Page 31 of Road Trip
“Tired?” I asked.
She nodded and then yawned loudly. “Oops! I guess everything caught up to me. I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s fine. Are you sure you’re up to driving to Anaheim?”
We’d made a reservation using her iPhone and left instructions that we would be in late.
“You want to drive? I’m okay, but if you don’t mind, it would probably be safer.”
“Are you kidding? I’d love to drive your car.” I laughed.
She smiled up at me and then stopped walking.
“What’s wrong, Abra?”
She took a deep breath and let it out. Her smile was gone and in its place was that fearful expression. “You sure you want me to come along? I can take you to a car rental place, or the airport. I just don’t want you to feel like you’re stuck with me.”
Where did that come from?
“I want to be with you. If I wasn’t with you, I’d probably just be holed up in a hotel room in Bakersfield having unproductive thoughts and going out of my mind. I can’t go home. I don’twantto go home. I’m having the time of my life with you. Stay with me, Abra.” I pulled her to me and kissed her gently, searching her eyes.
She frowned up at me. “I’m sorry, but why, Kelly? You’re so young.”
“Young? Am I too young, is what you’re wondering? Let’s get it out of the way now. Does it bother you?” Truth time.
She paused for a moment and thought about it. We’d reached her car, but the traffic was barely crawling to get out of the park. She led me over to a park bench nearby and pulled me close to her to sit down.
She blew out a breath before she spoke. “I have to admit that I wondered, like you knowing I’m so much older would make you lose interest. I also wonder if we’re even compatible, or like looking for the same things.”
I knew how I felt, but that was me. I saw something, I wanted it, and I pursued it relentlessly until I had it. But she didn’t know that yet. She was going to learn if she kept this pulling away act up.
“Your age only matters to me if you have an issue with it. I think you have your stuff together and that is incredibly attractive to me. You know what you want, and you aren’t afraid to tell me. That’s it. That’s as far as I think about your age.”
She was quiet after I spoke. Eventually she leaned her head against my shoulder.
“Kelly?”
“Hmmm?”
“Kelly, will you take me to bed? I want this night to continue to be perfect. Please get us to Anaheim and to a bed and let’s—”
“Let’s get you there and comfortable and get you some sleep. We’ve got all the time in the world.” The fact that she seemed unsure and then wanted to talk about having sex again gave me pause. This back and forth with her was confusing as heck.
We got in the car, she handed me the keys and then, once she was sure I knew where I was going, she reclined her seat. I could hear her quiet little snore start up before we were even out of the park. She’d put her GPS on for me on her phone, and I saw a message pop up from Stevie.
He is so adorable, Abey! Have so much fun. You guys look so cute together! I hope we see you in Vegas! Muah!
So I’m adorable? Good grief! I wonder if that’s what Abra thinks.
I spent the next hour driving and thinking about everything we’d shared and experienced with each other over the past twenty-four hours. I was shocked at how comfortable I felt with her despite my situation. It was still there. I knew eventually I’d need to go home and back to work. But not yet. I wanted this to continue. I started thinking about how much fun we could have at Pacific Playland together; as long as she would continue with her enthusiastic take on our adventure. I even thought about Vegas. Would she want me to go with her? Would she let me treat her to a good time there? I had more money than I knew what to do with it. The only thing I spent money on was my house and my car. I had no debt other than that and a huge savings and investments to boot. I wanted to take care of her. I wanted her, wanted to make love to her, wanted…
I was sitting in the check-in lane at The Grand Pacific and had no idea how long I’d been parked there lost in my thoughts when a valet came up and gently tapped on the window. I held up a finger as Abra started to stir.
“Hey, we’re here,” I said quietly.
She sat up and stretched, her already short top rising up to show off more of her smooth skin. She must have caught my thinking because her smile turned sly.
“Get us checked in, Farm Boy. I want to get naked with you.”
