
BookishAbby
“
if I was gay, I’d… I’d be mesmerized by you. I’d listen to every word that fell out of your mouth like it was diamonds made of sound waves. I’d memorize the pattern of freckles on your back and spend months taking cooking classes just to find something you’d eat. You are kind, and you are funny, and you are brave, and any man who has you needs to see all that or he just isn’t worth the laces in your combat boots, you hear me
”
”
Amy Lane (Talker (Talker, #1))
“
I hate the way you talk to me, and the way you cut your hair
I hate the way you drive my car. I hate it when you stare.
I hate your big dumb combat boots, and the way you read my mind.
I hate you so much it makes me sick; it even makes me rhyme!
I hate it, I hate the way you’re always right. I hate it when you lie.
I hate it when you make me laugh, even worse when you make me cry.
I hate it when you’re not around, and the fact that you didn’t call.
But mostly I hate the way I don’t hate you.
Not even close, not even a little bit, not even at all.
”
”
Katerina Stratford
“
Some guys have a thing for cheerleaders,” he says, his voice easy. I roll my eyes as I start tossing socks into the bag.
“Let me guess. You want to know if I still have my old uniform.” He sets the picture back on the nightstand and moves toward the door. “Nah. Not my thing. But I think I could develop a thing for girls in combat boots.” I spin around in surprise, wanting to see his face, wanting to know if he means what I think he means. But he’s already gone.
”
”
Lauren Layne (Isn't She Lovely (Redemption, #0.5))
“
Instead, when I pull it back, there's a man sitting on a red chaise lounge, leaning back and smiling wickedly at me. Around his neck, there's a tag that says DRINK ME. “Oh, heeeell no,” I say, backing up suddenly, until my feet crunch over the shards of broken glass. Thank God I decided to wear combat boots instead of the awful heels my sister'd picked out for me. “What's the matter?” the boy asks, tilting his head to the side and letting the corner of his lip twist up in a smirk. “You're not thirsty?
”
”
C.M. Stunich (Allison's Adventures in Underland (Harem of Hearts, #1))
“
I eat gaijin for breakfast…" His words trailed off as Jilly came out of the house, in her pseudo-frock, her combat boots, her spiky hair and her young, young face. He just stared at her, motionless, as if someone had clubbed him over the head with a mallet.
Jilly froze where she was, staring back at the exotic creature in black leather and bright red hair who'd invaded the garden.
”
”
Anne Stuart (Ice Blue (Ice, #3))
“
I could feel the warmth of the dog through my nightgown; I must have gotten hot during the night and thrown off the sheet. I drowsily patted the animal's head and began to stroke his fur, my fingers running idly through the thick hair. He wriggled even closer, sniffed my face, put his arm around me.
His *arm*?
I was off the bed and shrieking in one move.
In my bed, Sam propped himself on his elbows, sunny side up, and looked at me with some amusement.
"Oh, ohmyGod! Sam, how'd you get here? What are you doing? Where's Dean?" I covered my face with my hands and turned back, but I'd certainly seen all there was to see of Sam.
"Woof," said Sam, from a human throat, and the truth stomped over me in combat boots.
I whirled back to face him, so angry I felt like I was going to blow a gasket.
"You watched me undress last night, you ... you ... damn dog!
”
”
Charlaine Harris (Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse, #1))
“
The children in my dreams
speak in Gujarati
turn their trusting faces to the sun
say to me
care for us nurture us
in my dreams I shudder and I run.
I am six
in a playground of white children
Darkie, sing us an Indian song!
Eight
in a roomful of elders
all mock my broken Gujarati
English girl!
Twelve, I tunnel into books
forge an armor of English words.
Eighteen, shaved head
combat boots -
shamed by masis
in white saris
neon judgments
singe my western head.
Mother tongue.
Matrubhasha
tongue of the mother
I murder in myself.
Through the years I watch Gujarati
swell the swaggering egos of men
mirror them over and over
at twice their natural size.
Through the years
I watch Gujarati dissolve
bones and teeth of women, break them
on anvils of duty and service, burn them
to skeletal ash.
Words that don't exist in Gujarati :
Self-expression.
Individual.
Lesbian.
English rises in my throat
rapier flashed at yuppie boys
who claim their people “civilized” mine.
Thunderbolt hurled
at cab drivers yelling
Dirty black bastard!
Force-field against teenage hoods
hissing
F****ing Paki bitch!
Their tongue - or mine?
Have I become the enemy?
Listen:
my father speaks Urdu
language of dancing peacocks
rosewater fountains
even its curses are beautiful.
He speaks Hindi
suave and melodic
earthy Punjabi
salty rich as saag paneer
coastal Kiswahili
laced with Arabic,
he speaks Gujarati
solid ancestral pride.
Five languages
five different worlds
yet English
shrinks
him
down
before white men
who think their flat cold spiky words
make the only reality.
Words that don't exist in English:
Najjar
Garba
Arati.
If we cannot name it
does it exist?
When we lose language
does culture die? What happens
to a tongue of milk-heavy
cows, earthen pots
jingling anklets, temple bells,
when its children
grow up in Silicon Valley
to become
programmers?
Then there's American:
Kin'uh get some service?
Dontcha have ice?
Not:
May I have please?
Ben, mane madhath karso?
Tafadhali nipe rafiki
Donnez-moi, s'il vous plait
Puedo tener…..
Hello, I said can I get some service?!
Like, where's the line for Ay-mericans
in this goddamn airport?
Words that atomized two hundred thousand Iraqis:
Didja see how we kicked some major ass in the Gulf?
Lit up Bagdad like the fourth a' July!
Whupped those sand-niggers into a parking lot!
The children in my dreams speak in Gujarati
bright as butter
succulent cherries
sounds I can paint on the air with my breath
dance through like a Sufi mystic
words I can weep and howl and devour
words I can kiss and taste and dream
this tongue
I take back.
”
”
Shailja Patel (Migritude)
“
For some, a hero wears a spandex suit and a cape. My heroes wear flak jackets, flight suits, and combat boots.
