It was his eyes. The clear blue that sparkled like the purest ocean water. Cerulean pools that filled her insides with warmth and safety. But could also be the low brim of the baseball cap that he wore every day? His loose brown curls now sat mushed against the top of his head. Later in the day, sweat would build under the dusty red cap. Or maybe it was the scruff of his beard and mustache that would brush against her cheek when he greeted her with a smile and hug.

It was all of it. It was a trickle effect of all those things coming together to make her feel those fluttering butterflies in the pit of her stomach or the clammy sweat that covered her palms. But he was her brother’s best friend. And she was nearly a decade younger. He would never look her way.

“You got your poles ready, Sarah?” her brother’s voice thundered through her daydreams, ripping away her attention from Josh. She looked away from the culprit of her faraway look and faced her brother, Brian.

“Yeah, they’ve been on the truck since last night. We’re just waiting on your sorry behind,” she called back, sticking out her tongue when he quickly flipped her off.

“You two are so mature,” Josh’s smooth voice washed over like silk. She felt her mouth go dry and her lips felt cracked when she mustered a small smile.

“We are two adults that like to bicker, play fight, and occasionally throw each other in the mud,” she shrugged, trying to seem cool, calm, and collected. But inside, she was crumbling like a dry cookie. In just a few short minutes, the group of eight would be heading off for a long weekend camping trip. The camping grounds were about two hours away, and she’d been volunteered to drive with him.

“That’s completely normal, for sure,” she could see the crinkles around his eyes from behind his shades. It made her weak in the knees every time. He resembled a little boy when he smiled and she just wanted to take him into her arms whenever he did.

It took Brian and his girlfriend another thirty minutes before they emerged from the house ready to hit the road. They would get there after dark now, super. She hated driving at night since a few years back when she’s struck a deer in the road.

“Hand over the keys, Sarah,” Josh held out his hands as he walked towards the driver’s side of her Jeep Wrangler. Her hands flew to her hips and she was ready to argue that no one drove Rory.

“I’ll be nice and gentle with Rory, come on. It’s gonna get dark so I’ll drive,” he argued, but there was a calming tone to his voice. Sarah looked to Brian and everyone else and she knew that he was right. He ought to drive. She preferred he drove. Sighing, she tossed him the keys to her beloved car.

The doors had been taken out and the top was off. It would just be them and the open road, with the wind whipping around them. It would be a glorious drive to the mountains. She prayed she wouldn’t suffer a panic attack from being this close to him and having to act nonchalant. Did he know how she felt about him? Could it be possible? She wasn’t sure how well she’d played off the cool card. Maybe she hadn’t. Dear Lord, could he read her?

“Let’s hit the road!” came the excited shout from the front of their caravan. Everyone scattered to their cars and they were off. Josh tossed her a spare cap and she looked at him questionably.

“For your hair,” he explained, buckling himself in and making Rory’s engine purr. “ahh, I miss my Jeep.”

“Just love her and she’ll love you,” Sarah  kidded, stroking the dashboard to her baby. He glanced and smiled at her. She melted.