Real Love
Copyright© 2025 by DB86
Chapter 2
Dylan stifled a yawn, and then gave his head a shake, trying to ease the sleepiness closing in around him. Having slept in this morning, he’d started late and shouldn’t be tired yet, but it turned out that driving for hours at a stretch was exhausting.
Rover sat up beside him to nudge his arm with a concerned whimper and Dylan smiled faintly. Keeping his eyes on the road ahead, he reached down blindly to pet the border collie. It was as if the dog had a sixth sense when it came to him being sleepy.
“I’m all right,” he assured the dog. “I’m fine. We’re almost there. We should reach Middletown in a couple of hours. They say it’s an idyllic small town. Hopefully, we’ll take some photos we can sell.”
Dylan forced a smile and sat up a little straighter in the driver’s seat as he returned his hand to the wheel.
“A hidden paradise only a few know about,” he continued explaining to his dog.
All of a sudden, he saw what seemed a like naked woman, as she stumbled out of a line of trees, and fell.
Dylan had to slam his brakes on and turn the wheel, to avoid hitting her. Despite pretty much standing on the brake pedal, the vehicle continued forward a good distance before coming to a shuddering halt that sent loose items tumbling out onto the floor.
Jaw tight, Dylan hoped he hadn’t hit her. He glanced into the side mirrors, then the rear camera view as well, but there were no streetlights on this lonely back road and the side mirrors only reflected darkness.
He had to get out and look.
“Probably my eyes are playing tricks on me,” Dylan told to himself.
Pushing the button to ease the driver’s seat back several inches, he stood in the space he’d made and then paused, kept in place by Rover, who had by then stood up and was blocking his way.
“Move, boy,” he ordered, and the dog obeyed at once, trotting toward the door behind the passenger chair. Able to move now, Dylan shifted to the right a few steps and opened the pull-up doors above the front passenger window to retrieve the large flashlight that was stored there.
Flashlight in hand, Dylan moved up behind Rover to reach for the lock on the door. It would have been easier without the dog in the way, but it was a dark, lonely road out there and Dylan was more than happy to let the Rover lead the way.
Not that he was that worried. Of course, he’d heard the stories of RVers getting jacked on lonely stretches of highway and such, but most drivers wouldn’t take this route, they’d stick to the highways. Surely, smart criminals wouldn’t sit around out here for days or weeks on end waiting for that one idiot driver who eschewed the highway for the more scenic route.
“On the other hand, who said criminals were smart?” Dylan asked Rover, as he pushed the door open. The border collie immediately bound down the steps and disappeared into the darkness.
“Rover! Wait for me!” Dylan shouted, rushing down the first two steps, only to pause on the last of the inside steps so that he could turn on the flashlight.
Cool, damp air slapped his face as he stepped down onto the side of the road, but Dylan barely noticed, he was shining his flashlight around in search of his dog. Catching a glimpse of Rover’s tail end disappearing around the back of the RV, Dylan muttered a curse under his breath and moved a bit more swiftly.
“Rover?” Dylan called, as he reached the front of the RV and was startled to hear the slight quaver in his voice.
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