When I hang up the phone, I take a sip of my coffee, then set my mug on the counter.
I need to wake Nora up. That kid isnotan early riser. It doesn’t even matter how early she goes to bed. There’s no amount ofsleep that makes her an early bird. I can’t wait to see what she’s like in the summer when she can wake up on her own and not have to be woken up at a set time.
Maybe it’ll continue then. Maybe she’s always half zombie in the mornings. My lips curve into a smile at the thought.
I knock on her bedroom door, and when all I get is a grumble, I push it open a little. “Nor?”
Another groan sounds from the bed—this one far more annoyed. “Hey, it’s time to get up.”
She’s tucked in completely, her comforter covering her entire head, and when I step into the room and say her name again, she huffs, rolling over dramatically onto her other side.
I can’t help but chuckle. “Rise and shine, princess. Austin and Luca are gonna take you out for breakfast.”
That gets a reaction out of her. She sits up, her hair a mess like she’s been electrocuted. “Why?”
I’m not sure how much to tell her. She shares a wall with Salem, so I know she had to have heard their fight last night. I did, and I was all the way across the house. I decide to go with honesty. “Salem and Arlo need to have a nice talk, and I figured you might want to go get breakfast while they do.”
She rolls her eyes. “Are they gonna start yelling again?”
God, I hope not. “I’ll do my best to make sure they don’t,” I say, winking at her.
Yawning, she stretches her arms above her head. “Alright. Fine. Where are we getting breakfast?”
“They’re gonna take you to the diner Arlo works at.”
That gets her attention. “What do they have to eat?”
“All kinds of stuff.” I sit down on the edge of her bed. “You should ask Deb, Austin’s mom, to make her special pancakes for you.”
Her nose wrinkles. “I don’t think I want pancakes.”
I grin. “What do you want?”
“Scrambled eggs and toast. Do they have that?”
I’m pretty sure if they didn’t, they’d still make it just for her. “They do indeed.”
“Ugh. Okay, fine. I’ll get up.”
“Atta girl.” Standing up, I walk toward the door. “Austin and Luca will be on their way soon, okay?”
“Okay,” she says, yawning again.
“I’m gonna head back into the kitchen and finish my coffee.”
She shoots me a thumbs-up. She seems a little more awake than she usually is after first waking up, and I can’t help but think it’s probably the promise of breakfast.
When I get back into the kitchen, Arlo is standing at the counter, bleary-eyed as he reaches for a mug in the cabinet.
“Good morning, baby boy.”
He groans. “It’s morning. Not sure I’d call it good.”
My lips twitch. At least I know where Nora gets it from.
He closes his eyes, breathing in deeply through his nose. “I’m gonna pour my coffee and go wake Salem up.”
I shake my head, stepping up behind him and wrapping my arm around him. “I think you should wait.”
