Page 1 of Frosty the Biker

“Hey Mom!” I shouted down the hall. “I’m heading over to Dalton’s—he’s picking me up. I’ll be home by dinner.”

“Okay, baby. Remember, if y’all drink you call me. I’ll pick the two of you up!” she called back, and I heard the slosh of the water in her tub where I knew she was soaking away the busy day.

With a smile, I rolled my eyes. I was almost twenty-three years old and had graduated college, but my mom was forever a mom and I’d always be her “baby.”

“No problem, Mom!” I promised before opening the door. As I stepped out onto the balcony, Holly was trying to juggle groceries, hold onto her two-year-old son, and unlock her door.

With all the bags over her arms and the key in her one hand, she was struggling to keep from dropping everything. I scooped up the little boy. “Hey, Daniel,” I greeted with a tickle to his pudgy little belly. He squealed with laughter and his dark ringlets bounced. His mother shot me a grateful smile as she unlocked the door.

Holly was barely older than me and had been renting one of the five apartments above my mom’s hardware store since Daniel was about six months old. The one she rented was on the third floor with ours, the other three were on the second floor. I’d babysat for her on many occasions during breaks and over the summer.

“Thank you,” she said with a sigh. “He’s been trying my patience all day.”

“No problem.” I set him on his feet and kissed the top of his little head in time for him to dart off to his room.

“Congratulations on your graduation,” she offered with a tired grin.

“How are you doing?” I asked, knowing she’d been taking online classes with the community college.

She shrugged. “Slow, but sure. I still have two semesters before I graduate. It’s only an associate’s degree, but one day I’ll finish.” Her cheeks turned pink.

“No, it’s notonlyan associate’s degree,” I gently chastised with a frown. “It’s a damn fine accomplishment. You’re working full-time, you’re a single mom, and you’re going to school. I think it’s incredibly admirable.”

“You’re too sweet, Ryian.” Her blush deepened.

I snorted. “I’m definitely not sweet. I’m a realist and I’m simply telling you the truth. I think you’re doing an amazing job.”

“Thanks to your mom,” she softly added.

“Hey, she loves having company across the hall,” I joked.

“We all know she could rent these apartments for at least five times what she charges us. We’re in the French Quarter with off-street parking. These apartments are prime real estate,” she argued as she propped her fists on her hips.

It was my turn to shrug. “The building is paid for, and she makes enough to live comfortably. What she does by renting to you guys fulfills her.”

“Well, there’s no amount of thanks I could offer that would be enough.”

I smiled. “You being able to have a safe home and better yourself means more to her.”

Her eyes watered and she blinked quickly.

Wanting to let her put her groceries away, I stepped back toward the door.

“I’ll be seeing you around,” I told her with a wave.

As I went down the stairs, I couldn’t help the smile that stretched across my face. Knowing I’d be seeing Dalton again did that to me though.

Dalton and I had been dating off and on since we were fourteen. We broke up at least once every six months back then. We were kids after all and very emotionally immature. We didn’t truly know how to navigate a relationship.

My entire senior year everything was amazing. He had graduated the year before me and he worked at Chambers, the local grocery store. The owners, Bob and Justin Chambers, really liked him and Bob had hinted at him working his way up to a shift supervisor position.

Then I graduated. When I left for college, things started to go downhill. We were both mentally and physically exhausted—me from school, him from working a lot of overtime hours with more responsibility. Our communication became sporadic due to our schedules. Tempers grew short.

We broke up after the first month I was there because he thought it was better for me. He thought he would be holding me back from life. Little did he understand, he was my life. I was sure he had met someone else, though he denied it.

The rest of the year was miserable, but I buried myself in my books and studied my ass off. I dated a few guys, but there weren’t any real sparks with them, and one hated that I rarely wanted to go out because I would rather study.

Over the summer between freshman year and my sophomore year, I went home. Like magnets, Dalton and I were drawn to each other again.

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