Noelle felt a pinch guilty for listening in to Jacob and Cole. She knew she'd have to discipline Jacob for doing something she warned him not to do plenty of times, but after hearing Cole try to teach him why made her melt. She thought she had woken up earlier than the two males in the home but she head learned she was last when she stepped out of her bedroom. Her first idea was to storm into the kitchen and ask them if they wanted pancakes, but before she got close she heard Jacob admitting to climbing high places for cereal. When she heard the sounds of a bowl being filled and then Cole speaking she figured she had a few moments to gather herself. At least that was her excuse for eavesdropping.

She felt surprisingly well rested for the few hours of sleep she managed to get. When she first got into bed, her mind was racing at the fact that Cole was just down the hall sleeping away. She'd never had someone in the guest bedroom that wasn't a family member or her best friend who was a female. She was nervous and excited and her mind went through a reel of best and worst case scenarios. She knew it was silly to overthink about it, especially since he was unconscious, but her mind didn't care. She finally felt herself losing the battle to sleep with her last thoughts on how it would be to wake up with the large man cuddling her. With that, she squeezed her pillow close to her and fell into her slumber.

Now, standing with her back on the wall and listening to the loud chewing of the two, she knew she had to make an appearance. She patted her hair down and wiped more invisible sleep from her face in the hopes that she didn't look too terrible as to scare Cole away. She took one deep breath and fed the mantra to herself that everything was going to be fine and made her way in.

"Good morning," she said as she made her way to kiss the top of Jacob's head before heading to the coffee maker. When she looked over her shoulder towards Cole she was met with his gaze already on her. With a soft smile she winked at her and went back to his cereal leaving her with cheeks reddening and a heart pounding. "Do you like coffee, Cole?"

"I'd love some if that's okay," he answered her as she added more coffee grounds to the machine and started it.

"Should be ready in a few. It's too bad you two woke up before me, I was prepared to make some pancakes for breakfast." Her words caused Jacob to drop his spoon and Cole to widen his eyes in excitement. She had to smile at the two. Jacob looked adorable in his pajamas and messy hair while Cole looked exquisite. It wasn't fair that he probably just rolled out of bed and looked model ready while Noelle felt like she needed to put a bag over her head most days before she got ready.

"I want pancakes!" Jacob pushed his bowl of half eaten cereal away from himself to prove he could handle more. Cole continued eating his cereal but something told her he would be able to eat pancakes even if he had a full breakfast first. Still she asked him anyway, as it was the polite thing to do.

"And you?" When her eyes met his once more she found his came with a smile. Not only did he look edible first thing in the morning, but he was a happy morning person. With his nod and smile widening, Noelle turned and began ingredient hunting and prepping. It wasn't until she was mixing the dry ingredients together in a bowl that she felt the presence of the large man right behind her. She tried to hold in a shiver with no such luck.

A small chuckle from him told her that he had seen her reaction to him and she wanted to roll her eyes and turn around to playfully push him away, but she was hypnotized.

"Do you need any help?" The extra rasp that came with his question would have made her knees weak had she not been pressed against the counter. She didn't have any control with him being so close and did the only thing she could do to preserve herself.

With a small shake of her head, she continued adding ingredients to the bowl. "These are pretty easy to make, but thank you," she spared a quick glance at him before going back to the bowl and forcing herself to focus. It didn't take long for the griddle to heat and the pan she set aside for scrambled eggs to warm before she was in cooking mode. She was grateful to have an extra set of eyes in Cole to keep up with Jacob. She hadn't realized how much she had to multitask as a lone parent. Especially when Jacob was still too young to be left alone for too long. As she cooked away she listened to the sounds of Jacob talking about everything and nothing and Cole chiming in here and there. She had never felt so at ease and content. She wished to whatever was out there that would listen that she could experience this more.

Noelle was impressed with Jacob's ability to eat three large pancakes and some scrambled eggs. Cole more than tripled that, but she wasn't at all surprised at the giant man's ability to eat her out of her home. It was adorable watching Jacob try to eat like Cole. He would mimic Cole's attempt at a breakfast taco, using a pancake as the shell and when Jacob wasn't touching his eggs at first, Cole reminded him of how he got big and strong. Noelle was glad someone could talk Jacob into eating something. Maybe she'd talk Cole into getting Jacob to eat more greens next. She only had to hope there would be more shared meals with them. It felt very right and Cole looked to be just as cozy as she felt.

After their loud breakfast, Jacob ran off to get dressed and find new toys to play with while Noelle began to gather plates and clean up. It wasn't until Cole's large hand stopped her from picking up his plate, that she realized she hadn't been alone with him since last night. Only, it didn't feel like it should count since he was half asleep for a few moments before she moved him to a bed. Now, she was alone with the man who set her heart ablaze and all she could hope for was all the time in the world with him.

"I'll help," Cole said with his thumb caressing the top of her hand. Before she could bask in it, he stood up and took the plates that were in her other hand and grabbed the rest that were on the table.

They worked in tandem, with the both of them cleaning the counters, stoves, and table. When Jacob still hadn't come out, Noelle decided to start on the dishes with Cole following along. She washed while he rinsed and dried and within minutes they were done. Something that usually took Noelle at least twice as long while being distracted with everything else was now the easiest thing she'd done in a long time. It brought upon more longing in her to have this kind of partnership. Well, that and love would be nice to have as well. This comfort Cole brought with him was slightly unnerving. Only because he hadn't set anything in stone and she was terrified of it.

When Jacob came out of his room he was dressed in green sweat pants and a burnt orange sweatshirt. Noelle and Cole both looked at one another while holding in chuckles and proceeded to move into the living room where Jacob had run off with some of his new toys.

"I should head home," Cole interrupted the moment, causing Noelle's stomach to drop. She didn't want his presence gone from her home, but she knew she couldn't keep him there especially since he did have a life he had to get back to. "I...uh...need to shower and stuff," Cole cut in, probably noticing the frown that crept up on her face.

"Oh," Noelle said breathlessly, filled with relief. "I'm so sorry I didn't mean to hold you hostage," she said sheepishly.

Cole chuckled. "I promise you I wanted to be here. It's been nice. Very nice," he said seductively. "I don't want to take all yours and Jacob's time, but I would like to see you again. The both of you, but I also want to take you out if that's okay." Noelle wanted to jump and scream for joy. The doubts that had tried to make their way in constantly had quieted immensely with his confession.

"I'd like that. Very much," she said with a large smile she had no chance of containing. She didn't want to push her luck and ask when, just knowing it would happen was enough to make her heart dance. Before she knew it, he was speaking up again.

"This might be ridiculous, but how about tomorrow night?" His question made her eyes widen and he mistook it for something negative and began to backtrack. "It's okay it's really soon and silly of me to ask-"

"Tomorrow night is perfect," Noelle cut him off before he could rescind his offer. "My parents want Jacob to spend time with him while he's on break so I'm sure they'd love to watch him," she told him, hoping it would put him at ease. When he let out a breath and then gifted her with one of his beautiful smiles, she had no choice but to grab his hand and squeeze. He quickly intertwined his fingers with hers and squeezed back also.

Things were going perfectly and Noelle couldn't wait to spend more time with Cole.