Free Masquerade by Dahlia Rose

Chapter One
     
    “Jesus, Tempest, how many more damn plastic spiders are you going to hang up?” Dominic swatted one out of his face just as she poked her head out of the kitchen door.
    “Dominic Cross, if you pull down any more of my decorations, you and I are going to have a reckoning.” Tempest narrowed her eyes at her love.
    Well, one of them. In July, right after hurricane season began, a vision sent her running across the bayou and into the arms of Alex Wakefield and Dominic Cross. Two lone wolf shifters with no clan; the only thing they had was each other. Now, they had her. She was a part of their lives as their mate. Anyone would think being shared by two dominant males, let alone wolves, would have been difficult, but they fell into a blissful routine almost instantly. They all slept in the same bed and gave each other space when it was needed.
    She kept her little cottage near the water of the Louisiana bayou, but hardly spent time there. Being with Alex and Dominic gave her a sense of completion that she’d never had in her life. Even the residents of Cormina—the small backwoods town where she was never really accepted—seemed to be getting used to their companionship. Of course they didn’t care what anyone thought, yet a tentative peace had been formed between them and the town. So much so that she had invited a few people to their home for a Halloween party. Tempest embraced the holiday with as much gusto as a person would Christmas, and it was driving her wolves crazy.
    “What kind of reckoning?” he asked in a teasing voice.
    “The kind that will end in you sleeping downstairs on the sofa. I know you’ve been taking down my decorations.” Tempest shook her finger at him.
    He moved across the distance from the front door to where she stood before she could even give a squeak of surprise. Dominic started to nibble on her neck before growling softly by her ear. “Prove it.”
    “Don’t have to,” she said huskily and gave him more access to her neck. “I found a bunch hidden in the linen basket, and Alex told me you took them down.”
    “Hmm, he ratted me out, huh? Did he happen to mention that the ones in the bottom drawer next to the stove are from him?” Dominic asked.
    “Oh, you two!” She pushed him away and glowered. “You guys know this is my holiday, and you're trying to mess it up.”
    “Oh, honey, we’re not, but you have to admit you’re going overboard…just a little,” he said.
    “No, I’m not. I’m having fun. I haven’t been able to hand out candy here in the middle of nowhere for years. But this year I’m holding a party, and people are actually attending.” Tempest put her hands on his chest. “Let me have my fun, please.”
    “Fine,” Dominic said good-naturedly and smacked a kiss on her lips. “Oh, you taste like cookie dough.”
    He moved in to steal another kiss, and she stepped back. “Oh, no, you don’t, mister. I’m making chocolate chip cookies shaped like witches’ hats for the Acadia kids.”
    The Acadia shifter pack was the closest pack to Cormina and the ones that Alex and Dominic were helping to train. Tempest had seen a vision of a rival pack attack, and while her wolves didn’t want to join the clan of wolves, they agreed to take on the task of training a clan who had never had to fight. She formally invited them to her party through the Alpha of the pack. When she first met him, he was the Alpha’s second in command. She had finally learned that Vernon was his name, and shortly after she had met Jack, the Alpha, Vernon challenged and overthrew him. That meant Jack was dead and the clan had to now submit to him. When he accepted the invitation for his clan, Tempest was actually thrilled. She loved kids and in the past few months became accustomed to seeing them during their visits to check in at the pack grounds.
    Dominic wrapped his arms around her. “Come on, honey, just a few. I’ve been slaving away outside.”
    “Building an