Lynn Messina > Quotes

“But life is not like that. You are not an airline. You can't remove a single olive from every salad served in first class and save one point two million dollars.”
― Lynn Messina

“Childhood friends are continuity, uninterrupted connections between selves, and you hold on them. You hold on them and you love them, but sometimes they're not quite comfortable.”
― Lynn Messina

“I mean no offense,” he added, “but you have appalling taste in archnemeses.”
― Lynn Messina, A Treacherous Performance

“I know it feels as though your heart is breaking into a million little pieces, but I swear to you it’s not. It’s merely bruised, and although this seems like the end of the world, it’s only infatuation. Trust me, my dear, I speak from experience: It cannot be love if it’s not returned. It’s something else and it’s just as painful, but it’s not love and you will get through it,”
― Lynn Messina, An Infamous Betrayal

“but the importation of knowledge did not mean the exportation of wisdom.”
― Lynn Messina, A Scandalous Deception

“Recklessness is just stupidity pretending to be bravery. No one is fooled.”
― Lynn Messina, An Infamous Betrayal

“A man of his circumstance—handsome demeanor, elevated status, inordinately fat purse—was allowed any trespass, and Bea had little doubt that if he suddenly ran his host through with a sword, Skeffington would promptly apologize for bloodying the blade.”
― Lynn Messina, A Brazen Curiosity

“If by ‘discuss this rationally’ you mean talk me out of my current course of action, then, no, thank you, I’d rather not. And you will note, I hope, how I’m not assuming your words are limited to their surface meaning. I’m digging deeper to examine all possible interpretations. I say this as a way of demonstrating how you might approach all your negotiations in the future,” she explained with meticulous condescension. “It’s shocking to me that you’re a member of the House of Lords and don’t understand how slippery oaths can be.”
― Lynn Messina, An Infamous Betrayal

“Dead parents are gruesome, yes, but anyone who’s anyone in children’s literature has either been orphaned or abandoned; well-adjusted kids from stable two-parent homes don’t go on hero quests.”
― Lynn messina

“Like all bores, he preferred his own thoughts and opinions to the exclusion of others”
― Lynn Messina, The Bolingbroke Chit

“Coward,” Bea said tenderly. “Craven. Faint of heart.” His fingers rested at the base of her spine. “Are you trying to provoke me into kissing you?” She grinned at the charge and leaned forward until her mouth just touched his. “How am I doing?” “Terribly,” he breathed before capturing her lips with his own.”
― Lynn Messina, A Nefarious Engagement

“Alas, when she opened her mouth to thank him, her composure deserted her completely and all she could manage was a low, distraught plea. “You must stop doing this!” she said desperately. It was not the response Kesgrave anticipated. Oh, no. Having been impressed by Bea’s pluck and daring from the very first, even while her refusal to abide by his authority drove him mad with frustration, he’d never imagined that the presentation of a simple band could have such a disastrous effect on her self-possession. Kesgrave’s confusion, so readily apparent in the way he drew his eyebrows together and pursed his lips, helped relieve some of Bea’s distress. After two decades of falling short of her aunt’s unreasonable expectations, it was still revelatory to exceed his. Taken aback by her discomfort, Kesgrave immediately complied with her request, promising never to repeat the event. “I could not even if I desired to,” he assured her, “for the bracelet is the only item of your mother’s in need of reclaiming.” It was perfect, Bea thought, the characteristic pedantry of his reply, and under ordinary circumstances, it would have elicited from her a fond mocking rejoinder. But everything about the moment felt remarkable, even the sunlight filtering through the window, bathing them in a golden glow, and she answered instead with terrifying honesty. “You must stop making me love you more, Damien. The feeling is already so overwhelming, I can scarcely breathe.” His features remained steady but his eyes—oh, yes, his eyes—blazed with emotion and he raised his hand as if to touch her. Mindful of their situation, however, he let it drop before he made contact, and his lips curved slightly as he shook his head to deny her request. “I fear I cannot, Bea, no. Your brief spells of breathlessness are the only advantage I have in this relationship, and I am not prepared to relinquish it.” The duke spoke softly, emphatically, and Bea waited for amusement to enter his eyes, for she knew he was teasing, but his expression remained fervent. Warmed by his gaze, she longed to move closer, to draw his lips to hers, and it was only the presence of her family that kept her firmly rooted to the spot.”
― Lynn Messina, A Sinister Establishment

“Although she still found it a difficult idea to digest, the truth was she no longer needed to borrow the duke’s consequence, for she possessed her own now and if there was any advantage in being the Duchess of Kesgrave, it was the ability to browbeat public servants.”
― Lynn Messina, A Sinister Establishment

“All through dinner Miss Beatrice Hyde-Clare imagined tossing food at Damien Matlock, Duke of Kesgrave. The projectiles varied depending on the course—fish patties with olive paste, stuffed tomatoes, veal cutlets, poached eggs, fillets of salmon, meringues with preserves—but the impulse remained steady.”
― Lynn Messina, A Brazen Curiosity

