Page 2 of The Biker's Sweet Young Neighbor

She frowns. “Your vest says, Chip.”

Oh, Jesus. How is it even possible I forget that? It’s fucking loony. Jesus. I’m going fucking looney. “Oh, yeah, sorry,” I says, “I… that’s my handle, I mean, my nickname. You can call me Chip if you want but I might start thinking you’re some big biker with a beard.”

She giggles and I feel like an especially stupid asshole. “How are you, Jonah?” she asks.

“God, I hate to…” I just have to be honest, I guess, “I’m really overwhelmed right now. I have to run to the store for the baby and… God, what am I doing. You’re what, seventeen?”

She smiles and says, “I’m nineteen. Come on now, spit it out.”

“I don’t know what the hell I need to get,” I say, “I mean, I need to get baby food and formula, I guess but I don’t know what kind. I ran out of the stuff from the hospital. Oh, God, I need diapers, too. I just. I don’t know what to do. I’m stupid. I should call my mom.”

“Does she live here?”

I shake my head. “God, no. She’s in Iowa.”

“Well, you’re in luck Jonah, and not Chip,” she says, “I may not have a baby but I’m the oldest kid out of seven. I probably changed more diapers than your mom.”

“You’ll help?”

“Of course, I will. Where’s Gilly now?”

“Gilly. I like that.”

“Where is she?”

“In her crib.”

“Okay,” Megan says, “well, we don’t want to leave her alone for very long at all so let’s go to your place right now. I’ll see what you have and we’ll make a list.”

“Oh my God, Megan,” I say, “you’re a lifesaver.” She smiles and closes her door. She walks ahead of me across her lawn and mine and as we reach my front door, I feel like a complete asshole because I spend the whole time getting there staring at her ass.

In my defense, it’s a damned beautiful ass. It’s heart-shaped and the jeans she wears seem pretty perfect for displaying it in a way that makes it even more appealing. “The door’s open,” I say as we reach it.

“You mean it’s unlocked,” she says as she turns the doorknob and steps inside, “now it’s open.”

I shrug. “Okay, I stand corrected.”

“Well stop standing corrected and instead start walking corrected and show me your little girl.”

“Right,” I say. I pass her and she closes the door. God help me, I look at her ass one more time. “This way,” I say and lead her back to Gillian’s room. She seems surprised to see how it’s set up. “Some friends of mine came by and painted it for me while I was in the hospital,” I say.

“It’s beautiful,” she replies as she walks directly to the crib. “Oh, Jonah,” she says, “Gilly is beautiful, too.” She turns to me and says, “and the good news is you won’t need baby food for five or six months, just formula and maybe juice.”

“Juice?”

“Yeah, every now and then. Not every day, but once in a while for dessert.” She sees the look on my face and says, “You don’t have any juice, do you?”

I shake my head, and she says, “Let’s go shopping. I’ll make a list.”

“Oh, you don’t have to—” I begin.

“Nonsense,” she says, “I’m going to go through some essentials and you tell me what you have and don’t have, okay?”

“Okay,” I agree.

“Diapers.”

“I have a few left.”

---