Menagerie

Chapter 11 - Penny

Serena collided into my back, forcing me to take a couple of shaky steps into the room. My eyes darted around the room, but I saw no sign of him.

"You okay?" Jasper asked.

I looked up at his eyes, so like mine. Jasper had always been an anchor for me, a caretaker who could follow me where my parents couldn't. "I'm not sure," I said. I grabbed Jasper's hand and squeezed it tightly, using it as a physical tether to keep from following the insistent yank through the room. How was it I knew exactly which direction to go? I had never been much of a tracker, but even though the scent completely overwhelmed my senses, I was certain that if I went down the center corridor and made a left at the pinball machine, I would find him.

How long until he realized I was here? And what would he do? Last night had been so simple. There hadn't been the slightest hint of hesitation on his part; instead, he took hold of me instantly, like we were an inevitability. But that was before I had insisted between hot, frantic kisses that my brother pull me away from him. It was a situation I wouldn't know how to resolve with someone even if we had an established friendship. How could I face a perfect stranger after such an episode?

And...

And what if he had changed his mind about me?

It was a thought I tried to push away, but an undeniable panic swirled through me. It didn't matter that he had never seriously been under consideration. Goodness knew my feelings had never cared about rationality before – there was no reason to expect they would start tonight.

Jasper had to feel the trembling in my arm, and he frowned down at me. "Again? I've never known anyone who found this many strong potential mates, so close together. You might set some kind of record if this keeps up."

Though his words were light, his eyes were concerned. They evaluated me, then did a careful sweep through the room. He was probably waiting for someone to come charging through the aisles, looking for me. I wasn't so sure that would happen, not in this particular circumstance.

"It's the man from last night," I said.

Serena had moved in close enough to hear me, and she blanched. "We should get you out of here." She reached out a hand toward me, but my treacherous stepped legs away from her – further into the room, closer to the scent that was doing its best to take me over.

"Penny?" Jasper asked. "Do you want to leave?" He was back to carefully watching my expression.

I stepped forward again, and now I was as far away from him as our linked hands would allow. I squeezed my eyes shut and focused on regaining control of my limbs. I held my breath and took a careful step backward, toward the door. Odd, for my body to rebel against me like this. I knew tears had leaked out from the corners of my eyes, but I didn't let them break my concentration. I made it another step back, though an awful tingling was spreading through my limbs – either from the lack of air or from the perceived wrongness of my battle.

"This is hopeless," I whispered with the last of my air.

"You're going to make yourself pass out if you keep this up. Do you want to leave? I can carry you out of here if that's what you want, but you have to tell me so."

"Trouble's coming," Serena warned in a low voice.

I gasped. I thought I'd been imagining that I could feel his approach. I would have much preferred that it be paranoia, but I knew that Serena was right. As he grew nearer, the power his scent had over me grew too. I rooted my feet to the ground and reminded myself that Mom had been able to walk away from Dad all those years ago, even though they were soulmates. I should be able to handle a weaker potential bond than that.