Page 36 of Promise Me, Katie (Bennett Sisters #1)

Katherine stayed busy in the kitchen while Justin, Libby, Matthew, and his parents ate lunch, even though it drove her half crazy wondering what they were talking about. But eventually, she came out to see how they were doing and offered them dessert.

Holding his stomach, Mr. Brandon declined, complimenting Katherine on a wonderful meal.

“That’s a wise decision, Matt,” Justin warned as he got up from the table. “She’ll feed ya ‘til you’re tighter than a tick.”

“Hey, no one forces you to eat all that blackberry pie.”

Then Justin scoffed, shaking his head as he walked away.

“Mrs. Brandon, can I get you anything else?”

“No, Katie, but thank you for asking,” Sarah said in a hushed tone as she rocked her granddaughter in her arms.

“She’s such a sweet little girl,” Katherine said, looking down at Libby as she slept. “I’m sure I don’t have to tell how blessed she is to have such a wonderful father.”

“No, you don’t,” Sarah replied, smiling at her son.

After Katherine gazed appreciatively at Matthew, then excused herself to go back into the kitchen, Sarah turned to her son. “She really loves you, doesn’t she?”

At first, Matthew wanted to avoid the question, but when he noticed his father nodding in agreement, he knew there was no point in denying the obvious.

“We love each other. And you don’t have to worry. She’s nothing like Julia.”

“Don’t you think we can see that?” Sarah snapped. “And you shouldn’t make comparisons, Matthew. It’s not right.”

“Besides the fact, there is no comparison,” his dad added. “Katie’s a real keeper.”

“So, you guys like her?”

“Yes, we do,” Matt said, putting an arm around his wife’s shoulder as Sarah’s eyes grew misty with tears.

“She’s a wonderful young lady.”

Matthew couldn’t believe it. He expected he would need to work harder at defending his relationship with Katie, especially with his mom.

“Alright then,” Justin interrupted, returning from the men’s room. “We better be hittin’ the road before the Chief has to track us down. Can we walk you folks out?”

Justin didn’t realize he was interrupting, but Matthew was grateful for it.

He needed to process what had just happened and let his parents’ approval sink in.

Though he had finally confessed to them that his marriage to Julia was headed for a divorce after her accident, he hadn’t told them all the reasons why.

But maybe they already knew his marriage hadn’t been right for a long time.

Why else would they embrace his relationship with Katie so quickly?

When Katherine returned to say goodbye and walk them out, she handed Mr. Brandon a bag filled with an assortment of pie and cake slices in clear plastic to-go boxes.

“What’s this?” Matt asked, peering inside before opening the bag wide enough for Sarah to see.

“Just a little something for later.”

“Oh my, look at all those yummy treats.” Sarah beamed. “Now you’re speaking Matt’s love language.”

As Matt chuckled, Sarah carried Libby over to the passenger side of their car and handed her to Matthew.

“Thank you, Katie.” Matt smiled, shaking her hand. “You have a really nice place here. I only wish you would’ve let me pay the check.”

“Not a chance.” She smiled back, then gestured to the bag. “I hope you find a favorite in there.”

“I’m sure I will.”

“Of course, he will.” Sarah smiled as she reappeared, pulling Katherine into a hug that nearly knocked the wind out of her. “It was so nice to meet you, Katie. And thank you for taking such good care of our son and granddaughter.”

Hugging Sarah back, Katherine didn’t know what to say. From all the long, skeptical looks Sarah Brandon had given her, she got the impression Matthew’s mother would’ve taken much longer than this to come around.

Then Mrs. Brandon pulled away just enough to look her in the eye. “Seeing our son happy means the world to us.”

Katherine’s eyes grew misty. “It does to me, too.”

Sarah nodded, smiling. “We can see that.”

When Matthew finished with Libby, he came over to where his parents stood with Katie, surprised to find her and his mother on the verge of tears.

“Mom… what’s going on?”

“It’s okay, son.” His dad clapped him on the shoulder. “We were just thanking this wonderful young woman for everything she’s done.”

Matthew turned to study Katherine’s expression.

“Stop worrying,” she assured him with a teary smile. “It’s okay.”

“Come on, buddy, we gotta roll!” Justin called out, honking the horn of the cruiser before Matthew called back to say that he was coming.

But Katherine could tell by the look on his face that he didn’t know what to do. “Everything’s fine. I promise.”

“See you later then?”

“You know where to find me.”

Then Matthew told his parents he’d be home directly after his shift to take Libby off their hands.

“We’ll see you later,” his mom said. “And be safe.”

