“The trail gets a might steep through here. I'd advise you to start paying attention instead of daydreaming about your beau." His tone annoyed her and she couldn't resist answering in kind. "What's the matter, Mr. Langley, afraid I'll fall off a cliff, and you won't be able to collect your reward? That is what your after,isn't it? The reward. Just like in the posters:Wanted dead or alive,Julia Ashton,for unspeakable crimes of the heart.”

“I tell you what, Mr. Fledgeby,' said Lammle, advancing on him. 'Since you presume to contradict me, I'll assert myself a little. Give me your nose!'Fledgeby covered it with his hand instead, and said, retreating, 'I beg you won't!'... 'Say no more, say no more!' Mr. Lammle repeated in a magnificent tone. 'Give me your'--Fledgeby started-- 'hand.”

“I'd pity you," she said in a conversational tone. "But you know,you just aren't worth it. I'd pity your new son, too,but he won't be worth it either after you get done raising him to be just like you-that's if he's even really yours or just-""Get out!" Mortimer cut in furiously.”

“What's the matter, MacLean? Are you afraid?"His brows snapped down, his eyes glinting dangerously. "What did you say?"She lifted her chin. "I asked if you were afraid. If that is why you're sneaking out like a thief in the night?""It's morning,and I'm no thief.""No,but you are afraid,aren't you? Afraid of me." Dougal's expression darkened even more. "You don't know what you're saying.""Yes,I do." She leaned close to say dismissively, "You are afraid of what our card games might cause you to lose."Dougal's body tensed at the words, making Poseidon jolt forward. How dare she accuse him of being afraid? The thought of it raged through him.Yet in the back of his mind, a small voice whispered, She's right. You are afraid of what you'll lose, only it's not about the house. It's about your self-control.Dougal slung himself down from the horse and faced Sophia. She refused to back away but stood her ground so that he was but a few inches from her.She glared at him. "I saw your face last night. You want me, MacLean. Admit it. You're afraid I'll offer myself for the house, and you won't be able to resist it.And then..." She smiled smugly. "And the you'll lose.”

“Singin' In the Rain might get you through an anxious week or two, but it won't get you through an anxious life. For that you need either a brain transplant (the only procedure of its kind, it has been said, in which it is better to be a donor than a recipient), a fully stocked bomb shelter, or a thorough adjustment of your perspective on existential risk and reward.”

“What is precious is not the reward but the work. And I wish you to understand that. If you work and study in order to get a reward, the work will seem hard to you; but when you work, if you love the work, you will find your reward in that.”