Page 43 of Sadie's Guarded Harbor

Tommy dipped his hand back in the bag and it brushed against a paper-wrapped burger. A deep groan rumbled in his throat. God love his sister. It didn’t matter if he drank one or ten too many beers, a fast-food burger and fries were always the cure. He unwrapped the burger and took a bite. Grease all but exploded in his mouth.

Katherine slid onto the chair across from him with a cup of coffee in one hand and a pastry bag in the other. “Two cookies and one muffin. Not too bad.”

Tommy chuckled.

“So, what happened last night?” Katherine took off the lid and blew on the hot liquid.

He shrugged. “You heard about what went down at Mitch Parson’s?”

She took a sip then nodded. “You’ve seen tough stuff before. I don’t remember it ever pushing you to drink. Hell, not much does.”

He blew out a long breath. “You know me too well.”

She grinned over the rim of her paper cup. “Sure do. So you might as well spill the beans.”

“I wanted to talk over the case with you, not gossip about my personal life.”

Scrunching her nose, she waved away his protest. “We have time for both. I want the dirt first.”

He rolled his eyes and pushed away his burger. “Fine. Last night was rough. I followed Sadie home and walked her to her door. I just…I didn’t want to go home alone.” He shoved a hand through his hair. “I asked if I could come in.”

Katherine widened her eyes. “You got drunk and stayed the night with Sadie?”

“No.”

She furrowed brow. “Then what happened?”

“We talked, I kissed her, and I left.” He wadded up what was left of the burger in its wrapper and threw it in the bag.

“And?” Katherine’s steady regard could have burned a hole between his eyebrows.

He bit the inside of his cheeks to keep his anger from flaring. Hiding anything from Katherine would never happen. If he wanted to talk about the case, he might has well confess. “She accused me of trying to get her into bed.” The words tasted like chalk in his mouth.

Katherine reared back her head. “Why would she say that? You didn’t pressure her, did you?”

His jaw dropped. “Did you seriously ask me that?”

She shrugged. “Well, why else would she kick a handsome man out after kissing her if she didn’t feel pressured?”

“Because she doesn’t know how to let people in.” The truth of his statement deflated some of his anger, leaving room for sadness to sweep over him. She’d been through a lot, and he couldn’t blame her for hiding behind a tough exterior. But he’d thought they’d moved past that—had connected on a different level.

“Interesting.” Katherine pushed together her lips.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You don’t let people in either.” She shrugged and took another sip of coffee.

He straightened. “Excuse me? I have tons of friends.”

“You hide behind your charm and easy-going nature. But when’s the last time you got this worked up over a woman? You may act like you go through life without things bothering you,or people crawling under your skin, but we both know that’s not true. You only let people get so close.”

Her words hit a little too close to home, and he shifted in his chair.

She softened her expression—lips turned down, eyes wrinkled at the corner, head tilted. “I don’t want to upset you, but it’s the truth. You’re almost twenty-six years old and haven’t dated anyone seriously since high school.”

“Since Vanessa.” He traced the scar on his cheek with his finger.

Katherine reached across the table and took his free hand. “I know how hard losing her was for you, especially right after Mom died. But you can’t let that keep you from having something wonderful with someone else someday.”

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