I ended back up in my room after what felt like hours of mindless wandering. My throat felt thick and my eyes were red from crying in the garden maze – I scrubbed at them angrily and then dropped back onto the bed. Crying as expected didn't get me anywhere - just a dry throat, wasted tears and red eyes.

I hardly ever cried.

I hated it.

I wonder what Kaden thinks? He's probably seen right through me. I hadn't seen Aiden since - and I was glad too. I felt ashamed that I'd cried and was angry too. All in all, my emotions were a mess, but I'd decided one thing. I wasn't going to be this girl that everyone can walk over – I'm going to stand up for myself and stop being so childish and naive. I need to live in the real world and accept my situation and go with it, until a better option comes along.

I must have drifted to sleep, because when I woke up the next day, sunlight was already peeping in through the curtains. I groaned and stood up, stretching. After hours of complete hibernation and reluctance to go downstairs, I finally mustered enough courage to go, praying that I wouldn't run into any of his brothers or him on the way. Most of the afternoon was quite boring – the only eventful thing that occurred was Diego pointing out Cole and Kaden's girlfriends or 'mates' as they like to call it.

I nearly dozed off again mid-afternoon, feeling completely useless, until a knock sounded from the other side of the door, snapping me awake again. The door opened quicker than I had time to reply. A man, with solemn features and eyeliner darkening his eyes walked in, his sharp eyes assessing me lying on my bed with a packet of crisps beside me.

What the hell?

"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Octavian, your stylist for the annual Knight ball." Emma strode in after him, grinning.

"Ah, so you've met Octavian. Do you like him? What's he got in mind for you?" Emma bombarded me with questions. I backtracked and swivelled my eyes to the man, Octavian, again.

"Annual ball? What do you mean ball?" I spluttered.

"Oh, there's too much for you to learn. You're human after all – a strange choice for a man of Aiden's status." He commented.

"I didn't know about this ball. Emma, why didn't I know about this?" I demanded, crossing my arms over my chest and ignoring Octavian's sharp remark.

She shrugged apologetically. "Sorry?"

I tutted and tapped my foot on the ground. So not only do I have to meet his brothers and father, but I also have to go to a damn ball and have a stylist. And I thought we were just having a dinner with his father.

"Follow me – I can't dress you in here," he said the word 'here' in disgust and he clicked his fingers, producing two women with boxes spilling with clothing from the doorway. He walked out in long strides and I jogged to follow him, glaring from the corner of my eyes at Emma. She smiled weakly and hurried to catch up with him, leaving me running alone.

We reached a large room with bright lights after continuous jogging. I looked around in awe – mirrors adorned the walls and the room was bustling with noise, people and things. Girls were sat on the chairs whilst others did their makeup and hair and I was shoved and pushed by others getting past me. So this is what the fashion world is like?

He stopped suddenly and stepped into a little room at the edge of the main room and sighed, producing a pair of bright blue spectacle and placing them on the bridge of his nose.

"Ball rush hour is always too busy. Girls, clothes, stylists, and makeup everywhere – it's just too chaotic." He said tiredly, making exuberant hand gestures as he pushed me down into a seat, assessing me in the large mirror in front. I looked tired and weary and angry all at once – all in all, I looked like a fed-up teenager.

I felt eyes on the back of my head and turned to see Octavian staring at me intently, his eyebrows raised. "Alright, I want a small, sweetheart neckline, midnight black with the fives." He was looking at me, but his words were directed to another. I had no idea what he said, but his orders sprung people into action. He addressed me now. "You're wearing a black dress- it suits Aiden's air of sexy mysteriousness – I mean you look so unhappy all the time and so does Aiden. A perfect match." He sighed. "You're so young and so is Aiden and yet you have such unhappy minds." His tone was soft, wondrous.

I changed the topic abruptly, his tone making me uneasy. "What is this ball? I mean, I know nothing about it. Is it honestly that big of a deal?"

