Wryly Quotes & Sayings

Well, then. Whatever trauma you went through, these things don't last forever. You can't hate all men."

The smile is back. "Oh, there wasn't any trauma, Don, and I don't hate men. That would be as silly as - as hating the weather." She glances wryly at the blowing rain.

- 'The Women Men Don't See — James Tiptree Jr.

I think you're going to break more hearts this spring than I'll be able to count."
"It isn't your job to count them," he said, his voice quiet and hard.
"No, it isn't, is it?" She looked over at him and smile wryly. "But I'm going to end up doing it all the same, won't I?"
"And why is that?"
She didn't seem to have an answer to that, and then, just when he was sure she would say no more, she whispered, "Because I won't be able to stop myself. — Julia Quinn

Her nerves gathered together so quickly, Gennie nearly dropped the five pounds of briquettes on the ground. When she'd finished being exasperated with herself, she laughed and poured a neat pile of charcoal into the barbecue pit. So this was the coolly sophisticated Genvieve Grandeau, she thought wryly;established member of the art world and genteel New Orleans society,about to drop five pounds of charcoal on her toes because a rude man was going to have dinner with her. How the mighty have fallen. — Nora Roberts

Sometimes, he thought wryly, a reputation for being right all the time could be a heavy burden. — John Flanagan

Julian tried to keep a pleasant smile on his face, though already it felt strained. He was uncomfortable with people who used the word blessed as a part of their everyday speech. The implication was that God was intervening in the minutiae of their lives, hanging around and helping them with their jobs or children or household chores as though He had nothing better to do.
Maybe it was true, Julian thought wryly. Maybe that was why there were wars and murders and earthquakes and hurricanes. God was too busy helping real estate agents find new listings to deal with those other issues. — Bentley Little

I know - I'll play you for it," Alice suggested. "Rock, paper, scissors."
Jasper chuckled and Edward sighed.
"Why don't you just tell me who wins?" Edward said wryly.
Alice beamed. "I do. Excellent. — Stephenie Meyer

No, thanks," Ty responded wryly. "I prefer not to be a moron."
"I'm flattered. I've moved up from idiot to moron," Zane said. "And you have moved from utterly reprehensible asshole to only moderately annoying asshole. — Abigail Roux

Oh, well," Silk said wryly, "we might as well get it out into the open, I suppose. Gentlemen," he said, "I'm sure you all remember the Margravine Liselle, my fiancee."
"Your fiancee?" Barak exclaimed in amazement.
"We all have to settle down sometime." Silk shrugged.
They all gathered around to congratulate him. Velvet, however, did not look pleased.
"Was something the matter, dear?" Silk asked her, all innocence.
"Don't you think you've forgotten something, Kheldar?" she asked acidly.
"Not that I recall."
"You neglected to ask me about this first."
"Really? Did I actually forget that? You weren't planning to refuse, were you?"
"Of course not."
"Well, then
"
"You haven't heard the last of this, Kheldar," she said ominously.
"I seem to be getting off to a bad start here," he observed.
"Very bad," she agreed. — David Eddings

But believe it or not, I've actually seen these stars before." "Well, aren't you hard to impress," he said wryly. — Marissa Meyer

It was one thing to talk of using technology to topple the authority of the aristocracy and the Church, but who or what would replace them? Diderot and the French revolutionaries had assumed it would be "the people." But as the nineteenth-century French historian Jules Michelet once wryly observed, "The people, in its highest ideal, is difficult to find in the people." As — Mark Kurlansky

Hey, guard!" Ian hollered out loud. "Do you think we could get a bathroom break?"
The guard seemed to snicker as he pointed to the grass outside the cell. Eena smirked at how dead-on her thoughts had been after all.
"Come on," Ian complained. "She can't do that, she's a girl."
The soldier smiled wryly, a shrug communicating his indifference.
Eena laughed in her mind.
(I don't know what you think's so funny. You're the one who's gotta pee.)
Oddly enough, that fact just made her laugh even more. — Richelle E. Goodrich

