“Who dares disturb my roses?"Why did I say that”

“Now that all the beauty of my old life is gone, I crave it like good. A beautiful thing like this rose: I almost want to eat it, to swallow it whole to replace the beauty I've lost.”

“I love you, I thought. But I didn’t say it. It was not that I feared she would laugh in my face. She was far too kind for that. My fear was a greater one— that she won’t say it back.”

“Listen.” The voice is extremely loud, and I am forced to hold the telephone away from my ear. “I don’t know who you are, or why you have Jack’s phone, but he is my boyfriend, and—”Boyfriend? What is a boyfriend? Perhaps it is something like a beau. “Is he engaged to you, then?” I hope not.“What? No. Of course not.”“Oh, what a relief. He is my true love, and you do not sound very nice.”“What? Listen, you . . .”And then, strangely enough, she calls me a female dog.”

“But I am old now; my life is older. When I made the choice I made, I did not think it was forever. It is another thing to give up so young.”

“Only when I heard her bedroom door open and close did I give in to my beast instincts and do a wild animal dance around the room.”

“Meg makes a face and lays her hand on my arm. "And why, exactly, would John want to see Eurotrash?""Hello?" Ryan says. "Because he's a seventeen-year old guy with normal male urges, and she's got-" He holds both hands out from his chest."Really pretty eyes," I complete his sentence.”