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A Start My decision to practice celibacy had nothing to do with prudery or penance, mora
Dinner Plans The iron surpassed my expectations. It glided over the shirt with a life of
The Seven Stages Edward’s version of the Seven Stages of Man was this: Jail Bait, Barely
My Wife Edward called the tenant on the first floor of my house my “wife” because he was
Oh, Really? “I was going to call you anyway,” Edward said. “There’s something I’ve been
Previous Addictions As I was leaving the house for work, I thought that if I stuck to my
Too Damned Happy It had been a dry summer, and that morning’s rain, far from being an an
Rocks and Pills “We’re not looking aggressively,” the man said. “I should tell you that
Meaningful Relationships I was tempted to ask her what antidepressants she was taking. I
Should We? Shouldn’t We? “I hear there are a lot of those in Nahant,” I said. “Rocks.”
Passing the Nut House It was still pouring when we stepped outside. My umbrella was one
Dishwasher People I knew the apartment was wrong for them as soon as we walked in. I’d w
Touch Charlotte and I were back in the living room when Samuel finished his phone call a
“Style” Jack Nelson, one of my officemates, was on the phone, berating a client. Jack ha
Where Am I? As I was trying to figure out the gist of Jack’s mumbled comments to “Baby,”
An Alternative to Sex My ritual upon entering my apartment at the end of the day was to
An Alternative to Vacuuming After my usual cheerful inquiries about the apartment, the h
Landlord 101 When I’d bought the house three years earlier, the first-floor apartment wa
An Alternative to Kumiko After taking a few deep breaths to calm myself down and hopeful
A Fresh Start As I drove to the office the next morning, I decided my tactic of delaying
Sleep Deprivation I started the conversation with my usual greeting: “I didn’t wake you
Advice “We spent the night at a hotel in Cambridge,” Charlotte O’Malley told me, “in cas
LTR I thought about Charlotte and Sam much later that night, as I was riding the subway
Exactly on Time Edward lived in a bright studio apartment on the fringes of the South En
Edward’s Story Edward had grown up in Cincinnati, the only child of a pair of religious
Contemptuous Compassion I checked my watch after a few more minutes of rushing water. “I
Dave? Edward’s street was a quiet refuge from the bustle of the city—dotted with low, me
The Beast The restaurant Edward had selected was the kind of place I used to loathe as p
Fasten Your Seat Belts Out of nowhere, Edward’s small face collapsed into a look of cres
Room 473 I’ve always found my ability to detach from and deny some of my own feelings an
Please Charlotte Samuel Thompson worked for a company called Beacon Hill Solutions. I lo
Come Again? The following week, I was sitting at my desk at Cambridge Properties, noddin
A Bright Idea We’d progressed to the part of her monologue in which she ripped off her t
Confidence The seller took the news about Sylvia badly. He had a life of his own. He was
Just in Time It was a bright day, warm for fall and disorienting to me because of the wa
Something I felt virtuous and hopeful for having taken notes on Charlotte’s plan of acti
Drying Out From my bedroom window, I could see Kumiko Rothberg laying out her laundry on
Real Estate Despite having worked in real estate for a decade, I’d resisted buying a pie
Song to a Seagull I stood on the back porch of the house, where the mournful sounds of a
Trapped “And I suppose you agreed?” Edward asked me. “It’s only for a day or two. I
Rose A few days later, I had a lunch date with Rose Forrest, the eighty-year-old woman w
Getting My Story Straight There was one thing about the forgettable, impersonal, and ult
Atmospheric Francis had described himself as thirty-two and blond. His age was hard to j
Crutches Like most people who are obsessed with fitness and advertise their superior hea
Blowing Smoke She pulled a chair out from her kitchen table and said, “Sit.” Charlaine a
Likes and Dislikes “I don’t like you,” Marty said. “I never have. The way I see it, you’
Feelings I’d met Edward more than three years earlier when I was dating a flight attenda
Money Gina was impressed that since she’d talked to me about my job performance, I’d bro
The Cousins My mother called me at my office to see if I’d made contact with my rich cou
Focusing on the Future Charlotte and Samuel arrived in my office late on a Saturday morn