Gwen smiled. "Hardly. Bedraggled is being in the full throes of nicotine withdrawal, and after a week on a bus with a group of senior citizens, falling into a cave, and landing on a body."
"And then getting tossed back a few centuries, with no idea of what's going on," Chloe agreed. "Naked, too, weren't you?"
Gwen nodded wryly.
Gabby blinked.
"I gave you my plaid," Drustan protested indignantly. — Karen Marie Moning

Oh, I think so. Yeah. Oh, well, sure. A 'type-token' ratio, I suppose, would be as good a way as any to work that out, and with samples of a thousand words or more, you could just check the frequency of occurrence of the various parts of speech." "And would you call that conclusive?" "Pretty much. You see, that sort of test would discount any change in the basic vocabulary. It's not the words but the expression of the words; the style. We call it 'index of diversity.' Very baffling to the layman, which, of course, is what we want." The director smiled wryly. Then he nodded at the tape in Karras's hands. "And so this other person's voice is on that one?" "Not exactly." "Not exactly? — William Peter Blatty

My favourite mentor brother told me that there were three kinds of people: followers, leaders and scouts. Scouts are capeable of leadership, but they could not tolerate the responsibility of it. Disinclined to take orders either, they invariably flouted authority and fomented strife. This is why scouts, he said wryly, were the first to be sent into danger, It was half hoped they would be killed. 'I fear you are destined to trouble us as a scout, little sister' he said — Isobelle Carmody

But why, she thought wryly, did a man seem more attractive as he became less available? How humbling to think one had so much in common with a cow stretching its neck through a gate for better grass. — Mary Jo Putney

If he were any stiffer, Alanna thought wryly, I'd paint a design on him and use him for a shield. — Tamora Pierce

He definitely needed to teach her how to control her emotions, he thought wryly. It wouldn't do to have her burn down the entire forest if they became more intimate. — Dima Zales

Heredity or environment? I wondered wryly. We were all of us, to some degree, mad after his fashion. To be honest, it had to be a form of madness, to have so much and to strive so bitterly for just a little more, for a bit of an edge over the others. He carried this tendency to its extreme, that is all. He was a caricature of this mania in all of us. In this sense, did it really matter which of us was the traitor? — Roger Zelazny

In 1970, American women were paid 59 cents for every dollar their male counterparts made. By 2010, women had protested, fought, and worked their butts off to raise that compensation to 77 cents for every dollar men made.10 As activist Marlo Thomas wryly joked on Equal Pay Day 2011, "Forty years and eighteen cents. A dozen eggs have gone up ten times that amount."11 — Sheryl Sandberg

After a trip to Japan Mitchell famously predicted that the next war would be fought in the Pacific after a Japanese sneak attack on a Sunday morning in Hawaii. Eddie Rickenbacker, who had served as Mitchell's driver before becoming an ace combat pilot, wryly quipped that "the only people who paid any attention to him were the Japanese." Most — Winston Groom

I don't regret a single second that I spent with you." I smiled wryly at him. "No time spent with you is wasted. — S.C. Stephens

Up before sunrise. Marjorie hated getting out of bed in the dark, but loved the payoff once she was dressed and rolling down the country roads in the first light, cruising and owning them almost alone. The countryside here used to be a lot more interesting, though. She remembered it in her girlhood - orchards, small ranches, farmhouses, each one of these houses a distinct personality... Money, she thought wryly, scanning the endless miles of grapevines, all identically wired and braced and drip-lined, mile after mile - money was such a powerful organizer.

As the dawn light gained strength, and bathed the endless vines in tarnished silver, it struck her that there was, after all, something scary about money, that it could run loose in the world like a mythic monster, gobbling up houses and trees, serving strictly its own monstrous appetite. ("The Growlimb") — Michael Shea

My arm is fine."
"That doesn't answer my question."
"I don't think I need to answer your question, because you'll flip out."
Roth's lips thinned. "I'm totally calm. I would just like to know who marred your skin so that I can put a name and a face the creature I'm going to kill very slowly."
"I think we might have different definitions of calm," I said wryly. — Jennifer L. Armentrout

