“What hadseemed so simple then seemed so complicated now.Doors had closed and opportunities had opened. Shefelt lost, at a crossroads, not knowing which path totake.”

“He skidded to a dead halt and stared hard at Austin. The boy’s chin carried so many nicks from his first shave that it was a wonder he hadn’t bled to death. He was a year older than Houston had been when he’d last stood on a battlefield. Sweet Lord, Houston had never had the opportunity to shave his whole face; he’d never flirted with girls, wooed women, or danced through the night. He’d never loved. Not until Amelia. And he’d given her up because he’d thought it was best for her. Because he had nothing to offer her but a one-roomed log cabin, a few horses, a dream so small that it wouldn’t cover the palm of her hand. And his heart. His wounded heart.”

“She thought her world had stoppedfalling apart, but she was wrong. It had simply becomeisolated, her focus narrowed to struggling not tocontinually grieve for all that had been irrevocably lost”

“But she'd lost a good deal of her innocence there, because she'd discovered so much she couldn't control.”

“Olivia dared not ask, but she had to know. It seemed unlikely her husband could have made a worse choice than Jack Dodger, but if he was her husband’s first who would serve as his second? The devil himself? “Who is appointed as my son’s guardian in that will?”

“He doesn't need to know the path to adventure. He simply needs to recognize that it awaits.”

“You are the politest man I know, Jake Burnett." "Had politeness beat into me.”