Jan finished packing the car just before dinner. She had wanted to get on the road long before now, before traffic got so heavy. There was nothing she could do about it now, she thought as she slammed the trunk shut.

She got in the car and backed out of the driveway. This was one road trip she was looking forward to. It had been so long since she had had any 'me' time. A week at the beach was just what she needed. She had been saving for this trip for a long time. She rented a condo right on the beachfront, and would practically have the whole place to herself, since it was the off-season.

The drive would be around five to six hours, but she was ok with that. Jan loved to make long road trips alone. It gave her a chance to really think about things, and listen to all her favorite music. Her kids liked what she listened to, but her ' soon to be ex husband ' hated it. All he listened to was Beatles, Paul McCartney, etc. Since they still lived together, by no idea of hers, she had to put up with his music from time to time when they rode in the car.

Jan roared out on the open interstate, cruising at 65 mph. She slapped in her favorite 'Staind' cd, and began to sing along with her favorite song, 'It's been awhile.'

The lyrics to the song sounded so much like her life. Everything fucked up. Well except for her kids. Other than her children in her life, everything else just seemed to screw up. She and her husband had been 'separated' for over 18 months. In that time, she had managed to meet a few guys, a couple of which she thought might be 'the one.' Not many women wanted to get started with another relationship so soon after a failed one, but Jan hated being alone. She wanted a man to sleep with his arms around her, make love to her, and be there when she woke up. She wanted someone she could be crazy about, and he in return about her.

Just as soon as the thought popped into her head, she quickly dismissed it. Never would she find anyone who would be so readily interested in a 'ready made family' with 4 kids. Oh well. Their happiness came before hers. She would never think of giving up any of her kids just to be happy for herself.

So in the meantime, there was that one little urge that human nature gave us. Although casual sex turned her immensely off, every now and then, she would give in to her urges, and go and meet someone just for that sole purpose. There wasn't many, and Jan would never give herself to a total stranger. She had to know them for a little while first, and even grew a friendship before she agreed to go through with anything pertaining to that. But usually it was only one time, and she felt terribly used and dissatisfied after the act.

But yet she kept doing it. Maybe it was her age. She was fast approaching 40 years of age, and she had heard that women reached their sexual peak at that age. She chuckled softly to herself. If 40was the age for women, then the men of the world should run now while they could.

She reached down and cranked up the stereo when 'Creed' came on singing 'What's this life for?' So many songs to remind her of her life. Was this some sort of sign? She shook her head laughing, and then noticed the red lights flashing in her rear view mirror. It was getting dark, and she saw them flickering in the distance, maybe a quarter mile behind her. She pulled to the far right hand lane to give the vehicle enough room to pass her to get to the emergency he was enroute to. But instead of passing her by, he pulled in behind her and sounded his siren, signaling for her to pull over.

Jan stared in disbelief, wondering why the officer was summoning her. She checked her speed, and found she was only slightly over the limit, not enough for all the commotion.

Jan pulled the car slowly to the far side of the road. The officer stayed right with her. This was a nightmare. She had never been pulled over her entire life. She always obeyed all the laws of the highway, never really even breaking speed. She waited silently while the officer made his way cautiously to her car. She had her window down, and her hands placed on the wheel of the car to await him. She had heard that police officers get really upset with you if you reach toward your glove box before they ask you for your license, and other information.

"Good evening maam," said the officer. He shined his flashlight in the car, temporarily blinding her. "I'm sorry to inconvenience you like this, but could you please step out of the vehicle?" The highway was sparsely occupied at this time of the night. Jan didn't say a word, but opened her car door, and got out. She faced the officer, not knowing which locality he was from. She wasn't really even sure where she was.

He was tall, broad shouldered, muscular. She guessed his age to be somewhere in his late 20's. She couldn't tell much of anything else, as if was completely dark now, except for the headlights from his patrol car.

"Maam, do you know why I pulled you over?" he said. "No officer, I don't. I'm on my way to Virginia Beach for vacation, and I might have been speeding a little, not really paying attention," said Jan. He looked at her thoughtfully, still shining the flashlight, but not directly into her eyes. "Maam, we have a description of a car used in a robbery tonight, just a few miles from here. Your car fits that description." Jan's eyes opened wide with disbelief. Her mouth dropped open. "Surely you must be kidding," said Jan "I'm only passing through, from Roanoke."

The officer reached gently for her arm. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to step to the patrol car," said the officer. "I'll need to get some information from you." Jan was fuming. She was sick of this young cop calling her 'maam' and she felt her rights were being violated. Where was that 'innocent until proven guilty' thing?

She complied with the officer's orders. She reached in her car for her purse, and followed him back to the squad car. He opened the door for her, and deposited her on the passenger seat. Then he went around to the driver's side, and got in.

It was deathly quiet in the cabin, and a bit too chilly. He had the air conditioning on full blast, and it made her quite uncomfortable. She shivered. He noticed her discomfort, and reached to turn the cold air off.

She handed him her license, and registration for his inspection. He nodded his head to her, and proceeded to call the dispatcher on the radio to relay her information.

While he was speaking, she did a little inspecting of her own. She looked him up and down, admiring the way he looked in his official uniform. He looked starched, clean- shaven, and he damn sure smelled nice. Hair was blonde/brown, not too short. Nice face too.

She discovered that her tongue had crept to the corner of her mouth while staring, and quickly looked away before he could catch her.

At that moment, he replaced his two-way radio, and looked over at her. "Well maam, it seems I made a mistake. The car we were looking for had New York license plates on it, and not Virginia. I'm terribly sorry for any inconvenience. You're free to go."

Jan stared at the officer, but instead of getting angry for all the embarrassment he'd caused her, she smiled at him. He got out of the squad car, and walked around to her side to let her out.