I forbid you from frequenting taverns, public houses, or other establishments of vice."
She snorted in amusement. "Establishments of vice? That's a rather puritanical view of things, isn't it? I assure you, I was quite safe."
"You were with Ralston!" he said, as though she were simpleminded.
"He was perfectly respectable," she said, the words coming out before she remembered that the carriage ride home was anything but respectable.
"Imagine - my sister and the Marquess of Ralston together. And he turns out to be the respectable one," Benedick said wryly, sending heat flaring on Callie's cheeks, but not for the reason he thought. "No more taverns. — Sarah MacLean

Imagine: If shifting from one universe to another is like moving up or down to parallel layers, overlapping with one universe, then going to another timeline is like taking a jump to the left.'
'Or a step to the right,' Jena said wryly. — E.C. Myers

As it happens, the first souvenir I bought was a dried llama fetus. Revolting as it may sound, my poor stillborn llama is actually rather cute. Frozen in the fetal position and dried stiff like beef jerky, it has the gentle, smiling face of a camel and plenty of soft, if slightly formaldehyde-scented, fur. I bought the llama fetus partly because it horrified me, but also for educational purposes, so that my eight-year-old daughter Sophia could show it to her class. (She refused.)
Bolivians buy llama fetuses to ward off evil in its many guises. Bolivian miners - who, with a life expectancy of forty-five years, basically live their entire adult lives dying - look to llama fetuses for protection against dynamite explosions and the lung-destroying silicon particulates they inhale all day. Downing high-proof alcohol also helps. "The purer the alcohol, the purer the minerals I find," one miner told me wryly. — Amy Chua

Vincent came within inches of her face. "You are a rare beauty, Sheirah." He drifted his eyes over her face. "But I shall not give you, or anyone my blood willingly or otherwise. I have made far too many mistakes to trust the likes of someone I have just met."
Meadow gazed into Vincent's eyes and smiled wryly. "You tell me the truth, archangel. For if you spoke to me lies, I would have known. — Madison Thorne Grey

You want to hide," he says. "I know. Because you feel like you're not allowed to think the things you think. Or feel the things you feel."
"Welcome to the human condition," I say wryly. — Gretchen Powell

What are the tales?" Adrienne asked wryly.
"His exploits are legendary!"
"His conquests are legion. 'Tis rumored he's traveled the world accompanied by only the most beautiful lasses."
"'Tis said there isna a comely lass in all of Scotia he hasna tumbled"
"in England, too!"
"and he canna recall any of their names."
"He is said to have godlike beauty, and a practiced hand in the fine art of seduction."
"He is fabulously wealthy and rumors say his castle is luxurious beyond compare."
Adrienne blinked. "Wonderful. A materialistic, unfaithfill, beautiful playboy of a self-indulged, inconsiderate man with a bad memory. And he's all mine. Dear sweet God, what have I done to deserve this?" she wondered aloud. Twice, she brooded privately. — Karen Marie Moning

Everyone's looking," she whispered, letting him lead her to the center of the waltzing couples, several of which moved to allow them plenty of room.
"Everyone's been looking at you all night," he said wryly. "Especially me. — Lisa Kleypas

To have ye with me again--to talk wi' you--to know I can say anything, not guard my words or hide my thoughts--God, Sassenach," he said, "the Lord knows I am lust-crazed as a lad, and I canna keep my hands from you--or anything else--"he added, wryly," but I would count that all well lost, had I no more than the pleasure of havin' ye by me, and to tell ye all my heart." ....
"So tell me all your heart,"I said. "If there's time. — Diana Gabaldon

Okay. So all Clea and I need is for you to tell us what you know about the Elixir, and we can go get it. You won't eve have to see us again."
"Not possible," Sage said. "I said it before; you've been tied to me. That means you're in danger. I don't think you get that."
"Oh, I get it," Ben said, "I just think Clea and I will be safer on our own. And with all due respect, I don't entirely trust you. And I don't think Clea does either."
"Respect duly noted," Sage said wryly, "but I'm not telling you what I know about the Elixir, so you kind of need me."
The two guys stared each other down. — Hilary Duff

The doctors had been impressed that I was even alive. When I had asked one of them approximately how much blood I had lost, he had responded wryly with "most of it. — Larry Correia