”
”
Oliver North (American Heroes: In the Fight Against Radical Islam)
“
I could perform ballet in combat boots more gracefully than that, George said. But then, so could an elephant, so that's not really saying much, now is it?
”
”
Jenn McKinlay (Death of a Mad Hatter (Hat Shop Mystery, #2))
“
I let all that anger and worry go because they don't belong to me any more than the future does. And I don't wanna feel them anyhow, because the truth is, whatever happens when this war ends, here and now, far from Richmond County, I'm freer than I've ever been.
”
”
Teresa R. Funke (Dancing in Combat Boots: And Other Stories of American Women in World War II)
“
I like shoes,” Erin argued over her enchiladas, There was a massive margarita in front of her. “No,” Phoebe shot back with a grin. “You like boots, and not the cute kind. You like combat boots. The salesperson at Nordstrom nearly cried when she saw what you’re wearing.
”
”
Lexi Blake (Master No (Masters and Mercenaries, #9))
“
It was a bright day, but cold, and the whores had emerged, working the Combat Zone, looking cold and bizarre in their miniskirts, boots, and blond wigs. Being seductive at twenty degrees was heavy going, I thought. Being horny at twenty degrees wasn’t all that easy either.
”
”
Robert B. Parker (The Godwulf Manuscript (Spenser, #1))
“
Charlie Bourdel stood five foot nothing without his combat boots. His long, black, curly hair was caught up in a high ponytail that reached the middle of his back. He kept a switchblade in his right combat boot and a .45 in his guitar case and could and would willingly hurt anybody who made the mistake of messing with him. Between the badass attitude and the fifty-pound chip on his shoulder you’d think he had a fatal case of little man syndrome; you’d be dead wrong. He was one hundred and thirty pounds sopping wet of swagger and confidence.
”
”
W.E. DeVore
“
I still can’t unsee Tommy’s outfit: nighttime sunglasses, a dark blazer as loose and baggy as rain gear, sand-colored cargo pants with pockets filled to capacity (was he smuggling potatoes?), a white tank top, clunky Frankenstein combat boots, and two belts. Yes, two belts.
”
”
Greg Sestero (The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made (A Gift for Film Buffs))
“
When it comes to war, if you’re going to pick up a gun, you cannot have an imbalance of commitment. You have to be ready to go, ready to fight, and ready to die.
”
”
James Patterson (Walk in My Combat Boots: True Stories from America's Bravest Warriors)
“
Ninety percent of people want the direction of their life to change, but they forget they’re the ones driving the car. You have to turn the wheel.
”
”
James Patterson (Walk in My Combat Boots: True Stories from America's Bravest Warriors)
“
You aren’t going barefoot?” she asked. “In a combat situation, you never remove your boots.” “It’s at least three miles to the compound buildings.” “I’ve hiked farther in wet boots.
”
”
Rachel Grant (Incriminating Evidence (Evidence, #4))
“
life will deceive us with relative predictability for long periods until, at the moments when we begin to feel the most comfortable, it unfolds, reminding us how powerless we all are.
”
”
James Patterson (Walk in My Combat Boots: True Stories from America's Bravest Warriors)
“
The writer is an infantryman. He knows that progress is measured in yards of dirt extracted from the enemy one day, one hour, one minute at a time and paid for in blood. The artist wears combat boots. He looks in the mirror and sees GI Joe. Remember, the Muse favors working stiffs. She hates prima donnas. To the gods the supreme sin is not rape or murder, but pride.
”
”
Steven Pressfield (The War of Art: Winning the Inner Creative Battle)
“
Yoo Joonghyuk then powerfully threw Kim Dokja forward, but also stepped onto the latter's back – and they began scything past the storm as if he was surfing the waves.
When I regained my wits, I found myself being trampled by his feet.
"I told you not to throw me!!"
He must've found stepping on my back rather unsanitary, because he began lightly dusting his combat boots.
”
”
Singshong
“
In the Orwellian language of the far right, someone who wants to combat Russian aggression is a “Russian propagandist,” whereas someone who echoes Russian propaganda is putting “America first.”4
”
”
Max Boot (The Corrosion of Conservatism: Why I Left the Right)
“
True story: Some homeowner’s burning a yard pile just like this one. And he goes inside for lemonade and opens the cabinet under the sink to toss something in the trash, and this rat’s down in the bottom, gnawing a chicken bone. The rat had been driving the guy crazy for months, living in the walls and scampering through the attic at night like it had combat boots. So the guy grabs a rolling pin and beats it to death. Then he takes it outside and throws it on the burning pile.” “Good story,” said Coleman. “What’s the problem?” “The rat’s not dead. The heat wakes him up. It jumps off the pile and makes a beeline for the house. Except now its fur’s on fire. The homeowner tries to intercept, but it zips between his legs, runs back inside and gets in the walls. Ignited the insulation. Whole place burned down.
”
”
Tim Dorsey (Atomic Lobster Free with Bonus Material)
“
More than any other nation, the United States has been almost constantly involved in armed conflict and, through military alliances, has used war as a means of resolving international and local disputes. Since the birth of the United Nations, we have seen American forces involved in combat in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Cambodia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Greece, Grenada, Haiti, Iraq, Korea, Kosovo, Kuwait, Laos, Lebanon, Libya, Nicaragua, Panama, Serbia, Somalia, and Vietnam, and more recently with lethal attacks in Pakistan, Somalia, Yemen, and other sovereign nations. There were no “boots on the ground” in some of these countries; instead we have used high-altitude bombers or remote-control drones. In these cases we rarely acknowledge the tremendous loss of life and prolonged suffering among people in the combat zones, even after our involvement in the conflict is ended.
”
”
Jimmy Carter (A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power)
“
The woman wins who calls herself beautiful and challenges the world to change to truly see her. A woman wins by giving herself and other women permission - to eat; to be sexual; to age; to wear overalls, a paste tiara, a Balenciaga gown, a second-hand opera cloak, or combat boots; to cover up to to go practically naked; to do whatever we choose in following - or ignoring - our own aesthetic. A woman wins when she feels that what each woman does with her own body - unforced, uncoerced - is her own business.
