Wolf Spirit Awaken, The Summoner Series

Chapter 10

POV Tessa

It's been three weeks since I left my pack and I have made great progress on the land. I rented a chainsaw and cleared many trees out of the way. My wolf strength allows me to move the trees myself. I now have a foundation for my house, and I am working on framing the walls and rooms. I'm happy with the progress so far but I am looking forward to taking a break. Today is my 18th birthday and I am going to meet my friends and parents at a bar that is 35 minutes east of here. It will be nice to relax and enjoy their company for a few hours.

In the meantime, I decided to meditate in the cleared forest for an hour to focus on my energy. I have found that with my strength and abilities, I have this built-up energy flowing through me and meditation helps relax me and allows me to get control of the energy. I feel like I need to expel the energy, but I don't know how yet. I hoped my father was able to find answers about me. The full moon is also tonight. I look forward to running in my wolf form under the moonlight tonight to celebrate my 18th birthday. I wonder if my parents will come back here with me and also want to run.

I put on a pair of jeans and a loose black tank top that hugs my chest in all the right places. I have defined my muscles even more with all this labor building the house and clearing the trees. I can't wait to see my friends and my parents and have some fun with them. It will be nice to let loose. I'll have to see if my parents can bring alcohol. I am only 18, so I can't buy it legally at a human bar. I headed to my car to use my jeep's mirror to light put on some makeup for tonight's event. I headed out driving towards the bar, Willow Inn. It's a small dive type bar for locals. It has about 10 tables inside for people to sit, relax, order food or watch sports on a few of their TVs around the room. The one thing I like about this bar is that it also has two pool tables in the back, which makes the atmosphere more fun.

I pull into the bar's gravel parking lot and look around for my parents' car. Looks like I beat them here, I think to myself. I decide to get out of the jeep and meet them in the bar instead. I rounded the front of my jeep and detected a small scent of werewolf, I looked around the parking lot and saw only a few vehicles parked there for the bar. It is early, not like many people are coming to drink yet. They are probably still working. I turned to look into the forest a little to see if there was any sign of wolves over there but picked up on nothing.

"Mhmmm", odd. Hopefully there is not another pack around. I would hate to have a problem tonight, especially on my birthday. I opened the door to go inside and headed toward the bar to get myself a drink. Either I am paranoid or there is a wolf nearby.

"What can I get you dear?" an older gentleman asked me from behind the bar. He has a black apron on with white peppered hair mixed in with his dark brown hair. He is cleaning glassware but leaning in my direction.

"I'll have a whiskey, neat." He nods his head in approval and begins making my drink. Wow, he didn't ask for my id....interesting. He places the whiskey in front of me on a cream cocktail napkin and pushes it toward my hand resting on the bar.

"Thank you," I said. I sit down on the wooden barstool and make myself comfortable. I guess I can nurse this drink while I wait for the family.

As luck would have it, tonight was not going to go in my favor. Someone exited from a door near the pool tables. As their footsteps approached the bar, I could catch their wolf scent. My body immediately became rigid. It took me a few minutes to realize that I was already masking my scent before coming here so he wouldn't be able to detect that I was also a werewolf. I released a breath I didn't know I was holding. I was the only female in the bar right now, so what else would a hot-blooded werewolf do? Of course, they approached the only female at the bar.

"Well, hello there, pretty lady. I haven't seen you in here before," he said with a smooth tone to his voice.

I turned my head towards him and plastered on a smile to mask the discomfort of hiding my identity from him. "Yeah, just visiting."

"What is a beautiful girl like yourself doing drinking alone at a bar?" I wanted to roll my eyes at him for his probing questions. Can't a girl drink her whiskey in peace? Why do people want to find out your whole life story? I managed to finally look at his face before responding. I noticed right away that he was very handsome, he had dark features. Dark black hair, brown mocha eyes that look enchanting, and beautiful silky tanned skin. He smiles a dashing smile thinking that I am checking him out, which I am not. Okay, but maybe just a little.

"Are you the mayor of this town?" I c****d an eyebrow at him. He chuckles at my question. "No, just the owner of this bar," he retorts.

"Really?" I'm curious now, he doesn't look old enough to be able to own this place.

"I'm Jackson, and you are?" He sticks out his hand for me to shake. "Tessa, and to answer your question, I am waiting on a few people."

"Ron, a beer, please." He waved his finger toward the bartender.

"Do you mind if I sit with you while you wait? You seem like an interesting person. We don't get too many unfamiliar faces, if you know what I mean.

"Sure, it's your bar, and it's your seat." I gestured my hand over the barstool next to me.

"Right." he chuckles, seeming slightly nervous or maybe I was mistaken. I don't detect any other wolf's scent but his and now that he has sat next to me his scent invades my nostrils. It smells of vetiver and sandalwood. It's very lovely. The aurora and power that radiates off of him tells me that he is a ranked wolf, but no other wolves are here, and he owns the bar. I wonder what pack he is from? Everyone else in the bar is human. I think in my head or so I hoped.

Shit, my parents and my friends, who are all werewolves, are about to come into this bar with another werewolf to hang out with me, what will he think? Does he really think I am human? Normally, most unmated male werewolves don't pay any attention to human girls because they are waiting for their mate, or they want an easy lay since most human girls just throw themselves at werewolves.

