"You know how I love my Diet Dr. Pepper, so Mickey D's is fine with me." She thought they were getting started a little late and a drive though breakfast would be faster. Besides, Ben didn't seem quite himself this morning, and she didn't want to mention the late start.
He reached out to take her suitcase and after putting his duffle on top of her rolling suitcase bent to pick up the now lukewarm coffee she'd gotten for him. "Mickey D's it is then, let's hit the road."
Ben started the Navigator and Lane gave him directions to the nearest McDonald's. He ordered another coffee for himself, a DDP for Lane and breakfast sandwiches for each of them. He passed the food and drinks to her as they were handed to him and was surprised to see that she was mixing his fresh coffee with his lukewarm coffee into a large travel mug he kept in the SUV. He wondered how any man could walk away from her. She was beautiful, intelligent, witty, kind, thoughtful, and sexy. He shook his head, thinking, Man you have got to snap out of this.
"What do you want first? Hash brown or sandwich?" She looked at him, and noticed that the collar of his pale blue polo shirt was bunched up from carrying his backpack over just one shoulder. She reached over and smoothed it. He really was an amazingly handsome man with his chiseled jaw, his dark hair, hazel eyes, firm muscles and that perfect smile. He only had one flaw, well maybe two. He was a babe magnet and he was twelve years younger than she was. Her first husband had been a babe magnet and she knew how that ended; even if she could get past that, nothing was going to change the fact that he was twelve years her junior.
"I'll have the sandwich. I know you really want my hash brown anyway."
She handed him the Egg McMuffin and smiled as she took a bite of the hash brown.
Except for the low mournful crooning of Frank Sinatra singing about the gal that got way they rode in silence. It was funny their taste in music was the same and it was from before either of their times. Frank Sinatra, Mel Torme, Tony Bennett, Dean Martin with a little Michael Buble and Harry Connick Jr. mixed in. She smiled remembering the day that Jess had asked each of them if they could only listen to the music of three artists for the rest of their lives what would it be. Lane had quickly said Frank Sinatra, the Beatles, and she floundered trying to think of a woman when Ben said Peggy Lee. The selections had confused Jess. "I thought your favorite song was Heartbreak Hotel by Elvis." She'd said and Lane laughed, it was true that she loved Heartbreak Hotel, just not enough to pull Elvis into the top 3.
It was a long drive. Lane sent a broadcast text to the Parker kids. Jess had called her the evening before to say they were safe and sound and had stopped in Amarillo for the night. But, they'd talked before she and Ben had made the decision to for to Saint Louis, so she wanted to be sure the kids knew where she was and had a vague outline of what was happening. Since she didn't know who might be driving, she sent the text to all three knowing that the software on the phones would allow them to read, but prevent them from texting if the car was in motion she didn't expect a response until later.
Lane hated when people travelled in the car with someone and made "private" calls. It seemed rude. If a call came that, a person could take over the blue tooth or over the speaker in the car that was another thing. But, her phone wasn't paired to Ben's Navigator.
She didn't need to be entertained, but she was curious about Ben's pensive mood. Since he didn't seem like he wanted to talk, she asked if he'd mind if she read. He'd told her to go ahead.
He was still vacillating between thinking about Lane moaning in her sleep, wondering why they’d never dated, and trying to shake himself out of the fantasy before he'd have to stay in the car when they got to the next rest stop or embarrass himself with the erection that he couldn't seem to lose for very long. Now that she wasn't trying to make conversation, matters only seemed worse. Too much time to think and now Peggy Lee had started singing Fever. He turned off the stereo. They were nearing Saint Louis and the Wright City rest stop was just a few miles ahead. He needed some space and fresh air.
"There's a rest stop ahead. I need a pit stop, how about you?" he watched as she stretched, ran her hands through her long red hair, and smiled. God she was killing him.
"I could stand to stretch my legs. If there's a soda machine I could use a new drink too."
As he pulled into a parking space, he told her to go ahead that he wanted to make a call. Sure, he wanted to check in with Tanner, but he needed a minute to get himself under control. Watching her ass as she walked away wasn't helping. Lane was five feet ten inches tall and weighed about 175lbs. She had curves in all of the right places. He took a gulp of the now very cold coffee and got out of the SUV before calling Tanner to get a location for meeting him. He walked into the men's room, ran water over his hands, and splashed a bit on his face before he used the facilities.
He came out to find Lane at the vending machine engaged in a discussion with some strange guy wearing boots and a cowboy hat of all things. He scanned the parking lot, must be a trucker he thought as he approached. Lane was giggling. WTF giggling. She'd taken off her sunglasses and was looking at this guy in a way that he couldn't put words around, but he knew he didn't like it. No, he didn't like this guy at all. He put his left hand proprietarily in the small of her back as he joined them. She looked up at him and smiled.
"Fish, this is my friend Ben Bellini. Ben, this is Fish Tucker." The men shook hands. "Fish is an old friend that I haven't seen since college."
Since college, that was the easiest way to explain. Fish had been the key board player in the band with her first husband. Fish was still in the music business playing keyboards for a country singer's backup band. He was on his way to a gig in Saint Louis. They'd just traded cards with e-mail addresses and cell phones as Ben had approached.
"Nice meeting you, man. Take care of Red." Fish said as he walked toward the waiting tour bus.
Lane held two bottles of Diet Coke and smiled as she looked up into Ben’s face. "I got one for you too." She said as she offered one of the sodas to him. She was still smiling and he was pretty sure it had nothing to do with him.
Ben unlocked the SUV and opened her door. He walked around to the driver's door shaking his head. He was going to have to sort this out soon. He was feeling like a jealous teenager. He got in and as he started the engine, he looked at her. "So you know Fish from college?"
"Well, sort of." She hesitated. "You know I'm divorced from the Kids' dad. But, I was married before I married Phillip. I got married the first time when I was still in college." She took a drink of her soda. It wasn't something she meant to keep a secret; it was just something she didn't like to think about. Ben hadn't put the car in gear. He just sat there looking at her. Those hazel eyes looking dark, like melted Hershey's Kisses.
"Are you telling me you were married to Fish Tucker?"
She looked out the window. "No. Fish played keyboards for the band. I married the lead singer & guitarist." She looked back at Ben. "His name was Gus. He was gorgeous, bigger than life, you know. The band cut an album even got some air play on the local radio stations in Omaha." She took another drink. Why was Ben just staring at her? "They went out on a three month tour and when they came back," she sighed, "God, this is so hard." She looked out the window again.