Chapter 3
Simon smirked as he cut off the shower and stood to drip dry. Normally he’d have ordered her out of the bathroom the moment he’d stepped into the tub. But the animal inside him was too close to the surface. It had reveled in the lust that had scented the air. It had smelled her attraction the moment she’d stepped into his home. Why else would he stand buck naked in the middle of his kitchen while arguing with her?
So he had let her watch while the water had brought his human body back online. Heat, wet, the feel of the lather on skin without fur. It had taken a while, but he had touched every inch of his body to remember his own dimensions.
And while his mind reacquainted itself with his body, the animal had smelled Alyssa’s spicy scent and gloried in showing off his sexual prowess. His loins had thickened and her musk mixed with the steam while he proved his fitness to mate. He’d stroked himself and imagined it was her hand, her lips, her honey that slicked his penis. The orgasm that shot through him had been blindingly intense. His vision had whited out while his body consumed itself with his fantasy of seeding his child in her belly.
When it was done, the man in him had been shocked. The animal had preened. And both had wanted to see Alyssa’s reaction.
Flushed cheeks, taut nipples, and eyes that were half dazed, half terrified. That was the sight of a female considering a mate. But then she’d gasped and fled the room. The animal had wanted to leap after her because she was slow and he could overpower her. But the man in him knew human females were different and such a thing was wrong.
So he stood still and let the squabble between animal and man continue in his mind. He knew in this body the man would always win though, damn, it was taking a while.
Suddenly a dark blue towel flew into the room to land drunkenly on the covered toilet.
“Ten minutes,” Alyssa snapped in a crisp, authoritarian tone. “We’ll get burgers on the way.”
Years ago, he’d jumped whenever a sergeant had barked in that tone of voice. Coming from Alyssa, the sound only made him smile.
No point in arguing with her. She couldn’t force him to do what she wanted. And he had a system when coming back from weeks as a bear. A process developed as a teen when he’d spent summers in the UP. The return-to-human protocol eased him back safely. And though he’d never been bear for months at a time before, he hoped that the reintegration process would be the same.
He grabbed the towel and began to once again log the sensations of his human body. Fabric rough on skin. The prickle of cold air on wet hair. The flex and strain of remaining upright and balanced on two feet without claws. All these things were being revisited and cataloged in his mind. He was human. He was a man.
The animal slunk back into a corner of his consciousness, sat down with a humph, and sulked. He could even feel the heavy thump of the creature’s rear end on the floor of his mind. In time, it would drop its head down onto front paws and snuffle in a pouting doze. It was the way of things with his bear, and he mentally tried to shut the door on the bear’s cage.
It didn’t close. Not yet. The grizzly was too large to be tucked away so easily. Especially since he had so brazenly demonstrated his prowess to the female just a moment ago. But it would happen in time. Assuming he strictly followed the protocol.
So he hung up his towel to dry and walked upright to his bedroom to get dressed. He went straight to his dresser and opened the first drawer. Tight briefs because humans wore underwear. He pulled them on. Jeans in the next drawer. Loose as he dragged them up over his hips. He had to think how to zip and button, but his fingers found the pattern. Then he stopped to remember what next.
Footwear? Jacket?
His hands opened the third drawer and pulled on an army tee, olive drab. Drawer four had socks. He had to sit down to pull them on, so he bent his knees and dropped onto his bed. A puff of dust blew up from the comforter, and he wrinkled his nose at the odor. He would have to remember to clean the bedding, but that wasn’t next on his list. He pulled on his socks. Then when he looked up, he saw his boots set almost exactly in his eye line.
He grabbed them, then jerked them on. Now it was time to tie laces. This, too, he mastered with alacrity, but it was still a reminder that he had to move steadily through his system or find himself hopelessly lost later on.
He was staring at his boots and trying to remember the next step when Alyssa appeared in his bedroom door. “You’re dressed. Good. We need to leave now. It’s already going to be late when we arrive.”
He turned his head, his gaze now able to see details that his animal mind could not. His bear had labeled her beautiful in that she had sturdy bones and smelled healthy. Now he saw that in human terms she had curves that were functional rather than fashionable. Breasts restrained under an athletic bra, jeans that were loose enough to be comfortable and hide what was likely to be strong, shapely legs. Her mocha skin was creamy like a perfect cup of coffee with milk. Her face had nice eyes and full lips, both without makeup. And her ears held tiny gold studs as her only nod to female vanity because her hair was downright severe in the way it was pulled back from her face in a tight bun. This woman didn’t even allow a ponytail.
He liked that kind of efficiency, he realized. It spoke of an ordered mind. Except when she spoke, her voice held all the temper of his long-ago sergeant.
“Stand up. Walk to my car. We’re leaving.”
“You remember me from when I visited with Vic two years ago.” A statement, not a question.
Her brows narrowed slightly. “Yes. Why?”
“You tried to order me around then. Did it work?”
Her mouth tightened. “No.”
“But you think it will now.”
She grimaced. “It did for a moment there. Back in the kitchen.”
“When I was vulnerable.”
“When you were confused after just being shot. And turning back into…into…”
