What was it about life now? The people who weren't present always seemed to be more important than the people who were.

He'd learned that when you love someone purely enough, all you wanted was for that person to be happy.

—Elin Hilderbrand in Summerland

Nobody knows where it comes from, and nobody knows where it goes. Love doesn't make sense most of the time and that's what's so wonderful about it.

—Elin Hilderbrand in The Beach Club

That's the thing about marriage. It can look perfect to people from the outside but be utterly imperfect on the inside. The reverse is true as well. No one knows what goes on in a marriage except for the two people living in it.

—Elin Hilderbrand in Beautiful Day

Sometimes you regret the things you do, but they're over and done. Regretting the things you didn't do is tougher, because they're still out there…haunting you. The what-ifs.

—Elin Hilderbrand in The Matchmaker

Some people don't like being happy. They're much more comfortable when they have a problem.

—Elin Hilderbrand in The Beach Club

He does something to me, that boy. Every time. It's his only detriment. He steps on my heart. He makes me cry.

—Markus Zusak

He was the closest thing I'd ever had to something, or someone, that mattered. But in the end, close didn't count. You were either in, or you weren't.

—Sarah Dessen in Along for the Ride

I never liked you, and I always will.

—Samuel Goldwyn

Kindness is in our power, even when fondness is not.

—Samuel Johnson

I do not want people to be agreeable, as it saves me the trouble of liking them.

—Jane Austen