“His first interruption came immediately after she explained that she’d examined Mr. Wilson while he was still in bed. “In his nightclothes?” the duke gasped. Although he did not turn pink at the notion, his discomfort was plain and Bea had to squelch the laughter that rose in her throat. It was so impossibly funny that she, a spinster of advancing years, was less prudish than a duke who must have had several if not dozens of mistresses. “Yes, in his nightclothes. It didn’t strike me as prudent to have the butler dress him in his afternoon attire and arrange him in the sitting room. For one thing, it would have been ghoulish to see a dead man with the affect of an alive one. Furthermore, it would have ruined any opportunity for me to gather useful information from the scene itself. But that is just my opinion and you should of course feel free to attire and arrange the next corpse you examine in whatever way is least offensive to your sensibilities.” She’d meant to make him feel ridiculous for his scruples, but he merely thanked her for the suggestion and promised he would indeed keep it in mind should the situation arise.”
― Lynn Messina, An Infamous Betrayal

“Whatever clever reply she’d begun to formulate in response to the conundrum of his affection was entirely forgotten as Bea crossed the room in three brisk steps and flung herself into his arms. She could resist his blond curls, certainly, and withstand the tug of his twinkling blue eyes easily, but she was utterly powerless against the ruthless treatment of a beloved relative.”
― Lynn Messina, A Treacherous Performance

“To be treated like just another person in his life when he was in fact the most important person in hers was simply unbearable. “No, I can’t dance with you,” Bea said frankly. “It’s out of the question.” Despite his claim to wounded vanity, Kesgrave seemed only amused by her rejection and calmly asked her why it could not be considered.”
― Lynn Messina, An Infamous Betrayal

“You are quite clever. Damien needs someone who is clever and will stand up to him, not a simpering miss who will drive him to an early grave by agreeing with his every thought. If I have to suffer a parcel of plain-faced great-grandchildren to see Damien properly settled with a woman who won’t let him descend into full-blown tyranny, then I am happy to do so.”
― Lynn Messina, A Nefarious Engagement

“Yet even as Beatrice tried to convince herself that her anguish varied greatly from the disappointments the beautiful widow had endured, she recognized the act as a futile attempt to elevate her own suffering to something greater. She wanted to believe her sorrow transcended ordinary misery, that it was in some way hallowed, but in reality it was just sadness, as common as dirt and as familiar as the sky.”
― Lynn Messina, An Infamous Betrayal

“You may cease pretending to be disappointed,” he added mildly, “when we both know you have got exactly what you want. And don’t think you hoodwinked me by switching to an inane argument so that your original premise seemed reasonable in comparison.”
― Lynn Messina, A Treacherous Performance

“Trust me, my dear, I speak from experience: It cannot be love if it’s not returned. It’s something else and it’s just as painful, but it’s not love and you will get through it,” she said and reached over to grasp her hand. The solemn intensity with which Lady Abercrombie spoke convinced Bea she believed every word she was saying.”
― Lynn Messina, An Infamous Betrayal

“I contemplate how easily it could have gone the other way. Just a little less spite from Miss Brougham, and I would have lived my whole life without you.”
― Lynn Messina, A Treacherous Performance

“I cannot tell if you are disappointed the wrong man died,” the duke said as soon as they were outside, “or if you’re disappointed you’ve been denied a satisfying conclusion.” It was a fair question, and Bea did not take offense. Rather, she marveled at how easily Kesgrave could read her thoughts.”
― Lynn Messina, An Infamous Betrayal

“And now he was waiting, just waiting. It was another gift, a remarkable one, she thought, to love a man who did not need you to explain the minutiae of a situation to him, however eager he was to explain it to you.”
― Lynn Messina, A Nefarious Engagement

“Do note, Miss Hyde-Clare, how quick I am to process new concepts and apply them to practical situations.” The glint of humor in his eyes revealed that he was enjoying one of his favorite pastimes: mocking himself as a way of teasing her.”
― Lynn Messina, An Infamous Betrayal

“Startled by her restraint, Kesgrave stared. “You haven’t asked her yet?” “We are partners, and as such I would not pursue the investigation without you,” she said. “Did I not just explain all this? I made a particular point to be pedantic about it so you would be sure to understand.” Her comment earned her a smile, but she could not say if it was the dip into pedantry or the sentiment itself that pleased him.”
― Lynn Messina, A Treacherous Performance

“How irritating indeed to believe you are about to astonish your listener with a profoundly shocking fact only to have your moment scuttled by the other person’s intolerable cleverness. Kesgrave had done it to her more than once.”
― Lynn Messina, A Treacherous Performance

“But power never yields without a struggle.”
― Lynn Messina, A Nefarious Engagement

“Someone asked you to investigate a murder?” he said, thoroughly appalled. “Please assure me you did not advertise your services.” Advertise, Bea thought speculatively. That option hadn’t occurred to her when she was trying to devise ways to locate another mystery in need of solving.”
― Lynn Messina, An Infamous Betrayal

“But you will note how flexible I am being, my dear. I am willing to compromise my vision to ensure your happiness.”
― Lynn Messina, A Treacherous Performance