Page 101 of Knot His Reality

“But most of you will be sharing rooms,” Tessa continues. “Remington will be in the master suite on the second floor, with Pack Hawthorne in the adjoining room. The rest of you will be able to choose your rooms. There are an additional four rooms on the second floor and three on the first. Pack Woods, you’ll share a room, obviously. That leaves another six rooms for the remaining eleven suitors to choose from. Yes, that means one of you will get a room of your own.”

Bree smiles from the stool she’s sitting on. “Staff will stay in cabins near yours. Because we need to make sure you can reach us, you’ll each be given a walkie-talkie that’s set to the secure line we’re using. Cameras have already been set up in the cabin, so don’t think you’re getting out of that. As per usual, there are no cameras in the bathrooms or in Remy’s nest. Now, for the itinerary. Tomorrow, you’ll be spending the day with Remy’s family. On Tuesday, the first group will head out for their date. Wednesday and Thursday will be for the second and third groups. Then, on Friday, you’ll be attending the award ceremony for his sister, Emilia. This isn’t a black-tie affair, but Evangeline is sending over some appropriate outfits for all of you to choose from.”

“Remy?” Tessa calls, waving me over. “If you have any questions, you’ll be free to ask them once Remy is done going over the plans he has for this week’s dates.”

“I’m really excited to be home. While it’s pretty close to Los Angeles, I don’t get down here as often as I’d like. As for the dates, I’ve decided that one of my mates will attend each of the dates with me. Remember, this is the time for you to get to know me and them better. On Tuesday, Eric will join me and my family for a beach day. Coming with us will be Nolan, Alexei, Nikolai, Brooke, and Ian.

“On Wednesday, Victoria will join me and my family on a trip to the marine park here in Wilde. Coming with us will be Rhys, Gracie, Riley, and Carter. For the last date, joining me, Milo, and my family to the San Diego zoo will be Lee, Quinn, Audrey, and Camila. I’m not sure who all will join us from my family each day, but you can count on my big sister and my nephews to join us. These are activities that Emilia and I loved growing up, and I know she wants to share that with her sons.”

I head back to my seat as Tessa and Bree handle questions from the suitors. I lean into Eric as I sit down, loving the bond humming between me and the three of them. It’s such an amazing feeling.

I didn’t know what I was missing out on by not finding a pack sooner, and while part of me wishes I’d done this sooner, I know I never would’ve met any of my suitors if that were the case. Things happen for a reason, and I was meant to meet these particular people when I did.

I can’t wait to figure out who else will be a part of my pack, and this week is bringing me that much closer to it.

Looking around my parents’ backyard, I grin. I can’t remember the last time it was filled with this many people. Probably during the summer when Emilia and I were teens. My parents know everyone in their neighborhood and they always threw a party at least once a month during the summers growing up. They’re getting older now, so I’m not sure if they still do them as often or not.

We’ve been here for about an hour, and it’s already five. My dads are grilling dinner which should be done soon. Then once the sun goes down, we’ll light up the bonfires to not only stay warm, but so we can make s’mores. Because they live so far from the bigger cities, we’ll be able to see the night sky without all the sky pollution, and I can’t wait.

The sky is almost as clear back at the compound, but this is the sky I grew up staring at.

“What are you doing over here by yourself like a loser?”

I grin as Emilia nudges me with her elbow. I throw my arm over her shoulders and hug her close. She’s half a foot shorter than me at five foot five and tiny as hell. She takes after our beta mom, Olivia, who is her biological mom. My biological mom, Hannah, is our alpha mom, and we both share the same bio dad, Elijah, who’s our omega dad.

Her long blonde hair and blue eyes give us away as not being full-blooded siblings. I have my mom’s brown hair and my dad’s gray eyes, whereas she takes fully after Mama.

“It’s just nice being back. I haven’t been coming back enough.” I sigh, running a hand through my hair as I glance toward our parents. Dad and Pops, our two alpha dads, and Papa, our beta dad, are at the grill, finishing up dinner. Mom and Mama are sitting with Baba, our omega dad, talking with Camila and Brooke at the table next to the grill.

“Neither have I. I haven’t been back since…” She trails off with a sigh, but I can fill it in myself. She hasn’t been back since she lost her pack.

“You’ve been busy.”

She shakes her head. “I’ve been avoiding it. This is where I ran after they died, and I haven’t wanted to face it since. I thought it would bring the pain and loss back. Instead, I just remember all the good times we had here.”

I kiss the top of her head as I blink away tears. Emilia had been with her pack for a long time—almost since she revealed. They were family just as much as she is. I know we all miss them, even if it’s not as deep as my sister does.

“Jasper doesn’t even remember them,” Emilia says softly. “I heard Hawk telling him about how awesome their dads were the other night. I’m failing my kids by not telling them about their dads. For the longest time, I couldn’t think about them without crying, and by the time I could, I just…didn’t. They’d be so disappointed in me.”

I pull her in for a hug, laying my head on top of hers as I fight tears once more. She clings to me as she sniffles, and I know she’s crying.

“You’re not failing them. You lost your pack and had to heal from that. Not all omegas could survive that, but you did because you’re one of the strongest women I know. You can start sharing stories about their dads when you’re ready.” I sniff, losing the battle with my tears as they spill over. “As far as them being disappointed in you, they would never. Wherever they are now, I know they’re watching you continue their legacy through their company and by raising their sons on your own. They’re all thinking just what I am—that you’re strong and doing everything you can to survive something tragic.”

“You think so?”

I nod. “I know so. They loved you so much, Em.”

“And I loved them.” She sighs, finally pulling back and brushing away her tears. “Fuck. I was doing so good about not crying.”

I shrug, running a hand over my face to do the same. “You know we always make each other more emotional. Now, enough sadness. It looks like Jasper and Hawk are tormenting my new pack mates. We should go save them.”

She glances to where my nephews are climbing all over Eric and Milo in between being chased around by Victoria.

“I like them,” she tells me. “They’re good for you, and the boys clearly love them. I’m happy for you, Remy.”

I snort when my eight-year-old foster sister, Lily, runs over and launches herself at Victoria. Her seventeen-year-old sister, Rose, is right behind her. My parents took the two of them in about six months ago so they could stay together. Rose turns eighteen in just a few months, so no one wanted to take her in, and because Lily refused to leave her, they were stuck in a group home for a month before my parents found out about them.

“Okay, we might actually want to go save them now,” Emilia says with a laugh. “Adding Lily into the mix is just asking for trouble.”

---