“Lovely house,” Jack said, as he was led—hands still bound—through the grand entrance ofBelgrave. He turned to the old lady. “Did you decorate? It has that woman‟s touch.”Miss Eversleigh was trailing behind, but he could hear her choke back a bubble of laughter.“Oh, let it out, Miss Eversleigh,” he called over his shoulder. “Much better for yourconstitution.”

“Will you leave my companion alone!” the dowager barked.He sighed and shook his head toward Miss Eversleigh. “She‟s so domineering, don‟t you think?”Miss Eversleigh blushed. Truly, it was the prettiest pink he‟d ever seen.“Pity about these bindings,” he continued. “We do seem to be caught in a romantic moment,your employer‟s acidic presence aside, and it would be far easier to drop one exquisite kiss onthe back of your hand were I able to lift it with one of mine.”

“I won’t walk through the wedding arch with you,” she said.“The arch is traditionally used by grooms with reluctant brides, for the arch is tall enough for a man with his woman on his shoulder.”As they reached the door, he bent and put his shoulder in her stomach. As if she were a sack of potatoes, he swung her up and over. Amy shrieked and gave his back a good hard thump.He dropped her down until her rear sat uppermost on his shoulder and her head dangled almost to his trousers, and kept walking. “Miss Victorine!” she shouted.“I’ll come as fast as I can, dears!” Miss Victorine called from the doorway. “Shame on you for appealing to an old lady for rescue.”

“Grace-" He scowled, then laughed. "What the devil is your middle name?""Catriona." she whispered."Grace Catriona Eversleigh," he said, loud and sure, "I love you.”

“When my son, Jack, was four, I had to make a trip to Los Angeles. I asked him if he was going to miss me. 'Not so much,' Jack told me. 'You're not going to miss me?' I said. Jack shook his head, and he said, 'Love means you can never be apart.”

“Grandpa, what do you think, who’s a better creation of Allah’s, woman or man?" Mad winked at me, suggesting he knew the answer and was just testing the old man."Woman, my boy. He managed to make woman much more accomplished and better-looking than man. After all, He created Adam first. And whenever you do something for the first time,my boy, you’re bound to make mistakes. You end up with some bits that hang out, some that are protruding, superfluous or missing…You’re bound to do a better job the second time around, especially if you’re God. So it’s obvious that Eve, as His second attempt at creating a human being, has turned out a much better specimen.”