“It takes me a while to fall asleep. I can feel Irene struggling, too. It feels too intimate, too revealing, to sleep alongside each other like this. I’m too attuned to her breathing cycle, to the sound of her cheek finding the cold part of the pillow. I’m too aware of the smell of her hair, only inches from my face.”

“It takes me a while to fall asleep. I can feel Irene struggling, too. It feels too intimate, too revealing, to sleep alongside each other like this. I’m too attuned to her breathing cycle, to the sound of her cheek finding the cold part of the pillow. I’m too aware of the smell of her hair, only inches from my face.”

— Kelly Quindlen