who is the blonde at the

talk about going into hiding...a gas station in the middle of nowhere.

Yes, the girl at the gas station was eye candy at the very least, and yes, I do believe that she's just one "comeback representation" of the idealized girlfriend whom he lost on a California beach a fe years ago. She may have been the first and last true love of his life, and that's why the imprint of his memory of her is so deep and constantly haunting his subconscious.

She reminded me so much of a very young (and very blonde!) Diane Lane that I felt the urge to check the list of the cast to check that impression. No, she is not Diane Lane, a stunningly well preserved middle-aged actress - and despite this, I was overestimating her age. Anyway, born in 1965, she was ... errr.... 6-y-old when the movie was made (gulp).
But that being said, check her well the next time you watch VP: she definitely has features (eyes, mouth, especially) and especially mannerisms and facial expressions that are diagnostic of Ladd's. Eerie !