“Well, what?”

This time, Diana didn’t mind spilling her plans. She’d never really seen eye-to-eye with her youngest because she was so whimsical and prone to flights of fancy, but now she felt like a kindred spirit. It’d be nice to have someone on her side, telling Lily that this was a good plan.

“I’m just going to take a year off from my job and do a little traveling. To Europe.”

A longer pause. Some crazy Japanese pop song came on in the background. Then Bea said, “You, Mom? Really? Hold on.” She shouted something in Japanese to someone else in the room. “I’m back. Mom, you’re traveling? Are you sure?”

It was as if Diana had announced she wanted to feed herself to a pit of rabid wolves. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“I mean, why would you even do that? Isn’t that kind of out of left field? You have so much right at home. A good career. Family. Nice house.”

“Right?” Lily slapped the table with her palm. “That’s just what I said.”

Diana stared at the phone and at her eldest daughter. She’d carried them and raised them, and this was the thanks she got? Them ganging up on her? Why weren’t they reading Evan the riot act too? It wasn’t as if she’d just announced her plans to marry someone half her age . . . all she wanted to do was take a year off. “Bea, I thought you, of all people, would understand.”

“I understand wanting to experience life. But you’ve never wanted to do this before. You had your job. Your family. Your friends. Your house. You never struck me as the type to want to say goodbye to all that. And besides, you plan things like crazy. Remember that Disney

debac—”

“Truthfully, I’m not happy,” Diana stated bluntly.

The room dissolved into silence. Even the crowded Japanese barroom seemed to hush up. Lily said, “You said that before. But do you think this’ll make you happy?”

Diana shrugged, “I don’t know. I just know I need to do something different. Before I’m too old to do anything.”

“Mom, you’re not eighty,” Lily sighed.

“But I’m not twenty anymore, either.”

“Well, if different is all you want, maybe you should dye your hair blonde.” When Diana continued to shake her head, Bea added, “You’re just freaked out over Dad sowing his wild oats, and now you think you have to, too. That’s what this is. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.”

“No, it’s—”

Lily nodded, “Yeah. Definitely.” She checked the time on her phone. “Look, I’ve got to go. I have a meeting at eleven. Mom, why don’t you take a few weeks and think it over? Then you can make the decision with a clear head, not influenced by Dad and—”

“I can’t do that,” Diana said immediately.

“Why not?” the girls asked in unison.

“Well,” she said, grabbing her phone and navigating to the website of the ball. “I’ve always wanted to go to this. And if I’m going to get there, I need to move right away.”