“You could hear us?" Christiana asked with horror."I'm sure the whole house can hear you," she said dryly. "He roars like a lion, and you squeal like a stuck pig.”

“You aren't angry " "You must be joking " she said dryly. "I'm alive Nicholas. And I'm immortal like you. This rocks”

“She nodded, but Tiny was still holding her arm, and he asked uncertainly, "Are you sure you want to do this, Beau? It sounds painful.""Not as painful as the turn," she said solemnly."And I'd go through this and a lot more to keep you as my life mate.”

“You horrible, horrible man!" Lisa yelled."How could you even show your face here, you bounder?" Christiana snapped."You vile debaucher of innocents," Lisa added. "She loved you, you cad!""You've broken her heart! You should be shot for toying with her that way!”

“How the devil did he get himself caught?""By being no brighter than you," Suzette snapped before her father could answer."God, you are a fishwife," Jeremy said with disgust and then muttered to himself, "It figures Dicky would marry sweet little mousy Christiana himself and stick me with the sister who was a harpy.”

“Oh dear, is that a skunk?" Leonora asked."No," Alessandro gasped in horror. "No the smelly cat!""I've told you, Alessandro darling, they aren't cats.""They look like cats. Like the big fluffy cat she's been stepped on and flattened to a big fluffy pancake cat," Alessandro argued.”

“When their brother-in-law turned toward them at the sound,Lisa breathed with horror, "But you're dead." Her head swiveled to Christiana. "Wasn't he dead, Chrissy? We packed ice around him and everything.""The ice must have revived his cold dead heart," Suzette said, anger helping her recover quickly from her shock. Glaring at the man, she added a dry but heartfelt, "More's the pity."If Dicky looked surprised by her comments, Christiana looked absolutely horrified."Suzette!" she gasped, shuffling a little closer as if to phsyically silence her if Suzette tried to make another such comment. "Perhaps we should go out for some air. Lisa looks ready to faint and you, Suzie, obviously need some time to cool yourself. Perhaps so much dancing has overheated you."Suzette was about to snort at the suggestion that dancing had brought about her bitter words when her arm was suddenly taken in a firm grip and the words "Allow me" rang in her ears. Glancing around with a start, she frowned at the man who had suddenly appeared out of seemingly thin air and stepped between her and Lisa, taking both of them in hand like recalcitrant children. He was already turning them firmly away from Christiana and Dicky as he added, "I shall see the ladies outside so the two of you might talk.”