Two short stories from the number one bestselling author of Good In Bed and a sneak look at her brilliant new novel, The Next Best Thing.

In The Half Life ,Piper met Tosh when she was only twenty-two, just the way self help books said she would - when she wasn't looking. Now at forty, she wonders how, through all those years, they'd gotten to this place in their marriage. When her flight is canceled due to volcanic ash spreading from Iceland across Europe, and when a handsome stranger offers her an invitation to share a cab, she realizes she can take a departure from her own life. And after a day of living like a tourist in her own city, she hopes she can still find her way home.

In Swim,Ruth has left her job writing for a hit television show for reasons she'd rather not discuss and is supplementing her increasingly dwindling savings with freelance writing projects - namely, helping anxious high school students craft a perfect college essay and lonely souls craft captivating online dating profiles. When she's not working, she's swimming-lap after lap at the local indoor pool, in a desperate attempt to wash away the sting of professional failure and heartbreak that she can't seem to shake. It takes an unexpected client to show her that appearances can be deceiving, and that sometimes the bravest thing you can do is simply dive back in.