Knot Her Reality (Heated Book 3)

Chapter Eighteen

Hours later, I find myself stewing over Sterling’s behavior. Who the hell comes on a reality dating show and acts like that? Based on our interaction when we first met, it’s not something I would’ve expected. Sure, he’d pushed himself into my space before I even knew his name, but then he’d backed off. He’d been so excited to talk about the games he has designed, making me think he was a bit of a nerd.

I was so not prepared for his machoism. Is that even a word? Fuck, I don’t know, and I don’t really care. I just can’t believe how differently he came off between our initial meeting and the date. It was like he changed literally overnight. Fuck, I don’t know, but I really need to let it go.

I managed to push it aside while having my date with Tessa, Evander, and Bradley, but now that I don’t have the three of them distracting me, I’m just pissed. No matter how much I try not to let it affect me, I just can’t seem to let it go.

“Evangeline, I’m going to need you to relax your face,” Allison says with a sigh. It’s not the first or even the second time she’s had to tell me that while trying to do my makeup.

“I’m sorry. I’m trying—really, I am. I’m just so irritated.”

Vivian, the beta doing my hair, snickers. “Oh, we can tell. If it’ll make you feel better, you can vent to us. We’d never judge you.”

“I appreciate it, but I feel like if I talk about it, I’ll get more irritated. I just want to get this rose ceremony over with so he can be gone.” I take a deep breath and close my eyes, jerking when someone knocks on the door.

Allison sighs again. “I’m glad I wasn’t trying to put your makeup on then.”

“I’m going to have to start your hair over again now,” Vivian tells me. “Allison, will you grab the door?”

“Sorry, Vivian.” I glance up into one of the mirrors on the wall to find her shaking her head with a smile on her face.

“It’s not your fault. It’s whoever knocked on the door’s fault.”

“I guess that’s me, then,” Bree says with a laugh. “What’s my fault?”

“Me jerking and messing up my hair,” I tell her as she moves around to stand in front of me.

Bree shrugs. “Sorry, Vivian. Not much I could’ve done to prevent that though. How are you doing, Evangeline?”

I make a face, and Allison sighs again. Narrowing my eyes in her direction, I tell her, “You weren’t even near my face. I’m okay, Bree. I swear.”

“No, she’s not.” Allison raises her brows at me before turning her attention to Bree. “She’s pissed off about one of the suitors’ behavior. She’s stewing on it and won’t talk to us about it.”

Bree wrinkles her nose. “I figured as much. Let’s try to forget about him for a moment—we all know what his fate is going to be. Do you have any questions about the rose ceremony or how it works?”

“Nope.”

“Close your eyes and don’t move,” Allison demands, and I quickly follow her directions. Bree’s arrival means that it’s almost time for the rose ceremony. I need to let the two beta women finish their work so I can get dressed.

“Do you know who you’re giving which roses to?”

As much as I want to answer Bree’s question, the fear of Allison losing it on me has me keeping my mouth closed. Instead, I lift my hand and shake it from side to side to tell her kind of. I know who’s being sent home tonight—that’s the most important thing. I just don’t know who I’ll be inviting on dates yet. Or if anyone will be invited back to my bedroom. I’m not ready to invite anyone to become part of my pack. I just don’t know any of them well enough yet. That’s one rose I won’t be handing out tonight.

Bree laughs. “I guess that’s better than not knowing at all. Is there anything you need from me?”

I lift my hand once more, giving her a thumbs up. I don’t know why she keeps asking me all these questions when I can’t answer her. Brat.

“Okay. Well, we have about ten minutes until you’re supposed to be at the ballroom. Will she be ready, Vivian? Allison?”

Allison hums as a brush runs across my eyelid. If I’m remembering correctly, all she has left are my eyes and lips. This isn’t the first time she’s done my makeup, though she’s mostly just assisted me with it. I’ve done enough shows to know how to do my makeup, but it is her job so I’m trying to let her do it.

“I’m almost done,” Allison says, and Vivian hums in agreement. “Maybe you should be in the room while she’s getting ready more often. This is the most relaxed she’s been since we got here.”

I’d love to tell her to hush or something, but she’s already moved onto my lips, and she will kill me if I talk right now.

“And done,” Vivian announces.

