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One
Harper
Mint chocolate chip.
Cherry Garcia.
Cookies and Cream.
Old-fashioned Vanilla.
Butter Pecan.
Her eyes scanned flavor after flavor as she tried to decide which one to pick.It shouldn’t have been such a hard decision.Most people knew exactly what kind of ice cream they wanted when they walked into a shop.So why was it such a struggle for her to pick one?
“Next!”
Harper’s eyes shot up to the person standing behind the counter, waiting for her to place her order.Her skin prickled with anxiety as she stepped forward and parted her lips to speak.
“What can I get for you, young lady?”the older man asked kindly.
She stared up at him for longer than was acceptable.Suddenly, she wished the floor would open up and swallow her whole.Instead of getting a cone, she should have gone to the store and bought a pint of something so she could’ve used self-checkout.It was the best way to avoid speaking to other people.But a pint of ice cream wasn’t the same as having it in a sweet-smelling, crunchy waffle cone.Not even close.Besides, it had been ages since she’d treated herself.And thanks to her new job at the bakery, which was paying her more than she expected, she could afford a little something special.
Thankfully, the older man must have seen the panic on her face because he offered a toothy smile.“You look like you’re having a hard time choosing a flavor.I’d recommend a scoop of the butter pecan along with a scoop of chocolate fudge.”
Her eyes lit up, and she bobbed her head.It was like he’d read her mind.Or her tummy.
“And you look like a waffle cone kind of girl, am I right?”he asked.
“Y-yes.”
Without further conversation, he scooped her cone.When he handed it to her, she thought her eyes might pop right out of her head.It was huge.Probably a pint per scoop.But her mouth watered in anticipation as she held up a five-dollar bill and waited for her change.
She turned to leave, then remembered her manners, so she whirled around and looked the man in the eye.“Thank you.”
He winked at her, and she smiled in return before she made her way out to Main Street.There was a bite in the air, but the sun was shining.It was a beautiful day.Every day had been pretty perfect lately.That’s what happens when you’re finally free to be yourself.But today seemed better for some reason.
After she wove her way among people milling the sidewalks, she pressed the crosswalk button and waited for it to signal.She took her first lick and moaned.Butter pecan.So sweet and creamy.Definitely better than a store-bought pint.She couldn’t remember ever tasting something so delicious.This treating herself thing might have to become a regular occurrence because, yum.
The signal changed, and she stepped off the curb.A roar of motorcycle engines startled her.She was so focused on the delicious mix of butter pecan and chocolate that when one turned right in front of her, she yelped and jumped back.Two more raced by.She kept backing up, but when a fourth sped by, the rider revved the engine so loud it was deafening.She tried to run, but her feet tangled with one another.In slow motion, she went down.Her ice cream cone flew from her hand as she tumbled forward.Her knees landed painfully on the asphalt.Then her hands, which kept her from hitting her face on the ground.
“Ouchie!”she cried when sharp rocks dug into her skin.
Several more motorcycles raced past her, completely ignoring the fact that she’d fallen because of them.
“Move it next time,” one of the men shouted.
Tears had already started falling.Harper was too stunned to move.Her ice cream cone lay several feet away, splattered on the ground.That made her cry more than the scrapes on her hands and knees.Well, until she saw she was bleeding.Blood always made things scarier.And being hurt always brought her Little side to the surface.She needed to keep it together, though.She was in public.The last thing she needed was to make more of a fool of herself than she already had.
“Shit!”a deep voice yelled.
A large man kneeled in front of her.His steel-blue eyes were wide with concern.She sniffled and brushed her tears away with the backs of her hands.
“Hey,” he crooned.“You’re okay.It’s going to be okay.”
His voice soothed her, but then she noticed his leather vest.A biker vest.He was one ofthem.She shrank back, scooting her bottom against the rough ground so she could get away.It didn’t matter how concerned he looked or how handsome he was, she wanted nothing to do with him.
Panic tightened his features, and he held up his hands as though to show her he wasn’t a danger.“I’m not one of them.I’m in the local motorcycle club here in Shadowridge.Those guys are from another town.I’m not going to hurt you.I’m a firefighter paramedic.Please let me help you.”