In Parliament a fellow MP whispered to him that his trousers were unfastened. "It makes no difference," Winston replied wryly. "The dead bird doesn't leave the nest. — William Manchester

Keep away, keep away," Hungry Joe screamed. "I said keep away, keep away, you goddam stinking lousy son of a bitch." "At least we found out what he dreams about," Dunbar observed wryly. "He dreams about goddam stinking lousy sons of bitches. — Joseph Heller

As Douglas Adams wryly observed in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: There are two things you should remember when dealing with parallel universes. One, they're not really parallel, and two, they're not really universes! — Marcus Chown

Desmonde
looked over to where Delilah had gone, his gaze focused on
it. He smiled wryly and said softly, You'd be surprised to know that I am a man whose heart could be stolen by a woman who loved beauty in darker things. A woman who loved chaos and disorder. A woman who loved poetry, and beautiful sonatas. — Jennifer Megan Varnadore

Now I can broadcast to an audience of several million people on the 'Today' programme. I can talk about the day's news. But on radio, believe it or not, we have notes and scripts. And while we might ad lib the odd wryly amusing asides, they come at the frequency of a suburban bus. About one every 90 minutes. — Evan Davis

Did you really think you could take a few hundred ill-trained village people into war and expect anything but defeat?"
I opened my mouth to retort, then realized I'd be spoiling what little strategy we did have.
But then he said wryly, "Or did you expect the rest of the kingdom to follow your heroic example and rise up against the King?"
Which is, of course, exactly what we had expected. — Sherwood Smith

What saves us?" he said wryly. "You do know the answer, Alix. 'Tis all the things you mentioned to Merwynna, and something else." He looked into her green eyes. "So faith, hope, and love abide, these three, but the greatest of these is love." "Love saves us?" "Does it not? Not simply sexual love, but also love of one's fellow man, love of God, love of family and — Linda Barlow

You don't know the protocol for any kind of anniversary."
"Fuck you." Cam's mouth slanted into a smirk. "If you're gonna bitch, maybe I should just give you flowers and chocolate next year."
"Beats the blow-job coupons you gave me." Austin grinned wryly,
Austin & Cam — Cara Dee

Wood burns. Roots nourish. Branches shelter. Leaves heal." The words had become her mantra, her way of reigniting her courage when it started to falter. My life depends on a tree, she thought wryly as she cinched her pack. — Teresa Tsalaky

The other bodyguard, Hardin, grinned, showing his crooked teeth. "Sidewinder. Like the snake." The room was silent, waiting for his point. "You know what they used to call the Green Berets when we were active?"
Ty tried hard not to roll his eyes. Behind him, Kelly answered wryly, "Snake Eaters."
Both security men chuckled. "Best watch out, Sidewinders. Don't want to get eaten."
Nick barked a laugh. "I appreciate the offer, Hoss, but I got someone taking care of me already."
Hardin squared his shoulders, his face growing ruddy.
"Don't worry, you'll find that someone special," Kelly assured him, his voice sincere. — Abigail Roux

I am encouraged as I look at some of those who have listened to their "different drum": Einstein was hopeless at school math and commented wryly on his inadequacy in human relations. Winston Churchill was an abysmal failure in his early school years. Byron, that revolutionary student, had to compensate for a club foot; Demosthenes for a stutter; and Homer was blind. Socrates couldn't manage his wife, and infuriated his countrymen. And what about Jesus, if we need an ultimate example of failure with one's peers? Or an ultimate example of love? — Madeleine L'Engle

Don't blame me," Jason protested. "All I did was ask an innocent question. I'm not the one telling Gwen she has to get out."
"I said that's enough!" Frank smacked the table hard. "We're not going to talk about it anymore, and we're not going to hand out blame. Is that clear, Jason? If Gwen can handle this in a mature way, there's no reason for you to raise the roof."
Now they were both looking at Gwen, waiting for her to show how mature she was. "I think," she began. "I think--" She swallowed hard. "I think I'm going to be sick." With a hand pressed over her mouth, she dashed out of the room and up the stairs, making it to the bathroom just in time.
Afterward, she sat on the bathroom floor and leaned against the old-fashioned footed tub. Three people out of five, she thought wryly. It would be laughable, the way she and Dena and Tessie had leaped up and run, one after the other, if it weren't so sad. — Betty Ren Wright