"Well, you know what a ball is, I gathered that much, unless you're a delinquent," he huffed. He waited for an answer condescendingly and I quickly shook my head. But then his expression softened. "It's a Knight tradition – it's been going on in the Silvermoon pack for years now and it's brilliant. Wol-" He was interrupted by Emma hissing at him. He looked confused for a minute but then his expression changed and he looked at me irately, his expression clearing. "People from all over the... family come and celebrate the strength and unity of the Knights. It's been a tradition for hundreds of years." He paused as a woman tapped him and he snapped an order at her, causing her to rush off again, leaving him with a beautiful black dress in his arms.

He shoved me into a little changing room and stepped in with me, ordering me to undress. I frowned. "I'm not undressing with you here." He rolled his eyes.

"Oh please. I've seen more girls naked in my job as a stylist then a playboy will ever see. I don't care – I'm into... well you." I nodded understanding and ordered him to turn the other way anyway. Handing me the dress, I slipped into it quickly. The material of the dress was soft and rich and smooth. It was tight from the top and flowed outwards from the bottom.

This is for me? Well damn.

"It's silk and lace in case you're wondering," he said, turning me around so he could zip it up from the back. He finished pinning and zipping the dress up so it fit better and I squirmed when I felt how exposed my shoulders were – it was strapless. Whilst he helped me get ready, I continued to probe into the Knight history, intrigued with the mystery of this family.

After nearly an hour of people curling my hair into waves which thankfully covered some of my shoulders and back and dabbing on different types of makeup, I was done. When I said I didn't want too much make up, he replied. 'Honey, I'm a stylist; making people's inner beauty show outwardly is my life.' Emma gasped when she saw me, but I wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing.

"April! You look beautiful. Oh..." Her eyes teared up, making them glow like emeralds and Octavian whistled lowly, taking in my appearance.

"I did a good job," he muttered to himself approvingly. My forehead scrunched up when I finally saw myself in the mirror. My eyes looked bolder and browner and my hair was cascading down in soft curls, pinned back loosely – the dress was... it was beautiful. The top was lace and had a sweetheart neckline and the dress itself fell down to my feet in peaks, concealed in rich folds of blackness.

I looked mysterious and semi decent and definitely not like the usual April. I almost looked... pretty? I turned to Octavian smiling. He nodded back curtly not needing the thank you that I was going to blurt out.

He gently took me to one side away from the chatter and chaos and nodded at me. "Look April, a word of advice for the ball. Look confident – you'll have Aiden hanging off your arm and he's full of confidence – you need to live up to that." I was about to interrupt, but he shushed me. "And secondly, smile - you're always frowning but you look much better when you smile. I'm counting on you to help Aiden. After his mum... well you being his mate will change him, I just know it." He smiled at me, a hint of warmth seeping through his demeanor. Before I could reply, he slapped my shoulder and left to deal with some hair crisis.

I glanced down and saw he had left a pair of high heeled shoes at my feet. I groaned and bent to pick them up – I'd avoid wearing those for as long as possible. Emma grabbed my hand and squeezed it reassuringly. She looked stunning. Her red dress and vivid, green eyes were the perfect combination and her smile lit up her face like a torch. Butterflies were pounding in my tummy and my palms began to sweat slightly – I was nervous. I'd never been to anything so formal before, and worst of all, I had no-one to stay with all night – what had been a dinner turned into a ball.

A bloody ball.

Emma came to the corner and paused, smiling at me. "I'm proud of you April – thank you for doing this. You'll be fine, I promise. You look drop-dead gorgeous – Aiden won't know what hit him." She murmured, releasing my hand to turn the corner, leaving me. I frowned at her last sentence and shook my head, putting on the shoes and practicing walking in them. I stumbled several times and nearly fell, cursing under my breath.

I am going to embarrass myself big time with these shoes.

I'll either fall or take someone down by falling. I don't know which is worse.

As soon as I turned the corner, I wanted to turn back. Everyone was standing there. Daniel, Emma, Carlos, Beau, and Diego and... Aiden. Emma was fixing Carlos's tie for him. Aiden was standing with Diego speaking in hushed voices with his hands shoved in his pockets; he didn't quite look as though he had bed hair, but he had tried to sweep it off his face at least. He still looked gorgeous. His bow tie was hanging loosely around his neck, adding to his couldn't-care-less image. His eyes snapped towards me, green-grey orbs widening as he took in my appearance.

