“If only others knew that Lady Calpurnia Hartwell, proper, well-behaved spinster, entertained deep-seated and certainly unladylike thoughts about fictional heroes.”

“It didn’t matter the quality of the writing— Callie’s fantasies about her fictional heroes were entirely democratic.”

“Lord Nicholas St. John was their only hope, and she had been on the roof when he arrived, for heaven's sake. Ladies did not go traipsing about on rooftops.And certainly gentlemen did not frequent the homes of those ladies who did traipse about on roortops. It did not matter if the rooftop in question was in dire need of repair.Or that the lady in question had no choice.”

“She winced, knowing what was to come, "Calpurnia." She closed her eyes again, embarrassed by the extravagant name - a name with which no one but a helplessly romantic mother with an unhealthy obsession with Shakespeare would have considered saddling a child.”

“First, I thought we'd already established that I am not a gentleman. That ship sailed long ago. And second, you'd be surprised what gentlemen do...and what ladies enjoy."~Lord Bourne”

“To be honest, I thought it was similar to animal husbandry."Sally's tone turned dry. "Sometimes, my lady I'm afraid it isn't that different."Pippa paused, considering the ords. "Is that so?""Men are uncomplicated, generally," Sally said, all too sage. "They're beasts when they want to be.""Brute ones!""Ah, so you understand."Pippa tilted her head to one side. "I've read about them."Sally nodded. "Erotic texts?""The book of Common Prayer....”

“The Prince shall think you the most beautiful lady he's ever seen."Alex replied wryly, "Let's hope that's not the case, Eliza. History teaches us that things never end well when royalty set their eyes on 'the most beautifullady' they've ever seen. Have a care; if you perform your tasks too well, I could be haunting the Tower of London without a head, alongside Anne Boleyn.”