“Don’t worry about it. It’s just a scratch. I’ll live.”
He nods feverishly and bows, backing away from me and disappearing into the crowd of production crew staff.
Joe puts his handkerchief back in his inner jacket pocket. “Test your mic to see if it works,” he instructs.
“Mic check, one, two. Mic check, one, two.”
Carmen gives me a thumbs up.
Doesn’t seem like anything was wrong with the original battery pack after all. Joe grimaces and shakes his head. He presses against my back a few more times before he zips up my dress. “You’re all healed up,” he says out loud, so everyone can hear.
Odyssey positions himself on the opposite side of the driveway and quirks a brow in my direction before he swivels his head toward the tent where the production team sits.
And so the games begin,he mumbles over our mind link.
Chapter 3
The First Five
JESSICA
“Okay, everyone, remain in your places. The first limo is pulling up,” Carmen shouts.
On the show, it’s carefully edited to make it look like the men step out of a different limousine each time, but in reality, five or six of them ride in a single car. I was warned that the process can take hours. My feet are already killing me, and we’ve barely started.
Cameras surround the limousine as it crawls along the drive. I wait for at least one man to immediately depart. But nothing happens. The production team shouts directions, and everyone appears busy moving around—well, except for me and whoever sits in the car.
“What’s happening right now?” I whisper to Joe, but he doesn’t answer me. He slowly looks around. I glance toward my parents, assessing their surroundings, making sure there is no threat. Anders is doing the same.
I shift on my feet and take a step back for a better angle. Maybe it’s my paranoia, but I can’t help it, especially with all the commotion that took place just moments before. I need to calmdown. The cameras are on, and I’m sure they are zoomed in on the nervous, worried look on my face. I close my eyes, shake out my hands, and slowly let out a long breath.
When I open my eyes, I drop my shoulders and paste on a smile.
Holden announces the first man, “Alpha Marshall Marquez, Marquez Pack, Luna Solar Territory.”
The Marquez pack is from one of the lesser territories in the LS. The Marquez family made quite a business for themselves as bakers and own a cute bakery in the city. In fact, in the short time I lived in the city, it was one of my favorite places to grab a coffee and whatever delectable treat they served that day.
A short man—well, shorter than the six-foot guards I usually stand next to—emerges from the limo. He has dark-tanned skin and a wide forehead. His faded suit looks like it has seen better days. He reaches back, retrieving two large paper bags.
I try to stifle a laugh. What in the world did he bring with him? I glance sideways at Joe, who stays in his stiff posture, eyeing the man and his packages. The Alpha finally approaches me, and I smile. I’m unsure if I should hug him. I can’t shake his hand. He simply stands there, smiling at me.
I laugh nervously. “What did you bring?” I ask him.
His smile widens. “Well, I assumed that the rest of the Alphas would bring you a gift or flowers. I brought you flour—two different kinds—because I didn’t know what kind of flowers you liked.”
My eyes widen in surprise. This time, I let out a genuine laugh. “Flour, like the kind I can bake with?”
He chuckles. “Yes. I heard that you like to cook and bake. So, I thought I would bring you something you would enjoy and be able to share.” He hands me one bag.
I peek into it. “Rice flour?”
He nods.
“I don’t think I’ve baked with rice flour before.”
A blush colors his cheeks. “Most don’t. I could teach you some recipes to make with it.”
“I would like that very much. Thank you.” Joe takes the first bag from me as Alpha Marquez offers the second one. “Bread flour?”
