Nicol

“I had one last try.
"Does it bother you that I'm not a virgin?" He hesitated a moment before answering.
"Well, no," he said slowly, "so long as it doesna bother you that I am." He grinned at my drop-jawed expression, and backed toward the door.
"Reckon one of us should know what they're doing," he said. The door closed softly behind him; clearly the courtship was over.”
― Diana Gabaldon, Outlander

“For where all love is, the speaking is unnecessary”
― Diana Gabaldon, Outlander

“No wonder men got impervious to superficial pain, I thought. It came from this habit of hammering each other incessantly.”
― Diana Gabaldon, Outlander

“In order to rise
From its own ashes
A phoenix
First
Must
Burn.”
― Octavia Butler, Parable of the Talents