”
”
Naomi Wolf (The Beauty Myth)
“
Astrid turned, slowly and deliberately, toward Reyna. She looked her up and down, and then frowned, as if she couldn't quite place her.
"Reyna? I didn't recognize you without the emo girl costume. Still not quite the goddess of light and beauty, are you? Big heels to fill. It'll take a while to grow into them." She looked Reyna over again. "Maybe a long while."
"Oh, I fit my shoes just fine. Today, they're a sweet pair of combat boots, because today, I'm playing a different aspect of Freya. Goddess of kick-your-butt-if-you-mess-with-me. Or mess with anyone else.
”
”
K.L. Armstrong (Thor's Serpents (The Blackwell Pages #3))
“
This is just one version of how the world of successful people actually works. But social capital is all around us. Those who tap into it and use it prosper. Those who don’t are running life’s race with a major handicap. This is a serious problem for kids like me. Here’s a non-exhaustive list of things I didn’t know when I got to Yale Law School: That you needed to wear a suit to a job interview. That wearing a suit large enough to fit a silverback gorilla was inappropriate. That a butter knife wasn’t just decorative (after all, anything that requires a butter knife can be done better with a spoon or an index finger). That pleather and leather were different substances. That your shoes and belt should match. That certain cities and states had better job prospects. That going to a nicer college brought benefits outside of bragging rights. That finance was an industry that people worked in. Mamaw always resented the hillbilly stereotype—the idea that our people were a bunch of slobbering morons. But the fact is that I was remarkably ignorant of how to get ahead. Not knowing things that many others do often has serious economic consequences. It cost me a job in college (apparently Marine Corps combat boots and khaki pants aren’t proper interview attire) and could have cost me a lot more in law school if I hadn’t had a few people helping me every step of the way.
”
”
J.D. Vance (Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis)
“
I know what I want to hear. I want to hear the "Believe it or Not" song. I want to play that shit loud. Really belt out the "Should have been somebody eeeeeelse" part, with a little bit of Zack de la Rocha venom. That would be pretty awesome right about now.
But the other part of me, the part that wanted to be cool, knew that it was a much better idea to say, "Let's play the fucking Misfits." Because that's what you say to the cool guy in the combat boots who wants to smoke in your house. Because he's going to snarl-smile at you and say, "Fuck yeah!" And you're feel cool by association.
"Let's play the fucking Misfits," I said.
John snarl-smiled and saluted me with rock horns. "Fuck yeah."
Told you.
”
”
Eric Spitznagel (Old Records Never Die: One Man's Quest for His Vinyl and His Past)
“
I’m Ghost 1 on the comms. Garcia is 2, Horn is 3, Fitz is 4, Rico is 5, and Tank is 6. When we land, we stay in close combat intervals. Fitz has point, Tank you’re on rear guard. Keep low to the ground. You spot anything, you signal it. And keep your distance. The juveniles can shoot their venom up to thirty feet. You are not to engage unless it’s a last resort. If you see them, we use our R49 grenades first. Complete radio discipline as soon as our boots hit dirt unless you’re about to get your arms ripped off. Understood?” Beckham spoke in a calm yet authoritative voice. It was a tone everyone respected. The members of Team Ghost all dipped their helmets. Apollo even wagged his tail.
”
”
Nicholas Sansbury Smith (Extinction End (Extinction Cycle, #5))
“
form of Banks. “I’m not a dog, Banks. My name’s Sophia.” Craig Banks, head guard and all-around asshole, grinned as his eyes traveled the length of her. Sophia fought the shiver running down her spine as the six-foot-one guard puffed out his broad chest, trying to impress her. The man could be dressed in the finest wool suit instead of the camo pants, blank t-shirt, and combat boots he was wearing, and she’d still want to throw up at the sight of him. The man enjoyed hurting others. Last month when he’d tortured that poor bear shifter for information, Banks had been cracking jokes the entire time. “No, cupcake, you’re certainly not a dog, not with that body and that gorgeous face.” Banks ran his fingers across her bruised cheek. She flinched, but not from the pain of her cheek. “And that’s a compliment. I don’t usually go for brunettes, but you’re the exception.” Lucky me. For once, she was glad for all the people still hanging out talking nearby. Banks wouldn’t touch her here, well, no more than he had already. Her eyes started to drift in the direction of the prison, but she caught herself. Ironic how the shifter felt trapped in there and she felt trapped out here. Right now, she’d gladly switch places with him. “I’m still waiting for that walk in the woods you promised me,” Banks added, letting his hand slide down her neck to the top of her blouse. Resisting the urge to bite his hand, Sophia subtly stepped out of his reach.
”
”
Julie K. Cohen (Lethal Wolf (White Wolves #2))
“
First, I assessed their combat skills. Aeneas performed surprisingly well for a son of Aphrodite; I expected him to be a lover, not a fighter, and yet he actually knew how to use his sword as a sword rather than as a fashion accessory. The other demigods had some work to do. Atalanta seemed to think all training matches had to be fought to the death. She also referred to her classmates as dirty, stupid men, which made team-building difficult. Achilles spent his entire time in combat defending his right heel, an unusual manoeuvre that baffled me until I found out about his childhood dip in the River Styx. I tried to tell the boy to wear iron-shod boots rather than sandals, but he simply wouldn’t listen. As for Asclepius, in one-on-one melees he had an off-putting habit of darting in and feeling his opponent’s forehead for signs of fever.
”
”
Rick Riordan (Camp Half-Blood Confidential (The Trials of Apollo))
“
I walked through the cemetery holding a bouquet of yellow and red flowers with brown combat boots, feeling grateful and bitter the sun was shining so brightly.
I felt an urge to run, as well as a magnet to reach the group of people surrounding you.
I wanted to be wearing white.
I wanted to be walking down an isle with flowers and for this to be a different ceremony.
I wanted to curl up beside the earth that held you, the pink and yellow petals, strings of ground hanging loosely in the wind and be beside you.
I was angry you were buried, I resented the earth falling upon you. Each scoop felt heavy and indefinite.
I'm not ready to know this is definite.
I watched your chest, in a white linen shirt last night wishing for your chest to rise.
But when I kissed your forehead it was cold. And when I held your hands it wasn't you. It was a shell. It was a vessel. It was empty.
