She slowly lowered it. “Cheapest weapon around.”
My gut tightened at her words. “Sorry I woke you.”
Addie studied me for a moment, that quiet yet penetrating gaze reading all the things I wanted to stay hidden. “Nightmare?”
I scrubbed a hand over my face. “I don’t sleep that well these days.”
“Me, either.”
I hated the idea that Addie’s dreams might be as haunted as mine. “It’s not fun.”
“No, it’s not.” She shuffled from foot to foot. “I have a tea that helps. Would you like a cup?”
I didn’t give a damn about the tea, but I’d take that olive branch and run with it. “Sure. I’m gonna get cleaned up. I’ll meet you downstairs.”
I swore even in the darkened room, I saw the hint of a blush hit Addie’s cheeks as she zeroed in on my chest. “Okay. I’ll just be…downstairs.”
My lips twitched, and she snapped her head in the opposite direction, heading straight for the door. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and made my way to the bathroom. I turned the water in the shower to cold and shucked my sweats. The freezing temperature had me cursing up a storm, but it was the jolt I needed. Sometimes, you had to shock the system to clear out the ghosts. I quickly dried off and pulled on some fresh sweats and a tee.
Heading downstairs, I let the soft glow from the kitchen light my way. Addie stood beside two mugs, staring down at them. The flannel pajamas she wore were like the rest of her clothes—at least a size too big.
“Thank you.”
Her head lifted at my voice, and she handed me a mug. “Milk?”
“No, thank you.” I wrapped my hands around the warm ceramic and leaned against the opposite counter. “Smells good.”
The barest smile graced Addie’s lips as if she were lost in a memory. “Sometimes, just the scent alone can help me get back to sleep.”
“Was it something your mom drank?”
The curve of her lips dropped away. “It was her recipe, yes.”
I shifted my stance, feeling like a class-A asshole. “I saw your list.” I owed her at least my honest admission. “I shouldn’t have snooped—”
“No, you shouldn’t have.” There was no timidness in Addie’s tone now. Her words cracked like a schoolteacher disappointed in their pupil for cheating. The tension in her shoulders eased a fraction as she let herself rest against the counter. “I don’t blame you. I probably would’ve done the same thing.”
“You wouldn’t have. You have too many scruples for that.”
Addie scowled at me. “Just because I’m quiet doesn’t mean I’m some honorable Goody Two-shoes.”
“I don’t think you’re a Goody Two-shoes.”
“I’m not especially honorable, either.”
“You are. Not because you’re quiet, but because you see more of the world than others do and do what you can to help. I see when you distract my mom so Shiloh can get a break at family dinners. You did everything possible to help make sure Birdie and Sage weren’t hurt when you were held at gunpoint. You let me move in here, even though it was the last thing you wanted to agree to. That tells me plenty about you.”
Addie stared down at her tea. “There are lots of things that aren’t as pretty as what you listed.”
“Like?”
“I can’t seem to really let Everly in again, even though I know that’s what she wants most.”
I took a sip of my tea. There was some peppermint in there and something floral. Yet it managed to be surprisingly delicious. “Why not?”
“She left.”
There was such pain in those two words.