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Mark shakes her hand off and when she moves to reach for him again, he grabs her by the arm and gets close to her face. Could this be some kind of lover’s quarrel? Her eyes turn glassy and her lips form the word please, but I can’t make out any of the rest. He shoves her away a moment later and turns his focus onto his camera, leaving Karen standing there shell-shocked. After opening and closing her mouth a few times, she spins on her heel and stalks off.
“Going live in three,” Mark loudly announces, holding up three fingers before dropping to two and then one without saying anything else. It’s all so abrupt, I don’t have time to remember my nerves. With a shift on the uncomfortable seat, I turn toward Mrs. Violet, a smile plastered on my face, knowing the viewers at home want to see a happy omega. Not a confused one, wondering what in the heat nest happened a second ago.
“Welcome to another live episode of Heat Paradise!” Mrs. Violet greets the camera, her entire countenance exuding excitement. I know she had to see the same thing I did, but nothing about her demeanor lets it show. “Tonight is the first elimination, and I know we’re all looking forward to finding out who’ll be staying with us.” She shifts to turn toward a new camera, allowing the fresh angle to keep the attention of the viewers at home. “But first, we have an interview with not only the men to help you lock in those final votes, but our starlet omega.”
Mrs. Violet turns her full attention to me, instead of the camera. The back of my neck prickles with the phantom caress of thousands of eyes on me. At least that’s how it feels, even though there’s a screen and miles upon miles separating us. My fingers twitch like they want to fidget again, but I can’t do that with the cameras broadcasting to the people who hold my future in their hands. I don’t want them to find anything lacking in me.
“You’ve been here for almost a week, Verity. How are you settling in?” she asks, an expectant smile on her face.
“I’m settling in more and more every day. Hidden Haven Manor is more beautiful than the viewers at home could ever imagine. The cameras don’t do all the gorgeous details any favors. The builders put so much heart into all the woodwork carvings of the baseboards and crown molding. Not to mention the fireplace mantles.” I fold my hands in my lap to keep myself from seeming nervous. “It’s like I’m at a dream vacation destination.”
I contemplate telling her about building a nest. The viewers at home would go feral over something like that, but it feels too personal to mention yet. Maybe it’s something I can use to my advantage later on. Something to endear them if I need it.
“We met your best friend—Ryland, was it?—in the last interview. How are things going with him being here?” Mrs. Violet asks next, not holding back from jumping right into the hard questions.
“Having Ry here has gone a long way with helping me get settled in. I’m grateful to have someone to talk to about all this since I’m the only omega this season.” I catch a glimpse of him smiling at me from the sidelines, cheering me on.
Mrs. Violet shifts in her seat and leans toward me, placing a hand on my knee gently. “If you ever need someone else to talk to, we’re always here,” she says with a smile, before turning to wink at the camera. The disingenuous sentiment makes my stomach flip. Does she really think I’d choose that option? I can almost see her thoughts turning, thinking about how to force my hand. “We have a clip from your first day here. Should we show it now?”
One of the crew members rolls a screen out so we can see the clip together, but I already have a sneaking suspicion of what it is. Nausea pulls at me. You can hear my voice crystal clear saying, “Ryland and I have slept together hundreds of times.” Of course she doesn’t play the whole clip, giving context to what I was talking about. My cheeks heat with embarrassment as I wait for her to ask her next question, not daring a glance in Ryland’s direction. But I can imagine the outrage on my behalf written across his face.
“You and Ryland sound like you are a little more than best friends.“ She raises a disbelieving eyebrow, taunting me to answer her. Probably hoping I’ll put too much emotion into it being caught off guard this way.
Fuck, Verity, play it off. You’ve got this.
“Oh, yeah, Ryland and I go way back. Sometimes our mothers would put us in the same crib together to get us to shut up. We’ve been attached at the hip practically our whole lives.”