The first time I heard your new music it was by accident and your voice drove me from your home into hysterics. But when I entered your home and it played with your casket it was welcome.
I read your letter with your mom and dad out loud beside you, and halfway through "spelunking in your soul" started to play.
That was a gift, thank you.
Today walking back from the funeral a green and black beetle landed in my hair and crawled onto my finger. I just had a bad moment with a woman in your life and I felt you in the little beetle.
I'm writing something to be read at your celebration of life. It's not going to be read by me. I have a wedding in Joshua tree. But I will celebrate you in the desert there.
I wanted to read the poem "sex and wine for breakfast" I wrote about you but figured I would go less steamy.
I love you.
”
”
Janne Robinson
“
You have to have approached a place from all four cardinal points if you want to take it in, and what’s more, you also have to have left it from all these points. Otherwise it will quite unexpectedly cross your path three or four times before you are prepared to discover it. One stage further, and you seek it out, you orient your-self by it. The same thing with houses. It is only after having crept along a series of them in search of a very specific one that you come to learn what they contain. From the arches of gates, on the frames of house doors, in letters of varying size, black, blue, yellow, red, in the shape of arrows or in the image of boots or freshly-ironed laundry or a word stoop or a stairway’s solid landing, the life leaps out at you, combative, determined, mute. You have to have traveled the streets by streetcar to realize how this running battle con-tinues up along the various stories and finally reaches its decisive pitch on the roofs.
”
”
Walter Benjamin (Moscow Diary)
“
Knightmare.
Breezeo’s archenemy.
Where Breezeo is light, a breath of fresh air, the nice breeze on a warm summer day, Knightmare is the storm that rolls in and takes it all away. Darkness, thick and suffocating, the shadows you can’t escape in the night in back alleyways.
Black leather framed with dark armor, head to toe, from the combat boots the whole way up to the oversized black hood with a metal mask covering part of the face, rendering him unrecognizable.
I’ve always been envious of the costume.
Beats the damn pseudo-spandex, that’s for sure.
“I, uh, wow.” Kennedy stands in the doorway of her apartment with a look of awe as her eyes scan the costume. “That’s just… wow.”
“Wow, huh?” I glance down. “Good or bad?”
“It’s just, uh, you know…”
“Wow?” I guess.
She nods, fighting off a smile. “Wow.”
I smirk. “It’s the original.”
“Seriously?”
“Straight from the second movie,” I say, touching an armored chest plate with a fingerless glove-clad hand. “Well, except for these gloves. The real ones wouldn’t fit because of the cast, so I had to improvise.”
“It’s, uh…”
“Wow?”
“Nice,” she says, touching the costume, fingertips grazing the armor. “Kind of weird seeing you like this, but still, it’s nice.”
“Thanks,” I say as she steps aside for me to come in the apartment. “I talked them into letting me borrow it. Might not give it back, though. I’m kind of enjoying it.”
“You should keep it,” she says, her eyes still scanning me as she closes the door. “It’s, uh…”
“Nice?”
“Wow.” She smiles playfully as she walks away. “I need to finish getting ready for work. Maddie, you've got a visitor!”
A moment after Kennedy disappears, Madison runs in. She skids to a stop when she spots me, eyes wide, mouth popping open. “Whoa.”
I push the hood off, shoving the mask up, her expression changing when she sees it’s me, face lighting up. She runs right at me, slamming into me so hard I stumble.
I laugh as she hugs me. “Hey, pretty girl.”
She looks up at me. “You think I’m pretty?”
“What? Of course.” I kneel next to her, grinning as I press a finger to the tip of her nose. “You look like your mom.”
“You think Mommy’s pretty, too?”
“I think she's the most beautiful woman in the world.”
Her expression shifts rapidly when I say that before her eyes widen. “Even more beautifuler than Maryanne?”
I lean closer, whispering, repeating her words. “Even more beautifuler than Maryanne.”
“Whoa
”
”
J.M. Darhower (Ghosted)
“
pockets, feeling the extra shotgun shells, and then reached over his shoulder and felt the bat, ready to grab if needed. He had combat knives sheathed in both boots, but it was rare that he got to use those. He brought them
”
”
Keith C. Blackmore (The Hospital (Mountain Man, #0.5))
“
One grossly overweight young Sergeant I’d put on the PT and Personal Appearance platoon had written a letter complaining to his parents. They wrote their congressman about how horrible I was treating their son, and we received a “CONGRINT” which stood for Congressional Interest inquiry. This was a big deal; it got the attention of everyone from headquarters in Washington all the way down to the squadron. When I showed it to Major Psaros he didn’t even blink. He said, “Where is this guy?” “Sir he’s a Sergeant down in radio repair and one hell of a technician. He’s just a big chunky Italian looking kid and I think he came into the Marine Corps looking like a tub and they slimmed him down in boot camp. But now he’s just reverted to his natural shape. I bet his whole family looks just like this. He’s not going to qualify for reenlistment because of his personal appearance and weight. He’s one of the most productive technicians, but if he had to saddle up and go into combat I think he’d be a liability.” “Get his ass up here and let me see what he looks like.” I brought the Sergeant up to the CO’s office. The Major took one look at him and said, “Marine, you look like a Technicolor Sea Bag in your uniform. You’re fat and out of shape. I’ll give you a month to start showing some major improvements or your career as a Marine will be coming to an end.” After the Sergeant left Major Psaros told me to take a picture of him in his skivvies, front and side and bring him copies of all the appropriate Marine Corps orders on personal appearance and weight control. The CO answered the CONGRINT with the pictures of the Sergeant in his skivvies and the copies of the orders. He didn’t include anything else. We never heard another word.
”
”
W.R. Spicer (Sea Stories of a U.S. Marine Book 4 Harrier)
“
combat boots and helmets. The breeze rose and he walked crabwise, trying to give
”
”
Otto Penzler (The Best American Mystery Stories 2014)
“
feet, wearing a black rubber gas mask that obscured his face. His chest was bare, covered in dried blood. All he wore was stained white underwear, and combat boots, their laces untied.
