Page 29 of Promise Me, Katie (Bennett Sisters #1)
As Katherine’s words faded into more tears, Matthew held on even tighter, patiently waiting for her sadness to subside.
“Better?” he finally asked, lifting her chin to wipe away the last of her tears and kiss her lips. “How about we go grab some dinner?”
“Oh my gosh, I completely forgot about dinner.”
“That’s okay.”
“No, it’s not. It’s your first time coming over, and I was going to make spaghetti and meatballs for you guys. I thought Libby would like it,” Katherine explained, realizing Libby wasn’t with Matthew. “Hey, where is Libby anyway?”
“She’s with my folks. They actually paid me a surprise visit at the police station today.”
“All the way from Kinsey?”
“Yeah, my dad said they came to see Libby, but honestly, I think my mom talked him into coming to check on me. I tried to explain everything was fine, but they insisted on staying a few days. Guess I’ve been so distracted with a certain someone, I haven’t been calling home enough.”
Katherine smiled. “You’re sweet, you know that?”
“And so are you,” Matthew said, giving her a quick kiss. “Now how about we order some takeout instead?”
“I like takeout,” she said, reaching up and drawing him in for another kiss. This time, Matthew lingered, teasing and tasting Katherine’s tongue. But he didn’t stop there. Moving his mouth to the side of her neck, he kissed, licked, and bit her warm, wanting flesh.
Weakened by his passionate attention, Katherine’s body felt heavy with desire, and she had to press herself against Matthew to stop her legs from buckling.
“Tonight, I’m gonna take such good care of you,” he whispered, making Katherine’s eyes open wide.
Just because Libby wasn’t with them, had he forgotten his promise?
“I think we should wait.”
“But I thought you said you liked it,” he whispered in her ear. “If I can’t take care of you here, then let’s go somewhere where I can.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Katherine insisted, extracting herself from his hold, leaving Matthew looking confused.
“It means that if you’ve changed your mind about takeout, I’d happily takeyouout to dinner somewhere.”
“Oh… okay,” she sighed with relief. “Sorry, I thought you meant something else.”
“What did you think I meant?”
As her flushed cheeks gave away the direction of her thoughts, realization dawned on Matthew. “Miss Bennett, did you think I was planning on making love to you tonight?”
When a guilty little grin lifted the corners of her mouth, he caught her up in his arms and buried his face in the crook of her neck, growling like a monster.
Crying out in a fit of giggles, Katherine managed to pull away from his embrace, dash inside, through the kitchen, then the dining room, and partway into the living room before he caught up with her.
“I take it back! I swear, I wasn’t thinking anything!”
But Matthew wasn’t falling for her excuses. She was giggling way too hard when he finally got a hold of her again and pinned her down on the couch.
“There’s no sleeping baby to save you now,” he teased, reaching for her sensitive sides.
“No… please,” she begged. “I’m ticklish there.”
“Really?” Matthew grinned, grabbing her hands and pinning them high above her head. As he gazed down at her, his eyes filled with even more excitement, and his once friendly smile suddenly turned quite roguish. “That could be dangerous information in the wrong hands.”
“You wouldn’t.” Katherine’s eyes widened in worry before she burst into a fit of laughter. And though she wriggled and writhed, it wasn’t enough to completely free herself from his grasp.
“You don’t think I’m letting you get away that easy, do you?”
“But you’re so sweet and kind, and you wouldn’t want to make me scream. Someone might hear and think something bad is happening.”
In one swift motion, Matthew had Katherine’s hands high above her head again, diving down toward her neck.
When she let out a squeal, he stopped just before pressing his mouth to her skin, then pulled back to stare into her eyes.
“Tell me why I should stop,” he challenged, his voice menacing, playful, and sexy.
“Because you love me.”
Matthew’s playful grin faded into seriousness. “And that’s okay?”
“Yes,” she breathed.
“Is it because you love me too?”