Allison pulls away from me and pauses for a moment. “Me, too.”

Blinking my eyes open, I give all three women in the room a big smile. “Thank you for putting up with me. I can’t promise to be any better behaved the rest of the time on the show, but I’m sure going to try.”

“You’re fine, dear.” Vivian squeezes my shoulder. “You have a lot going on, so it’s understandable. But you better go get dressed so you’re not late for your own ceremony.”

I jump out of the chair and head for my bedroom. “Thanks again. Have a great night!”

I don’t bother shutting the door as I hear the door to my suite open and shut. Bree is more than likely still in my suite, but she’s already seen me naked. Undoing the buttons of my shirt, I push it over my shoulders and toss it into the basket. My shorts quickly follow, leaving me in nothing more than my thong.

“You really don’t care about being naked, do you?” Bree laughs, and when I glance over my shoulder, I see her standing in the doorway as she shakes her head.

“Nope.” I shake my ass at her before grabbing my dress from where it hangs on the door to the closet. Stepping into it, I sigh as the deep green material brushes across my skin. It’s lightweight and silky—one of my favorite combinations for dresses.

This particular dress takes a few minutes to get on properly. I have to make sure that everything is sitting precisely where it should before having someone tighten the straps, or else I might end up with a wardrobe malfunction. The top of the dress consists of two pieces of material that cross over my stomach and breasts before it tapers off to a string that fastens behind my neck and runs down my back to fasten to the bottom of the dress that sits just above my butt. It leaves most of my back and sides bare with a good amount of cleavage on display. The draping of the dress continues into the skirt where it gathers at my right hip before spilling to the floor. When I walk, the nearly hip-high split will be obvious.

“Bree? Can you come and fasten the strings? Unfortunately, it’s not one I can fasten myself.”

Bree says nothing as she moves to stand behind me, reaching up to take the strings from me and fastening them at my neck. “Ummm… I assume this fastens somewhere else?”

“Yes, at the bottom of my back. You’ll need to pull the skirt away, and then you should see where to tie it off. Make sure it’s tight—we don’t want my tits falling out in the middle of the ceremony.” I snicker, picturing just that happening.

“Yeah, we can’t have that.” Bree laughs, making quick work of fastening the dress. “This looks amazing from behind.”

“It looks even better from the front.” Turning around, I run my hands down the material as I smile. With the loose fishtail braid Vivian put in my hair, along with the smoky eye and deep red lips Allison applied, I look damn good. “What do you think?”

Bree’s eyes widen as she runs her eyes over me. “Damn, girl. You’re going to have the suitors eating their tongues.”

“Perfect. That’s exactly the look I’m going for.”

She shakes her head and starts for the door. “Come along, then. We don’t want to keep them waiting.”

“Sure we do.” I snicker at the look she gives me over her shoulder, but I’m already following her. I only stop long enough to slide my feet into my heels. Since the ballroom is also on the first floor, it’s not like it’ll take us long to get there. But I’m also not willing to push Bree on it since she gets a little crazy over being late. She’s definitely one of those people who lives by the idea that being early is being on time. Personally, whenever I show up is the time I consider being on time—my time, that is.

That certainly won’t fly with Bree, so I don’t bother voicing my opinion on the matter. Instead, I follow her out of my suite and across the entryway, past the dining room, and down the hallway that’ll lead us into the ballroom. She stops just outside the doors where Reginald and Lucas wait for us.

“Looking good, Evie.” Reginald winks, groaning when Lucas elbows him. “I don’t need your elbow in my side. I’m allowed to tell a beautiful woman she looks good. It doesn’t mean I’m trying to get in bed with her—even Tyler would agree.”

Lucas smirks. “Maybe I just wanted to elbow you, beta. Though you are right about that. Evangeline, you look amazing.”

“Thank you both.” Heat rises to my cheeks, and I want to curse my body’s sudden need to blush anytime anyone compliments me. “Lucas, are you now guarding me inside the house as well?”

He chuckles, shaking his head. “Not exactly. Me and my guys will be working from the shadows during the rose ceremony. Both myself and Bree thought it was better to be safe than sorry. Especially since you’ve already had issues with multiple alphas.”

I want to object to this, but he’s right. After what happened with Sterling today, plus my accident last week, it really is better to err on the safe side. That doesn’t mean I have to like it.

