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.
He ignored the ache in his stomach and quickly cleaned up his feet so as not to track the remains of their food fight through the rest of the cabin.
“You mind if I give you a lift to the bathroom?” he asked, remembering how Jacoby had cried out earlier when he’d touched him. He didn’t even want to think about where that reaction came from. “We need to keep the mess here in the kitchen.”
“You mean like a piggyback ride?”
Justin shrugged. “Sure, if you want.”
The kid smiled and the ache eased a little. Justin refused to think about why as he hoisted Jacoby onto his back.
“And then Gina cleaned up the living room,” Jacoby said before shoving a ketchup-drowned French fry into his mouth. “It needed it, too. The place was a mess.”
“Hey!” Justin protested as his sister grinned.
Racy sat next to the kid and