Page 21 of Knot Our Reality (Heated #5)

Emilia

“ I love you, Em,” Ryan whispers as he pulls me into his arms.

I lay my head on his chest, letting out a contented sigh. I’ve missed being in his arms.

“I love you too, Ry.”

“We all love you.” I turn my head to find my alphas sitting on the bed behind Ryan. “We will always love you.”

“And I will always love you—no matter what.” I don’t know why I feel so desperate to make sure they understand that. “You’ll always be in my heart.”

Maxwell reaches over to run a hand through my hair. “We know that, precious. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have room in your heart for others.”

“What?” I sit up, confused by his words.

Ryan also sits up, holding my hand in his. “It’s okay to move on, Em. It doesn’t mean you love us any less.”

I jerk awake with tears streaming down my face, my hand lifting to my chest where it feels like my heart is going to beat out of my chest.

What the fuck was that?

I know it was a dream—there’s nothing else it could be—but it felt so real. It felt like the four of them were right there with me.

A sob shakes free, and I curl into myself the best I can with my pregnancy belly .

It’s not the first time I’ve dreamed about them, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. I think I’m so upset because they said exactly what I needed to hear right now.

Logically, I know they wouldn’t want me to be alone for the rest of my life, but getting my heart to believe it? That hasn’t been nearly as easy.

I don’t know how much time passes as I lie there crying, but eventually, my tears slow. By the time I’m able to rein in my sobs, my head is killing me and my nose is all stuffy.

I sit up slowly, my eyes falling to the clock and widening.

I must have slept through my alarm. My date with the day three suitors is supposed to start in less than an hour.

That’s not nearly enough time to shower and eat, but I’m going to have to take a shower.

It’s the only chance I have to get rid of this headache.

Picking up the phone on the bedside table, I glance at the paper with all the important extensions and quickly dial Bree’s.

“Emilia? Is everything okay?” Bree sounds a little stressed out as she answers her phone.

“Umm…yeah. Mostly. Look, I woke up late.” I fill her in on the situation, asking if we can delay leaving for the date until after I have time to get ready and eat. Because, as a pregnant woman, there’s no way I’m skipping breakfast. There’s no way that’ll end well.

“Of course, Emilia. Go get in the shower and see if it helps your headache. If it doesn’t, then we can delay the date until you feel better.

Or we come up with an alternative. I’ll call and let them know you’ll at least be late.

” She pauses. “Please don’t push through this.

If you can’t do the date, then all you need to do is say so. ”

I smile, nodding even though she can’t see me. “I understand. I promise if the shower and eating don’t wipe out the headache, then I’ll let you know.”

“You better. We’ll see you soon.”

As soon as I set the phone back down, I hurry into the bathroom.

I take care of business before climbing into the shower.

As the warm water from the multiple shower heads hits my skin, I can feel the tension melting away.

By the time I’m finished, my head still hurts a little, but I think eating will knock it out the rest of the way.

I don’t really have time to deal with a whole lot of makeup, but I make sure to brush on some mascara before pulling on the short T-shirt dress Evangeline picked out for me last night.

Once I have my sneakers on, I exit my suite, surprised to find Bree and Tessa waiting for me. “Uhhh…hi?”

“We wanted to check in on you,” Tessa assures me. “Bree said your head was hurting and that you had a dream that upset you. I know you’re probably hungry, but we just want to reiterate that you don’t have to go on today’s date if you’re not feeling up to it.”

Gratitude races through me once more. “I know. It’s down to a dull roar now. I think it’ll be fine after I eat.”

“Then we won’t keep you any longer. Your day three suitors are waiting in the dining room. They’ve already finished eating and were all very worried about you.”

“That’s sweet. I better hurry and let them know I’m fine. I’ll let you know for sure how I’m feeling after I eat.”

With a quick wave in their direction, I dart into the entryway and hurry toward the dining room. Okay, I don’t really hurry. I can’t exactly move quickly in my condition.

“Emilia!” Camden jumps to his feet as soon as I step inside and hurries over. His fig, sea salt, and brown sugar scent is crystal clear today. There’s a hint of spring rain to it, but I think that’s from his bonded alpha’s scent.

He pulls me into his arms, and I bury my head in his chest, allowing his scent to wash over me. A little more tension slips from me as he begins to purr.

I lean back enough to look up at him with a grin. “Are you purring for me?”

He blushes, but doesn’t break my gaze. “I guess I am.”

