No, Mary had no illusions about romance. Falling in love was a pretty name for it, that was all. Jem Merlin was a man, and she was a woman, and whether it was his hands or his skin or his smile she did not know, but something inside her responded to him, and the very thought of him was an irritant and a stimulant at the same time. It nagged at her and would not let her be.

Jamaica Inn