“Thank you for looking out for my safety.” I take a deep breath, pushing my shoulders back as I stretch my neck from side to side. “Let’s do this.”

Bree pushes open the door, a reassuring smile on her lips as Reginald offers me his arm. Walking beside him, I let my eyes wander around the room. The ballroom is set up the same as it was last season, a raised stage in the center of the room with the suitors lined up around it on the floor. The curtains are open, moonlight shining in to help light the room. Fairy lights and LED candles are spread throughout the room to give it a warm glow.

Reginald leads me to the stage, not releasing me even when we walk up the stairs. As soon as our feet hit the stage, the lights on the stage come up, and I remind myself to smile as I look out over my suitors. It’s hard to make out details with the brighter lights shining in my eyes but as I adjust, I can make out their faces. Nerves flutter in my belly as I realize just how unprepared I am for this.

I might have told Bree I was mostly ready, but I’m really not. This is so much more than me just meeting twenty new people. This is about the rest of my life—the rest of their lives if I choose them. This is about forever, and with that thought, I feel a heavy weight on my shoulders.

Reginald leads us to the center of the stage, stopping beside the table that holds the vase of different colored roses. He pats my hand before releasing his hold on me and turning his attention to the cameras trained on us.

“Welcome back to Heated viewers. It’s time for this season’s first rose ceremony. Evangeline has met her twenty suitors and has been on a group date with them. Now, it’s time for her to decide what comes next for each of them. Evangeline, why don’t you explain what each color of rose symbolizes to our suitors and any of the viewers who might not know?”

When Reginald steps back, I move beside the table and reach for the first rose. “The red rose is the one that most of the suitors will hope to be handed at some point during this journey. It means that I choose that person to be mine—to be a part of my pack. The black rose is the one that most suitors dread as it means they’re being sent home. The lavender is an invitation for a group date, and the peach, an invitation for a one-on-one date. The yellow rose means that while I still want to get to know you better, there won’t be a date for you right now. The white rose is an invitation to my suite for the night.”

Taking a deep breath, I look away from the flowers I’ve been touching as I speak of their importance and focus on the suitors. “Before I start calling you up here, I’ve made some decisions on how I’d like my season to go. The rose ceremonies are held on Saturdays so I consider Sunday the first day of the week. Each Sunday, I want to spend the day as a group with all remaining suitors. A pack isn’t just about who I want and how I feel about them. It’s also about how they get along with one another. No one wants tension between pack members—or at least I don’t.

“So by having this singular day where we all hang out and get to know one another, it’ll allow all of us to see if being in a pack with one another is what we want.” I shrug. “Because it’s not just up to me. Each of you must decide if this is what you want as well. Tomorrow, we’ll play icebreaker games and get to know one another. By this point, you’ve all at least met one another. Maybe you’ve befriended other suitors and maybe you haven’t. This will be a chance for us all to get to know each other.”

Reginald steps forward again, drawing attention to him. “As all of you know by now, this season has been unlike either of the first two in so many ways. There are outside presences who are protesting Evangeline and the fact that she loves both men and women. This isn’t something that was expected when a bisexual omega was chosen for this season, but this will not prevent us from helping Evangeline find her pack. What it does mean is that we’ve added extra security for Evangeline’s safety.”

“Something I’m very grateful for,” I say with a tight smile. And I am grateful for it. I just wish it wasn’t necessary. “For those of you who believe that it’s wrong for a woman to love another woman, I see you and your hypocritical beliefs. Men are allowed to love men, but women can’t love one another? That’s an outdated opinion that I thought we’d long moved past. But don’t you worry because I’ll keep loving whomever I choose. You’ll be the ones who are miserable, not me. I’ll be living my life happily without another thought of you.”

I hadn’t been planning to call out the protesters like this, and I hope Bree doesn’t get pissed, but I felt like it needed to be said. I haven’t been able to voice my opinion until now, and that’s not fair. I won’t allow my voice to be muted. I won’t allow myself or others to be marginalized.

“No one can tell me what to do with my body—even if I’m just a weak little omega as some of you seem to think. This is who I am, and I’ll proudly shout it from the rooftops. You won’t stop me from finding my happily ever after.”

