“You think I would take a wild lily and trim it to appear an English rose? You shall meet the ton as a bright Italian star."Callie couldn't help but chuckle. "Capital. Shall we choose some fabrics?"The words sent the cluster of women around them into a flurry, rolling out yards of muslins and satins, jaconet and crepe, velvet and gros de Naples in every imaginable color and pattern."Which do you like?" Callie asked.Juliana turned her attention to the pile of fabrics, a bemused smile on her face. Mariana approached and locked their arms together. Leaning close, she said, "I adore that mulberry crepe. It would go beautifully with your hair." Turning to Callie she said, "And you, sister?"Callie cocked her head in the direction of a willow green satin, and said, "If you don't leave here with an evening dress in satin, I shall be very disappointed."Juliana laughed. "Well, then I shall have to have it! And I do like that rose muslin."Madame Hebert lifted the bolt and passed it to a seamstress. "Excellent choice, signorina. May I suggest the gold satin as well? For evening, of course.”

“Let me be clear. Last I was aware you were neither my husband nor my father nor my King. Therefore, any control you may imagine you hold over me is just that- imaginary”

“Men are not nearly as evolved as women are, nor as intelligent, evidently”

“We are a motley bunch. But we more than make up for it with tenacity." ~ Ralston to Simon”

“why couldn't someone , somewhere , want her for her ?”

“There is perhaps no more rewarding romance heroine than she who is not expected to find love. The archetype comes in many disguises - the wallflower, the spinster, the governess, the single mom - but always with one sad claim: Love is not in her cards.”

“Teenagers are asking, 'Who am I?' and 'How do I fit in?' in every aspect of their lives, and the best YA romances appreciate that there is more to a teen's life than finding love.”

“The best partnerships aren't dependent on a mere common goal but on a shared path of equality, desire, and no small amount of passion.”

“No matter how troubled a character's history, romance novels tell us, love can be built upon it, and happily-ever-after can result. What's more, the darker the past, the brighter the future - and the better the read.”

“She had wanted more than she could have.She had wanted him, and more... she had wanted him to want her.In the name of something bigger than tradition, bolder than reputation, more important than a silly title.”

“..he wanted her.And at another time, as another man, he would have her. Without hesitation. As lover. . . as more.”