Watch The Dark
twenty

Jade was in full on makeover mode. And Tana was her victim.

The moment she saw the dress Tana had picked out, she had screamed so loud that Blake ran into the room thinking she was half dead. But when he got there, he let out a huff and shot Tana a dirty glare before stomping away.

Ever since then, she had concocted an entire plan of how to do Tana's hair and makeup. She kept the makeup light upon Tana's request and began curling Tana's incredibly long hair before tying half of it into an elegant bun on the back of her head.

The pink dress was long and silky. It hugged her curves but had long, flowing sleeves that covered her arms.

Jade, however, opted for a black gown that had a long slit at the bottom to reveal some of her leg. She looked stunning. It sort of made Tana feel like a child in her presence.

Sincere had fought them tooth and nail on wearing a dress. She had hated every single thing they had presented her with, only showing interest in the outfit that Declan was wearing. Which was a dark blue tux and black dress pants. Since they had to leave soon, they eventually agreed and found a tux that belonged to one of the male pups and let her wear that. It didn't look exactly like Declan's, but she was over the moon about it. So much so that she let Jade do her hair up into a beautiful bun on top of her head. She looked absolutely adorable; especially when she stood next to Declan.

"Holy shit," Declan breathed. He had walked in on Tana while she was putting her shoes on, his jaw nearly on the floor and his eyes wide as he drank her in.

"You look- holy shit," he said, pressing a hand to his forehead.

"Keep it in your pants, pretty boy. Jade will get mad if I mess her make up up," Tana told him, but before she could finish slipping into the elegant flats she had been given, Declan had swooped in and brought her into a soft yet intense kiss. When he finally pulled back they were both breathless and Declan's lips were slightly more vibrant from the lipstick Tana had on.

"Worth it," he said, throwing her a wink as she rolled her eyes and finished getting her shoes on.

"Ready?" He asked, holding his hand out to her.

She smiled. And this time, she took it.

***

By the way the ball room was filled you would have thought that they were all late. The ball was supposed to start at 7, and it was only 6:45. Declan and the others acted like this was normal, so Tana did too.

Sincere stuck by Declan's side, holding his hand as they all walked in. Similarly, Tuk stayed close to either Tana or Alec. He wasn't exactly comfortable in those kinds of situations. Though, when they found their seats he seemed to settle down a bit.

"Ah, Declan! The man of the hour! It's good to see you again. And you, my dear, look absolutely stunning," Richard boomed, grinning over at Tana.

"Watch it, Rich. She's mine," Declan growled playfully, winking at Tana. Richard laughed, clapping Declan on the shoulder.

"I know you aren't a very big fan of my galas, but this is such a happy occasion, Declan. It isn't every day that a wolf replaces their other half. Plus, we have lots of cake. Does that sound good, Sincere?" Richard asked the pup, who gave him a toothy grin and nodded, slightly shying away behind Declan's hand.

"Declan, you old bastard! You haven't called me in a month!" Another voice chimed in. A young man who looked a bit older than Declan sauntered towards them, a goofy grin on his face. He had tan skin and striking blue eyes, his hair a mop of black curls that nearly went into his eyes. The woman behind him had dark skin and beautiful, tight curls and the most dazzling smile Tana had ever seen. In front of her stood a pup with light brown skin and his mom's curls. He waved lightly at Sincere, who peered over at him shyly.

"Lennox, it's been too long. Erica, you look beautiful as always. And Asher! You've grown so much! How old are you now, three?" Declan asked, grinning over at the pup, who frowned and puffed his chest out.

"I'm four! And I'm gonna be an alpha soon," Asher stated confidently. This seemed to strike something in Sincere, who stepped forward a bit too.

"I'm gonna be an alpha too. I'm gonna be three next week because it's August 18th and that's my birthday," said Sincere.

"Hm. Ok. Do you want a chocolate? We can be friends because we are both gonna be alphas," Asher said, holding out a slightly squished, wrapped candy to Sincere, who took it gratefully.

"Ok. We can be alphas together," Sincere stated. Asher grinned.

"Ambitious, much? They're already plotting. Who is your little girl, Deck? Did you have a secret child all this time?" Lennox asked, elbowing Declan lightly, who chuckled.

"Adopted daughter. I imprinted on her a few months ago, so she's as good as biologically mine. She'll take over the title one day no matter what pups I'll have in the future," Declan stated.

"Oh, hell. This is Tana, my mate. I can't believe I forgot to introduce you," Declan huffed, stepping back a bit to reveal Tana, who gave a small wave to the other alpha.

"This is Lennox. He's the alpha of the South Bay pack and that's his mate, Erica and their son, Asher...who has already corrupted Sincere and run off," Declan snorted. Lennox let out a laugh.

