They say that dogs may dream, and when Topsy was old, his feet would move in his sleep. With his eyes closed he would often make a noise that sounded quite human, as if greeting someone in his dreams. At first it seemed that he believed Sara would return, but as the years went by I understood that his loyalty asked for no reward, and that love comes in unexpected forms. His wish was small, as hers had been -- merely to be beside her. As for me, I already knew I would never get what I wanted.

Always love someone who will love you back.

That's the way love sounds, my mother told me. You think it should feel like honey, but instead it cuts like a knife.

There are none who can fight as fiercely as a mother and a daughter, and none who can forgive more completely.

Love was never a mistake, even when it wasn't returned.

Shelby is brutally honest. That's why Maravelle likes her. Maravelle is brutally honest too. You can't have many friends if you act that way, but you can depend on the ones you have.

To friendship," she agreed, although for the longest time they didn't let go of each other and she knew exactly what he was thinking—This must be fate—for that was what she was thinking as well.

Love was never a mistake, even when it wasn't returned. It was not unlike the phlox in Catherine Avery's garden, untended, ignored, but there all the same.

Who would have guessed you'd be crying over that old hay bag." But that wasn't it at all, Elinor saw that from the look on his face when he turned to her. That was the attachment, that was the way he held on to her.

They sealed this promise by hooking pinkies, the way they used to, long ago, when promises didn't hurt as much.

Claire's dog and the cat Elv had rescued from the river had a strange alliance. When they thought no one was at home, they sat together on the couch by the window, peering out at the courtyard. As soon as the key turned in the door, they jumped off the couch so that no one would see their attachment. Dogs and cats had their secrets too.

That was how you knew love. My mother had told me that. All you had to do as imagine your life without the other person, and if the thought alone made you shiver, then you knew.