As Valentine’s Day fades into the past, I find myself thinking about love—not the steady love of my female friendships, nor the unconditional love of my mother, not even the love I’ve learned to give myself—but the kind of love that hovers just out of reach. Close enough in dreams, yet distant in reality—the love of a partner. At 32—almost 33 years old—I have never had a partner. I have walked the entirety of my life alone, building something steady and self-made while everyo