Then she looked at the man on the tree and she smiled wryly. "They just aren't as interesting naked," she said. "It's the unwrapping that's half the fun. Like with gifts, and eggs. — Neil Gaiman

Do you know how lucky you are?" She smiled rather wryly. "Not most of the time. — Madeleine L'Engle

I'm totally calm. I would just like to know who marred your skin so that I can put a name and face to the creature I'm going to kill very slowly." "I think we might have different definitions of calm," I said wryly. "I've never been calmer in my life. — Jennifer L. Armentrout

Haroche opened his hand, dismissing the difference. "A matter of medical definition, not practical use. I'm a practical man. I've been studying the reports of your Dendarii missions for ImpSec. You and Simon Illyan made an extraordinary team." We were the best, oh yes. Miles grunted, neutrally, suddenly uncertain of just where Haroche was leading. Haroche smiled wryly. "Filling Illyan's place is a damned big challenge. I'm reluctant to give up any advantage. Now that I've had a chance to work with you in person, and look over your records in real detail . . . I'm increasingly sure that Illyan made a serious mistake when he discharged you. — Lois McMaster Bujold

We have more in common than I thought, he mused wryly. He liked the idea that, if either of them ever fell from grace, the other might be there to offer support. It's always easier to become friends with someone you have something in common with. I just hope it doesn't take some socially disastrous fall before she'll consider the possibility I might be a friend. — Trudi Canavan

Stepping toward her, he raised his left hand, mirroring her right, close but not quite touching. His palm was bigger, his fingers thicker and longer than hers. He asked wryly, "Am I exonerated?" She swallowed. "In this, yes." He cocked his head to one side, mouth twisted in an ironic grin. "Will you never forgive me the rest? — Julie Klassen

There's a saying," Aeneas said: "Keep an eye on Greeks when they offer gifts." He spoke wryly. "Horses, particularly. — Ursula K. Le Guin

Have you noticed how few men in the peerage are young and nice-looking?" Lillian asked wryly. "Most of them are dull-witted, ancient, or possess the kind of face that should have a hook in its mouth. — Lisa Kleypas

I'm Kyran. I'm usually the one who keeps him in line," he said as he motioned to Talin.
That made Neve's smile widen. "You need to keep a better eye on him."
"I know," Kyran replied wryly. — Donna Grant

Please," she whispered, sounding more frantic. "Don't leave me down in these chasms alone."
He smiled wryly. "Is it really this hard for you to let me win one single argument?"
"Yes! — Brandon Sanderson

The lamb baa-ed vigorously as Mary dragged it into the manicure room, and Zel winced. She really should insist Julie come work, She could use the help, plus it would mean extra mother-daughter time
and, Zel thought wryly, I won't have to find a spare tower in the suburbs.
Closing the appointment book, Zel went to finish trimming Linda's hair. "Did I hear a sheep out there?" Linda asked.
"Sick dog," Zel said. "Now, bend your head down." Linda obeyed and Zel ran her fingers through the back of her hair to check for evenness. All she needed to do was think of a way to make Julie come without Julie immediately assuming her mother was trying to ruin her life. Not an easy task. — Sarah Beth Durst

You are very unexpected, do you know that?"
"Is that your way of calling me stupid?" she asked wryly.
"If the glove fits," he said. — Diana Pharaoh Francis

She has very strong ideas about family - ideas that probably sound kind of sexist to you. She believes all dhampirs should train and put in time as guardians, but that the women should eventually return home to raise their children together.
But not the men?
No, he said wryly. She thinks men still need to stay out there and kill Strigoi. — Richelle Mead

Free women," said Anna, wryly. She added, with an anger new to Molly, so that she earned another quick scrutinizing glance from her friend: "They still define us in terms of relationships with men, even the best of them. — Doris Lessing

