A Daddy for Jacoby(18)

Smiling, Justin reached toward the egg carton. “It means using fresh ingredients instead of premade. Here, ever crack one of these?”

Jacoby nodded and grabbed for the two brown eggs. Both shells shattered from the boy’s overzealous grip and egg sprayed onto the edge of the counter. Automatic reflexes had Justin reaching out, but the slippery ooze fell through his fingers and the yolks landed on the top of his foot with a one-two splat.

Jacoby let loose with a four-letter curse. Stunned by the boy’s outburst, Justin just stood there. The boy smacked his hand over his mouth and the bright sheen of tears filled his eyes.

“Please don’t be mad,” he pleaded, dropping his hand and clenching a tiny fist to his chest. “I didn’t mean it! I didn’t mean to say that and I didn’t mean to drop— I didn’t! I’m sorry!”

“Hey, slow down—”

“I do this all the time. My mom gets so mad when I make a mess. I’ll clean it up, I promise.”

Jacoby started to scramble down from the step stool. It rocked to one side and Justin reached out to stop him from falling, grabbing him by the arm.

The kid cried out. Justin quickly released him, latching on to the stool instead. He had no idea what was going on, but things were going downhill and fast.

“Jacoby, it’s no big deal. I’m not mad.”

The boy froze in place, then looked up at him. He sniffed. “Are you lying?”

Geez, what had this kid lived through? Justin straightened. “No, I’m not lying.”

Huge tears and a wary disbelief filled the boy’s eyes. Justin had to do something before this situation got out of hand. But what?

“You know, you’re the one who should be mad,” he blurted.

The wariness took over full-time in those small eyes. “Me?”

Justin prayed he was doing the right thing as he reached for the almost-empty flour sifter. Seconds later, the leftovers landed in puffs of white on the boy’s head.

“Sure, you’re the one with flour in his hair.”

“Hey!”

He surprised the kid, that’s for sure. Wiping the inside of the sifter with his fingers, he flicked the dust at the boy’s chest. “And now it’s on your shirt.”

The kid looked down, then grinned. “No fair. Mine was an accident.”

Justin smiled and kicked out an egg-covered foot, his aim on target as a plop of egg yolk landed on Jacoby’s toes. “Oops!”

And just like that, a food fight was born.

Everything on the island was up for grabs including the chopped walnuts and mashed bananas. Pancake ingredients were tossed through the air and although Justin had the height advantage, he made sure the kid got a few direct hits.

Little boy laughter filled the air and Justin was surprised to find himself joining in as he alternated between chasing and allowing himself to be chased around the island. They both slipped a few times on the messy floor, but it wasn’t until he spotted Jacoby eyeing the carton of eggs that he called a halt to the fun.

“Don’t even think about it.” He lifted the carton high overhead.

“Aw, come on!”

Justin placed the eggs on top of the refrigerator. “Yeah, like I’m crazy enough to let you nail me with raw eggs…again.”

The kid’s smile slipped a bit. “I didn’t mean to—”

“I know,” Justin interjected. “It was an accident, that’s all. Stuff happens, ya know?” Jacoby nodded.

“How about we get you in the shower and I’ll clean up here? Then we’ll eat and head into town. I have a few errands to run, including a stop at the Suds Bucket.”

“Where?”

“It’s a place to do laundry.” Justin tossed out the pancake mix and reached for a roll of paper towels. “Don’t you have clothes that need washing?”

Jacoby dropped his head but nodded. “Some.”

“You got anything else that’s clean to change into?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

Justin mentally added new clothes to his ever-growing list. The kid obviously needed them considering the condition of his current outfit, even before the food fight. He added a backpack to the list, too. If anything needed a good washing it was that pillowcase. Or better yet, it should be tossed in the closest trash can.

He thought again about Gina’s list.

Should he take the boy to the local clinic just to make sure there weren’t any health issues? And at seven years old, Jacoby must be in the first grade. Or was it the second? Justin had no idea how long the kid was going to be with him, but he should be in school.