Page 3 of Knot Her Reality

“Oh, are you a fan?”

“I am. Believe it or not, this isn’t one of the options you provided. I mean, it is, but this is mine. I bought it the moment your men’s line hit the stores. Your designs are to die for, and I’m glad that I can finally wear them.” Reginald runs his hands down the slick lines of his suit, and I smile. It looks good on him, and he knows it.

“It looks good on you, as you’re aware. But I’m glad you like it. Everyone told me that starting a men’s line would be risky—that I’d fail. But clearly, they were mistaken.” I snort.

Bree sighs. “Okay, stop using all the good stuff before the interview, please. You definitely need to repeat that.”

“Ma’am, yes, ma’am,” I say with a snort and a fake salute. “I’m ready.”

“Wait!” Bree comes running up the stairs. “I almost forgot your mic.”

Reginald’s eyes narrow on her. “You’ve been awfully forgetful lately.”

Bree helps me get the mic on and avoids meeting either of our eyes when she stands up. That’s not suspicious at all. “I’ve had a lot going on. Now, focus on the interview. The first suitor is set to arrive in thirty minutes.”

I shake my head, grinning at Reginald as Bree hurries back down the stairs. “I guess I’m ready now.”

“Good.” He shoots me a wink before focusing on the camera over my shoulder. His smile changes as he takes on his reality TV show host persona. “Hello, I’m Reginald Williams, and welcome to the third season of Heated.”

He turns to another, smile firmly in place. “We’re so glad to have each of you with us, whether you’re new viewers or old. As with the first two seasons, we have an omega who is eight weeks from her heat. She will spend those weeks getting to know the twenty suitors who have been selected for her so that she can find her pack. But this season is different from the others. You might have already heard the rumors, as they’ve been spreading like wildfire, but this season, we have our very first female bisexual omega. I’d like to welcome this season’s omega, Evangeline Deveraux.

“Welcome, Evangeline,” he continues as he turns back to face me. “It’s possible that our viewers aren’t aware of the events that have been transpiring as we readied for the start of the season. Would you like to share with them what’s been going on and what you’ve been facing?”

Taking a deep breath, I nod. “Of course. Thank you for being so welcoming, Reginald. You really know how to make an omega feel at ease. As far as what’s been going on since it was announced that I was bisexual… Well, that’s quite the story.”

I go on to explain about the protests, the threats, and the media coverage they might have missed out on. They would have to be hiding under a rock to miss out on what’s been going on, but it’s good to talk about it. I know Bree’s goal is to shine a light on the hypocrisy of what’s being demanded of me because I’m a woman. My goal is to show the haters—including my parents—that their opinions won’t hold me back. They haven’t in the past, and I won’t let them going forward.

“Wow,” Reginald murmurs. “That’s a lot for you to have to deal with before the show has even started. How are you feeling about everything?”

“How am I feeling? Come on, Reginald, you can do better than that. We all know how I’m feeling. I’m stressed out, and I’m disgusted at the hate being spewed at me. As much as I try not to let their words hurt me, they do. This isn’t the first time I’ve had to deal with a situation like this.” Another deep breath, and I’m explaining my parents’ reaction. No matter how many years go by and how many times I talk about it, it never gets easier. “All of this because I’m a bisexual woman. The vast majority of our male population is bisexual, and no one has a problem with that. Do you know why? It’s because they can’t reproduce.

“Apparently, because I have a uterus that can possibly support a fetus, it gives others the right to tell me what I can and cannot do. Not just with my body but with my life. Because a woman can’t impregnate me, I shouldn’t be attracted to them. I shouldn’t want to fall in love with one because they can’t help me make a baby. I’m taking another uterus away that could be filled with a fetus. Because, as a woman and an omega, my only importance to this world is birthing the next generation. Forget the fact that I may never be able to have a child. Forget that I might not want to have children. Forget the fact that I could give birth to ten males and not a single female that they’re so desperate for.

“If they’re attacking me this badly for being bisexual, can you imagine the uproar that would be caused if I was a lesbian? It’s atrocious that there are people out there who think they can tell me who I can love. Who think that they can tell me what to do with my body? The worst part? It’s not even just men. My mother is a firm believer in this rhetoric. Or at least she was the last time I spoke to her almost twenty years ago. No one has a right to tell me what I can and cannot do. I am a person, and I am more than my reproductive organs. I don’t care what anyone has to say. This is my decision and my life. I’m going to spend the next eight weeks as the happiest woman alive, being surrounded by men and women who want to be with me.”

I shrug and smile. “And isn’t that the best kind of revenge? Here they are, out in the world, spreading hate. While I’m here, finding love. They can’t stop me from loving a woman. Just like they can’t stop me from loving a man. I will love whomever I want, and not a damn person is going to stop me. I think I’ll just step off my soapbox now.”

Reginald shakes his head. “No, I don’t think you should. I agree with everything you’ve said. I’m sorry that you’ve had to deal with that in the past and now. One would think we would’ve moved past all of this hate by now, but I guess there are just some things that will never change. Some people will always find a way to spread hate.”

“Yes, they will.” I settle back into my chair, hating that he’s right. The world would be a whole lot better if people would stop hating someone because they’re different. If they would just keep their damn opinions and hate to themselves.

“Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, why don’t you tell us a little about you?”

I can’t help laughing. “We probably should’ve started with that, huh? As Reginald said, my name is Evangeline Deveraux. I’m a thirty-seven-year-old omega and fashion designer. If you’ve not heard of me, where have you been hiding?” I laugh again, Reginald joining me this time. “You’ll see a lot of my designs during this season, as that’s all I’ll be wearing. After leaving my parents’ home at eighteen, I moved in with my girlfriend’s family because I was still in high school. I worked my butt off and was accepted into one of the most prestigious design programs in the world.

“Things didn’t last long with my girlfriend, considering I traveled to Paris for school, but we kept in contact and we’re still friends. She ended up revealing as a beta and is living her best pack life. Meanwhile, I focused all of my energy on becoming the best designer I could be. Do you know how many designers fail? It’s not an easy business, and I didn’t want to end up working under another designer for the rest of my life. I was lucky enough to be taken under the wings of an amazing alpha who owns one of the top lines still to this day. I was lucky because he didn’t look at me and see my designation. He looked at my designs and saw the talent there. He was the first to invest in my company, and we’ve even collaborated on some pieces for charity since then.”

“Oh? Anyone I might know?” Reginald asks as he leans forward in his chair.

I shrug. “Probably, but I’m not telling. He didn’t want me to be known as his protégé. He wanted people to know my name because of my designs, so we weren’t linked together often. If you dig deep enough, you might be able to find out the answer, but most people don’t care enough to do that much work. And that’s the way I like it. My work takes up most of my time, but when I’m not working, I enjoy exhilarating activities. I don’t want to share too much, as it will ruin the surprise of the dates I have planned for my suitors, but I’m definitely an adrenaline junkie.”

“It appears it’s almost time for our first suitor to arrive. Are you ready for this?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.”

Reginald laughs. “Then let’s do this. Viewers, keep watching to meet Evangeline’s first four suitors.”

Chapter Two

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