”
”
Jack Kilborn (Haunted House (Afraid, #4))
“
This outfit makes me want to get my nose pierced and spend some time at the tattoo parlor,” I said, frowning at the clothing.
“Hey, we can make that happen,” Nessa, joked.
“That’s very funny, Nessa,” I said as I pulled out the knee high black combat boots and black fishnet stockings to match.
“It is better than the plaid cowboy shirt and Wranglers they got me,” Noah said, as he held up the outfit complete with worn leather cowboy boots.
“Oh, Nessa, we will pay you back dearly for this,” I said sarcastically.
”
”
Andrea Heltsley (Dissolve (Dissolve, #1))
“
Templar tactical gear that included dark ceramic body armor worn under black jumpsuits of flame retardant material without markings or insignia, lightweight Kevlar tactical helmets with built–in communications gear along with audio and video recording devices, and military style combat boots. For this mission a set of I2 goggles had also been supplied; the image intensifier headgear – what most people called night vision goggles – would allow them to see in all but total darkness. Each man was armed with a Heckler & Koch MP5 SD submachine gun, a HK Mark 23 .45 caliber handgun and the holy sword they’d been given at their investiture into the Templar ranks.
”
”
Joseph Nassise (Judgement Day (Templar Chronicles #5))
“
February 16: Marilyn flies to Seoul, South Korea, to begin entertaining the troops at ten different sites. Her outfit for her performances includes a skin-tight, low-cut, plum-colored crepe cocktail dress, with bugle beads and thin spaghetti straps, and high heeled sandals, with a matching long-sleeved bolero jacket she only wears when not on stage. Other than hoop earrings and a diamond brooch and bracelet, she wears no jewelry. Between performances, she covers over two hundred miles, wearing a flight jacket and combat boots. Neither snow nor sub-zero temperatures seem to impede her enthusiastic shows.
”
”
Carl Rollyson (Marilyn Monroe Day by Day: A Timeline of People, Places, and Events)
“
It wasn’t hard to imagine the scene. Night, probably. The killers force the lock, at the other end of the large house, and enter. It’s maybe two, three o’clock in the morning; they think Luc Szpilman is alone and asleep. But—surprise—the kid is right in front of them, sitting on the couch with his girlfriend, rolling a joint, which was still there on the coffee table in the living room. Luc suddenly recognizes one of them, the guy in combat boots who’d come for the film. The kids panic, try to run away. The killers catch them and stab them in the back, once, twice. And then that inexplicable frenzy. Lucie and the police remained frozen in place, keeping their own thoughts.
”
”
Franck Thilliez (Syndrome E)
“
Sharko thought of the men who had killed the film restorer, Claude Poignet. One of them was a filmmaker attached to the military, and he was surely hidden here, safe and sound in his combat boots, in one of those huge barracks…It fit together more and more.
”
”
Franck Thilliez (Syndrome E)
“
it was life and death. Both you and Sawyer brought guns, but you didn’t tell the rest of us.” Sawyer shifted. “Shit. Combat knife, too.” Riley pulled a wicked blade out of her boot. “Throwing knife.” “Which only
”
”
Nora Roberts (Stars of Fortune (The Guardians Trilogy, #1))
“
Even today, a decade later, I still can’t unsee Tommy’s outfit: nighttime sunglasses, a dark blazer as loose and baggy as rain gear, sand-colored cargo pants with pockets filled to capacity (was he smuggling potatoes?), a white tank top, clunky Frankenstein combat boots, and two belts. Yes, two belts. The first belt was at home in its loops; the second draped down in back to cup Tommy’s backside, which was, he always claimed, the point: “It keeps my ass up. Plus it feels good.
”
”
Greg Sestero (The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made (A Gift for Film Buffs))
“
Ode to Bees
Multitude of bees!
in and out of the
crimson, the blue,
the yellow,
of the softest
softness in the world;
you tumble
headlong
into a corolla
to conduct your business,
and emerge
wearing a golden suit
and quantities of
yellow boots.
The waist,
perfect,
the abdomen striped
with dark bars,
the tiny,
ever-busy
head,
the
wings,
newly made of water;
you enter
every sweet-scented window,
open
silken doors,
penetrate the bridal chamber
of the most fragrant
love,
discover
a
drop
of diamond
dew,
and from every house
you visit
you remove
honey,
mysterious,
rich and heavy
honey, thick aroma,
liquid, guttering light,
until you return
to your
communal
palace
and on its gothic parapets
deposit
the product
of flower and flight,
the seraphic and secret nuptial sun!
Multitude of bees!
Sacred
elevation
of unity,
seething
schoolhouse.
Buzzing,
noisy
workers
process
the nectar,
swiftly
exchanging
drops
of ambrosia;
it is summer
siesta in the green
solitudes
of Osorno. High above,
the sun casts its spears
into the snow,
volcanoes glisten,
land
stretches
endless
as the sea,
space is blue,
but
something
trembles, it is
the fiery,
heart
of summer,
the honeyed heart
multiplied,
the buzzing
bee,
the crackling
honeycomb
of flight and gold!
Bees,
purest laborers,
ogival
workers
fine, flashing
proletariat,
perfect,
daring militia
that in combat attack
with suicidal sting;
buzz,
buzz above
the earth's endowments,
family of gold,
multitude of the wind,
shake the fire
from the flowers,
thirst from the stamens,
the sharp,
aromatic
thread
that stitches together the days,
and propagate
honey,
passing over
humid continents, the most
distant islands of the
western sky.
Yes:
let the wax erect
green statues,
let honey
spill in
infinite
tongues,
let the ocean be
a
beehive,
the earth
tower and tunic
of flowers,
and the world
a waterfall,
a comet's tail, a
never-ending
wealth
of honeycombs!
