“Monsoons should wash it away,” Casey patted my shoulder as we dumped the buckets out and refilled them with fresh water from the hose.
“Here’s to hoping. Is Chase okay, he was pretty shaken up?”
“Yes. I don’t know his backstory yet. Believe it or not, he’s best friends with my best friend’s son. Strange circle we’re in, but David, his best friend, has given me glimpses into Chase. That boy brings out the protective Daddy in me.” Enough said. His boy’s past definitely wasn’t all rainbows and sunshine, not that most of them were anymore.
I got the feeling that Casey would be the perfect Daddy for Chase. His calm demeanor was exactly what Chase needed.
I checked the temp on the pizza oven, which was where we needed it. “Let’s go salvage what we can of dinner. Thank fuck the salad was in the fridge.” At least I hoped it still was…
We walked into a mostly clean kitchen and never had I been more thankful than I was right then for having opted for full-height cabinets that butted up against the ceiling when I did the remodel. Otherwise, I’d be on a ladder cleaning the tops off for days.
“Thanks guys, I appreciate the help.” Note to self, send these Daddy’s a thank you gift.
“Hey, our boy was in on it too. The cake is in the freezer, ready to decorate the pizzas?” Mitchell did his best to bring things back around to the party. Glad one of us was focused.
“Yes. Jamie,” his blue eyes met mine. “Come over and decorate our pizza, but please do not touch the other two.” I put the sauce and cheese on first because I wasn’t about to deal with that potential disaster.
“Henry, Chase, come on over and do yours.” Chase glanced at his daddy and Casey nodded and sweetly smiled. I was happy for my friend and though he might have hiswork cut out for him, Chase will make a perfect boy once he learns to let go. Together they will work past their traumas and challenges, but either way my mischievous boy had a new friend.
With minimal topping casualties, the boys decorated the pizzas. While Casey and I manned the pizza oven, Jensen and Mitchell took care of the rest. When we brought the pizzas inside the boys were seated and had their juice boxes.
The boys didn’t say a word as they ate. Henry and Jamie likely didn’t enjoy the timeout but hopefully learned their lesson. Once they were full and wiped off, it was time for them to play while we dealt with the leftovers. “Why don’t you boys go into the playroom while we get the kitchen cleaned up.”
“Okay, Daddy. Thank you for dinner. I’m sorry I was naughty.” Jamie kissed my cheek and skipped off. Clearly trying to get me to forget the whole event, and given it was his birthday, he may get away with nothing more than a warning.
Maybe.
“Cake and present time?” Jensen asked.
“Should we give them anymore sugar?” Mitchell had a point.
“Good call, but given it’s Jamie’s birthday, and I get the feeling it’s his first birthday party, I hate for him to miss such an important part.” I pulled the cake from the fridge and put the candle on it. “You want to grab them, Casey?”
As soon as Jamie appeared, we broke into the familiar song.
“Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Jamie. Happy birthday to you.”
His eyes were wide as saucers, and he clapped when we were done. “Thank you!”
“Make a wish and blow out the candles.” I stood nearby just in case…
Jamie closed his eyes and scrunched his face, then blew hard. As soon as it went out, we cheered. “Okay, Jamie, open your presents while we cut the cake.” The boys were enthralled with that, which gave us time to get the cake served. Jamie got a racetrack from Henry, no surprise there, and a gift card from Casey and Chase for an online toy store. He was ecstatic.
“Thank you, everyone. Cake with ice cream in it. I’ve never had that before.” Jamie was so excited. “So nummy, nummy,” before he got to his third nummy, he slapped his forehead. “Owie, owie, owie. Ice cream headrush. Bad ice cream.”
“Slow it down, Jamie.” I got that he was excited, but brain freezes were painful.
With full bellies the boys were sluggish and decided to play with the toys in lieu of swimming.
“Do you hear that?” Mitchell held his hand to his ear as the four of us finally got to sit down. I don’t know about them, but I was worn out. How did parents do large parties with lots of kids? Likely with a heavy dose of alcohol.
“I don’t hear anything.” Having said the words aloud triggered my Daddy radar.
“Exactly.” As one, the four of us went straight to the playroom where we found all three boys sound asleep on the floor.
“I better get Chase home. He’s got band practice in the morning.”
“Ah, I thought I recognized him.” Chase was the frontman for a Vegas band called Embrace the Fear. I was a big fan of their music.
