Réponse:
[Drivers who have been drinking] are a menace, he thought. He had to slow down or else. To make things worse, [since the car was making some strange noises], he knew he had to pull over by the roadside to give it a check. [Tom's whiskey], which had given him liquid courage that evening, was also beginning to give him a headache. He had to slow down and take a breather. He stopped the car, got out, took a few steps. He felt like [a man who knows that he has only a limited time to remain among the living and who wishes to take stock of his life]. He had had [a good life after all]: women had always raved about [his good looks], which, of course, pleased him very much. He had [a wide circle of acquaintances] and knew [some big shots, especially Joseph Carter]. Joseph was [a prolific writer of novels, screenplays, short stories, and nonfiction]. He really was [churning them out], [thirty books already], two of which were halfway decent. But [what Joseph wrote] was not that important after all, [it was crap]. As he was lost in thought, smoking a cigarette, alone on [that long stretch of road], John didn't know [what was lying ahead]. It was [an encounter which was to lead to a change in his life]. [Do we ever know the person we're going to fall in love with?] He had not yet seen [the car]. He had just heard [a dog bark at him until someone rolled down a window]. [The woman sitting next to the driver] turned and offered her hand. "I'm Sara Hayden, please jump in."