Pablo Neruda, Odes to Common Things. (Bulfinch; Illustrated edition, May 1, 1994)
”
”
Pablo Neruda (Odes to Common Things)
“
As if. No, that food needs to be eaten as quickly as possible so my health bar can regenerate in combat! Sword in one hand, half-eaten cookie in the other—that’s a real warrior! So today, during our break, when I jammed a whole slice of cake in my mouth, I wasn’t being a pig—no, no, no. I was just … training. Yeah. Training. That’s it. "Oh, I almost forgot," I said. "I bought you some robes just like mine. They’ve been in my inventory the whole time." I handed him the robes, the special boots, and the mask. He slipped into them immediately, then looked down at himself. "Hurrmmm. These robes are really cool and all, but … we look kind of similar now, don’t we?" He was right. Our robes were the same dark gray color.
”
”
Cube Kid (Diary of an 8-Bit Warrior: Crafting Alliances (8-Bit Warrior, #3))
“
Name: Alya Fall Storm
Age: 18
Gender: Female
DOB: September 13
Sexuality: Straight
Description: Black hair and dark blue eyes - the hidden beauty you have to discover
Long Brown hair, navy blue eyes. Fair skin, 5'6. Has a small scar at the top of her left cheek from an incident in training.
Style: Wears mostly black and combat boots because she is a knight and always needs to be ready. When she's off duty she wears leggings and fitted t-shirts and a flannel around her waist. Always wears tennis shoes or her fuzzy socks.
Personality/ history: She's fierce and has the hard outside personality of a guard as she was trained to. But under the knight exterior she misses the family that she never had and the reason she became a knight was so that she could prevent others from getting hurt like she was when she was kicked out of the orphanage at the age of 12. She began her training at 14 and graduated at 16. She doesn't have many friends she keeps to herself spending her free time reading, drawing, or training.
Likes: Reading, drawing, running, puppies, horses, riding, cheesecake, sugar cookies.
Dislikes: Green beans, being underestimated.
Fears: Snakes
Occupation: Knight
”
”
BookButterfly06
“
Anger provides the No. 1 difference between a fist-fight and a boxing bout. Anger is an unwelcome guest in any department of boxing. From the first time a chap draws on gloves as a beginner, he is taught to "keep his temper"-never to "lose his head." When a boxer gives way to anger, he becomes a "natural" fighter who tosses science into the bucket. When that occurs in the amateur or professional ring, the lost-head fighter leaves himself open and becomes an easy target for a sharpshooting opponent. Because an angry fighter usually is a helpless fighter in the ring, many prominent professionals-like Abe Attell and the late Kid McCoy- tried to taunt fiery opponents into losing their heads and "opening up." Anger rarely flares in a boxing match. Different, indeed, is the mental condition governing a fist-fight. In that brand of combat, anger invariably is the fuel propelling one or both contestants. And when an angry, berserk chap is whaling away in a fist-fight, he usually forgets all about rules-if he ever knew any.
That brings us to difference No. 2: THE REFEREE ENFORCES THE RULES IN A BOXING MATCH; BUT THERE ARE NO OFFICIALS AT A FIST-FIGHT. Since a fist-fight has no supervision, it can develop into a roughhouse affair in which anything goes. There's no one to prevent low blows, butting, kicking, eye-gouging, biting and strangling. When angry fighters fall into a clinch, there's no one to separate them. Wrestling often ensues. A fellow may be thrown to earth, floor, or pavement. He can be hammered when down, or even be "given the boots"- kicked in the faceunless some humane bystander interferes. And you can't count on bystanders. A third difference is this: A FIST-FIGHT IS NOT PRECEDED BY MATCHMAKING. In boxing, matches are made according to weights and comparative abilities. For example, if you're an amateur or professional lightweight boxer, you'll probably be paired off against a chap of approximately your poundage-one who weighs between 126 and 135 pounds. And you'll generally be matched with a fellow whose ability is rated about on a par with your own, to insure an interesting bout and to prevent injury to either. If you boast only nine professional fights, there's little danger of your being tossed in with a top-flighter or a champion.
”
”
Jack Dempsey (Toledo arts: championship fighting and agressive defence (Martial arts))
“
Early in an infection this has the upside that while the adaptive immune system is still booting up and is not in full combat mode, IgM Antibodies are already making the innate immune system more deadly and more precise.
”
”
Philipp Dettmer (Immune: A journey into the system that keeps you alive - the book from Kurzgesagt)
“
Name: Alya Fall Storm
Age: 16
Gender: Female
DOB: September 13
Sexuality: Straight
Description: Black hair and blue eyes - the hidden beauty you have to discover
Long Brown hair, navy blue eyes. Fair skin, 5'6. Has a small scar at the top of her left cheek from an incident in training.
Style: Wears mostly black and combat boots because she is a knight and always needs to be ready. When she's off duty she wears leggings and fitted t-shirts and a flannel around her waist. Always wears tennis shoes or her fuzzy socks.
Personality/ history: She's fierce and has the hard outside personality of a guard as she was trained to. But under the knight exterior she misses the family that she never had and the reason she became a knight was so that she could prevent others from getting hurt like she was when she was kicked out of the orphanage at the age of 12. She began her training at 14 and graduated at 16. She doesn't have many friends she keeps to herself spending her free time reading, drawing, or training.
Likes: Reading, drawing, running, puppies, horses, riding, cheesecake, sugar cookies.
Dislikes: Green beans, being underestimated.
Fears: Snakes
Occupation: Knight
”
”
BookButterfly06
“
Name: Alya Fall Storm
Age: 16
Gender: Female
DOB: September 13
Sexuality: Straight
Description: Black hair and dark blue eyes - the hidden beauty you have to discover
Long Brown hair, navy blue eyes. Fair skin, 5'6. Has a small scar at the top of her left cheek from an incident in training.
Style: Wears mostly black and combat boots because she is a knight and always needs to be ready. When she's off duty she wears leggings and fitted t-shirts and a flannel around her waist. Always wears tennis shoes or her fuzzy socks.
Personality/ history: She's fierce and has the hard outside personality of a guard as she was trained to. But under the knight exterior she misses the family that she never had and the reason she became a knight was so that she could prevent others from getting hurt like she was when she was kicked out of the orphanage at the age of 12. She began her training at 14 and graduated at 16. She doesn't have many friends she keeps to herself spending her free time reading, drawing, or training.
Likes: Reading, drawing, running, puppies, horses, riding, cheesecake, sugar cookies.
Dislikes: Green beans, being underestimated.
