Page 34 of Knot Their Reality

"And since none of you have any allergies or dislikes of seafood, tonight you'll be having a wide variety of seafood. Cook wouldn't tell me what all he was making, but he was very excited. I'll definitely be ducking into the kitchen as soon as I leave here. Does anyone have any questions?"

Bree looks between the five of us, and when no one speaks up, she shrugs. "Well, then, enjoy your dinner. I'll let the servers know to bring it in."

Then she's gone, leaving me alone with these four men who all make me feel a little nervous. As much as Bree had tried to assure me, I'm still having issues wrapping my head around the whole celebrities are people too thing. Intellectually, I know that's true. Hell, I'd thought it myself earlier, but brains don't always act in a way that makes sense, do they?

"Sophia, have you ever been out of the US?" Malik asks, breaking the silence. I quickly jump on the topic, happy to have something to talk about.

Once we get started, we don't stop, and I finally feel myself relaxing again. It could be, in part, because of the amazing fish, shrimp, lobster, and oysters we have for dinner, but who knows?

I'm just glad I no longer feel overwhelmed. There are still eight more suitors to meet—not to mention a night of getting to know these four and our group date tomorrow. I get the feeling that I'm going to be utterly exhausted by the time I finish up my time on Heated, but I'll have the one thing I want more than anything—a pack.

And that's all that matters.

The next morning, I find myself in the SUV with Brody, Quinn, Malik, and Paxton as we head off to our date. I'm so excited I'm practically vibrating on the seat while the four men laugh at me. They have no idea what's in store for them today, but I can't wait for the surprise when they see where we're going.

After dinner last night, I spent an hour re-centering in my nest before joining the four of them in the pool. It had been a nice night with copious amounts of alcohol and easy conversation. When I headed to bed, I found that the alcohol and good company had relaxed me, and I passed out the moment my head hit the pillow.

Breakfast had been uneventful before we'd all rushed off in separate directions to get ready for the group date. I wanted to spend as much time as possible at the carnival we were heading to so I might have rushed the guys a bit. Not that they seemed to mind in the least.

We have the carnival rented out for the next five hours before they have to start breaking down to head to their next location. I don't know how Bree convinced them to stay for a few extra hours, but I'm going to guess it involved a large amount of money.

The SUV comes to a stop, and Brody looks out the window excitedly before turning back to me with a grin on his face. "Really?"

“Really.” My smile is so wide it almost hurts. Carnivals are yet another thing I missed out on growing up how I did, and work didn’t allow me enough free time to attend one.

That's a lie. If I'd really wanted to go, I could've made the time. But who the hell wants to go to a carnival by themselves? That just sounds like a terrible time in the making.

"A carnival?" Quinn laughs as he opens the door and steps out. Malik does the same on his side, and then I'm scrambling up out of my seat and diving out Quinn's door with Brody on my heels.

Paxton doesn't seem nearly as excited as Brody and I as he takes his time to climb from the car.

"Yup." I pop my p because that feels like the thing to do. "The five of us, the camera crew, and security will be the only ones here besides the workers. I've always wanted to come to one of them but haven't ever made the time."

"I don't think I've been to one since I was a kid." Quinn's smile is crooked as he looks down at me.

Brody throws his arm around my waist. "I take my nephews whenever one rolls through town. I don't know what it is about carnivals, fairs, and amusement parks, but I just can't get enough of them."

Malik moves to stand beside Quinn while Paxton stands on Brody's other side. The five of us look up at the entrance, and Malik shakes his head. "I don't think I've ever been to one either."

"The last time I was at a fair was when I was in high school, and the band was playing at the county fair." Paxton makes a face. "I didn't even get to enjoy the fair. I got food poisoning from the barbeque we got before the show. It was horrible. I almost didn't make it through the show."

I hum. "So what you're all saying is that I did good, right?"

The four of them laugh as Quinn takes my hand in his, all the while Brody never releases his hold around my waist.

"Alright, omega," Malik begins, lifting his eyebrows, "what do you want to do first? I'm sure there will be rides, games, and food. We can jump around as much or as little as you want, but we definitely need a starting place."

"Food. I want a funnel cake. Then we can play some games and ride some rides. I want to ride every ride, try as much food as I can, and I expect each of you to win me at least one prize each."

"Challenge accepted." Paxton's smile lights up his face when I turn to him. "You'll just have to let us know which prizes you want."

Which is how I find myself running around for five hours. I'm afraid we'll miss something if we don't hurry, even if we are following around the carnival from start to finish. By the time we leave, each of the guys has won at least three prizes, meaning we're all loaded down with stuffed animals as we head back to the car.

There are so many that they fill the back of the SUV completely, making me laugh. "I think we might have gone a little overboard on prizes."

"Never," Paxton says with a grin. "When an omega says she wants you to win her prizes, you win her all the prizes you can. That's just how the world works."

"If only that worked in all aspects of my life," I reply with a small laugh. "Thank you for indulging me. I definitely should've gone to a carnival sooner, but having the four of you there definitely made it better."

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