Jesus! We can't just sit here and twiddle our thumbs. Who's the brains of this outfit, anyway?"
"I think that was Shaw," Carl said wryly as his mind landed on an idea. "Before he went mad' that is. Now I suppose it's you, God help us. "
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Shawn asked in a hurt voice. "I've not gone mad!"
"Uh huh. What's the plan, Dixie?" Carl asked as he spared Shawn a glance before turning his gaze back on Remy. Remy blinked at him.
"You can't put him in charge," Shawn protested. "We'll be in the shit and he'll stop to get an ice cream, for fuck's sake!"
"What's wrong with ice cream?" Remy asked in an insulted voice.
"I think you missed the point of the comment," Thiago muttered as he sat down in the kitchen besid Nikolaus. — Abigail Roux

It took one long, desperate week to prove just how wrong was my prophecy.
"The revolution is not over," Branaric said seriously some ten days later.
But even this--after a long, horrible day of real fighting, a desperate run back into the familiar hills of Tlanth, and the advent of rain beating on the tent over our heads--failed to keep Branaric serious for long. His mouth curved wryly as he added, "And today's action was not a rout, it was a retreat."
"So we will say outside this tent." Khesot paused to tap his pipeweed more deeply into the worn bowl of his pipe, then he looked up, his white eyebrows quirked. "But it was a rout."
I said indignantly, "Our people fought well!"
Khesot gave a stately, measured nod in my direction, without moving from his cushion. "Valiantly, Lady Meliara, valiantly. But courage is not enough when we are so grossly outnumbered. More so now that they have an equally able commander. — Sherwood Smith

Mortals don't see the fey. Donia smiled wryly: if they did, Keenan would never have convinced any of them to trust him. — Melissa Marr

She lifted her head up and stared at him. Gaped at him. "Exactly how old are you?"
"Three-hundred and seventy-two," he drawled. "Give or take a few months."
"Oh, my God." She dropped her head back down on his chest and laughed. Then laughed again. "I thought Rachel was nuts for lusting after Professor Keaton, and he was only in his forties. I'm falling in love with a total relic."
Gideon stilled. "Falling in love?"
"Yes," she replied quietly, but without hesitation. She glanced up at him. One slender black brow arched wryly. "Don't tell me that's all it takes to scare a three-hundred and seventy-two-year-old vampire. — Lara Adrian

Feet pue tan!" she shouted.
Ty cleared his throat, looking at Zane wryly. "She just called me a goddamned son of a bitch."
"I like her," Zane responded. — Abigail Roux

It's nice to have eye candy around for my enjoyment." He looked Brad over. "It wouldn't kill you to pretty yourself up if you're going to be in my presence."
"Yeah, I'll get right on that," Brad said wryly.
"See that you do. — R.L. Mathewson

Okay. Let's see..." She considered her past, and then smiled wryly and shook her head. "Well, I was a perfume maker, Amaone, concubine, a duchess, a pirate, a madam, and then a hunter."

Harper's eyebrows had slid up his forehead as she rattled of her resume. — Lynsay Sands

Finally I said, my words soft, "How did you get so wise, Effie?" "I've survived seventy-seven years on this planet," she answered wryly, "and by making the right choices I even managed to live for most of them. — Samantha Young

regrets, Palazzo," Luca said wryly. "Now that you're here, you know Shane won't let you leave until everyone's smashed." Rafe grimaced. "True." Luca raised his glass. "To your fortune, amico." Knowing that his friend was not referring to his material possessions, Rafe raised his glass in return, murmuring quietly, "I wish you the same luck, amico." After downing his third shot, — Marian Tee

Paris answered for him. "Last time he spread the flashing love, Reyes threw up all over his shirt. I never laughed so hard in my life. Lucien, though, has no sense of humor and vowed never to take us again."
"I'm surprised you didn't mention the part where you fainted," Lucien said wryly.
Strider chortled. "Oh, man. You fainted? What a baby!"
"Hey," Paris said, frowning at Lucien. "I told you I hit my head midflash."
Lucien — Gena Showalter

The perfume works," she insisted. "Not only did you respond to it, but Annabelle tried it on her husband - and she swears that he kept her up all night as a result." "Sweetheart," Marcus said wryly, "Hunt has behaved like a boar in rut around Annabelle since the first day they met. It's typical behavior for him, where she is concerned. — Lisa Kleypas

