Page 16 of Holley Jolly Biker

After I got Soraya in the car and buckled up, he looked down at me, winked, and then handed the Barbie in Swan Lake doll to Soraya.

She smiled. Huge. Then said, “Thank you, Mr. Saint.”

He chuckled, “Just Saint, princess.”

And with that, he placed my bags in my trunk after I popped it open, and then he closed it and looked at me.

I smiled and said, “Thank you.”

He looked at me one last time, jerked up his chin, and then, just like that, he walked down the street and climbed on a big black motorcycle.

Yes, I watched him walk away.

Same as a few women who were walking by as well.

And that was when a woman in a long black dress stepped out of the door of Granger’s General store.

My eyes had been on the man who was climbing on a big black motorcycle.

Therefore, I missed it.

However, the woman in the long black dress had a smile on her face as she disappeared.

Chapter 4

Ophelia

The moment we pulled into the driveway, Mr. and Mrs. Robbins headed out of their house.

I climbed out of my car and said, “I’m so sorry. We’re running late.”

That was when Soraya, who had unbuckled herself, opened her door and said, “We met Mr. Saint. But he told me it was just Saint. So, Monnie can’t yell at me for being disrespectful. Did you know he’s six foot two? Did you know his favorite superhero is the Hulk? He looks like a Hulk. And... and... he got me this.” And that was when she took in a deep breath and held up her Barbie doll for them to see.

Mr. Robbins looked at me and lifted a brow, a twinkle in his eye, and asked, “You met Saint. Huh?”

I narrowed my eyes at him, but Mrs. Robbins slapped him in the gut with the back of her hand, “Hush you. We can grill her later. Right now, our little Soraya girl has something she wants us to see.”

At her words about grilling me, I groaned.

Which caused both of them to laugh.

After they had seen Soraya’s doll, we unloaded the trunk, brought the tree in, and with an old record player I had scored at a garage sale last week and a Christmas vinyl record, we decorated our tree.

Of course, I popped popcorn, and we made a garland out of it.

It was as we were putting the final touches on the tree that Mrs. Robbins asked, “So, what did you think about him?”

I looked at the red glass ornament and sighed, “He was nice.”

I felt Mrs. Robbins’s eyes on me, and then I sighed.

We may not have lived here long, but I knew Mrs. Robbins wasn’t going to let this go.

“He told me that he had watched some punk jip me a tip. Figured that had I gotten that tip, I would have been able to get Soraya that doll.”

“Which is true. I’ve never seen a better mother than you, dearie.” Mrs. Robbins told me.

And for the second time that day, I felt tears well in my eyes.