“Well said, Evangeline. Well said.” Instead of the usual plastic smile he wears for the cameras, he’s beaming at me. “Now, we must move on to the purpose of the ceremony. Tonight, we’ll be announcing the suitors in a previously decided random order. It’ll be just as much of a surprise for you as it will be for Evangeline. Are you ready?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I tell him with a grin.

“Then, let me welcome to the stage unbonded betas, Skylar Garrison and Cora Cassidy.”

I don’t have to pretend to smile as I wait for the two of them to join us on the stage. I enjoyed the date with them and the other day-one suitors.

Skylar steps onto the stage, her face tense. Cora holds her hand, looking as relaxed as can be as she smiles. They both wear similar dresses in shades of blue, looking beautiful.

“Skylar. Cora. Thank you for joining me. I had a wonderful time on our date with Jagger and Koda. I enjoyed getting to know both of you, and I want to get to know you better.” Reaching behind me, I snag two yellow roses. “There are only so many dates I can go on in one week, so this week, I won’t be inviting the two of you on a date.”

“That’s okay, Evangeline,” Cora says, still smiling as brightly as she had been when she joined me on stage. “We’re just glad to be here, getting to know you and the other suitors.”

A smile slides across Skylar’s lips, a touch reserved and timid but still there as she takes the rose from me. “Thank you. We’re looking forward to getting to know you as well.”

With that, the two of them head off the stage to rejoin the suitors.

“Next up,” Reginald says, his TV smile back in place, “is Evander Nelson. Why don’t you join us on stage, Evander?”

It’s not long before Evander is joining us, his long hair pulled back in a bun and looking sexy as hell. Ugh, I definitely need to keep my shit together.

“Evander, our date didn’t go exactly as planned, did it?” The two of us laugh together. “I think once it got started, it was a lot of fun, and I hope you did too. I had so much fun that I’d like to invite you to join me on a group date later this week. I’m planning three of them but haven’t decided who will be in which group.”

“I’d love to go on a group date with you, Evangeline.” Evander takes the rose from me, our fingers brushing together as he leans in to kiss my cheek. “I look forward to it.”

I release my hold on the rose, blinking as I watch him walk away. There are just some suitors that seem to throw me off my game, and it seems that Evander just might be one of them. I shake my head as Reginald announces the next name, wanting to have my sole focus on the suitors as they come onto the stage.

Pack Reyes look just as put together as they did that very first date, only this time, Paisley is smiling. Thank goodness.

“Pack Reyes, I know we got off to a bit of a rough start, but I really enjoyed our date.” Reaching behind me, I grab four yellow roses and offer them to the pack before me. “Since any date I’d invite you on this week would be a group date, I won’t be offering the four of you a date. We’ll still have plenty of time to get to know one another, but I want to try some different combinations for the groups this week.”

Paisley is the first one to take her rose as she nods. “That’s completely understandable. Thank you for allowing us another chance after the way I acted the day we met.”

“It’s my pleasure. I would’ve been missing out if I hadn’t.” I watch them walk away as Reginald calls the next suitor up.

From there, things go fairly smoothly as I work my way through the suitors. Jagger is offered a peach rose and an individual date, as is Lillian. Alejandro, Gavin, Conrad, Ronan, and Natalie are all offered lavender roses, meaning they’ll be joining the group dates, while Viktor, Dustin, and Bradley are given yellow roses with promises to still spend time with them, just not on dates.

The only remaining suitors are Tessa, Koda, and Sterling. I really hope they’re not leaving Sterling for last… Or maybe they should leave him for last. Honestly, I just want to get this over with and make sure he’s long gone.

“Next up, we have Sterling Palmer joining us on stage.” I can practically taste the irritation in Reginald’s voice, surprising me. After all, he’s an actor, so he should be able to hide what he’s feeling pretty well. Unless he’s not trying to hide it.

Sterling takes his sweet time making his way onto the stage, swaggering across it until he stands in front of me. “Just give me the black rose. We all know I’m going home.”

“Absolutely not.” I snort. “You’re my captive audience, and there are a few more things I want to say to you before I kick you to the curb. I’m not sure if you’re really looking for an omega or if you came on the show for some other reason, but this isn’t how you win over an omega. Not even a soft, pliable omega that you might prefer. An omega is the center of the pack, and those that he or she chooses to become part of that pack should want to make them happy—even if it means sucking up their pride and doing stuff they don’t want to.