Garion started shaving. "Try to keep away from your nose," said Hettar wryly. "A man looks quite strange without a nose. — David Eddings

I swear you don't know how to have any fun at all," I teased.
"This is not exactly my idea of it," he said wryly.
I gestured toward the ballroom. "But you're royal. It's your kind of party. You should be relaxed, letting everyone suck up to you."
He laughed and my chest tightened. God, I loved that sound.
"Kendra, not everything about being royal is enjoyable."
"So what would you consider fun?" I asked, curious.
Tristan was obviously well-liked and respected. But I'd never seen him when he wasn't in either instructor, gardinel, or prince mode. I got the feeling he wasn't very social and spent a lot of time alone.
His eyes turned thoughtful. "Relaxing in a quiet room with a nice glass of scotch, listening to Bach."
I rolled my eyes. "Are you serious, grandpa?"
He hid a smile. — Emma Raveling

You flatter me, my dear girl." He demurred playfully with a small bow. Rose always cheered him up.
"You've got a nice bum." She shrugged with a bright, cheerful grin. Seeing her happy was always a pleasure.
"That opinion seems to run in your family. Your father said the same to me on numerous occasions. Sadly, he followed it up with 'but it's in the way of the television'." Eric smiled wryly — Cecilia Ryan

Did you know we were leaving for Idris?" "Catarina told me she'd been summoned to make a portal. I guessed," Magnus said wryly. "I was a little surprised you hadn't called or texted to tell me you were going away."
"You never answer my calls or texts," said Alec.
"That hasn't stopped you before."
"Everyone gives up eventually," Alec said. "Besides, Jace broke my phone."
Magnus huffed a laughter. "Oh, Alexander."
"What?" alec asked, honestly puzzled.
"you're just
You're so
I really want to kiss you," Magnus said abruptly, and then shook his head. "See this is why I haven't been willing to see you. — Cassandra Clare

Sarene laughed wryly. You love me, Father - no parent wants to admit that is daughter is unattractive. The truth of the matter is, no man wants an intelligent wife. — Brandon Sanderson

A fool's tongue," Bruce Waltke wryly notes, "is long enough to cut his own throat."4 — John Piper

Ah, if only we were born roaring with laughter and took that emotional template through life with us! Whoever's in charge seriously messed up somewhere. I can only hope that right now, that selfsame Whoever is wryly relating their cock-up to some celestial colleague, who responds: 'Hey, you should put that in a book. LOL! — Steve Cole

UG staff is patching up wargs, and all surviving Guardians are tied up," Wraith said, "But they could probably use some medical attention. Especially the one dipshit with the idiotic Mohawk. He lost a lot of blood." "Because you ate him," Sin said wryly. Wraith blinked with exaggerated innocence. "Fighting makes me hungry. — Larissa Ione

They sat in silence until the howl of a distant coyote made her shiver. "He sings for his mate," Cade reassured her. "Does he think the sound of his loneliness will attract her?" Lily asked wryly. "I'm sure it is the beauty of his song." His voice contained almost a hint of a chuckle. "I'm sure that's what he thinks." Her scoffing hid an undertone of bitterness, and Cade was silent for a while. "Men often hide their fears with actions," he finally said. By — Patricia Rice

Far be it from me to slow down two badass supermodels on a mission, but we have a problem," a male voice said wryly.
I could see Christian out of the corner of my eye as we turned, his stance and movements almost synchronized to my own. We shared a look, our expressions almost identically similar, wit arched brows and half-smiles.
"What's the problem?" I called out, scanning the faces to see who had spoken.
"You're a badass supermodel," Christian muttered under his breath at the same time, taking the mature approach, as usual. — Rebecca K. Lilley

