“I understand that completely, but she didn’t swear ‘on’ to ladies, either,” Carmen said. “I’ve decided that I’m not feeling sorry for myself anymore. I can do this. I could do it better if a rich old aunt would leave me her rundown house like in the story Tootsie gave me, but since I don’t have a single wealthy person in my family, I’ll have to make it on my own. I’m beginning to think I can.”

“Yes, you can.” And I hope that I’m wrong about another woman because that’ll knock you back into the Ice Age.

Chapter Four

They stopped at a lovely RV park that evening that had a gorgeous, albeit narrow, walking trail around the edge of the bay. Several people were out and about, many of them moving at a much faster speed than Diana, who felt like she was holding them back by stopping to smell the brisk air or pick up a pretty leaf every few feet. So she sat down on a bench and let the majority of them go on by. She was engrossed with watching the sunset—no artist in the world could ever capture the essence of all those swirling oranges, yellows, and pinks radiating out from the orange ball as it slowly dipped down over the far horizon.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Luke said.

She jumped and jerked her head around. “You startled me.”

“Sorry about that. It wasn’t intentional,” he said.

“But yes, it is beautiful with all the colors reflecting in the water. What brought you out tonight? Tired of all the drama?”

“Not so much. Tootsie is in her bedroom with the door shut. I think she talks to Smokey, but if that’s the way she copes, I’m not saying a word. Carmen and Joanie are both reading, so I didn’t want to listen to music and disturb them. But mainly, I just wanted to stretch my legs. Driving all day puts all kinds of kinks in my neck and body,” he said. “And you? Why did you disappear right after supper?”

“I try to take a walk every day,” she answered. “Like you said, riding all day or sitting in front of a computer makes me need to stretch my legs, too.”

“What kind of work do you do?” he asked. “I noticed that you kept pretty busy, and then when we stopped for gas, you took your computer inside to use the Wi-Fi. I’ve got Wi-Fi installed in the motor home if you need to use it, so we’re covered.”

“Thank you so much—I hadn’t even thought to turn my wireless on. That simplifies things a lot. I do insurance work. They send me files. I work on them and send them back. Boring once I learned all the codes, but it’s kept the bills paid the past five years.” She slid a sideways glance at him—just the right amount of scruff to be sexy, but not enough to fill in that cute little chin cleft.

“Five years?” He raised an eyebrow. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to pry. That’s my biggest fault. I’m a computer geek who hasn’t learned social manners.” The streetlamp beside the bench lit up his blue eyes.

“It’s okay,” she told him. “I was already working at this job when I got divorced. My daughter, Rebecca, graduated high school last May, and she, along with Natalie and Zoe, all left for basic training last week. That’s pretty much the story of my whole life. Now that I’ve shown you mine, you can show me yours.” She turned to face him, crossing her legs and sitting on the bench.

“Computer geek pretty much says it all. I graduated high school at sixteen and joined the National Guard at eighteen to help finance the last two years of college. I got my degree at twenty and went to work for a prestigious firm in Houston. Didn’t like having a boss, so I started my own software company. Sold it and made a bundle. Now I’m trying to figure out what I want to do. I’m too young and hyper to do nothing, so I’m thinking of starting up another company after the first of the year,” Luke said.

“How young?” She’d guessed him to be somewhere close to her age. He’d been at Smokey’s funeral, but she’d seen him only in passing. Someone had said that he was Smokey’s nephew, but like Carmen and Joanie, she’d been busy consoling her daughter.

“I’m thirty-one,” he answered. “And you?”

Diana cocked her head to one side. He hadn’t been lying about being socially awkward. “It’s not polite to ask a woman her age.”

“Sorry.” He shrugged.

“I’ll be thirty-nine next month.” And that was entirely too much age difference for her to have felt a little spark when they’d shaken hands earlier that day.

“What day?” Luke asked.

“The fifteenth.”

“I’ll be thirty-two on the twenty-eighth. We should have a celebration.” He stood up. “We’ll probably still be at the cabin, so we can make ice cream, and I’ll bake us a cake. Aunt Tootsie doesn’t do too hot in the kitchen.”

“You cook?” Diana asked.

“If I hadn’t been so into computers, I would’ve probably been a chef. You need to rest some more, or can we walk together? It won’t be long until dark,” he said.

“I’m not that old.” She popped up on her feet and headed on down the path.

“Hey, I’m not calling you old.” Luke fell in beside her on the narrow trail. “Kind of amazed me that y’all all have daughters old enough to enlist in the army. The way Aunt Tootsie and Uncle Smokey talked about y’all, I figured you’d be at least fifty.”

“Well, thank you for that,” Diana said.

“You must’ve all married pretty young,” Luke commented.

“I was nineteen and had a year of medical billing training. Joanie and Carmen were right out of high school,” Diana said. “What about you? Ever been married?”

He shook his head. “Not many women out there who’d love me for who I am rather than what’s in my bank account.”

“That’s sad.” Diana drew in a long breath and let it out slowly so he wouldn’t realize that keeping up with his fast pace was making her pant.

“Here we are.” He pointed at the tent he’d set up when they first arrived. “I’d invite you in for a nightcap, but my space is limited, and I don’t have any liquor.”

“Thank you, but I’d better get on inside. You could come in with me. We have lots of space and liquor, and I bet we could get a rousing game of gin rummy going.” She put a hand on the outside of the motor home to brace herself.