They have this charm about them that humans can't resist. I feel like I haven't been throwing myself at him, so maybe he is not interested in getting in my pants. I am distracted momentarily by his large bulging muscles, his t-shirt fits him so snuggly, accentuating all his muscles underneath. I can feel his body warmth as he sits so close to me at the bar.

I clear my throat to break my thoughts. Do I ask him if it will be a problem before they arrive? I don't want any of them getting hurt, it is a bar, so I mean he should expect visitors from other werewolves, right? If I say something, then how do I explain that I know he is one. I am going to look a little crazy. My gut is telling me that I can trust this man. I have this burning sensation in the pit of my stomach, it has been happening more often when I am having internal debates and, for some reason, the sensation helps me make a decision.

I clear my throat again. "Are you okay?" he asks.

"Ohhh, ummmmmm. I...Can I ask you a question? It's going to sound really crazy, and I promise I am not a threat." I stumbled through my words.

"Doll, do you realize you are like 5' 4" to my 6' 4"?

"I am not 5' 4" I exclaimed with indignation. I am seated. How do you even know how tall I am? I asked while glaring at him. He has no idea who he is even talking to right now. Goddess, give me patience. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. Maybe I'll text mom and dad and tell them to meet me at my property.

"You're a little feisty thing aren't you!" he says, chuckling at my little outburst. "You might be dangerous after all," he says, holding his hand up in surrender.

This time I don't hold my eye roll back and I turn my body, so it is facing him. My knees are practically touching his leg. I lean over to get closer to him so that the bartender doesn't overhear my comment to him, even though I know Jackson will hear me regardless.

"My friends that are coming are werewolves. Is that going to be a problem?" I said in a low voice.

His eyes widened a little at my mention of werewolves. He opens his mouth but closes it again. I guess I'll help him out. He seems to be struggling with how I know this information. He might be thinking "is she pranking me to see if I slip up and tell her the truth about our world", who knows what's really going up there in that head of his.

I chuckled, "I know you're a wolf." I stated matter of factly and then down the rest of my whiskey in a gulp." His eyes widened. I hold my hand up as he opens his mouth again, but nothing comes out. "Don't ask me how I know. I just want to know if it is going to be a problem if more wolves come into your bar, is this in pack territory, are you a Alpha?" I questioned, still in low whispers.

Now he is clearing his throat, finally finding the words to speak. "I am an Alpha, but I don't have a pack. This bar is my home and my life. I let anyone come from wherever to enter my bar with no problems. It is a safe sanctuary, but like I said before, we don't often get visitors. Just locals. As long as they don't cause a problem, then they are welcomed." He also chugs the rest of his beer. Apparently, my questions caught him off guard and have put him slightly on edge, it seems.

"You seemed different. There is something about you that just drew me to talk to you." He looks at me questioning, staring a little too closely like I am a specimen under a microscope. "So, are you human?"

"Didn't I say not to ask?"

"No, you said not to ask how you knew I was a werewolf, or even an Alpha at that?"

"You ask a lot of questions for not being the mayor of this town and all." I stated and he now belly laughs.

I smirk at him and the door to the bar opens, catching my attention. My family had arrived, and they all entered from the front bar entrance. They quickly scanned the room. Jackson stopped laughing and stared at the door. I placed my hand on his arm and said "They are family. They are good." I winked at him and slid off my chair, bouncing toward them with excitement. It feels like forever since we have seen each other.

Ella and I both squealed with excitement and jumped up and down. Jonah is holding his hands over his ears and mom and dad are looking at me. My mom finally said, "Where is my love now, dear?" I laughed and then bear hugged both my parents tightly.

"I missed you both." I swung around and hugged Jonah. "Nugget!" "It has been too long, come let's get a table. They have a pool table here too. Here, let me introduce you to Jackson first. He owns the bar." They all greet each other and make small talk. Jackson seems to visibly relax after talking with them, seeing that there is no threat. He still has a questioning look directed at me about how on earth I know all these wolves when I appear human to him.

The rest of the night we ended up chatting, eating, playing pool and enjoying each other's company until 1:00am, when the bar closed. I think they actually close at midnight, but Jackson let us linger. My family decided to stay overnight at my property. They apparently brought their own tents. As soon as we get back to my place, we decide to shift and have a celebratory birthday run for all five of us with the full moon. Since my pack is doing this tomorrow night and I can't join them, they are doing the 18th birthday run with me.

I shift into my big grayish-white wolf and start running. My parents are on either side of me and Jonah and Ella are behind me. I feel so much love and contentment right now. We raced around the forest and made our way to a clearing and lay around where the moonlight was shining on the ground. We all look up at the sky and enjoy taking in the beauty of the full moon. I couldn't help but howl in joy. The rest followed. My fur slightly shimmers when the moonlight hits it, I feel powerful, like I can take on the world. This is where I should be, this place right here. My fur prickles at the back of my neck. I feel like there is someone watching us. I scanned the forest a few times and found a pair of mocha eyes meeting mine. I guess we are not alone.