When Katherine nodded, Matthew released her hands and propped himself up beside her. “I don’t know why God brought you into my life right now, but I’m so glad He did.”
As Katherine’s eyes welled up with tears, her small hands trembled as she touched his face. “Ditto.”
“Excuse me?” Matthew laughed.
“I said ditto.”
A smile lifted the corners of his mouth.
“Do you mean to tell me that I poured my heart out to you, and all you can say is ditto?” he demanded, going after the side of her neck, snarling and growling as his fingers tickled her sides.
“Matthew!” Katherine giggled uncontrollably. “Matthew! Stop!”
“Okay…” he said, kissing her forehead before hopping up and heading into the kitchen. “Where do you keep your takeout menus?”
Katherine scrambled up off the couch and chased after him, laughter still in her voice. “Why do you do that?”
“Do what?” he asked innocently, pulling open several drawers before finding the one he was looking for. “Ah-ha.”
Grabbing the first takeout menu from the stack, he began to study it. But Katherine walked up behind him and took the pizza menu from his hand, replacing it with one from Mr. Chen’s Chinese Restaurant.
After studying the paper’s bent corners, faded print, and overall crinkled appearance, he said, “Looks like someone’s favorite.”
Katherine smiled, liking how he always noticed the little things.
“I would say that based on these handwritten stars and random doodles, you’re not a big fan of tofu, baby corn, and mushrooms.”
“Only some mushrooms,” she said. “It’s a texture thing.”
“Good to know.” Matthew nodded thoughtfully. “As far as I’m concerned, everything you have starred looks good. Why don’t you pick two of your favorites, and I’ll call and have it delivered.”
“Only two?” Katherine faked a scowl, then laughed, grabbing the vintage push button phone from the wall and punching in a set of numbers she knew by heart.
Placing the receiver between her ear and shoulder, she took the well-worn menu from his hands, folded it as gently as possible, and placed it back on the stack in the drawer.
“Hey, Suzie, it’s me,” she announced to the person on the other end of the line. “Can I get an order of the usual?”
It was silent as Katherine listened. Then she added, “Nothing’s wrong. I’m just taking the night off.”
“Tell her you have to go,” Matthew whispered. “Tell her we have some unfinished business.”
Silently snickering, Katherine shook her head.
“I can take a night off without there being a problem,” she said, biting back a smile as Matthew crooked his finger at her. “Hey, how are you and Mr. Chen? How’s business?”
Covering the receiver as Suzie started to vent, Katherine whispered, “Sorry. I’ll be done in just a couple of minutes.”
Then she paced back and forth across the kitchen floor, listening intently while twirling the long telephone cord around her finger.
“Oh my gosh! No, he didn’t!”
“What’s wrong?” Matthew whispered, but Katherine was still engrossed in what was being said.
“I’m telling you, Suzie, there are other produce suppliers out there who wouldn’t hit on you all the time.” Then she nodded as she listened. “No, I get it. A deal’s a deal. But let me know if you ever change your mind. My produce guy would be thrilled to have your business.”
After Katherine was silent for a few minutes, she laughed. “Yeah, I’ve seen him. You know he bought the house next door.”
At that, Matthew’s ears perked up, and he stopped searching for plates and silverware to listen.
“You know what they say about a man in uniform,” she added, blatantly checking Matthew out, then laughing at whatever Suzie had said in response. Shaking her head, Katherine finally told Suzie she needed to go and said a quick goodbye before hanging up.
“What was that all about?”
“Nothing.” But when she walked by, Katherine ran the palm of her hand over Matthew’s backside. “Suzie was right… very nice.”
As a deep red warmed Matthew’s face, Katherine began to whistle innocently while replacing the forks he had taken out of one drawer with chopsticks from another, then reached for a set of rocks glasses from an overhead cupboard.
When Matthew came up behind Katherine to grab the glasses and carry them to the table, he brazenly repeated the action.
“Ditto.”