Hobbit

“Wiley saw a flash of confusion cross Cassi’s brow. She appeared unsure if he was being goofy or serious. “Dish really is sick? Carver really asked you to join him on the ticket?” “Yes and no,” Wiley said. “Yes, Dish really is sick. And no, President Carver has not asked me to be his running mate—not yet. But he will.”
― Tim Tigner, Betrayal

“Frank, come back here!” Carly called after him, and then just when I didn’t think it could get any worse, I heard her footsteps clattering behind his. The door flew open revealing Frank, his shaggy hair all askew, his eyes bright with excitement, “Hey, Russ, guess what?” And then he saw Mallory and he transitioned from overeager-Frank to shy-Frank. “Hi,” he said. She waved back. “Hello there.”
― Karen McQuestion, Edgewood

“Negotiations with the locals have gone sufficiently well –now that Portia and her party have established their superiority –and the incumbents have lent the three travellers a male to serve as a guide in the lands to the north.”
― Adrian Tchaikovsky, Children of Time

“Umm, okay. Thanks.” “But Trish,” Roberta called after Patricia as she turned to go to her own room, across the hallway. “If you do ever take someone out, I get to watch. I want to see you do it.” “Umm, okay.”
― Charlie Jane Anders, All the Birds in the Sky