Fears: Snakes
Occupation: Knight
”
”
BookButterfly06
“
anything. A helmet require 5 pieces of material, a chestplate requires 8, trousers require 7 and boots require only 4. Helmet Recipe
”
”
Hans Axleson (The Mining Combat Handbook: Your Complete Guide To PvE and PvP Minecraft Combat)
“
Military Mindset” copyright © 2022
”
”
James Patterson (Walk in My Combat Boots: True Stories from America's Bravest Warriors)
“
Misss Scott
shows the class
photographs
of a burned, naked girl
running, crying down a dirt road
of people climbing, screaming.
desperate to get on
the last helicopter
out of Saigon
of skeletal refugees, crammed aboard a
sinking fishing boat,
reaching up to the heavens for help
of mounds of combat boots
abandoned by soldiers
of the loosing side.
She's telling the class
Where I'm from.
She should have shown
something about
papayas and Tet.
No one would believe me
but at times
I would choose
wartime in Saigon
over
peacetime in Alabama.
”
”
Thanhhà Lại (Inside Out & Back Again)
“
the University of the South, a Tennessee
liberal arts college with a handful of graduate students, known informally as Sewanee (because that’s the name of the
town). The first thing you’ll notice on visiting Sewanee is that most of the men are wearing jackets and ties, while most of
the women are wearing makeup and skirts. Forty years ago, most colleges had a similar dress code. Today, Sewanee is one of a handful. The majority of students pledge fraternities and sororities and social life revolves around a never-ending stream of “big-weekend” beer bashes. The biggest of them all is homecoming weekend, where students get a date and dress up for a huge see-and-be-seen fashion show that includes innumerable cocktail parties before and after. Conservative, well-heeled, and All-American, Sewanee is the perfect place for a carefree 1950s-style college education. In the words of one student, Sewanee has “the happiest college student body I have ever encountered.”
No one would ever say such a thing about Bard College, a school of similar size about an hour north of New York City. Though the students may find happiness there, too, it is well hidden beneath a thick veneer of liberal artistic angst. Bard students, it seems, carry the weight of the world on their shoulders. If there is an oppressed group anywhere to be found, Bard students can be counted on to buy T-shirts, sell
buttons, and organize protests on its behalf. As for clothes, you would be hard-pressed to find a Bard man who even owns a jacket and tie. Nor would the typical Bard woman be caught dead in a dress—unless it was paired with combat boots. Jewelry and makeup worn in traditional ways are nonexistent, but there is plenty of spiked hair, fluorescent hair, tattoos, and piercings protruding from every conceivable body part. As for football and fraternities? Take a wild guess. The biggest social event of the year at Bard is called Drag Race, where everyone dresses in drag and parties nonstop.
”
”
Fiske Guide To Colleges (Fiske Guide to Colleges 2005)
“
The first battle in Fallujah happens three months later, in April. Some Blackwater guys riding in an up-armored Chevy Suburban stop on a road by the bridge at the entrance to the gates of Fallujah when they’re approached by a group of kids selling gum, candy, soda, and fake Rolexes. A guy rolls down the window to buy some candy, and a kid drops a frag grenade into the Suburban. The burned, charred bodies of four Americans are dragged from the wreckage and strung up by the bridge. The insurgents declare an all-out war against the Americans in Iraq.
”
”
James Patterson (Walk in My Combat Boots: True Stories from America's Bravest Warriors)
“
They can’t comprehend what it means to live a life in the service of others.
”
”
James Patterson (Walk in My Combat Boots: True Stories from America's Bravest Warriors)
“
the numbers of service members we’ve lost to suicide is far greater than the number of service members killed by the enemy.
”
”
James Patterson (Walk in My Combat Boots: True Stories from America's Bravest Warriors)
“
What I was able to share with people was how I learned that we all need to serve something bigger than ourselves. And if we want to inspire, we need to make ourselves small, not large. Like mothers, for example. Moms can be exhausted and hungry, even injured, but they’re wiping our butts throughout the night. Her success, though, is also our success. If we can all be servant leaders, then our teams will thrive and prevail.
”
”
James Patterson (Walk in My Combat Boots: True Stories from America's Bravest Warriors)
“
Even their leather combat boots looked ferocious with their iron cleats, great for marching through mud or stomping on faces.
”
”
Rick Riordan (The Son of Neptune (The Heroes of Olympus, #2))
“
We start talking about current events. I ask him, “What’s the story about weapons of mass destruction?” “I wanted them.” “Did you get them?” “No.” “So why did you kind of lead everybody on that you had weapons of mass destruction?
”
”
James Patterson (Walk in My Combat Boots: True Stories from America's Bravest Warriors)
“
One of these men was a guy who loved cyberpunk and post-apocalyptic fiction. (It was San Francisco, after all, and my childhood sci-fi obsessions had transformed me into a dystopian dream girl.) We wrote each other stories and went shopping for survivalist supplies at REI and did an apocalypse photo shoot with combat boots and machetes among the rubble at Albany Bulb. I shaved half my head because he said it would be hot. Less than a year into our relationship, he took me to a gun range for the first time, and I was delighted to find I was a great shot: All of my bullets traveled right through the head of the paper man-shaped target. A week later, the guy dumped me. He said it was because I was too intimidating; he was afraid that one day, I’d wake up and shoot him in the head, too.
”
”
Stephanie Foo (What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma)
“
Even in her heeled ankle boots, she was six inches shorter than me. Her? She’s the big threat?! I glanced down at my combat gear, feeling ridiculous. I lowered the shotgun and took out a set of handcuffs. She looked at them and raised one perfect eyebrow. “My safeword is Cincinnati.
”
”
Helena Newbury (Capture Me)
“
There was nothing accidental about this accident. It was a deliberate, planned attack... on me. Heavy footsteps crunched on broken glass somewhere nearby, and I held my breath on reflex. I was already belly down on the pavement; all I needed to do was shimmy under the car for protection. But what if it caught fire or something? Then... fuck. It was already too late. A pair of black combat boots rounded the smashed-up hood of Bree's car, and I looked up, locking eyes with the stranger. And his gun.