Help!' he shrieked shrilly in a voice strangling in its own emotion, as the policemen carried him to the open doors in the rear of the ambulance and threw him inside. 'Police! Help! Police!' The doors were shut and bolted, and the ambulance raced away. There was a humorless irony in the ludicrous panic of the man screaming for help to the police while policemen were all around him. Yossarian smiled wryly at the futile and ridiculous cry for aid, then saw with a start that the words were ambiguous, realized with alarm that they were not perhaps, intended as a call for police but as a heroic warning from the grave by a doomed friend to everyone who was not a policeman with a club and gun and a mob of other policemen with clubs and guns to back him up. 'Help! Police!' the man had cried, and he could have been shouting of danger. — Joseph Heller

You see the mistakes of one system - the surveillance - and the mistakes of the other - the inequality - but there's nothing you could have done in the one and nothing you can do now about the other. She laughs wryly. And the clearer you see that, the worse you feel. — Anna Funder

Gideon was a force of nature, his magnetic self-possession so powerful it put everyone around him in his shadow. I saw flashes of it every day and was awed by it, but not nearly as much as I was by the charming, wryly amusing lover I had entirely to myself in our private moments together. — Sylvia Day

Maybe he doesn't want to go back," I countered. "Maybe he likes it here."
"With a snack like you hanging on his sleeve, I'm sure he does," he replied wryly. — Shelly Crane

The Prince shall think you the most beautiful lady he's ever seen."
Alex replied wryly, "Let's hope that's not the case, Eliza. History teaches us that things never end well when royalty set their eyes on 'the most beautiful
lady' they've ever seen. Have a care; if you perform your tasks too well, I could be haunting the Tower of London without a head, alongside Anne Boleyn. — Sarah MacLean

What's bothering you, son?"
Jem came to the point: "Mr. Ewell."
"What has happened?"
"Nothing's happened. We're scared for you, and we think you oughta do something about him."
Atticus smiled wryly. "Do what? Put him under a peace bond?"
"When a man says he's gonna get you, looks like he means it."
"He meant it when he said it," said Atticus. "Jem, see if you can stand in Bob Ewell's shoes a minute. I destroyed his last shred of credibility at that trial, if he had any to begin with. The man had to have some kind of comeback, his kind always does. So if spitting in my face and threatening me saved Mayella Ewell one extra beating, that's something I'll gladly take. He had to take it out on somebody and I'd rather it be me than that houseful of children out there. You understand? — Harper Lee

He smiled wryly. "I'm not such a terrible person, you know."
She sighed. "I know."
Something about her resigned expression made him grin. "But maybe a little terrible?" he teased.
She brightened, their return to levity obviously making her much more comfortable with the conversation. "Oh, for certain."
"Good. I'd hate to be boring."
-Anthony & Kate — Julia Quinn

It would be wryly interesting if in human history the cultivation of marijuana led generally to the invention of agriculture, and thereby to civilization. — Carl Sagan

Nancy carried a cardboard boxes loaded with books toward the moving van that Saturday morning. Our eyes met and we shared a smile. "You didn't have as much stuff when you moved in," she pointed out wryly. "How many boxes of books is this? Seriously. It's like you're living in a freaking library." I shrugged. "You know me. I have a bit of a book fetish." "I wouldn't mind the books if you'd join us in the 21st century and get an e-reader already. Then when you move a thousand books from place to place, I don't risk throwing my back out. — Anonymous

You speak as if I'm as heavy as an ox," I said. "Last week I was a bundle of sticks.""You're still too thin.""Perhaps if I gain some weight, you won't call me a stick anymore.""You may hope to one day be a branch."I glanced at him sharply, unable to repress a little flutter of delight that he was bothering to joke with me."A log, even," I suggested."Doubtful," he said wryly. — Elly Blake

Fish gotta swim, bird gotta fly, werewolf gotta have a pack?" I said wryly. — Carrie Vaughn

You're a hard man to love, Lachlan MacRuairi, but I do belive I'm up to the challenge."
"We'll probably argue."
"Aye, it seems likely."
"I have a bit of a temper when I get angry."
"I have noticed," she said wryly.
"I can be a mean bastard. I"ll probably say something to hurt you."
She laughed. "Are you trying to scare me off?"
He gave her a rueful smile. " Maybe."
"Well, stop - it isn't going to work. I'm quite aware of your faults."
He frowned. "I didn't say they were faults. — Monica McCarty