Reese’s eyes lit up. “Awesome, thank you! I’d feel better not being alone with people I don’t know.”
A knock sounded on the door, making both of them jump. They exchanged a look then Matty pushed back her chair to go see who it was. When she opened the door, she cursed.
“Shit, Bette, I’m sorry—”
The shit-eating grin on Bette’s face erased any part of her apologizing. Especially when Bette strained her neck to see Reese behind her, then gave her a pointed look at her boxer briefs. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize I was interrupting. Hello, Reese.”
“Hi, Bette,” Reese squeaked behind her.
“I’m sorry; I forgot about grocery shopping this morning.”
“Don’t worry about it. It looks like you had a good reason. Do I need to wait, or can you see if you can find another ride?”
“Uh, I’m not—”
“Matty, if you can wait until Tuesday, we can go together. I’ll want to fill the refrigerator anyway.”
She glanced back at Reese. “Are you sure?”
“Totally.”
Matty turned back to Bette. “I’ll just go with Reese. Sorry, again.”
The smirk on Bette’s face was almost devilish. “Don’t worry about it. Well, you two have fun. Or more of it.”
Matty’s face flamed. “Bye, Bette.”
She leaned in quickly. “Just so you know, I’m going to tattle to Kenny that you and Reese were in your underwear.”
Matty groaned and began shutting the door. “Bye, again, Bette.”
When she closed the door, she turned, leaning on it. “Well, I guess everyone will know now.”
“Nothing stays a secret in this house, does it?”
“Nope, but I don’t mind. Nothing embarrassing about sleeping with a hot lady.”
“Matty, you’re too much,” smirked Reese as she rolled her eyes. She grabbed their plates. “I’ll wash and you dry?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Matty watched her move around the kitchen like she lived there. It made her stomach flutter. She could get used to this.
Chapter twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-five
The smell of pine floor cleaner was strong in the hall of The Church. She made a mental note to remind the guys that the cleaner was concentrated and needed to be diluted. It was almost nauseatingly strong.
She tapped her fingers on the huge, ancient copier, fax, and printer combo machine that was currently taking forever to print. After a few more seconds, it finally spit out the certificate. She popped it into a folder and handed it over to Lower Sparrow’s house adviser. “Here you go. Let me know how Reed’s coin out goes. I think he did a great job.”
“Will do, Ms. Reese.”
He turned to leave out the back door, but Reese grabbed his arm. “Wait, almost forgot the coin. Don’t lose it, please.”
“I won’t. I’ll see you in the morning.”
She waved him out the back door. She hated that she didn’t get to attend coin outs, but understood. The meeting was a sacred space with just the clients when someone was graduating from the program. Each received a certificate and a coin showing they had completed the program. Each man would go around saying something about the graduate, and he would be presented with the coin and certificate. It was a beautiful bonding moment, something to encourage not only the one leaving but the ones still there.
