Page 50 of Safe With You

“What about the burgers?”

“They’re good too. There’s one with a fried egg on it. I only tried it once, but I liked it.”

Ethan flipped to the page with the burgers. In the end, Katie and Becca chose the BLT, while Ethan ordered the hamburger Katie suggested.

As soon as they received the food, Ethan prayed, and they dug in.

Reaching for her soda, Katie glanced up, and her attention caught on two slim blondes who had just walked in. Her stomach dropped. “Oh, no.”

Ethan straightened, looking around. “What’s wrong?”

“Amanda and her sister just walked in.”

Katie ducked her head and put her hand to her forehead to hide her face. What had she been thinking coming here to eat? It was Amanda’s favorite place to get lunch.

She chanced a peek and found Amanda peering at her with a venomous look. If only she would believe Katie had nothing to do with her husband’s actions.

Ethan shifted beside her and draped his arm over the back of her chair. The movement caught Amanda’s attention. He said nothing, just stared her down. Amanda’s perfectly plucked brows rose before she spun away in a huff. She and her sister ordered their food, blatantly ignoring them, and then marched out of the diner with their noses in the air. Only then did Ethan let his arm slide away from her chair, and Katie could take a deep breath. She looked gratefully at him.

“Thank you.”

Chapter Twenty-one

The next two weeks flew by for Katie. She took Megan up on her offer to help create a website and worked earnestly to get her business going. She even repaired some pieces Amanda had tried to ruin.

While she knew she would eventually have to look for a new apartment, she let it rest for now. And even though the friction between her and Drew had lasted for a couple of days, things were back to normal. They spoke daily, and he seemed supportive of her decisions for the time being.

Just after lunch on a Wednesday afternoon, she busied herself in the sewing room. She had to figure out how to organize Grandma’s things along with everything she had brought from her apartment. Admittedly, she wasn’t always the neatest person with her workspace, but she wanted to be more efficient.

She reached for a bolt of fabric, but a quiet noise caught her attention. It sounded like the screen door opening. She frowned and looked over at her sewing chair, where O’Malley was sleeping. The only ones she could ever imagine entering the cottage without knocking were one of the Harts, but not even Ethan had ever done that.

A cold apprehension prickled along her arms. She tried to convince herself it was nothing but stepped hesitantly into the living room. Her heart collided with her ribcage before rocketing into her throat. Grant stood in the kitchen.

“I’m just here to talk.” His pacifying tone did nothing to calm the adrenaline that surged through her veins.

Katie took a shaky step back and snatched her phone from her pocket. She wavered for half a second before pulling up her latest text with Ethan. Grant would never let it ring long enough to call him. His footsteps thumped across the room as she typed out a rapid text. She shut the phone off just as he reached her. Grabbing her arm, he yanked it away and tossed it onto the couch.

“I said I just wanted to talk.” He ground the words through his teeth this time, and ice encased her body.

Had she even pressed send before shutting the phone off? She prayed she had. She could yell for help, but what were the chances anyone would hear?

Grant’s fingers dug into her wrist, flashing her mind back to when he’d broken it.

Gulping, Katie forced strength to her voice. “Let go of me.”

“Not until you calm down.”

Katie shook her head and glared up at him. She tried to tug her arm away, but his grip did not loosen. “You are not welcome here. Get out of my house.”

Anger kindled in his eyes now. She could see it as clearly as when she was a child cowering away from him.

He leaned over her. “This house belongs to your mother too.”

She swallowed hard and forced her voice to work even though her breath shuddered in her chest. “No, it doesn’t. Grandma left it to me.”

His voice lowered dangerously. “I’m not leaving until this matter is settled.”

And by settled, he meant until she agreed to his demands. Memories of pain and terror almost suffocated her, yet despite the way her knees shook, she forced her shoulders back as she held his menacing gaze. She was done cowering.

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