Chapter 12, Soul of the Water Moon_2

The only problem is explaining to his fiancee, but that issue isn't hard to handle. As a noble lady, she would absolutely be no stranger to this sort of matter, her mental capacity for such things wouldn't be lacking in any fashion.

It's better to be linked with a gossip about a singer, than getting entangled with another noble lady. No matter how beautiful a singer is, she ultimately wouldn't be able to cross the threshold of social status.

...

The start of the auction dissipated the sensuous atmosphere of the room. Normally the bear would be enjoying the spectacle, but now he was submerged in contemplation.

In the world of bears, there's nothing like this. If you come across a female bear you fancy, you go straight to mating, and it's done.

The scene before him baffled Belsden. With the bear's lifetime of experience, he was entirely unable to understand the relationship between the two humans now.