The Moon Wolf

Chapter 25 (1st Draft)

Troy pushed himself off the wall and took a step toward Penn as she made her way directly to him. His heart fluttered strangely in his chest at the sight of her. The feeling was both uncomfortable and pleasant at the same time. He couldn't understand why he was so attracted to her. It was confusing and thrilling because he wasn't sure whether he should or shouldn't keep it in check.

Without thinking too much, he reached for her arms and gave them a gentle squeeze. That same warm pulse that had invaded his body the first time he touched her was there again running through  his fingers and flooding his chest with a blissful heat. He felt his blood begin to race through his veins like an adolescent and he couldn't help the wide, boyish grin that spread across his face as he gazed down at her pale blue eyes. He could really get addicted to this feeling if he wasn't careful, he thought with amusement.

Penn felt her face flush in response to the intensity of the tender look she saw in his.  She was in new territory and didn't have the first clue what she should do or how she should respond to Troy. All she knew was, in that moment, she had never felt so welcome, so safe and dare she say loved if that were even possible.

Of course, she only had instinct to guide her, but, she had this gut feeling that told her the wolf in front of her cared deeply for her. There was no way to explain it to her rational mind. Her intuition flew in the face of all her previous experiences and the way she understood the world worked.

But, ever cautious and rarely impulsive, the look in his eyes and the strength of her own feelings worried her. What if she was reading too much into Troy's behaviour? What if she was so desperate for love and affection that she was fooling herself into believing he was drawn to her the same way she was to him? What if he was just being kind and courteous and she was overreacting?

Fear made cowards out of the bravest souls and Penn was no different. Her nerves got the better of her and even as her instincts implored her to step into his space and wrap her arms around him, she did the exact opposite. Pulling her arms free of his gentle grip she stepped back from him a few paces and put some distance between them.

Feeling equal parts confused, embarrassed and regretful, Penn found she could not look up at Troy. So, she looked down at her bandaged hands and prayed to the Moon goddess to help her out some how. 

Troy, seeing the swift change in Penn, reined in his emotions immediately. The last thing he wanted to do was to scare her off. He couldn't believe how close he'd just come to wrapping her in his arms. Clearly she was not ready for such bold shows of affection and he berated himself for not being wiser. 

He cleared his throat, and remembering just how hungry Penn had been before the elders had greeted her fifteen minutes ago, said in a quiet but cheerful voice, "Lets go in and eat."

Penn's stomach roared to life all of a sudden and both she and Troy laughed.

Looking up at him, Penn was relieved to see that the intense look from earlier was gone. "That sounds good to me," she replied with a small smile, which she watched him return freely and easily.