“Sometimes she missed people before they even left her, got depressed about a vacation being over before it started.”

“I've never been on a date before," Isabella said to Mary as she got ready that night. "You've been on plenty of dates," Mary said. "No," Isabella said. "I've been out to eat with boys who were my boyfriend, but that's not dating. That's just parelle eating.”

“In college, 29 had seemed impossibly old. By now, she'd thought she'd be married and have kids. But as each year went by, she didn't feel much different than she had before. Time kept going by and she was just here, the same.”

“In college, twenty-nine had seemed impossibly old. By now, she'd thought, she'd be married and have kids. But as each year went by, she didn't feel much different than she had before. Time kept going by and she was just here, the same.”

“The fights they had now were much worse. Isabella had never fought like this with anyone before. With Ben, she had all-out, drunken marathon fights that lasted for hours. She was sure the neighbors thought they were crazy.”

“Somewhere after the dinner was served and before the cake was cut, Isabella lost Ben. Everyone at their table was up dancing and mingling. Isabella sat there and drank wine. She felt like a fool.”

“Isabella, you miss the essence of a boy. That’s all.”