Page 35 of Single Mom's Navy Seals
“Okay, now we gotta split it. I think we should pick favorites.” Eli exclaims.
“Fair enough,” Jax agrees, nodding. He leans forward, elbows resting casually on his knees, studying the assortment with a thoughtful frown. “Who goes first?”
“Oh! Mommy and I do everything in alphabetical order,” Eli tells us. “I learned my letters really good after I turned four, and Mommy says that can help me keep practicing.
“That sounds like a great plan,” Jax says with a smile. “My name starts with ‘J,’ Cole’s starts with a ‘C’, what does your name start with?”
“‘E!’”
“Good job!” Jax gives him a big thumbs up. “So, we have ‘J,’ ‘C,’ and ‘E.’ What order do we get to go in?”
Eli’s face crinkles as he thinks for a second. “Cole goes first, and I go second, you have to go last, Jax.”
“Nice!” They high-five, and Eli giggles. “Alright, Cole, pick two pieces that are your favorites.”
I scan the pile before snagging a Twix and a Snickers bar. Eli’s eyes widen, clearly torn.
“Oh,” he whispers, glancing anxiously between the candy in my hands and the main small pile. “I like those ones too.”
Jax chuckles, nudging Eli with his elbow. “Well then, I guess you better have ’em, buddy. Cole here is willing to sacrifice his candy.”
Eli looks at me with bright eyes, hopeful but clearly hesitant. “Really, Cole?”
I nod easily, handing him the candy with a smile. “Absolutely. They’re all yours.”
His small face lights up as he takes them, “Thanks!”
We spend the next few minutes dividing the rest of the candy, though both Jax and I readily hand over whatever Eli eyes too long, happy to see his excitement. It’s strange, really—how he’s wormed his way into our hearts. Just two days on the road, and Eli’s already claimed a spot we hadn’t realized was vacant. It unsettles me a little, how easily it happened. But I can’t deny how good it feels.
Finally, the candy is neatly divided into three piles, Eli clearly having made out best. He’s staring at his pile happily as Jax pulls out two additional crumpled plastic bags and starts shoveling individual piles into each bag.
I nudge Eli on his small shoulder. “You should probably give your bag to your mom, Eli. Moms tend to handle that sort of thing.”
He groans, clearly reluctant, but gathers his now bagged candy and scrambles off the bed.
“Okay fine,” he sighs, moving toward the door. He pauses for a moment, turning back to face us with earnest eyes. “You know what?”
“What, bud?” Jax asks, watching Eli curiously.
“I never had friends before,” Eli admits, his voice sincere and vulnerable in a way only a kid can manage. “Or met anybody but Mommy, really. But I’m glad I met you guys. You’re really cool and fun, and Mommy doesn’t look sad all the time now.”
He shrugs then, as if his words were nothing out of the ordinary, before spinning around and skipping out of the room, his small voice already calling eagerly for Ava as he disappears down the hall.
A quiet silence settles between Jax and me, the weight of Eli’s innocent honesty hanging in the air. Jax exhales, rubbing a hand over his face.
“Well, damn.”
“Yeah,” I mutter, rising from the bed. “He’s something else.”
Jax stands up, stretching leisurely. “He sure as hell is. Kid’s gonna have us wrapped around his finger in no time.”
“Be real, he already does.”
15
AVA
Eli sprawls across the bed beside me, crayons scattered around him on the quilt as he draws each horse from memory. His small tongue pokes out from the corner of his mouth, deep in concentration as he chooses the perfect shades of brown and black.