"Always thought you'd get mated to an air head. Sure as hell am glad you didn't, though. Its nice to meet you, Tana. I hope you've been giving him a hard time," Lennox said, lifting his champagne flute to her.

"I certainly have not made it easy on him," Tana replied. This time, Erica laughed.

"I know how that feels. This bugger chased me for a month before I agreed to go out with him. It wasn't that I didn't like him; his ego was just far too big. It's a common trait in these young alphas," Erica said. Tana smiled and nodded in agreement. She had to admit, she was a bit intimidated by Erica's striking beauty. For a few minutes she contemplated leaving Declan.

"What's Asher up to now? I hope he didn't get into the brownies. That kid is a chocolate fanatic," Lennox huffed, glancing around the room for any sign of his son. After a few moments, they spotted the two pups giggling to each other beside the food table. They were definitely plotting something.

"I should probably go out a stop to that. It's been nice seeing you again, Declan. You must come visit some time. I'm sure your little girl would enjoy seeing Asher again too," Lennox said, before dipping his head to Tana. "It was nice to meet you as well, Tana. Congrats to you both," he said. Erica smiled and said her goodbyes as well before following Lennox to go squash whatever the pups were planning.

"You know, since this is a celebration of us, do you think they would mind if we snuck out to go make out?" Declan asked cheekily. He was brushing his fingers up and down her arm, making it progressively harder and harder to say no.

"How unprofessional of you, Alpha Rainer," she whispered back. She started smiling to herself when he got closer, feeling her skin tingle just at the thought of him that close.

"What can I say? You turn me into a man with no self control," he replied softly, pressing a kiss to her neck just as Julian and Jackson stumbled in front of them, pulling an irritated Declan out of his trance.

"Hi, Deck!"

"Hi, runt."

Tana elbowed him in the side, earning a grimace.

"What do you two want?" He huffed, crossing his arms as he looked at his brothers.

"Jade got drunk already and is fighting with the beta of Iron Hide," Jackson said, pointing over to Jade, who had a drink in her hand and was yelling at another young woman who looked equally as pissed off. Blake was trying to pull his mate away but she shoved him off every time he tried.

"Ugh. This is why I can't take her anywhere," Declan grumbled, grabbing Tana's hand to lead her along with him, which she didn't mind seeing as she didn't know anyone at the party.

"I know you slept with him, you skank. He's mine now, so piss off!" Jade yelled. The other girl just rolled her eyes and let out an undignified snort.

"Of course I slept with him. Have you seen Blake? I'm surprised he settled for something like you," the other girl retorted. Just as Jade was about to lunge, Declan caught her arm and yanked her back.

"Stand down, Jade. That's an order," he growled. No one, not even the alphas family, could resist an alpha command. Jade, knowing this, growled at him and stormed off with Blake hot on her heels.

"Bitch," the other girl mumbled, staking off into the crowd once again.

A clinking of a glass caught Tana's attention. On a stage near the far side of the room stood Richard and a woman Tana assumes to be his mate.

"Thank you all for being here. I know current events have frightened all of us, but this is just what we need. To come together and remember that we are stronger as allies. But tonight isn't just about that. One of our youngest alphas, and probably the biggest pain in our collective ass, has found his gorgeous mate. I hope you'll all join me in congratulating Declan and Tana!" Richard bellowed. Tana felt her face flush while Declan laughed and pulled her close to his side. She rolled her eyes at his antics.

Cheers and applause broke out, making her blush even more. So, she hid her face on Declan's arm while he laughed and stroked her hair lightly.

"Alright, alright. Enjoy the party, everyone. Food will be served very soon, but snacks and treats can be found on the tables along the walls," Richard concluded.

"Oh, Tana. You look absolutely beautiful in that dress. I didn't get to see you before we got here. Congrats again. Declan is a tough one," Allura said. Tana smiled politely.

This went on with various people for a while. Tana’s feet hurt and her stomach was growling. Just as another person congratulated them and left, she dragged Declan back to the table so that they could eat. Tuk had already set up a booster seat for Sincere, who was now slowly eating the food that was given to her.

As she ate, an uncomfortable feeling settled over her. There was an odd smell in the air that set her wolf on edge and that wasn’t helping calm her down. She tried to pinpoint where it was coming from, but between the noise and all the different scents of the different wolves, it was nearly impossible, even if it stood out to her.

“Declan, something’s wrong,” Tana said, shaking his arm slightly. He furrowed his eyebrows in a confused manner.

“What do you-“

He didn’t get to finish that sentence; a loud crash and malicious growls broke into the room, drawing surprised screams from the crowd.

There were wolves in the ball room, and they were looking for blood.