Page 86 of Knot Their Princess

“Hello, pookie-bear. Is this Sin?”

Pookie-bear?

“Hi,” I sing, shooting Matty a knowing glance. “That’s me.”

She stands, tall and slender in a white blouse and pressed cream pants, her arm outstretched. “I’m Yasmin. It’s great to meet you. Matty has nothing but wonderful things to say about his bestie.” She winks at him, and his face turns red.

“Um, I’m going to show Sin the back.”

“Only the unoccupied section, please. We have a lot of skittish Omegas on the west side right now.”

“Of course.”

“Oh, and if you see Erik in there, tell him to pick up milk on the way home.”

Matty’s face further flames, and I shoot Yasmin a huge grin. “It was great meeting you. We need to have lunch before I go back home.”

“I’m free tomorrow.” Her eyes grow mischievous.

“That’s perfect.”

“Okay, okay,” Matty ushers me out of the office, but not before I hear Yasmin call, “Love you, pookie-bear.”

My face aches from the size my smile has grown to. “She seems great.”

“She is.” Matty’s pout is adorable.

“So, it’s you, Yasmin, and Erik is Thompson, right?”

“Yeah… it happened right after you left. Erik and Yasmin have been friends since college and knew they were packmates.”

“Just waiting for their… pookie-bear.”

His groan echoes off the freshly painted walls, and I laugh.

Matty shows me around this entirely new construction area where some of the private rooms had once stood. Now, there are empty rooms everywhere.

“We’re getting beds and furniture for this side soon. The other side is already set up and has some Omegas living in it. We help them get back on their feet. Yasmin is a social worker and a licensed therapist. She’s been integral to our work.”

“This is amazing, Matty,” I breathe. “You’ve done so well.”

“We never would have had this chance without you and your mates. Your men helped us navigate paperwork and ownership. Sent trusted people to us to help out. I can’t thank you all enough.”

“No need for thanks. But I do want to give you something.” I dig in my purse and pull out a crisp envelope. “This is from Helix. It’s a donation to the halfway house, not the cafe. So, you can’t refuse.”

His eyes water, and he hasn’t even opened the envelope yet. “Thank you, Sin.”

I hug him tight. “No. Thank you. For everything you’ve done, and everything you’re doing now. You’re a champion.” I step back, purse my lips. “Pookie-bear.”

His face goes delightfully pink again before he links our arms. “Let’s catch lunch at Fatima’s and go say hi to Princess on the way back.”

“And the way there,” I amend, grinning at thoughts of the fluffy black cat resident of the bodega.

A visit to places we used to love to go together, the first time ever as completely free Omegas.

Count me in.

Despite our trip to L.A. being lovely, the moment we enter our home, I feel a rush of relief through my whole body.