Diego smiled at me and cooed: "You look beautiful, April."

"Thank you," I smiled, feeling awkward under his stare.

"April?" My head whipped up at Aiden's unfathomable expression. "You look... different," he looked me up and down in amusement, slowly.

"Well, I don't usually look this smart and painting on someone's face does tend to make them look different," I replied, scowling as a piece of hair fell into my eyes.

"At least you look a little more grown up - now that you're out of that horrible hoodie."

"Shut up."

He brushed my comment away and said. "You know that you're going to have to deal with the consequences of what happened yesterday, right?"

I nodded to show I'd understood and he carried on. "I know why you ran out. It was too much, I know, but now you have to persuade Kaden that nothing's up – otherwise we're both screwed."

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, dropping my eyes to the floor, "I didn't mean to be such a coward – it's just... the way he described your family..."

"It's not normal," he finished for me. I shrugged and flicked a strand of hair out of my eyes. He smirked at my obvious frustration and brushed his hand across my face, sweeping the piece of hair behind my ear neatly. I froze at his touch and stepped away, embarrassed.

"Okay, it's time to enter. Get ready with your partners," a voice yelled from somewhere at the back of the room. Aiden huffed and tapped his foot on the ground and his attention was drawn to his bow tie where his fingers stumbled on the bow tie that was hanging loosely at his neck. He played around with it for a couple of minutes, his forehead scrunched up like a young child trying to work out a sum. I pushed his hands away and tugged at the bow tie so that it was in place, before assembling it for him trying my best to block out his gaze.

I finally finished it and smiled slightly at my achievement. "Where did you learn how to tie bow ties?" I tried to focus on his face but it was too distracting so I looked at a glass of blue roses on the table instead next to me.

"YouTube. YouTube actually taught me a lot about life," I explained, touching the petals of the rose to see if it was real. It was.

"Well, thank you."

"No problem."

"Okay, let's go. And remember, keep calm – you're meeting my father now, not my friends, not my brothers. My father. The main man – the reason this lie is going on right now, so if you mess this up... then, well... I'll dig graves for us both."

"I want to be cremated," I said thoughtfully.

He rolled his eyes at me. "Good for you. Now come on," he beckoned. I paused, still glued to the spot. I was going to have difficulty walking fast in these heels – or walking at all. He glared at me from over his shoulder. "What's wrong? Hurry up!"

"I can't walk in these shoes!" I whisper-yelled. He laughed out loud and walked towards me, holding out the crook of his arm. I hesitated before slipping my bare arm into the crook of his own. He pulled me closer and I dug my nails into him for dear life as we took small but steady steps towards ornate doors. As we came closer and climbed the stairs, (a slow and impatient process, in which I stepped on his foot 4 times,) a golden glow appeared on the floor.

My breath caught in my throat when I felt Aiden's fingers intertwining with my own.I looked at him sideways. The butterflies in my stomach were becoming unbearable by being so close to him and I really didn't understand why. "We need to look like a couple," he reminded me.

"Okay."

*******

We entered and I had to force my mouth not to drop open. The hall was gold all over, right from the twinkling chandelier to the candles. Waiters were walking around with drinks and canapés, a smile plastered on their face. The woman were in long dresses with rouged lips and the men looked dapper in suits. Everything was formal and beautiful. However, one man stood out from the crowd – he was surrounded by a small group of important-looking people and his eyes travelled across to us as soon as we entered.

He was standing with a pretty, blonde haired woman smiling by his side in a satin, blue dress and Kaden and Cole were some way off with their girlfriends, laughing as they clinked glasses. The man's hair was streaked with grey and his eyes held crinkles at the edges, bordered with thick lashes and a stern mouth. His dark eyes assessed me and his gaze flicked to Aiden before dropping to our hands. He instantly broke out into a smile.

"Okay. Here we go." Aiden muttered as we descended the stairs. There was no guessing that the man was his father – they looked similar in a way, with their dark eyes and crinkle eyed smile that Aiden rarely showed. Damn. Good genes obviously run in his family.

