of her own. She takes several quick steps toward me, and her mouth opens as if to speak. Before she does, her eyes dart to the left. My eyes follow hers only to cross paths with a guy standing alone at the keg. It’s a guy. Just a guy.
There is absolutely no reason for me to recognize the hairline at the back of his neck, or the curve of his ear, or the freckle on his wrist. Oh, for the love of Christ.
When Buddy turns around, he looks at Katherine with an apathetic expression. He comes toward her, and when he sees me, his eyes fling wide.
“Benny?” he asks, his tone astonished.
“Hey, Bud.”
“Is that really you? What the—?” Then the look of surprise slips off his face, replaced by an ashen hardness.
I suck in my breath and look quickly at Natalie. This morning, when sorting the mail, she recognized that my last name was the same as Katherine’s friend from back home. At first Natalie thought it was a funny coincidence, but she wasn’t laughing after I told her the truth.
Had she told Katherine? I raise my eyebrows at her.
Natalie shakes her head at my unspoken question.
My eyes are back on Katherine, whose face is knit in confusion, as if she were listening to a foreign language.
“You…know Bennet?” she asks.
My little brother nods so minutely it’s nearly undetectable. I have no idea where this is going to go from here. The two of us used to be so close, but now we haven’t spoken in years. I wouldn’t blame him if he hated me for leaving, but all those good years we had together, they have to count for something, don’t they?
If he can forgive me for leaving him, I can forgive him for how he’s treated Katherine. Now that he’s here in front of me, my animosity evaporates. All I want to do is hug him. I want to tell him, It’s going to be all right, bro. We can figure this out. We can get to know each other again.
But I’m kidding myself. He doesn’t say another word but responds with his hands squeezing into fists.
My shoulders slump with disappointment. “Really? That’s how you want this to go down?”
He cocks one eyebrow. “Let me guess. You’re the reason Katherine wants to bail on law school.”
Katherine’s mouth falls open as the truth slowly sinks in. An expression I’ve never seen before clouds her face. It’s a look worse than anger. It’s regret. I wish she’d get mad. Just scream at me and let it all out, but she—in fact, the entire room—is deathly still. The only sounds are the murmurs of “Summer Girl” and “Sully’s replacement” mixed with “Kate and Bennet.” I hear Natalie whispering “crap” and Alli’s nervous giggle.
Katherine shakes her head as if that will make the truth go away. When it doesn’t work, she gathers herself, steeling her jaw. I haven’t seen her like this since the first couple of times I met her. It’s the look that reminds me of home: the refusal to feel. Forced control.
“You knew,” she says. The sound of her voice is calm but terrifying. “You’ve known all along.”
I rock back. “No. Not all along. Listen. I can explain.” I grab her wrists, and she peels my fingers off her skin.
Alli leans into my ear but whispers loud enough for others to hear, “They need to be alone, Bennet. Kate needs to work things out with her boyfriend.”
On that last word, my brother shoots Katherine a confused look. Katherine turns about every color of the rainbow, but she regains control by refocusing on me.
“How can you explain?” she asks. “Do you seriously expect me to listen to you? Was everything a lie, Bennet? Do you hate your family so much you wanted to use me to punish your brother?”
What? How could she ask me that? “No, of course not. I love you. You know I love you.” I-forever.
Bud mutters under his breath, and Katherine inhales sharply. A darkness comes over her eyes. “You should have told me who you were.”
The people around us are whispering behind their hands; mothers usher their children to the back of the crowd. Did someone turn the music off? Jesus. I had planned to tell Katherine the truth, and I knew she’d be mad. I just thought she’d let me explain, and I definitely didn’t anticipate an audience.
I shake my head and take a breath to calm myself. My only hope is, even if she can’t