Like Marriage The first apartment was a three-bedroom in a low-slung modern building alo
The One The last apartment I had to show them was unquestionably the most promising—room
I Doubt That’s True I took Samuel and Charlotte out for lunch. I chose a restaurant not
Done Mission accomplished, I wrote in my notes for the Thompson-O’Malley file late
Getting Around A few days after I put in the offer on the apartment for Charlotte and Sa
Simply Buy It I’d instructed Sylvia to wait for me in front of Edward’s building so we c
Sold Edward showed up about fifteen minutes later, carrying a bag from the bakery around
Accepted C & S offer accepted, I wrote in my notes. Samuel plsed—dinner w/ happy c
Monogamy I called Andrew Scali a number of times to thank him for helping me convince Sa
U.D. “What’s happening with the condo you have listed in Jamaica Plain, the one owned by
Thinking About It I called Marty to arrange a time when I could come by and help hide so
Breathing Exercises To reach the fresh breezes and pounding surf of Nahant, you had to d
Thomas Merton on his Best Day “I met someone online. In a chat room. Do you know what th
In Theory, Yes “You must have approved of the laundry business,” Edward said. “In th
Nahant We drove for another thirty minutes through a landscape that had been insulted wi
Pampered and Expensive Edward read aloud from complicated directions that Charlotte had
The Major Leagues Left to my own devices, I tried to do what I usually do at parties, sc
How Embarrassing Charlotte was in the kitchen, seated on a stool at a counter, talking o
All her Shameful Secrets People in various stages of inebriation wandered in and out of
Mr. Collins? The drive home was a lot faster, and in the cool dark, the blighted industr
Hypotheticals “What have you done about cleaning up the marine’s apartment?” Deirdre ask
So It Seems Deirdre assumes I’m sleeping with Sam? Or Charlt? So it seems. Both? C
After the Fact Later that afternoon, Sylvia Blanchard came to my office to coordinate a
Scents Charlotte had called me a few days after the party to complain that I’d left the
Mr. Didier Didier’s appearance on the street outside of Edward’s apartment had been unex
The Remote Control Sean had filled several small beakers with blends of oils. As he adde
Happy I could feel myself growing calm as I watched Sean work, the drops falling into th
Alcohol Instead “That wasn’t an insult,” I assured Charlotte as we walked up Newbury Str
The Missing Piece For the most part, I’m baffled by spirituality. When people talk about
Solutions Beacon Hill Solutions, Samuel’s consulting firm, had its offices on the thirty
Something the Matter Samuel sauntered down a long, narrow hallway, pushed open a glass d
Back Rubs I’ve always believed that part of being a truly good person is the loud and mo
Endearing New Traits Something I’d recently learned about Didier that surprised me was t
Ulterior Motives “You ruin everything for me,” I told Didier. “You rush in at the worst
Intentions I insisted that I drive Kumiko to the yoga class to avoid the ridiculous expe
So So “That was so, so unyogic of you,” Kumiko said as we drove home. “You used me. You
Uncluttering “I don’t understand why it’s taking you so long to clear out the marine’s c
Inspection On my advice, Charlotte and Sam had hired Ken O’Leary, a burly little man wit
One Big Sudden Something The next day, I was sitting at my desk, answering calls and wai
Mutual Interest I stayed at the office until Deirdre put in an appearance after showing
Esther Esther was proving to be a more reliable tenant than Kumiko ever had been. Since
An Offer A week later, the male half of the newscaster couple made an offer on Marty’s a
The Neighbors What I was enjoying most about The Mandarins was everything that the autho
Mrs. Didier Marty had sent out several bulk e-mails announcing the date and time the pro
Midnight Call My phone rang at midnight. I was sitting on the chaise longue in my bedroo
Closing Because Edward was so small of stature, because he wore a little blue uniform to
Snowstorm It started to snow while I was stopped in traffic on the Tobin Bridge. It was
The Center of My Life She sat at one of the counter stools in the kitchen and directed m
Anyone Because I’d had no intention of driving to Canada when I’d left my house earlier
An Empty Bench I crossed the Champlain Bridge over the St. Lawrence River as the sun was
Acknowledgments Many thanks to The Ragdale Foundation, The Boston Athenaeum, The Newton
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