Page 15 of Promise Me, Katie (Bennett Sisters #1)

“Yep!” Peter confirmed, carrying an empty kettle to the sink. “I expect our counterpart to arrive any minute now. Are you sure I can’t get you something to drink?”

Matthew thought about asking for a shot of whisky but said a gracious “no thank you” then got up to remove his jacket, taking the moment his back was turned to collect himself.

He needed to stay calm and not look irritated by the minuscule size of the group.

Even though there’d be no hiding in a gathering this small.

And it made him think that maybe he should’ve agreed to see the shrink instead.

As Pastor Peter joined Matthew in the pseudo circle, they made small talk while the kettle came to a boil.

“Alright, buddy,” a voice called out. “Tonight’s the night for you to relinquish that Connect Four title. And because I’m such a nice person, I brought you a consolation prize.”

Standing in the doorway of the kitchen, holding a stack of take-out boxes from The Copperwall, Katherine’s smile instantly faded when Matthew rose from his seat and turned to greet her.

“Katherine, you know Matthew.” Peter smiled, waving her into the room. “Come on in and take a seat. Matthew and I were just getting to know one another.”

Katherine looked from Pastor Peter to Matthew, then to the dreaded yet painfully familiar cluster of chairs.

“Uh… okay,” she said, setting the boxes down before shaking Matthew’s hand. “Nice to see you again. How are you and Libby doing?”

Before he could answer, Katherine was already regretting her words. They were basically in the same mundane vein of things others said when her world had been turned upside down.

“Fine,” Matthew replied with a stiff expression as he quickly shook her hand before backing away as the atmosphere between them grew more awkward by the minute.

“Well… okay then,” Peter said, rubbing his hands together like an excited kid in front of a pile of Christmas presents. “Shall we get this party started or what?”

Katherine swallowed, as her heart was racing from the dread of what was about to happen. And by the look on Matthew’s face, she was pretty sure he was feeling the same.

“Do you really wanna do this?” she blurted out. “What about our group? The onewe’vebeen having all this time. Can’t we just go back to doing that?”

Immediately, Matthew glared in her direction. “Are you saying I shouldn’t be here?”

“What? No. I didn’t say that. Why would you think that?”

“You just said—”

“Hold on, hold on!” Peter jumped in between them, lifting his hands like a referee separating two heavyweight fighters. “Let’s keep it neighborly, okay neighbors?”

Matthew tried to relax his scowl.

“I think what Katherine was trying to suggest is that we keep it casual,” Peter explained. “We haven’t been sitting in a sharing circle for a long time. And it can be intimidating having those kinds of sessions with a small amount of people. So, I’m willing to compromise.”

Katherine brightened, but Matthew’s expression stayed the same.

“We can have a few sessions our way,” he said, motioning to Katherine. “But at some point, I think it’d be good for us as a growing group to remake the circle and share the way we’re supposed to.”

Katherine concealed her satisfied smile by dashing off to get paper plates and plastic utensils from the cupboards even before Matthew agreed to Peter’s plan.

“Hey, Matthew, do you want coffee instead of tea?” she offered after noticing that only the hot water kettle was going. “I could make a quick pot if you like.”

“No thanks, Katie,” Matthew replied in a clipped tone before realizing Peter was watching him. “I don’t drink coffee this late if I don’t have to,” he added begrudgingly.

“But it’s Friday night… live a little.”

Katherine knew she was trying way too hard, and when Matthew didn’t respond, Pastor Peter intervened by asking him for help putting the chairs away. “By the time we get that done, Katherine should have the food prepped to eat.”

“Hey, can you grab one of the puzzles while you’re in there?”

“Which one?” Peter called out from behind the open door.

“Surprise me!” Katherine shouted back, knowing he’d grab the one with the dogs on it since it was his favorite.

“Is Petey okay?” Peter said, holding up his favorite puzzle when he and Matthew returned from putting chairs away.

“I had a feeling that was coming,” Katherine laughed.

“Petey?” Matthew asked as Pastor Peter grinned at Katherine.

“Would you like to do the honors?”

“If I must,” Katherine sighed, then explained, “The little Pomeranian reminds Peter of his dog from childhood. His name was Petey.”

