Page 11 of Promise Me, Katie (Bennett Sisters #1)

Without thinking, Katherine stepped forward to shake Matthew’s hand. Of course, after she’d moved in for the handshake, she realized the mistake she was about to make.

Why hadn’t she just stood back and smiled? Even a quick nod of acknowledgment would’ve worked. But now she was about to touch him, and a sudden rush of adrenaline made her handshake.

“Matthew,” he clarified, reaching out to take her hand.

As an undeniable current of excitement coursed through her, she reveled in the warmth of his touch.

Somehow, his grip was firm and gentle at the same time.

And even though she didn’t know what to expect before their hands came together, she could feel her temperature rise from the simple, innocent exchange.

“And this is Katherine,” Justin said with a smile. “Diner proprietor extraordinaireand your new neighbor.”

As Matthew’s charming grin returned, Katherine couldn’t stop the corners of her mouth from lifting. Was it really so wrong for her to have a little crush on him if she never acted on it and no one ever knew about it? That wasn’t cheating. Right?

“I can’t believe you two haven’t met,” Justin added, puzzled by the likelihood that this was a first-time encounter for the two of them. Still, he seemed pleased to be the one to introduce them.

“Nice to meet you, Officer. Welcome to Windsong,” Katherine said, surprised at how she’d come up with the right words to say. “Hope our little town isn’t proving to be too big of an adjustment.”

“Not at all,” Matthew said, seeming reluctant to let go of her hand. “I’m from Kinsey, so I’m somewhat familiar with small-town life.”

“Kinsey?” Katherine asked, her curious thoughts escaping her mouth. “Isn’t that close to Seattle?”

“Mmm, this sure is good pie,” Justin interrupted. “How do you get berries so sweet this time of the year?”

Katherine sighed.

“You need to stop asking because you know darn well that I’m never gonna tell you my secret,” she said, then turned back to Matthew. “Watch out for this one. He’s a master with the non-stop interrogations.”

“One day, young lady,” Justin warned, wagging his finger at her. “One day, I’ll know allyour secrets.”

Katherine glanced at Matthew, afraid ofhimknowing her secrets.

“You keep thinking that,” she said, shaking her head as she turned to leave the table and head back to the counter, wondering what ludicrous thing Justin would say next.

But as she walked away, she could hear him tell Matthew, “She’s a good little lady and a damn fine cook.”

Glowing with pride, Katherine cleaned out the big brewer and wiped down the counter where she’d been sitting.

With most of the cleaning already done by Grace, she stayed behind the counter, finding little things to do so she looked too busy to talk.

But it wasn’t long before her quiet concentration was broken by the voice she couldn’t seem to forget.

“It’s nice to see you, Katie.”

Startled, Katherine looked up to see Matthew sitting alone in the booth. Her heart raced from fear and a little excitement.

“It’s okay,” he said, tilting his head toward the men’s room. “We have a few minutes.”

“Oh, okay,” Katherine said. “You didn’t tell him we’ve met before.”

“I didn’t know you’d be here when he suggested we stop by.”

“Sorry about that. I guess I wasn’t exactly conversational orvery eloquent the day we met.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Matthew said, his grin revealing the subtle presence of a dimple she’d been too distracted before to notice. “It’s nice to see you. I’ve been wondering when we’d get the chance to talk again.”

Katherine’s gaze fell away, ashamed that she’d been wondering the same thing.

“Katie…”

Matthew’s gaze was so searingly hot that Katherine felt a warm shiver race across the surface of her skin as she looked up.

“It’s nice to see you too,” she admitted.

“Let’s be sure to talk more some other time,” he told her, shifting his attention back to the tabletop and the half-eaten slice of pie in front of him.

As Katherine’s brow furrowed in confusion, she didn’t understand what had happened but then turned away just as the door of the men’s room opened, and Justin reappeared, brushing pie crust crumbs from the front of his uniform.

“You missed one,” she teased, causing Justin to swipe at the front of his shirt even faster. And it made Katherine laugh.

“You do know that harassing an officer of the law is a punishable offense, right?”

“You know where to find me.”

Justin shook his head, mumbling something about “Daddy’s little troublemaker” as he walked by.

But Katherine kept smiling despite her nerves feeling frazzled from the push and pull of emotions.

She’d probably have been on the verge of tears again if she thought too much about it, and she couldn’t do that.

All she needed was to stay calm long enough to get her work done so they could finish up and leave, and she could go home.

“You can do this,” she whispered to herself again and again until she was so engrossed in menial tasks that she failed to hear them heading for the door.

