“Hug me like your life depends on it,” he told her.
“Excuse me?” Holly was surprised that his voice was so clear then she realized there was a speaker system in the helmets.
“Unless you want to fall off,” Molson warned her as the bike roared to life.
Holly frantically grabbed him, ignoring his laughter in her ear as he pulled away from the parking lot. It was a short drive, leaving her both relieved and disappointed.
“You first, Beautiful,” Molson took off his helmet.
“Oh,” Holly quickly peeled her hands off him, awkwardly getting off the motorcycle. She pulled off her own helmet, hoping her hair didn’t look that bad.
“Did you like it?” Molson stowed the helmets away.
“I’m reserving judgement,” Holly said breathlessly. Whether it was from the ride or being in such close proximity to Molson, she didn’t know. “Where are we?”
“Come on,” he took her hand, pulling her toward the back door of a building. Knocking, Molson waited until a man in an apron opened it. “Pedro.”
“Molson,” Pedro greeted him. “I’ll have your stuff in a minute. Who’s the lady?”
“Holly meet Pedro,” Molson introduced them. “Pedro volunteers here at the soup kitchen. Holly is helping me out tonight. Maybe with an extra set of hands, I won’t need to make two trips.”
“Smart thinking,” Pedro nodded. He propped the door open then disappeared only to return with a pull cart, stacked with Styrofoam containers. “I can get the second cart ready in a jiffy.”
“Thanks,” Molson carefully maneuvered the cart out the door and down the step.
“What is this?” Holly stepped in to help him.
“Soup. Smells like tomato today,” Molson sniffed. He pulled out a container, popping it open. “Yup, tomato.”
“Why is he giving you… there must be nearly a hundred containers of soup here,” Holly estimated.
Molson replaced the lid and put the container back in the wire cart. “Seventy-five in each cart. I bring around two carts. Plus, luncheon packs.”
Holly frowned, confused. She was about to ask another question when Pedro reappeared with a large tote, handing it to Molson.
“Cheese and crackers. Chocolate spread and breadsticks,” he informed them, before helping to haul another cart out the door and down the step. Grabbing a second tote, Pedro put it on top of the cart. “You sure this little lady can handle the weight of the cart?”
“We’ll find out,” Molson stacked both totes on top of his cart. “Thanks Pedro.”
“No problem,” he gave them a friendly wave before returning to the kitchen, shutting the door after himself.
“What are you going to do with all this food?” Holly questioned.
“Hand it out,” Molson tugged his cart along. “Come on.”
Unsure, Holly pulled on her cart, following him. It was pretty heavy, and she was glad that she was physically fit because otherwise she never would be able to pull it along. She was also glad she didn’t have either of the totes to haul or the duffle bag that Molson had brought along.
“You gonna be okay? It’s not too heavy?” Molson asked her partway into the second block. “I might be able to put another layer of soup in my cart if I’m real careful about it.”
“No, I’m good,” Holly puffed beside him. “Where are we going?”
“A few more blocks and then we start down near the laundromat,” he told her.
“Start what?” Holly tried to regulate her breathing and wished she’d done a little more strength training at the gym instead of all that cardo. “Giving away the soup?”
“You’ll see,” Molson gave her a smile. “You’re stronger than you look.”
“Is that a compliment?” she pulled a little harder over a rough spot in the sidewalk.
