“Christ, I hope that little puke fountain hasn’t eaten yet.” Ronan snorted.
“Hi, Everly,” Kenny sneered, his fuzzy, yellow teeth on full display.
“Hi, Kenny.” Everly offered a sweet smile in return.
“You’re gonna get your booty kicked tomorrow!” Kenny laughed.
“Says who?” Everly asked, her face brightened as she spoke, as if she’d just gotten a valuable piece of information from her gift.
“Says me. I could run backward and I’d still beat you!” Kenny beamed. “I could beat you with one hand tied behind my back.”
Everly’s smile grew bigger. “Great! That will leave you with one free hand to pick your nose, Booger Boy.”
Jude let out a little snort. His shoulders shook as he tried to hold his laugh back. He made the mistake of looking at Ronan, who appeared to be trying just as hard to keep quiet. It wasn’t working.
“Oh, there you are Kenny,” a man approached the table. “I thought we’d lost you.”
“We couldn’t get that lucky!” Ronan whispered, on a wheeze that turned into a cough.
“How are you, Peter?” Fitz asked, shooting Ronan and Jude a warning look. “Looking forward to the color run tomorrow?”
“I’m afraid I’ve got other plans.” Peter wore a triumphant look as if to say his plans were far superior to a charity event for his son’sclass. “I’m on the fast track to becoming a partner at Mahoney & Keller.”
“Oh, so you’ll be out chasing ambulances during the race?” Jude asked. “You people have got a gimmick for everything. Struck in the eye with colored powder during a charity fun run? You deserve compensation! Call the offices of Dickhead & Asshole!”
Peter’s eyes darkened. “While you’re running your ass ragged, I’ll be playing eighteen holes with the senior partners in the medical malpractice department.”
Jude had the perfect comeback for this dumb shit, but held his tongue when Fitz kicked him under the table.
“We have people set up all over the course to shoot video and still pics. I’m sure someone will grab a shot of Kenny digging for nose gold,” Fitz said.
“Great,” Peter said, sounding as if it was anything but. “Send them to my wife, Peggy.” Peter turned to his son, famed projectile vomiter and booger connoisseur, Kenny P. “Say goodbye to your little friend.”
“Bye, Everly.” Kenny flared his nostrils, making him look like the little piggy who went to market. He strode away with his father, while Peggy followed with her nose in the air.
“What a horrible family.” Jude said, when they’d left the food tent.
“With a Dad like that, no wonder Kenny P. eats his boogers.” Everly shook her head and grabbed her fork. “Daddy, I know we had a long talk about the race being for fun and blah, blah, blah, but I need you to help me beat Kenny P. tomorrow.”
“Sure thing,” Ronan snickered. “How about I trip him, so you can cross the finish line first?”
“Or I could push him into a ditch, if you think that would help?” Jude asked. What he’d give to put that little booger snot— pun intended— in his place.
“Thanks, Uncle Jude, but I gotta beat Booger Boy fair and square.”
“We’re all gonna beat him,” Aurora said, sounding sure of herself. “Right, Woofie?”
“Right! Wonder Wolf to the rescue!”
“We’ll discuss strategy later tonight.” Ronan winked at Everly. “Between all of us, I’m sure we can come up with a plan to sink Kenny P’s battleship.”
“Teamwork makes the scheme work, right guys?” Jude asked.
Jude knew as a grown ass man it was his job to rise above elementary school taunting and name callings, but that little snot had gotten under Jude’s skin. Everly was going to cross the finish line ahead of Kenny P. if Jude had to carry her.
5
Ronan