“There’s some money on the table,” Justin called out. “We’ll be waiting outside until you lock up.”

When she turned to wave goodbye, all Katherine could see of Matthew was the back of his head, and a pang of disappointment flustered her.

“What is wrong with me?” she scolded herself, slamming down a saltshaker.

As promised, when Katherine locked up, Justin’s police cruiser was parked in the parking lot. Since he’d backed in beside her, it left the cruiser’s passenger side closest to the driver’s side of her truck, leaving Matthew sitting less than two feet from her door.

Hurrying by, she waved with one hand and fumbled with her keys in the other. “Please, please, please don’t roll that window down,” she murmured through clenched teeth.

Earlier, Katherine had noticed how good Matthew smelled, so she also knew it could be dangerous for her heart to breathe in his warm, masculine scent again.

“Thank God,” she exhaled once she was safe inside of her truck. Unfortunately, her little prayer was premature as Matthew lowered the window on his side of the car. Panicking, Katherine wondered if she could pretend not to notice.

“You can do this,” she whispered to herself, knowing she couldn’t be rude to him again.

Then, grabbing the window crank, she lowered the glass.

“You okay, neighbor?”

“Yeah, sure,” she said with a smile. “Thanks for hanging around. I don’t normally stay this late.”

“Glad to help,” Matthew said while Justin was engrossed in a call coming in over the radio. “Tonight’s our last night working third watch. The Chief wanted me to get a feel for it in case I’m ever needed to cover someone else’s shift.”

“Not much goes on around here when the sun goes down.”

“Yeah, it’s been pretty quiet.”

Katherine didn’t know what else to say, but it struck her as odd that this was their easiest conversation, especially with Justin close enough to hear everything they said.

Maybe it was because Justinwasso close.

Maybe they needed someone else around, so neither of them was tempted to cross a line.

“We’ll have to come back and have a meal sometime. Justin says you’re a good cook.”

“Sure… everyone’s welcome at The Copperwall.”

Although it was something Katherine had said countless times before, it came out a lot less inviting this time. Even to her own ears, the tone of her voice seemed less than welcoming.

“Excuse me, ma’am,” Justin called out. “We gotta be going. There’s a situation up the road. Thanks again for the hospitality.”

“No problem,” Katherine said after inwardly flinching at Justin’s choice of words. She hadn’t felt very hospitable, and if she could, she would’ve responded by saying something friendlier, but the window of the cruiser was already halfway up as they were pulling away.

Watching them leave, Katherine noticed Matthew looking over his shoulder at her.

Even in the dimly lit parking lot, the disappointment on his face made her stomach twist and turn, and she didn’t know why.

He looked as disappointed as she’d felt so many times before, and she regretted her aloof manner and bland response.

“Oh, hellfire and damnation!” She scowled, sounding like her father as she twisted the key in the ignition, bringing the truck’s engine roaring to life. “One minute, I’m drooling, the next minute I’m Miss Manners, and then I’m acting like a jerk.”

Stretching the seat belt over her chest and locking it in with a click, she couldn’t get the look on his face out of her mind.

“Maybe I need to see a shrink,” she said, shifting the truck into drive. Stomping on the gas, she tore out of the diner’s parking lot.

Driving in frustrated silence, she rounded the first corner of the curvy road that led to Fraser Farms, grateful she’d headed home before the annual charity event had ended. She didn’t want to be stuck behind a long line of partygoers trying to get home.

Rounding the second corner, she spotted a cluster of emergency vehicles on the road ahead. “Not now,” she groaned, realizing this must’ve been the situation Justin was talking about.

A crumpled van, looking like it’d been hit by a tornado, was surrounded by flashing lights. Police cars, fire trucks, and two ambulances were parked nearby, but no one in or around the scene seemed to be moving with any sense of urgency.

Still able to make out the bold red lettering across the side of the vehicle, Katherine spoke the words out loud, wondering where she’d heard them from.

“All The News. All The Time.”

The closer she got, the faster she tried to pass the wreck.

The sight of any accident or even emergency vehicles always made her stomach twist and turn into unbearably anxious knots.

But this wreck was something different. By the look of the van and the lack of urgency in how the scene was being handled, it was clear that anyone involved would have needed a miracle to make it out alive.

“ All The News. All The Time ,” Katherine repeated the slogan out loud, lowering her gaze to the road ahead of her front bumper as she drove by. Because she’d been distracted by her own anxious feelings, it took a while before the truth began to register.

Tonight’s report at Fraser Farms. The demolished news van and the way the accident was being handled. And finally, the look on Justin’s face when they pulled away from the diner.

Was Julia Brandon gone?