#the unsentimental romance
Not one man in ten thousand would say to the woman he loved, or to any woman: “Disagreeableness and danger will not turn you back, and God forbid they should.” That was an admission of equality, and she had not expected it of him. If he conceived of marriage along those lines, then the whole problem would have to be reviewed in that new light; but that seemed scarcely possible. To take such a line and stick to it, he would have to be, not a man but a miracle.
Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers
The Lymond equivalent: https://theodoradove.tumblr.com/post/654066695360626688
Gaudy Night:
“But one has to make some sort of choice,” said Harriet. “And between one desire and another, how is one to know which things are really of overmastering importance?”
“We can only know that,” said Miss de Vine, “when they have overmastered us.”
Busman’s Honeymoon:
“Bunter isn’t the only person with standards. You must do what you think right. Promise me that. What I think doesn’t matter. I swear it shall never make a difference.”
He took her hand and kissed it gravely.
“Thank you, Harriet. That is love with honor.”
They stood so for a moment, both conscious that something had been achieved that was of enormous—of overmastering importance. Then Harriet said, practically:
“In any case, you were right, and I was wrong. The thing has got to be done. By any means, so long as we get to the bottom of it. That’s your job, and it’s worth doing.”
“Always provided I can do it. I don’t feel very brilliant at the moment.”
“You’ll get there in the end. It’s all right, Peter.”
He laughed—and Bunter came in with the soup.