“That’s sweet. I’m okay. Just a rough morning. I have a bit of a headache, but I think it’s because it’s so late and I haven’t eaten yet.” I pat his chest, his purr settling something inside me .

“Then we should get you some food.” He leads me over to the buffet. “I’d make you a plate, but I don’t know what you like and what you don’t.”

“Omega, give her some room to breathe.” Wilder’s tone is just this side of a bark as he joins us, his cedar and spring rain scent wafting over me, and the last of the tension falls away. “You don’t want to overwhelm her.”

I wave off Wilder’s concern. “He’s fine. In fact, I think he’s helping. I prefer to get my own food, Camden, but thank you.”

Camden shadows me as I move to grab a plate and take in the offerings. As I lean in, a scent fills my nose that immediately has nausea rolling through me. I drop the plate, not even noticing as it hits the floor and breaks, as I lift a hand to my mouth.

I take a few steps back, but it’s like the scent is stuck in my nose, and I know I’m going to be sick.

Turning on my heel, I take off for my suite, almost barreling into Tessa, who tries to stop me.

“Emilia? What’s wrong?”

I shake my head, tearing out of her grasp and continuing to my suite. I’m almost across the entryway when I realize I’m not going to make it.

Fuck me.

A potted plant near the front door draws my attention, and even though I know I’m going to feel like an asshole, I rush over. Kneeling isn’t super easy being this pregnant, but I do it. I barely get my hand out of the way before I’m puking into the plant.

I hate throwing up, and I should’ve already moved past the point of having morning sickness. But here I am, puking my guts up in the damn entryway. Tears of embarrassment streak down my face as I continue to get sick. I try to keep my hair out of the way, but who knows how successful I am.

I startle when someone gathers my hair at the back of my head, securing it with a hair tie before running a soothing hand over my back.

Camden .

“It’s okay, sweetheart. Let it out. You’ll feel better after you’re done.” He hesitates. “At least that’s how it is when I’m drunk or hungover. I don’t know if it works the same for pregnant women.”

A feminine snicker follows his words. “It usually does.”

“Oh, good.”

When I open my mouth to respond, I get sick again, and Camden’s purr kicks in once again. My cheeks flush red, both from getting sick and from how embarrassed I am at him—and probably the other three suitors—seeing me like this.

I continue to lean over the pot even after I stop getting sick, wanting to be sure I’m done.

All I want to do is run back to my suite and hide away for the rest of the day.

How fucking embarrassing!

“Are you okay now?” Camden asks quietly, and I nod.

I’m surprised when he scoops me up into his arms like I weigh nothing. “What are you doing?”

“You just got sick. You’re probably feeling a little weak. I don’t want to take the chance of you falling and hurting yourself or the baby.”

I bury my face in his chest before realizing I might have vomit on my face. “Holy crap, I’m sorry.”

I lift my head, sighing when I don’t see anything on his shirt. My eyes find Bree and Tessa as they step toward me.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” Tessa’s voice is high-pitched and clearly worried as she stares at me.

“Knock it off, Tessa. You’re acting like you didn’t just have three pregnant lovers. Getting sick is never fun, but it’s no reason to freak out.” Bree shakes her head. “Do you know why you got sick? Was it the headache?”

I shake my head. “No. It was something on the buffet. I think it was the ham.” I consider it, running back over the semi-familiar scent and nod. “Yup. Definitely the ham. I guess that’s off the menu for the next few months. ”

“Oh, dearie, you poor thing.” An old woman steps up beside Bree, fussing over me.

“I’m Millie, one of the kitchen staff. I’ll make sure we don’t prepare ham again.

If there’s anything you don’t want us making, just let someone know, and I’ll take care of it.

Now, are you feeling up to drinking something? ”

I shrug, knowing I still need to eat or my headache is going to come roaring back. “I need to. I also need to get some food in me. If I don’t eat shortly after getting sick, I’ll spend the rest of the day getting sick.”

Millie nods. “Okay. We won’t bring you back into the dining room—not until we get it aired out. Some fresh air might do you good. Omega, will you bring your omega to the back deck? I’ll be right out with some things that she can eat.”

“Oh, he’s not. We’re not—“ I shake my head at her knowing look.

“I’ll bring Emilia outside. Thank you, Millie.” Camden bows his head before spinning around.

“I need to brush my teeth,” I argue, wiggling in his arms, but he just tightens his hold on me.