I carefully moved the kittens to the side and sat up. I felt surprisingly refreshed, but then again, it was already eight and not the six I normally woke up while here.
Since the cats were still in that sleepy space, I picked all three up and carefully took them through the bathroom and put them in bed with Rey.
He didn’t even really wake up, and I quickly made my way into the bathroom and closed his door behind me. Luckily the felines were cooperative and didn’t try to dash after me.
Once I’d done all my morning stuff—including checking my feet for any injuries, because who knew what I’d stepped on out there last night—I got dressed and went downstairs to what the situation was.
River sat at the island, looking bleary-eyed.
“Morning.”
He twitched and blinked at me. “Oh, hi.”
“Want breakfast?”
He glanced at his phone. “Anything you can make in the twenty minutes I have before I need to leave for work would be great.”
“Absolutely. I’ll make something you can either eat here or take with you. I need to check the fridge to see what we have.”
He drained his coffee, then got to his feet. “I’ll go get dressed.”
He got back in ten minutes, which was when my first breakfast burrito was done. “This is a bare-bones one, nothing special, but at least you don’t have to eat it while driving.”
“Oh, awesome, thank you.” He dropped his bag by the island and sat down to enjoy his questionable breakfast.
“It’s nothing special—”
He cut me off with a long moan. Well then.
“So, have you seen anyone else yet this morning?” I asked when I slid a glass of orange juice in front of him.
“No, why?”
I told him about nighttime adventure, and he listened avidly while I made him a coffee to go.
“This was so good.” He finished the burrito, then came to wash his hands in the sink. “Thank you so much.”
“It’s literally my job. Wait until I have the right ingredients for everything.” I winked at him on reflex.
“Sounds awesome.”
“Oh hey, before I forget. I’m going to get groceries today, so I wanted to ask if there’s a treat Rey really likes?”
River looked at me curiously but didn’t ask anything. “Sour candy and plain potato chips.”
“Thanks!”
His expression didn’t change, but he picked up his bag and coffee, then left for work.
I made myself an omelet and started to make breakfast for whomever might get up next.
Lake came from Ruth’s old bedroom around nine-thirty and looked as half-asleep as River had been initially. By then I had my shopping list made and was just waiting to feed people breakfast before I left.
“Coffee and a crappy breakfast burrito?” I asked.
He whined, slumping to sit at one of the dining tables. “I hate late night surprises,” he grumbled.
“Welcome to rescue life, I suppose.”