"Son," he greeted Aiden, before his eyes focused on me. "This is your mate?"

Aiden's voice was stiff. "Yes. And her name's April."

"Hi," I managed, smiling weakly at him. My knees felt as though they were about to buckle and it was not a pleasant feeling.

"English?" He asked as his thick, black eyebrows rose in surprise. I nodded in response, not trusting my voice to speak. "Well, Aiden... I have to say, I didn't believe you when you told me you'd found her... But good on you son, I'm proud." Aiden grunted in response, shoving his hands in his pockets, pouting slightly. The little blonde woman also nodded her head and smiled at us warmly. I returned the smile awkwardly and looked to Aiden. But his jaw was clenched – he ignored the blonde woman and turned away.

Is this the woman who his dad moved on with? I confirmed that in my head once I saw her nod sadly at Aiden's father and walked away to a crowd of people, whilst his dad looked like he wanted to punch Aiden. I wanted to call her back and apologize on behalf of Aiden, but I remembered where I was and who I was and stopped myself. This is a lie. This is a lie. Remember that April. You can't actually care for these people.

Aiden's father held me by the shoulders and looked down at me. "You may call me Antonio. And son, why have you not marked her yet? This is your mate after all."

"Father, just be patient!" Aiden replied, looking embarrassed. Now what the hell does marked mean? I shuddered inwardly - it sounds horrible - like an object or possession.

His father – Antonio – addressed me now. "And I am so very glad that you are now a part of our family."

What? No, I'm not.

I turned to Aiden, desperation clear on my face but he didn't look at me. "I shall speak with you further at dinner. For now, Aiden, we must greet the other pack." Aiden nodded and dragged me behind him, still processing what his father had said.

Does he think I'm becoming part of his family? Hell to the no.

"Play along," Aiden said, his tone low. I frowned and dug my nails into his arm as we approached another group of people. Wait... was that – Noah? Noah stood there with a group of people, looking smart and handsome in a suit, his friendly brown eyes sparkling in the light.

"Noah?" I called before I could stop myself.

Noah turned and saw me, looking slightly panicked for a moment before relaxing.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm from the Pinewood pack, another pack," he said more to Aiden than to me. I was completely confused now and decided to back out of the conversation. Behind him were several familiar looking people... Were they – were they the people from the fight in the party? They all looked menacing to say the least.

"What?" Aiden growled to Noah, his face contorted in disbelief.

"What? You didn't know?" His tone was sharp, angry. "Ever since you killed one of ours, your dad has desperately been trying to make peace between our pack and your pack to avoid conflict, so if I were you, I'd be nice. That's why we were invited tonight."

Aiden began advancing towards him but I pulled him back by his arm, giving him my best if you touch Noah I will fuck you up face. Wait April... Noah said the word 'killed...' Has Aiden killed someone? Is he a murderer?

Aiden is a murderer.

Aiden killed someone.

He's dangerous – and you trusted him April, you fool. My eyes were burning and Aiden suddenly looked ten times more dangerous than he did 5 minute ago – that's a hell of a lot more dangerous. I turned around and drifted through the crowd, looking for a way out but as soon as I'd gone 10 paces, a beautiful melody had started up from the orchestra.

A hand caught my wrist. I turned and Aiden glared down at me. "Don't make a scene. I don't hurt you if you don't run, so dance this one dance." I tugged at my wrist roughly and this time I didn't hold back – I was not going to dance with a murderer. But he'd twirled me around so I was firmly in his grasp and we stalked towards the dance floor.

"Let go of me!" I screeched, elbowing him in the ribs roughly, but he didn't budge.

We stepped into the middle of the dance floor, the couples around us a blurred mess as they twirled with elegance. "Let me go!" I hissed at him, freezing as his hands drifted to my waist. "Aiden, I swear I will punch you!"

He tilted his head like a bird, watching me closely. "Try."

"Now? I'm not kidding Aiden, I will punch you."

He smiled, a small dimple forming in his cheek. "I'm waiting. It's not my fault you can't keep your hands off me."