Summer's Lease

Chapter 3-1

Chapter 3

Mating season was no big deal for the bear. He didn’t have a mate and saw no prospect of acquiring one. Albeit, his metabolism speeded up and he had to eat more food. This led to an increase in weight, which his body converted to greater muscle mass. This often brought his human form attention from people on the odd occasions when he ventured into the local towns. The admiring glances and sometimes downright stares were flattering, if unwelcome. His human form didn’t want to have s*x with any of the men who looked his way, and he definitely wasn’t interested in mating with female admirers.

With the arrival of John, the bear was uncharacteristically restless. The human had given him the name Teddy, but the bear refused to refer to himself by such a label. He wasn’t a pet dog.

The bear made several patrols of the outside of John’s cottage, needing to make sure the human inside was safe. To warn off any potential suitors, the bear marked the perimeter of his territory, and woe betide anyone who breached it.

Feeling all was safe, the bear ambled down to the beach and went for a swim in the sea, where he caught several fish as well as a crab. They made for a tasty change from the clams and the occasional rodent. Although his diet mainly consisted of grasses and seeds, the human side of the bear’s nature reminded him that meat offered the best sources of protein.

Satiated, the bear walked out of the waves, shook himself a few times, and slunk toward his cave. He’d found the natural break in the rock many years earlier; it was wide enough for the bear to enter, but was in a location unlikely to be spotted by passers-by. The cave offered a dry shelter away from the wind on nights when he wished to remain in bear form. It also held a few changes of clothing so when he transformed back to human, he didn’t scare anyone who happened to notice him, although few people visited the cove during the winter months, so he could walk around naked—his preferred state—if he so chose. The cold weather usually deterred this practice, however. Originally hailing from the Pacific Northwest where it rained more often than not, the bear knew his human had grown soft in his middle age and preferred to spend the winters in front of a blazing log fire. The frosting on top of the cake would be to share such a cosy den with a mate, but…

The bear let out a roar of anguish. Even though it’d been the best part of a century since a hunter’s bullet had torn the bear’s mate from him, not a day went by without him mourning the loss.

Sticking his snout outside the cave and sniffing the air, the bear drew comfort in being able to sense the nearby presence of the new human. He didn’t know whether it was an actual scent or something more internal and cerebral, he was aware that the man his human ached to claim as his mate was close at hand and thinking about him. This caused the bear’s p***s to unsheathe itself and drip fluid onto the sand.

Retreating deeper into his cave, the bear mounted a boulder that he’d rolled there years earlier. He’d chosen it as it was smooth and just the right height to rub against when the pressure became too much and he needed to spill his seed.

Within a very short time, the bear had worked himself up to such a state that he was ready to explode. He thought about pausing to allow his human’s lust to ebb and thus prolong the pleasure, but he couldn’t wait; the need to spurt was too great. Letting out an enormous roar, the bear painted the top of the boulder with several long ropes of c*m, the smell of which drove him to grind harder.

Letting out a final grunt, the bear dismounted, sniffed at his issuance, licked some of it up, then, after feeling he’d got his human’s urges somewhat under control, stalked out of the cave and made his way back up the cliff to check on John one last time.

The bear was surprised to spy John through one of the cottage’s windows, and glory be, he was wearing a shirt the bear recognised as belonging to his human form. Did this mean John was accepting the bear’s human as his mate? The bear shook his head, his human side insisting it was too soon. The bear returned to his own cottage, determined that this internal discussion was not over. Not by a long way.

* * * *

Pulling his suitcase from under the bed, John unzipped it and stared into its empty depths. Empty, that was how he felt. Why had he come to Cornwall? It was a mistake. He felt more separated from George and that scared him. At least in London he had his memories, places they’d visited, pubs and restaurants they’d eaten at, parks they’d walked in.

Yet again, he felt guilty for his wet dream. He should be dreaming about George and all the times they’d made love. He shouldn’t be conjuring up images of sucking off virtual strangers.

John flopped on the bed next to the suitcase and buried his head in his hands. “I’m sorry, George. It won’t happen again, I promise.” He sobbed, letting the tears flow, knowing he deserved to suffer for the betrayal of his lover’s memory.

Yes, he’d pack his stuff; take his key back to Morwenna and think up some excuse or other for why he couldn’t stay. Maybe his grandmother had fallen and broken her hip, and he needed to return to London to look after her.

Shame on you, an internal voice reprimanded. Your grandmother is dead, and what do you think she’d say to you using her as an excuse for your cowardice?

“Shut up,” he said, raising his head and looking at himself in the mirror over the antique oak dressing table.

He looked a sight. Morwenna was bound to see that something was up. But then, wouldn’t it be natural for him to be upset at hearing bad news about his grandmother? He could say they were close and…

And there isn’t any mobile phone signal out here, so how would you have heard about this fictional hip fracture?

Sometimes he hated his logical conscience.

“Don’t have to give her a reason,” John said, squaring his shoulders. “I’m not in secondary school anymore, needing to explain my actions to the headmistress.”

Nodding at his plan, John got off the bed and began to pack.