“Lord John, do stop gaping. A woman can possess a mind. If men gave more countenance to what ladies thought, the world would be a much more prosperous place.”

“Don't you think Lady Standon deserves a man who sets her heart afire? Don't you deserve the same?"She leaned forward and poked him in the chest. Actually stabbed her finger into his coat as if he were a chicken on the spit. Rather like Lady Standon's harridan of a housekeeper."I would think," she said, "a man in your position would want more. So much more."More? Whatever did that mean? More?He had no idea what she was talking about.But in a flash he had a devilish inkling of what she meant.”

“Hollindrake once wrote to me that the men who fight for a cause, a noble one, have more honor than any mere gentleman. – Felicity Langley (heroine)”

“Don't you think it's odd that all of a sudden Lord John had to go attend to business? I mean, it is ten o'clock at night." Her hands went to her hips."Yes. Felicity, it is odd, but you have to consider the other key element in which you miscalculated."The girl's head snapped around. "What?""You are dealing with a man. And they are neither predictable nor reliable.""Bother them all," Felicity complained."Hold onto that sentiment until you find the right one to bother," Miranda advised.”

“He said someday I would come home and regret ever leaving."She murmured something, perhaps her own remembrance of a place lost. "Do you?" she said after some time."Yes . . . I mean to say, no," he corrected. "Oh, bother, I don't know.""Don't fret over it. You can't get back the time you've lived, and all you have is what is before you," she said sagely."Egads, I find myself betrothed to a bluestocking," he teased. "Who was that, Aristotle?"She laughed. "No, Aunt Bedelia.”

“That did it. With his masculine pride completely trampled beneath her sturdy and practical heel, Jack made a vow. The moment this ends, I am going straight up to London to cut a swath through Society that will ensure my place in history alongside Casanova and every other great rake. There won't be a woman's heart safe from my charms.”

“What an excellent idea, Parkerton," Miranda agreed. "For then you can continue on with your life without a single inconvenience. You can just shake off the dustcovers and everything will be perfectly ordered once again.""And what is wrong with that?" he asked, his ire finally getting the better of him.Miranda came to stand before him. "Because you'll never know the most important thing about marriage."He crossed his arms over his chest. "Which would be?""Why she married you.”