When he heard Caitlin close the bedroom door, Jack tried to focus his concentration on the rainy night and the highway ahead of him. 'Half your age, half your age,' he repeated to himself in a frustrated voice. But she was amazing. Beautiful, well that goes without saying. Yet she was also intelligent, funny, and adventurous. And she certainly didn't act like a girl in her early 20's – she seemed more mature than some of the women he'd recently dated. Of course, there was so much of her that was still a mystery. But from what he knew, he thought she was one of the most amazing women he'd ever met. And he could swear there was electricity between them.
'You're imagining that,' he told himself. 'What could she possibly see in an old man twice her age? She no doubt has men her age drawn to her like bees to honey. Fuck, she probably has a boyfriend. Certainly has a boyfriend! No woman that amazing could be without love in her life.' He concentrated intensely on the road and tried not to imagine what she was telling her friend.
Several minutes later, she emerged from the bedroom, turning on the overhead light in the kitchen. "Does this distract you from driving?" she called to him.
'No, but you sure as hell do,' he thought. "Nope, not at all," he called out cheerily.
He heard her open the fridge, then heard her pouring another drink. She turned off the overhead light and came to the front of the RV, sitting in the passenger seat again. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched her sipping her wine carefully. This was a dangerous move on his part, as he was nearly mesmerized by the sight of her soft, pink lips pursing gently to drink the wine. Her fiery red curls fell onto her shoulders, which were covered by a royal blue top that hugged her curves nicely, and her khaki pants hung low on her hips, showing just a hint of tummy when she leaned forward to put the wineglass in the cup holder. He shivered slightly, moving his gaze back to the road. 'Just don't look at her anymore,' he told himself firmly.
"How is your friend?" he asked.
"Oh, she's great," she replied. "She's such a sweetheart, looking out for me like this. I'm really lucky to have a friend like her."
"How long have you been traveling?" he asked curiously.
"About three weeks now. I took the Southern route, roughly, to the East Coast from California, and was planning on trying to take the Northern route back home, so that I can see as much of the country as possible," she explained.
His eyebrows shot up. "You're from California, too?" he asked, somehow managing to keep the hope out of his voice.
"Yes, San Francisco," she answered.
"Ah...I live in Long Beach," he said, hiding his disappointment quite well.
