AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Welcome to Feral Tides.”
The music grew louder the closer we approached the bar. A few people clung to one another outside in the dark; the sounds of their kissing and groping were hard to ignore. It wasn’t even eight yet, but they seemed to be well into their evening of fun.
Xander pushed open the doors, the sound of Latin music accompanied by the smell of tacos greeting me as we walked inside. A few people seemed to notice Xander, calling out to him with whistles and greetings. I shouldn’t have been surprised, given that he had come to me as a rogue. Yet seeing how popular he was with everyone here had me wondering just what he was leaving behind to join me in the pack as my mate.
Xander moved us around the bar with ease, greeting those who greeted him, while continuing to guide me to the bar, where a young-looking bartender was making margaritas and mojitos in secession.
“Xander! I didn’t expect to see you here tonight!” the bartender greeted. “Keith and Ginger are outside somewhere. Not sure if you saw them, though I could go looking for them.”
“That’s all right, Rory,” Xander responded, tapping the bar top. “I’m just here for the fun of it tonight. If I see them, I see them.” He turned his attention to me and smiled. “We’re gonna need a couple of taco plates and margaritas. How long is the wait?”
Rory turned and looked me up and down before turning her attention back to Xander. “Um, give me about five minutes. I have a few more mojitos I got to make, then I’ll get you taken care of.”
“Thanks, Rory. We’ll be over here in the corner.”
“Of course you will.” She laughed as she handed out the drinks she had just made before pulling two more glasses and starting all over again.
“You all are really close here,” I mused as we took a seat in a corner booth. I frowned at the table as we sat and ran my fingers over a crack that was clearly new. “Do fights happen often here?”
Xander looked down at the crack before he shook his head. “No, rarely. We are like a family here. So as much as you and Brady fight, that’s about how often and how bad our fights typically get here.”
I nodded and looked around the bar. I had my magic radar up but had yet to notice any signs of a witch amongst the crowd here.
“Mom convinced Dad that you all having this bar was a good thing. She said it would keep you all from going feral like many rogues did. Give you a sense of pack.”
“I didn’t realize your parents were that aware of us here,” Xander replied. “But she was right. A few of the older crowd went feral. We have no information on what had happened to their kids afterward, but those who remained have stayed sane. Our unity resembles that of a pack, regardless of the lack of recognition. We do everything that a pack would do.”
I smiled up at him, seeing the pride he held in this place and the people in it. His pack. His family.
“Why don’t they come with you? They are welcome to return to the pack. Dad never put an expiration date on them coming back.”
Xander smiled down at me sadly, although he wiped the look off his face just as Rory appeared with two large plates of tacos and two margaritas. He waited until she left again before finally answering me.
“I’m trying to convince them. Sometimes it breaks people of their habits and beliefs. But I’m hoping that they will all come around soon.”
I could tell that that was all he would say for now as he pushed one plate and drink to me. I rolled my eyes as I picked up a tacoand took a decent bite out of it, moaning at the surprisingly good taste of it before washing it down with a sip of my drink.
“This is amazing,” I groaned.
“This is just the start,” Xander replied.
Chapter Thirteen
Xander
Rory watched Liberty and me from the bar with curiosity. I wasn’t sure if she knew for certain who Liberty was, but Rory wasn’t dumb. None of them were, and every eye in the place kept slipping over to Father’s booth, where I boldly sat with his enemy’s daughter.
“These tacos are the best things I’ve ever tasted! I want whoever made these to give the cooks back home some lessons,” Liberty whispered between bites.
I sat back and watched as she took the extra tortillas to make a new taco from everything that had fallen to the plate from her first few.
“That would have been a group effort,” I said. “Rory makes the sauce, Keith grills the meat, and Ginger makes the seasoning. They’re the ones who started this weekly event after visiting Mexico for a couple of weeks.”
“They went to Mexico?” she asked with surprise.
“Yeah,” I nodded. “After they found out they were mates and accepted their bond, they took off. Rory tagged along for the hell of it, but it was kind of a honeymoon thing for Ginger and Keith.”
Liberty looked around the room, her eyes taking in the bright colors of the decorations around the bar and the people as they danced and spun on the dance floor. She took another sip of her margarita before she suddenly stood up and reached for my hand.