”
”
Tate James (Fake (Madison Kate, #3))
“
I knew it was you! Only you could turn Main Street into your own fashion runway.” Alana Castillo, one of my high school classmates, waves. Of all the people from my past I could have run into, Alana is the best option. Not only is she nice, but we actually got along pretty well in high school despite being part of different friend groups. Her dark hair shines under the sun, bringing out the different brown tones. A tall, handsome, blond man beside her whispers something in her ear before taking off toward the Pink Tutu with her daughter, who is dressed in a leotard, neon green ballet skirt, and combat boots.
”
”
Lauren Asher (Love Redesigned (Lakefront Billionaires, #1))
“
The military had taught him to be a creature of habit, to develop personal systems that allowed him to function at optimal efficiency. He always slept with his rifle to the left side of his body. The boots were also at the left, at chest level. One boot held his Beretta M9 and the other held an unsheathed Cold Steel combat knife. Both the pistol and the knife were ready to grab and fight if it came to that. It was a gray day outside and dim light filtered
”
”
Franklin Horton (Brutal Business (The Mad Mick #3))
“
He had a pale complexion, tousled black hair, and rich brown eyes like melted chocolate. He was dressed in black jeans, combat boots (like mine!), a ripped T-shirt, and a black leather jacket that suited him quite nicely. He was long and lean like a jackal. His ears, like a jackal’s, stuck out a bit (which I found cute), and he wore a gold chain around his neck.
”
”
Rick Riordan (The Kane Chronicles (The Kane Chronicles #1-3))
“
Even in combat boots feminine form is hounded by the historical legacy of sex discrimination in everyday social practice, by the history and control of woman's "appropriate" imaging, and by the effects which that appropriation [...] has had upon women's lives.
”
”
Rebecca Schneider (The Explicit Body in Performance)
“
My combat boots are fantastic, but they’re not exactly prime no-slip material.
”
”
Jennifer Cody (The Trouble With Trying to Save an Assassin (Murder Sprees and Mute Decrees #2))
“
Any other girl at La Brea High would have been flattered to have him pursue her. They found his laid-back scruffy look irresistible, even with his bad reputation as a heartbreaker. Serena had caught him staring at her in English class and had wondered what he wanted with her. She wasn't the glam type of girl he normally dated, not with her combat boots, black fishnet hose, and graffiti-painted nails. But it didn't take much to realize he had a huge crush on her. He always seemed to show up where she was.
At first Serena had been impressed that he wasn't the kind of guy who judged a girl by the way she dressed. She might have even dated him if she hadn't discovered the truth. He lied about the girls he had gone out with.
It wasn't as if Serena didn't know guys did that. She knew they exaggerated sometimes, but Jerome did more. She couldn't confront him or even tell others what she knew, though, because no one would believe her.
”
”
Lynne Ewing (Possession (Daughters of the Moon, #8))
“
Jon had spent most of his career gathering intelligence, providing security, rescuing hostages, and, one way or another, in direct, boots-on-the-ground combat with individuals identified as terrorists by the United Nations, the United States government, and the civilized world. This being Nigeria, Jon knew the people responsible for the bombing would be members of Boko Haram, an Islamist militant group with ties to al-Qaeda, or a Boko Haram splinter group known as Ansaru. Both were big on suicide bombings, and often employed women and children as their designated suicides. Neither group had claimed responsibility, but Jon knew this meant little. So many dipshits with ties to al-Qaeda were running around that part of the world, you couldn’t keep track with a scorecard. The shot caller who ordered the bombing would probably never be known, and was likely already dead. More’s
”
”
Robert Crais (The Promise (Elvis Cole, #16; Joe Pike, #5; Scott James & Maggie, #2))
“
eventually I started hanging out at a specific Old Town bar that was known as a leather-and-Levi’s kind of place. You get the picture—jeans, leather vests, uniforms, and combat boots. Think the Village People without the Indian. The first time that I went there, I was scared to death. I knew I was attracted physically to the men and the way that they dressed, but I wasn’t sure exactly what they were into. A huge bear of a man in leather pants and a cop hat can be a bit intimidating to a newbie. But as I worked my way into the crowd and began to hear snippets of conversations, I realized, “These guys are talking about recipes!” Suddenly,
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Chuck Panozzo (The Grand Illusion: Love, Lies, and My Life with Styx: The Personal Journey of "Styx" Rocker Chuck Panozzo)
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One hand went to that lovely organ of his, stroking slowly, gently, and the other untied his combat boots, sliding them off his feet one by one, leaving his socks on because sex in socks is funny. I mean, think about it: a dude, no matter how hot, is just inherently funnier if he’s wearing nothing but a pair of socks. Bonus-funny if they’re white, and knee high, like Nick’s were.
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Jasinda Wilder (Harris (Alpha One Security, #1))
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On another day, when he was on inspection duty, Trump came upon fellow student Ted Levine’s unmade bed. Trump ripped the sheets off and threw them on the floor. Levine, a foot shorter than Trump, threw a combat boot at Donald, then hit him with a broomstick. Infuriated, Trump grabbed Levine and tried to push him out a second-floor window, Levine recalled. Two other cadets intervened to prevent Levine from falling.
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Michael Kranish (Trump Revealed: The Definitive Biography of the 45th President)
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The Supreme Court could have said, You’re just these fringe women in combat boots. But they didn’t.
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Ariel Levy (Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture)
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After a parting eyebrow arch into the mirror, I drift into my room and spend a second staring longingly at a an oversized gray hoodie picturing the cover of one of my favorite books, My Antonia, before tossing it aside and grabbing a boring, cream sweater that hits me about mid-thigh. I have these ridiculously awesome Prada combat boots that would breathe some life into this bleh, but I don’t want to draw that kind of attention tonight, so I settle on a pair of brown Tory Burch riding boots that would only look expensive to the most discerning eye. I shake my head around a few more times, letting my armpit-length auburn waves cascade around my face, before I fasten my hair into a casual French braid. Then I grab my backpack purse, my adorable bear keychain, and my phone out of the Bose dock, and sprint toward the garage door:
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Ella James (Murder (Sinful Secrets #2))