Without missing a beat, Matthew responded, “So, you’re saying the Pomeranian pooch peeking out among the other pooches on the puzzle of many pieces reminds Pastor Peter of his pet, Petey?”

“Hey!” Peter nodded with appreciation, offering a fist for Matthew to bump. “I like the way you think.”

Peter chuckled, then shook the box vigorously as Matthew watched.

“He doesn’t like when the pieces stick together.”

“It’s not fair if you don’t start from scratch.”

Wondering how long he was expected to stay, Matthew asked, “How many pieces are there?”

“Nine hundred and ninety-nine.”

“You lost one?”

“You could say that.” Katherine smirked.

“Ha! More like you chucked one at my head, and it hit the floor and slid under the fridge.”

When Matthew laughed, it made Katherine smile.

“Don’t go taking her side,” Peter warned. “She still owes me a new puzzle.”

“I said I’d get it out for you.”

“And how are you gonna do that? The fridge must weigh a thousand pounds. I can’t even budge that thing.”

“I could help,” Matthew offered, hoping an act of kindness, along with the clever tongue twister would endear him to Peter. “Did you wanna get it now?”

“Maybe next time,” Peter said. “But thank you, Matthew. That’s really cool of you to offer.”

“No problem.” Matthew smiled. “And Katie, I’ll take that cup of tea after all. But only if you have anything decaf.”

“Katherine, do you mind?” Peter asked.

“Not at all. You guys take a seat at the counter, and I’ll have everything ready in just a few minutes.”

When Matthew tried to offer his help, Katherine shooed him away.

“Don’t even bother,” Peter told him as he sat down at the counter, offering Matthew the seat next to him.

“Most of the time, she won’t accept anyone’s help.

Well, not until she’s been away from the diner for at least an hour.

She’s like a little robot. You just gotta let the crank on her back wind itself down. ”

“Tell me, Matthew.” Katherine glared at Peter. “Is it blasphemous or not to tell a pastor to zip it?”

“I don’t know…” Matthew hesitated, surprised by the banter between them.

“Don’t let the whole man of God thing make you nervous,” she told him as she reached over to tousle Peter’s hair. “This one here is just a big old softy.”

“Hey, I spent a whole five minutes on this sweet ‘do.”

“Really?” Katherine delivered three mugs of hot water along with a basket of teas and sweeteners to the counter. “Maybe you shouldn’t try so hard. It might turn out better.”

“Ooh! Sweet burn!” Peter said, giving Katherine a high five. “I’ll have to try that one out on the youth group.”

Matthew watched as they laughed. “Are you guys always like this?”

“She is!” Peter pointed an accusatory finger at Katherine.

“Wow. And to think I went out of my way to get special permission to bringthese,” Katherine said, tilting the lid on one of the to-go boxes for Peter to see three neat rows of Millie Fraser’s secret shortbread cookies inside. “Now, what was that you were saying?”

“Dear God in heaven, reign blessings down on this wonderful woman who does no wrong.”

“Wait!” Katherine stopped Peter from digging in. “Millie says you’re not allowed to have one until you agree this never happened, and you have no knowledge of this ever happening.”

“Yeah, that,” Peter said, pushing her hand aside, he snatched up one of the shortbread cookies and stuck the entire thing in his mouth. “Sweet baby Jesus, I’ve been dreaming about these.”

Matthew and Katherine laughed as he chewed.

“No. You don’t understand. I’ve literally had dreams about these,” he insisted, pushing the box toward Matthew. “Try one. You won’t regret it.”

After Matthew thanked Katherine and took a bite, his smile looked much like Peter’s. Then, as the two men ate cookies and gushed over how great they were, Katherine set out the other boxes of food and poured each of them a glass of water before sitting down.

Talking, eating, and putting together the Petey puzzle, Matthew found himself liking the little moments when Katherine couldn’t help jumping in, insisting Peter tell the funnier parts of stories from his missionary days.

“Come on, you gotta tell the part about the monkey,” she begged. “It’s not as good if you leave the part about the monkey out.”

So, Peter backtracked and added the part that included the monkey, and they all laughed.

“I love that story,” Katherine said, laughing until she almost lost her breath in the process.

“It is a good one.”

“Tell it again,” she insisted. But when Peter started the story over, she stopped him. “No, wait, tell the one about the outdoor shower and the big gust of wind.”

