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When a drink appeared in front of her, she gulped down half of it without looking. She hardly even tasted the liquor before it burned its way down her throat.
“What are your plans while you’re in the area?” Steve asked, directing the question at her this time.
Staring at him, the entire English language temporarily forgotten, she clenched her teeth so tight she couldn’t even pry her jaw open.
This was a mistake. She never should’ve come here.
“We just want to relax and enjoy the mountains for a few days,” Mason answered for her. “Get away from the world for a bit.”
Steve’s laugh sounded remarkably like hers, only deeper. How was that even possible? Could a laugh be genetic? “You’ve certainly come to the right place for that. If you want the insider scoop on the best views in the area, I’m your man.”
“That would be great,” Mason said. “We’re planning to visit Sandia Crest tomorrow if the weather holds, but after that?—”
“Hey, Steve!” a man called from the other end of the bar. “Can I get another?”
Addison’s father gave them the kindest smile she’d ever seen in her fucking life, and it made her want to scream until she lost her voice. “I’ll be right back,” he promised before turning to fill a clean glass from one of the taps.
“I have to go,” she said, her voice low and hoarse. “Now.”
She slipped off her stool and all but ran for the door, not even checking to make sure Mason followed her out into the night.
CHAPTER 16
Mason
The woman beside him was a ticking timebomb. He only hoped they’d be safely back inside their rental before the clock ran all the way down.
Getting her through this would take meticulous handling on his part, and he couldn’t worry about driving or keeping her safe outside—in an unfamiliar place, in the fucking dark—at the same time. She needed to be his one and only focus.
Luckily, Addison seemed almost dazed at the moment. It was like she’d completely checked out as soon as she climbed into the car.
If only he had an idea of how long it would last.
Heart thumping painfully against his ribs, he navigated the winding roads to the house he rented as fast as he dared in the dark. It had seemed like the perfect place when he chose it. A lovely little two-bedroom cottage in the center of three acres of land, surrounded by ponderosa pines and right on the border of a national forest. He thought the privacy and beauty this house offered would do a lot to make up for the complete lack of luxury hotels in the area. Best of all, it was a mere ten-minute drive from Frank’s Bar.
In this moment, though, ten minutes felt like a fucking lifetime.
When they made it to the house at last, he drove right up to the covered patio, stopping only inches from the low stone wall surrounding it. She didn’t move a muscle as he climbed out of the car and hurried around to her side. Even as he opened the door and unbuckled her seatbelt, she simply stared at the dashboard with a vacant look in her eyes.
“Come on, little one.” He kept his voice soft, hoping it would soothe her. Lifting her out of the car, he carried her through the covered patio to the door. Unlocking it with Addison in his arms was an exercise in patience, but he didn’t dare put her down. Not out here.
When at last they made it inside, he carried her straight to the bedroom, lowering her gently onto the king-size bed. Settling onto the edge of the mattress beside her, he ran his fingers through her silky hair.
“It’s all right,” he whispered. “I’m here. You don’t have to do this alone.”
“I don’t need your fucking platitudes right now.”
Mason jumped. He hadn’t realized she was snapping out of it, but he saw a new fire burning in her eyes. “That wasn’t a platitude,” he said, stung at the accusation.
Knocking his hand away from her hair, she sat up against the headboard. “Oh, really? Because it sounds like the kind of shit they put on advertisements for online therapy and suicide hotlines.”
“Even if that’s true,” Mason said, doing his absolute best to cool his rising temper, “those services save countless lives. It’s not a platitude either way.”
She rolled her eyes toward the ceiling. “Don’t split hairs with me. You know what I mean.”
“Actually, I don’t, so if you’d be so kind as to explain it to me?—”
“My mom didn’t ever give a shit about me, abandoned me to go get high with her boyfriend, and fucking died. Alone.” Her voice grew angrier and louder with every word. “The more I think about it, the surer I am the state found Steve back then, and he said he didn’t want me. He’s got his life and his bar, and how the fuck would I ever have fit into that? Alone.” She was on the point of hysterics now. “The foster family that was supposed to take care of me locked me in the fucking dark every time I did something they didn’t like. Alone. They took me away from my foster brothers and sisters and never let me see them again. Fucking alone. The family that was supposed to adopt me thought I was too crazy to love and got rid of me. Alone. Then I finally had Granny, but now she’s fucking dead and I’m completely fucking alone.”
