He leaned back with his plate. “You’re not a pineapple-on-pizza kind of girl?”
“It doesn’t belong there.”
“A lot of people would disagree with you.”
“A lot of people are wrong.” She aimed a suspicious frown his way. “Doyoulike pineapple on your pizza?”
“I don’t feel safe answering that question.”
“Oh my God, you’re one ofthem?”
“Them?”
“Pineapple-on-pizza-loving crazy people.”
“Now I’m definitely not answering.”
She almost looked angry as she shoved a forkful of Kung Pao chicken into her mouth.
“How are you finding it here?” he asked, a change in conversation topic feeling safest.
“I miss my parents, but it’s good for me to have a little separation from them. My mom’s my best friend, and I rely on my dad far too much.”
“That’s what parents are for.”
She chuckled. “Yeah. And they’re the best. They actually adopted me after they couldn’t have biological kids, and they’ve always treated me like they’re the luckiest two people to be chosen as my parents. I love them to pieces.” She looked back at him. “What about you? Close with your mom and dad?”
“They died in a car accident when I was twenty-two.”
Addie’s fork clattered to her bowl, and she pressed a hand to her chest. “Oh, Noah, I’m so sorry.”
“Thanks. It was a really hard time. I was in the military and couldn’t get as much leave as I wanted. My sisters were a mess, and they struggled in different ways. Indie cried a lot. And Bonnie just left.”
“Left where?”
“She went to San Francisco. She cut contact with everyone. I’ve only just reconnected with her.”
Addie’s eyes softened. “That would have been really hard to lose herandyour parents.”
“It was. Indie found it hardest. I have hope that Bonnie will come home when she’s ready.”
Addie nodded, but there was a tinge of sadness in her eyes.
For the next hour, they chatted and ate. They talked about anything and everything. Big stuff. Small stuff. Addie showed him the chipped sloth mug that she, for some reason, used over all her non-chipped mugs. He asked when her chocolate addiction had begun, which was so long ago she couldn’t remember.
Addie was easy to talk to. So easy, he almost forgot that she was thirteen years younger than he was and that he was her boss. Hell, he didn’t even think about what he’d done to her a few weeks ago, or the demons that lived inside him. And that was the biggest reason he liked her company—when he was with Addie,all he could think about washer. How good it felt to be in her presence. And the peace that came with it.
“So,” she said, leaning forward once they were both finished. “I have ice cream in my freezer.” He could have laughed. Or maybe he did, because she frowned. “What?”
“We just ate an entire family-size portion of Chinese food.”
“That went into my savory stomach. My dessert stomach is still empty and ready for food.”
Jesus, she said it with so much authority he almost believed dual stomachs were a thing. “How about I clean up while you eat what I presume is chocolate ice cream.”
She shook her head. “No. That’s not fair on you.”
“Of course it is. You fed me, I clean up. It’s how I was raised.”
