Masquerade by Dahlia Rose Read Free Book Online

lanterns were hung.
    She looked around for her men who she actually convinced to get dressed up for the evening. She found Alex dressed as Wolverine and he winked at her. Dominic was standing close by with his eyes on her. He was dressed as his own version of the Beast from Beauty and the Beast . His costume consisted of one of his tuxedos that he destroyed by ripping the arms out of the jacket. He wore it with an all black T-shirt and ruffled his hair. That was the extent of the entire costume. He looked devilishly handsome and she loved him all the more for trying.
    Unintentionally, her eyes met Vernon’s. He was dressed in a suit that had seen one too many needles and patchwork. He had his hair slicked back and he raised his cup of punch in her direction. Dominic followed her gaze and from where she was standing she could hear his snarl. God, she just wished the man would set his sights elsewhere and in his own pack. But she could see now why the women didn’t want him and only submitted to his advances because he was the Alpha. He lorded over the men and treated the women like his personal servants. It was far from the picture of unity he pretended the pack had. She pushed that aside and watched the children play.
    “You’re the most gorgeous bride of Frankenstein I’ve ever seen,” Alex said as he came up the steps.
    “Why, thank you, Wolverine,” she said with a smile.
    “If Vernon doesn’t stop sending you those looks, I’ll rip his head off, if I can get to him before Dominic.” He said the words so mildly that if she didn’t know him she would have thought he was kidding. But he wasn’t. Alex was dead serious.
    “I almost wish this attack would happen sooner rather than later,” Tempest said. “He makes my skin crawl. I wish we could help his people.”
    “They made the choice to stay when he took over leadership. We can’t do anything for them unless we challenged him outright and we just want to be here with you, not part of a pack,” Alex said.
    She could feel within herself that that would not be the case. They would never fully be given peace. Tempest didn’t have to have a vision to know that just getting the Acadia pack off their land would not get them out of their lives. Each time Vernon’s gaze met hers she saw with a certainty that the man was plotting something.
    “Head’s up. We have party crashers.” Dominic came up the steps. Before she could ask he said, “Lorna and Bubba. I could smell them before I could even see them.”
    Tempest followed his gaze and saw Lorna aptly dressed as Marie Antoinette. Bubba was dressed as Prince Charming except that his suit was powder blue with ruffles. They made a sight and Tempest shook her head at Lorna’s tenacity. She was just about to rush down to where they stood and throw them out when a long howl filled the night. The party goers—who weren’t part of the pack—thought it was just another special effect, but she felt her wolves stiffen beside her and she knew trouble had arrived at their doorstep. Vernon shot a glance in their direction.
    A wolf came out of the darkness and knocked a man dressed like a clown to the ground. Screams began echoing in all directions and that’s when people realized this was no joke. More wolves came out of the darkness and their eyes glowed yellow in the night. People scattered and Bubba turned to run and left Lorna where she stood. For his actions, a dirty brown wolf came at him and began to tear at his clothes. “Lorna, help,” he yelled in fear. But she was already lifting her big frilly skirt, running in the other direction, leaving him to his fate.
    “What do we do?” Tempest asked urgently.
    “Get the women, children and humans that didn’t run off into the house. Tell them that it’s a pack of wolves that must have smelled the food and… Shit, tell them anything, but don’t let them look out the windows!” Alex dove off the patio and Dominic was close behind.
    “Get that wolf off