“Am I horny enough to hump a bedpost?" Mica asked. "Not quite yet. Should I consult with you first, Doctor?" Sarcasm lay thick and heavy in her voice."I believe a consult would be a good idea." Ely nodded with mocking solemnity as Mica lifted herself onto the gurney. "You never know what you may end up hurting if the act isn't done properly.”

“They stood there for a while, not saying anything. Then Eli said: 'Do you want to come in?'Oskar didn't reply. Eli pulled on her T-shirt, lifted her hands, let them fall.'I'm never going to hurt you.''I know that.''What are you thinking about?''That T-shirt. Is it from the trash room?''...yes.''Have you washed it?'Eli didn't answer.'You're a little gross, you know that?''I can change, if you like.''Good. Do that.”

“I am a sick man. ... I am a spiteful man. I am an unattractive man. I believe my liver is diseased. However, I know nothing at all about my disease, and do not know for certain what ails me. I don't consult a doctor for it, and never have, though I have a respect for medicine and doctors. Besides, I am extremely superstitious, sufficiently so to respect medicine, anyway (I am well-educated enough not to be superstitious, but I am superstitious). No, I refuse to consult a doctor from spite. That you probably will not understand. Well, I understand it, though. Of course, I can't explain who it is precisely that I am mortifying in this case by my spite: I am perfectly well aware that I cannot "pay out" the doctors by not consulting them; I know better than anyone that by all this I am only injuring myself and no one else. But still, if I don't consult a doctor it is from spite. My liver is bad, well--let it get worse!I have been going on like that for a long time--twenty years. Now I am forty. I used to be in the government service, but am no longer. I was a spiteful official. I was rude and took pleasure in being so. I did not take bribes, you see, so I was bound to find a recompense in that, at least. (A poor jest, but I will not scratch it out. I wrote it thinking it would sound very witty; but now that I have seen myself that I only wanted to show off in a despicable way, I will not scratch it out on purpose!)”

“I think of you, I dream of you, I conjure you up when I need you most. This is all I can do, but to me it isn't enough. It will never be enough, this I know; yet what else is there for me to do? If you were here, you would tell me, but I have been cheated of even that. You always knew the proper words to ease the pain I felt. You always knew how to make me feel good inside.”

“Logan: I don't care who you are or what you've done. Just tell me why you want to leave. Are you in love with this other man?Maddy: Oh, no. It's not that, it's... I promised God that I would go back home if you got well again.Logan: That's not my idea of a good bargain, sweet. Besides, I wasn't consulted.”

“When at last he could lift his head, he asked, “What have you done?”“What have I done?” She lifted a mocking brow. “Why, I’ve kidnapped the marquees of Northcliff.”“You dare to admit it?” Inch by painful inch, he dragged himself onto the cot.“Admitting to it is the least of my sins. I did it.”