After Matt and Sarah said their final goodbyes and drove off, heading toward a few of the historical landmarks that Justin recommended, Katherine went back inside to find Beth Ann waiting for her by the door.

“That was interesting .”

“What makes you say that?” Katherine asked, even though her grin gave her away.

“Are you serious? It’s like you got married, inherited in-laws, and had a kid all in one day. That’d be a lot to take, even for me. You, on the other hand,must be terrified.”

Katherine thought about it for a second, but none of it bothered her. Not falling for Matthew. Not her attachment to Libby. Not even meeting, spending time with, and building the beginning of a bond with Matt and Sarah.

“Actually, not at all.” She smiled. “Pretty great, huh?”

Beth Ann snorted a laugh, assuming Katherine was being sarcastic.

But when Katherine didn’t laugh, frown, flinch, or rush to the back and burst into tears like she did the day before, Beth Ann was eager to know more, and she followed Katherine as she picked up a few dirty plates and headed back to the kitchen.

“Hey, not so fast!” Beth Ann said, ordering Zach from the room as they walked through the swinging door. “Katherine Bennett, are you in love with Matthew Brandon?”

A small part of Katherine felt like she should have held back or kept her feelings to herself, but she trusted Beth Ann and wanted to share how happy she was.

“Don’t you dare get quiet right now. You have to tell me,” Beth Ann pressed. “Are you in love with him or not?”

“Yes,” Katherine said without analyzing her answer. She was on cloud nine and didn’t care what anyone else had to say. “Yes, I am.”

“Oh my gosh, are you serious?” Beth Ann’s eyes filled with tears as she threw her arms around Katherine. “This is amazing! I’m so happy for you!”

As they hugged, a troubled-looking Zach walked back in, no doubt wanting an escape from Lucy and Lyla, but instead, he turned and walked back out.

There’d been some crazy stuff going down in the last few days, and the expression on his face said that he wanted to stay as far away from it as possible.

“Do you think Zach needs help?” Katherine asked, but Beth Ann dismissed the question with a wave of her hand.

“He’s fine. Now tell me everything. Does Matthew know you love him? Does he love you, too? Wait, more importantly… has he said he loves you?”

When Katherine glanced nervously at the door, Beth Ann dragged her by the arm to the back of the kitchen. “There, now no one can hear us. Tell me everything.”

Katherine smiled nervously. She’d never done this with any of her other friends, not even in high school.

“Well,” she began, unsure of what to say. “I can’t tell you everything , but I can say that it’s been really good between us.”

“Really good? That’s it?”

“Well, it is still pretty new. But we do care about each other very much. And we’re willing to see where it takes us.”

“I knew it,” Beth Ann said, holding her hands over her heart as if it might beat out of her chest. “I knew he liked you. I knew it the minute he started asking about you.”

“When was that?”

“Oh my gosh, like weeks ago. Zach and I were standing in line at the movie theater when we ran into Matthew and Justin. Eventually, Zach and Justin went across the street to check out some stupid fishing thing in the bait shop window, but Matthew stayed and kept me company, so I asked him about his move and where he came from. Then he told me about the house he bought and asked if I knew anything about his new neighbors.”

“That’s not exactly the same as asking about me.”

“Close enough.”

“Wait, did you just say you and Zach went to the movies together? Like on a date?”

As Beth Ann’s face turned white, Zach returned to the kitchen, looking even more desperate than before.

“Can I come back in now?”

“Only if you can tell me what the employee handbook says about coworkers dating?”

Zach’s eyes widened as his face turned red. Then he looked over to Beth Ann for help. “There’s an employee handbook?”

Katherine didn’t know whether to laugh at his obvious discomfort or feel bad for teasing him. “Sure, Zach, you can come back in now.”

“That wasn’t very nice,” Beth Ann told her.

“Probably not, but it is nice to finally see the two of you out of hiding. How long’s it been? Close to two years now?”

Beth Ann and Zach glanced at each other’s worried faces.

“We’re sorry, Katherine,” Beth Ann finally spoke up for the both of them. “We were afraid to tell you. We didn’t want to make you sad.”

“You two being happy wouldn’t make me sad. You’re my friends, and friends should be happy for each other.”

After the last of the lunch crowd left, Katherine flipped the Open sign to Closed and locked the door. Then she made herself a cup of tea and asked Beth Ann and Zach to join her in one of the booths before sending Lucy and Lyla to the back to wash dishes.

“If this is about Zach and me—”

“Just hear me out,” Katherine interrupted. But poor Zach looked even more nervous than before.

“Beth Ann should stay. I’ll go,” he blurted out. “The Copperwall wouldn’t make it without her.”