I don’t like Sloane Andrews. But I might want to sleep with her.
-- Rick Lane (Prologue)

Importance: Before the novel begins, supplemental materials are presented, including a magazine article on Sloane. the profile is important because it shows indirect characterization of Sloane from a stranger.

Sloane felt a small ache in her chest. There were parts of him she would just never access, a language she would never hear him speak, because when she was present, the words were gone.
-- Sloane (Chapter 2)

Importance: When Sloane sees Matt with a group of Black school children, she feels a gap between them. This quote is important because it shows the ways in which race is a factor in their relationship despite their love and friendship.

In time, the bronze would age, its luster giving way to flat green tarnish. Their memory of what happened would flatten, too, and become dull, and the monument would be forgotten, something for...
-- Sloane (Chapter 3)