“The reason I chose the activities that I did was because I wanted to weed out anyone who wasn’t at least willing to try something new. I’m an adventurous person, and I love trying new things. I want my pack to want to do those things with me. Maybe not all of them because there are some things they won’t enjoy, but they should at least try. You didn’t even try. You saw what you were requested to wear and balked at the idea, worried that it might make you look stupid or whatever. While you’re on your journey to find your omega, do better. Be better. Be the kind of alpha an omega would be proud to call their own. You’re old enough to know better.”

I grab the black rose, thrusting it across the stage to him. “Now, you can go.”

“Who the hell do you think you are?” Sterling knocks the rose from my hand and takes a step toward me. I don’t step away from him, letting him invade my personal space. “Who are you to think you can talk like that to me?”

I snicker, a smile on my lips as I shake my head. “I’m Evangeline Deveraux, world famous designer, but more importantly, I’m the omega who is here to find her pack. You don’t have to listen to my advice, but you do have to leave. If you think acting like this is going to make me scared and make me cower, you’re wrong. I’m not afraid of alphas who think they’re so much better than everyone else. They have a word for that, it’s alphahole. There’s the good kind of alphaholes and the bad kind. I’m sure you can guess which one you are.”

“You’re an uppity bitch who doesn’t know her place,” Sterling growls, spit flying as he gets in my face. He doesn’t get a chance to say anything else before he’s yanked backward, Lucas and Mike wrenching his arms behind his back.

“And you’re an alpha who just showed his ass on national television. I wonder who’s the one who will look bad to the viewers.” With a scoff, I turn my back on him as he’s dragged off the stage.

Reginald lays a hand on my lower back. “Are you alright?”

“Oh, I’m perfect.” Grinning, I turn to face him and the suitors. “I’ve been dealing with men and women who think like him my entire life.”

“That doesn’t make it any better,” Reginald says wryly.

I shrug. “It is what it is. Now, if I’m not mistaken, we still have two more suitors, don’t we?”

“Yes, we do. Why don’t we call them both to the stage? Koda Cox and Tessa Hanson, will the two of you join us?”

While I assured Reginald I’m okay, and I am, I’m ready for this damn ceremony to be over with. Before they can join us on the stage, I grab two roses and turn back to watch the two of them walk over.

“Koda, we had chemistry from moment one, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. Tessa, I’m not going to lie. After the first season of Heated, when they did the article on you and Bree, I had a crush on you. Meeting you in person has only made that crush grow. Because of that, I want to invite both of you to join me for one of the group dates this week.”

Tessa smiles, reaching forward to take the rose from me. “Nothing would make me happier.”

Koda, meanwhile, bypasses the rose and picks me up as his lips meet mine. Even knowing this is a terrible idea, my arms go around him of their own accord as I deepen the kiss. The real question is, will our perfumes fill the room as they did the day we met?

Someone clears their throat, but we both ignore the sound.

“Evangeline. Koda. Seriously?” Reginald hisses.

Jerking back, I giggle as I lower my arms and Koda takes a step back. He bites his bottom lip, the right side of his mouth curling up and making him look even sexier. Right now, he looks like a sexy bad boy, and I want to climb him like a tree.

“I apologize,” Koda says, nodding to Reginald, but he looks completely unapologetic. “I was just very happy and couldn’t help myself.”

Reginald makes a face, barely managing to not roll his eyes. “Yeah, I’m sure. Tessa, Koda, why don’t the two of you make your way back to the other suitors.”

He waits until they’ve left the stage before turning back to the cameras. “Nothing is ever boring on Heated, is it? This season has already started off with a bang. It’ll be interesting to see how things go from here. Until next time, this is Reginald Williams signing off.”

I stand silently beside him for a few moments until they signal that the cameras have cut, and he spins to face me. “Really, Evangeline?”

“I don’t know why you’re looking at me. He’s the one who kissed me.” I lift my chin, daring him to say anything else.

He just shakes his head with a laugh. “Yeah, okay. But you’re the one that gets to explain it to Bree.” He gestures toward the side of the stage where Bree is waiting for me.

Well, fuck.