Pastor grinned. “You pretty much just did.”

But Katherine convinced him to do it anyway, and again, they all laughed together.

“What made you give up traveling?” Matthew finally asked, and the room fell silent. Then Katherine busied herself with the box of puzzle pieces.

“Windsong is home for me. Born and raised,” Peter explained, drawing Matthew’s attention away from Katherine’s response. “So, when I was asked by the church council to lead Hope Community, it seemed like the right time for my wife and me to return home and start a family.”

“I’m sorry,” Matthew said, seeing how Peter’s demeanor shifted as dramatically as Katherine’s.

“Oh, she didn’t die if that’s what you’re thinking. But for a long time, it felt like it. Probably longer than I should’ve let it,” Peter said as he blinked away tears. “But like I was telling Katherine recently, I think I’m ready to get back out there and meet a new Mrs. Humble.”

“You’re a brave soul,” Katherine said, patting Peter’s arm. “Braver than I’ll ever be.”

When he smiled back at Katherine, Matthew wondered if there had ever been more than friendship between them. Deep down, he didn’t think so, but the mere thought of it ripped through his heart like a knife.

So, from that moment on, Matthew remained silent, letting Katherine and Peter do most of the talking. But it didn’t take long for him to realize they were just friends. And once he was convinced of that, he relaxed again and enjoyed the Friday sessions that followed.

Though he wouldn’t allow himself to converse with Katherine too much, he couldn’t help being bothered by the comment that she’d never be brave enough to find love again.

Still, Matthew made the most of his time in Grief Group. If nothing else, it was nice having the company.

And though he liked Peter, he longed for Katherine. But with guilt and anger still churning inside him, he didn’t know how to make peace with his feelings for her.

***

“I hear you’re still going to that group thing,” Justin finally said one day as they were driving through the streets of Windsong. “I didn’t think you had to keep goin’ if you got cleared for work. It must be good.”

It’d been more than a week since Matthew returned to the job, and aside from work-related topics, he wasn’t saying much.

“It’s fine.”

Justin pulled the cruiser up to a stop sign and turned to look at Matthew. “So… you’re sayin’ it’s fine then?”

“Yeah. Fine.”

“Well?”

“Well, what?”

“Well, hell’s bells, man. Say somethin’ more about it,” Justin snapped in frustration.

“About what?”

“That group thing you’re goin’ to.”

“What about it?” Matthew turned to stare at Justin.

“I don’t know… tell me what its like. Is it workin’? Is it helpin’ at all? Do you like it? Do you hate it? Do you think it’s doin’ some good?” Justin ranted as he pulled away from the stop sign. “Damn, dude, I didn’t think I’d have to wrestle it outta ya. Can’t ya just tell me about it?”

“What the hell has gotten into you?”

“Nothin’.” Justin cut Matthew a look. “But I would like to know how my partners doin’. You haven’t said a thing all week.”

“Yes, I have.”

“Not about the group thing.”

Matthew felt his temper rising. “What exactly do you need to know? Do you think I’m gonna crack or something?”

“Do you ?”

The obvious concern in Justin’s voice helped calm Matthew down.

“No,” he sighed. “And it’s not the group that’s on my mind. It’s something else.”

“Do you wanna talk about it?”

“Not really,” Matthew said, relieved when Justin pulled the cruiser into the drive-thru at Bunny’s Burgers. He’d been feeling uptight all week, wondering if Justin would suggest going by the diner for lunch.

Since they’d been at The Copperwall the night the call came through about Julia’s accident, Matthew was hoping that Justin was avoiding it so being there didn’t bring up any bad memories.

But in reality, Matthew didn’t want to go there because of the conflicting feelings he was still having for Katherine.

It was bad enough that he had to live next door to her and think about her all the time.

Or see her every Friday night at their Grief Group sessions.

Whether at home or at Hope Community, Matthew did his best not to interact with Katherine too much for fear of letting his feelings get away from him.

At least in the church, he felt safe with a pastor in the room. He also felt like it helped to block out his feelings by concentrating on the growing friendship between him and Peter.

“This okay?” Justin asked as Matthew reverted into his shell. “We could go somewhere else?”

“No. This is fine.”

“Great...” Justin mumbled, turning toward the speaker to order. “Now everything’s fine.”