"For thousands of nights I dreamed of making love to you. No man on earth has ever hated sunrise as I do."

"All the fires of hell could burn for a thousand years and it wouldn't equal what I feel for you in one minute of the day. I love you so much there is no pleasure in it. Nothing but torment. Because if I could dilute what I feel for you to the millionth part, it would still be enough to kill you. And even if it drives me mad, I would rather see you live in the arms of that cold, soulless bastard than die in mine," Merripen said to Win."

"It's impossible, he snapped. "Why? "Because I'm Sebastian, Lord St. Vincent. I can't be celibate. Everyone knows that."

"My mistakes are usually so enjoyable that I tend torepeat them."

"They reached the summit of a shallow incline and were greeted with a surprising vista of bluebells that blanketed the forest floor. It was like stumbling into a dream, the cerulean haze seeping between the trunks of oak and beech and ash. The smell of bluebells was everywhere, the perfumed air feeling heavy and rich in her lungs.Pausing by a slender tree trunk, Annabelle curled her arm around it loosely and stared at the stands of bluebells with surprised pleasure. "Lovely," she murmured, her face gleaming in the shadow cast by the canopy of ancient, interlaced branches."Yes." But Hunt was looking at her, not the bluebells, and one glance at his expression caused the blood to tingle in her veins."

"I know when something is too important to be decided by logic."

"A good conversation always involves a certain amount of complaining. I like to bond over mutual hatreds and petty grievances."

"Nature had squandered an unreasonable quantity of male beauty on this undeserving creature."

"No matter how strong our resolve, we eventually find ourselves enslaved by the compulsive preference for one particular woman. You've been caught, my friend. You may as well reconcile yourself to it. Nick did not bother trying to deny it. "I was going to be so much smarter than you, he muttered. Sir Ross grinned. "I prefer to think that intelligence has nothing to do with it. For if a man's intellect is measured by his ability to remain untouched by love, I would be the greatest idiot alive."

"Cat doesn't have to work. She's a woman of independent means. I settled enough money on her to allow her the freedom to do anything she wished. She went to boarding school for four years, and stayed to teach for another two. Eventually she came to me and said she'd accepted a position as a governess for the Hathaway family. I believe you were in France with Win at the time. Cat went for the interview, Cam and Amelia liked her, Beatrix and Poppy clearly needed her, and no one seemed inclined to question her lack of experience."Of course not, Leo said acidly. "My family would never bother with something so insignificant as job experience. I'm sure they started the interview by asking what her favorite color was."

"I'm not the marrying kind -"St. Vincent snorted. "No man is. Marriage is a female invention."

"Mysteries of attraction could not always be explained through logic. Sometimes the fractures in two separate souls became the very hinges that held them together."

"You took Theo's title and his home," West continued in appalled disbelief, "and now you want his wife.""His widow," Devon muttered."Have you seduced her?""Not yet."West clapped his hand to his forehead. "Christ. Don't you think she's suffered enough?"

"Virtue in a woman is like pepper in the soup. A little makes for a nice seasoning. Butoverdo it, and no one wants very much of you."

"You are your own worst enemy. If you can learn to stop expecting impossible perfection, in yourself and others, you may find the happiness that has always eluded you."

"If loneliness was a choice, what was the other option? To settle for second-best and try to be happy with that? And was that fair to the person you settled for?"

"A gentle breeze rustled through the leaves, bringing with it the scent of fresh-turned earth and lavender blossoms. Amanda drew to the side of the balcony, where she was completely concealed from view. As she leaned against the wall of the house, the rough texture of the red brick gently abraded her bare shoulders.She had worn a pale blue, corded-silk gown with a low-cut back, and draperies of gauze that crossed over the bodice in an X pattern. The long sleeves of the gown were made of more transparent gauze, while her hands were encased in white gloves. The flash of her bare arms beneath the filmy blue silk made Amanda feel sophisticated and daring."

"You seem to think you have a choice," Cam said. "But you have it backwards. Love chooses you. The shadow moves as the sun commands."

"Be that as it may, I think someday you'll meet a man worth giving up your independence for."

"A book had always been a door to another world... a world much more interesting and fantastical than reality. But she had finally discovered that life could be even more wonderful than fantasy.And that love could fill the real world with magic."

"I spent most of my youth hauling sides of beef and pork to my father's shop. Carrying you is far more enjoyable.""How sweet," Annabelle mumbled sickly, her eyes closed. "Every woman dreams of being told that she's preferable to a dead cow."

"Bad divorce?" Hardy asked, his gaze falling to my hands. I realized I was clutching my purse in a death grip."No, the divorce was great, I said. "It was the marriage that sucked."

"I have an idea," Annabelle said, "Let's go to the kitchen and peek in the larder. I bet there's still some gooseberry cake left from dessert. Not to mention the strawberry jam trifle."Lillian lifted her head and blotted her wet nose on her sleeve. "Do you really think a plate of sweets will make me feel better?"Annabelle smiled. "It can't hurt, can it?"Lillian considered the point. "Let's go," she said, and allowed her friend to pull her up from the bench."

"I've won his heart, but it's like owning a house in which most of the doors are permanently locked. He wants to shield me from all unpleasantness. And it's not really marriage-not like the marriage you have with Cam-until he's willing to share the worst of himself as well as the best of himself."