Mrs. Violet clutches her chest. “Aw, that’s so sweet. And he’s here now, supporting you. What an amazing friend. I’m sure our viewers would like to see more of him after knowing that little tidbit. What will you ever do if your pack doesn’t approve of you staying friends?”
I swallow, emotion suddenly thick in my throat with the thought. There’s no way I could ever live my life without Ryland in it, especially not after spending the past week the way we have. This is my moment to shine. Rosey has been coaching me on playing up to the viewers. I don’t like the thought of it, but if there’s ever a time for it, it’s now.
Turning to the camera focused on me, I give it a sweet smile, doing my best to seem like I’m staring them in the eyes, speaking directly to them. Like we’re old friends and I’m having an honest moment with them. “I can only hope the viewers at home will vote for the men who are confident enough to trust my friendship with Ryland. My life is in your hands.”
She smiles at that, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “One last question before we move on to the men.” I breathe a sigh of relief. The end is near. “How are you feeling? Any front runners the world should know about?” She shares a conspiratorial wink with the camera before focusing on my answer.
I pause and think it through, rather than blurting out my first thought, which is obviously the twins. That could either work for or against their favor, depending on my standing with society. It’s not worth the risk. They know how I feel about them. Or at least I hope they do. I don’t go around kissing everyone or letting them touch me. Instead, I let my instincts guide my answer. “The alphas have all been lovely so far. It’ll be a shame to lose five of them, but I’m looking forward to being one step closer to my true pack.”
Whoa, did I manage a graceful answer for once? Score!
It takes everything in me not to high-five myself.
Mrs. Violet grins and actually seems a little proud of me. “Spoken like a humble omega.” The praise is short-lived as she turns to face a different camera, getting ready for the next segment. “All right, who’s ready for the alphas?” She fans herself and waits a beat. Meanwhile, I’m ushered out of our little seating area to a smaller one that’s facing the setup where I exited. There’s still a camera trained on me so they can catch my responses, but at least I get to watch. Maybe I’ll learn something about the men who could potentially be in my pack.
“The first alpha, or should I say alphas, answering all of your juiciest questions tonight are none other than society favorites, Andrik and Jedrik Hart!“ There’s a short pause as one of the audio techs plays a clip of a crowd clapping, which doesn’t make a lot of sense as there’s not an audience, but what do I know?
Andrik and Jedrik step into the room and it’s like all the air is sucked out of my lungs as I’m reminded of how fucking hot they are. Their combined gazes flick over to me like they were searching specifically for me, and Andrik shoots me a panty-melting wink. My heart leaps into my throat.
Other than a quick, assessing glance filled with heat, Jedrik doesn’t do anything, but his eyes say it all for him. Back to his simmering old self then. I guess that’s to be expected, but it doesn’t stop the pang in my chest as I think about that damn kiss between us. Fuck, it was like he sucked my soul out of my mouth and placed it somewhere deep inside him. Hopefully, he wakes up and feels this connection between us before it’s too little, too late.
As they sit in their uncomfy chairs, Mrs. Violet notices Andrik’s pocket square exactly like he predicted. She raises an eyebrow. “Andrik, if I’m not mistaken, your pocket square matches our lovely omega’s dress, does it not?”
His mouth curls into a dashing smile. “It does, Mrs. Violet,” he responds. “Verity gave it to me before the ceremony for luck.”
Mrs. Violet oohs and ahhs over it for the camera and Mark captures every second of it, making sure to zoom in on the scrap of fabric so the whole world sees. “Seems like Verity might’ve held back on her earlier answer. Would you say you’re in the running for her favorite?”
His features soften. “I really hope so, but it would be presumptuous of me to assume. Only Verity can answer that.” Damn, he really knows how to work the camera. Suddenly, my doubt seems severely misplaced.
She glances at the tablet in her lap and lets out a laugh. “Well, society certainly seems to admire the matching color scheme. Your popularity ranking has already jumped two spots. However, your brother’s position is still hovering in the middle of the pack. How do you feel about that?”