"You're a strong woman, Annabelle. Stronger than I would have believed.""No, it's my love for you that is strong."

"After a universal silence, Leo was the first to speak. "Did anyone else notice-"Yes, Catherine said. "What do you make of it?"I haven't decided yet. Leo frowned and took a sip of port. "He's not someone I would pair Bea with."Whom would you pair her with?"Hanged if I know, Leo said. "Someone with similar interests. The local veterinarian, perhaps?"He's eighty-three years old and deaf, Catherine said."They would never argue, Leo pointed out."

"I guess it's over now," I said bravely. "Right?""Is that what you want?"My throat clenched. I shook my head."What do you want, Haven?""I want you," I burst out, and the tears spilled over again. "But I can't have you."Hardy moved closer, gripping my head in his hands, forcing me to look at him. "Haven, sweetheart . . . you've already got me."

"Of all the Hathaway sisters, Cam said equably, "Beatrix is the one most suited to choose her own husband. I trust her judgment.Beatrix gave him a brilliant smile. "Thank you, Cam."What are you thinking? Leo demanded of his brother-in-law. "You can't trust Beatrix's judgment."Why not?"She's too young, Leo said."I'm twenty-three, Beatrix protested. "In dog years I'd be dead."

"What happened? she asked, dropping to the damp ground beside Win. "Has Merripen been burned? "Yes, on his back. Win ripped a makeshift bandage from the hem of her own gown. "Beatrix, would you take this, please, and soak it in water? Without a word, Beatrix scampered to the trough at the handpump. Win stroked Merripen's thick black hair as he rested his head on his forearms. His breath hissed unevenly through his teeth. "Does it hurt, or is it numb? Amelia asked. "Hurts like the devil, he choked out. "That's a good sign. A burn is much more serious if it's numb. He turned his head to give her a speaking glance."

"The earl shook his head, exhibiting a degree of frosty offense that could only be achieved by an aristocrat whose wishes had just been gainsaid. "I've never heard of a man being so eager to confess to the parent of a girl he's just ruined, he said sourly."

"The first time you went out, you became mixed up with a group of radical political terrorists."That could have happened to anyone!"

"You shouldn't be shy," he told her. "I'd give my soul for a glimpse of you without your clothes.""Don't joke about that.""About seeing you naked? I wasn't joking.""Your soul," Helen said earnestly. "It's too important."

"I had hooked up my iPod to the speakers. The air was filled with the raw, sexy purr of Etta James. "The thing that's great about the blues," I told Luke, pausing to sip from my glass of wine, "is that it's about feeling, loving, wanting without the brakes on. No one's brave enough to live that way. Except maybe musicians."

"I want to fill every part of you, breathe the air from your lungs and leave my handprints on your soul. I want to give you more pleasure than you can bear."

"My heart only beats as an echo of yours."

"Dating is like trying to make a meal out of leftovers. Some leftovers actually get better when they've had a little time to mature. But others should be thrown out right away, No matter how you try to warm them up, they're never as good as when they were new."

"Shock is a merciful condition. It allows you to get through disaster with a necessary distance between you and your feelings."

"It seemed as if some subtle current of recognition had passed between them... not as if they had met before... but as if they had come close several times until finally an impatient Fate had forced their paths to intersect."

"Standing before the worn books and dusty shelves, she seemed like a ray of light in the windowless room."

"Stop running from me and listen. I do want you. I want you even knowing if I marry you, I've got an instant family, complete with a suicidal brother-in-law and a Gypsy houseboy with the temperament of a poked bear. "Merripen is not a houseboy. "Call him what you like. He comes with the Hathaways. I accept that."

"I love you," she said wretchedly. "And if I were well, no power on earth could keep me away from you. If I were well, I would take you to my bed, and I would show you as much passion as any woman could."

"And I wonder how Gage knew this is what my soul has craved. He turns me to face him, his eyes searching. It occurs to me that no one in my life has ever concerned himself so thoroughly with my happiness."

"Something happened to you, they discovered, when you were given the unconditional love and trust of a child.You wanted to try to deserve it."

"He shook his head, staring at her like a condemned man who beheld the face of his executioner. "Aline," he whispered, "Do you know what hell is?""Yes." Her eyes overflowed. "Trying to exist with your heart living somewhere outside your body.""No. It's knowing that you have so little faith in my love, you would have condemned me to a lifetime of agony." His face contorted suddenly. "To something worse than death."

"Many times in life I've regretted the things I've said without thinking. But I've never regretted the things I said nearly as much as the words I left unspoken."

"The truth is, you can never really know a man until you've loaned him money. And you can never know a woman until you've slept in her bed."

"This was getting bloody ridiculous, he thought savagely. If she became any more adorable, endearing, or delectable, something was going to get broken.Most likely his heart."

"I wonder how Merripen is faring, Win said, her blue eyes soft with concern. Merripen, the cook-maid, and the footman had gone to the house two days earlier to prepare for the Hathaways' arrival. "No doubt he's been working ceaselessly day and night, Amelia replied, "taking inventory, rearranging everything in sight, and issuing commands to people who don't dare disobey him. I'm sure he's quite happy."

"I don't want adventure.""I think you do. I think in a moment of weakness, you might surprise yourself."

"Take too much time, and time will take you."