Page 18 of The Dragon's Surprise
He sounded bone-weary, and it was on the tip of her tongue to ask more when Rita moved to the door and said, “I put the cookies and brownies on the counter, and now that Lexi is here to visit, I can meet up with Rosa Maria like I promised. I’ll drop by later, Kyle. Nice to meet you, Lexi.”
With that, Rita left them alone. Lexi glanced at Kyle, only to find him watching her with flashing dragon eyes. His usual “doctor facade,” as she called it, was gone, and he looked almost defeated. Even though she shouldn’t, she asked, “What happened? And don’t say nothing, because it’s written all over your face that something did. Did your patient die?”
He studied her, but Lexi never looked away. For reasons she didn’t understand, she wanted him to answer her. Maybe because it would help him be a little less alone with carrying the burdens of a clan doctor. Or maybe because if he was a little less weighed down with the world, he might take in Ethan.
Yes, that was the reason. The only one.
And so she sat and waited for him to answer.
Kyle eyed the pretty female sitting across from him, debating what to do. The last few days had been pure hell, with Eli coding and Kyle having to do multiple surgeries to keep the dragonmanalive. And while he was fairly sure they were past the worst of it, Eli still had a long recovery ahead of him. One that Kyle didn’t envy, not at all.
Dr. Carmen Alvaro had told him to take two days off, brooking no arguments. She was fierce, skilled, and even more closed-off than he was. However, she was also his clan leader’s cousin, and if Rio said they could trust Carmen, Kyle would do it.
He’d planned to read to try and forget the last few days, but after reading the same paragraph twenty times, he’d given up. His mind kept straying to Ethan and Lexi, and especially how being with them both had felt so…right.
Which fucking terrified him.
So when she asked what happened, about whether his patient had died, his dragon spoke up.Don’t push her away. Just tell her the truth. And not just for me or even you, but for our son. We’ll be no good to anyone until you relax and stop replaying what went right or wrong.
Too tired to argue with his inner beast, Kyle sighed and answered Lexi’s question. “You probably know by now that Eli was the injured Protector?” She nodded, and he continued, “Well, I’ve spent the last two days trying to keep him alive.”
He paused, as images came back of beeping machines and him shouting orders. Lexi’s hand covered his, bringing him back, and he met her gaze. At the concern there, he blurted, “I thought he was going to die, Lexi. He nearly died, and it brought back…”
“Brought back what?”
Was he really going to talk aboutthat?
His dragon sighed.Why not? She should be ours and know everything. Don’t fuck this up.
As Kyle searched Lexi’s gaze, he saw the curiosity burning there. And yet, she wasn’t demanding or asking anything else, but waiting. Almost as if she expected him to brush it aside.
Which he didn’t like. Not one bit.
So he finally answered, “I nearly lost a patient when I was younger.”
“Nearly?”
He nodded. “He survived, but I almost killed him, all because I was young and stupid and too willing to prove myself to people who didn’t really matter.”
Lexi removed her hand, and he nearly reached for it, but held back. Of course she didn’t want to touch him or offer sympathy. Given her job, she had no patience for reckless, selfish individuals. And he’d been both.
His dragon spoke up.That was nearly a decade ago. Stop beating yourself up over it!
Lexi’s voice prevented him from replying to his beast. “Well, tell me what happened, and I’ll be the judge.”
His gaze met hers, and he didn’t see disgust or judgment. No, only interest and skepticism.
His dragon spoke again.Tell her. Then you’ll see when she takes my side that it’s more than time for you to let it go and start living again.
Fine, I’ll tell her. But she’ll be on my side, you’ll see.
Then get on with it.
“About ten years ago, friends dared me to drink five shots in a row before attempting one of my daredevil flight maneuvers. I didn’t land as I should have, and I sprained several muscles. Right as I was hobbling back home, I got a call about a clan member’s appendix bursting. I was the only clan doctor since the former one had just died, and I should’ve taken the responsibility more seriously. But since I hadn’t, that meant sobering up as much as I could to try to save the dragonman. Because when an appendix bursts for dragon-shifters, it releases a nearly-fatal level of dragon-shifter hormones into the body. Calling another doctor would’ve taken too long, and so I performed the surgery, even with my hands shaking.” He ran ahand through his long hair. “As it was, I had to open him up again the next day and repair something I’d damaged. It could’ve all been avoided if only I’d taken my job seriously. And on that day, I vowed to never do anything that could jeopardize my clan members again.”
Silence fell, and for a few beats, Kyle avoided Lexi’s gaze and stared into his tea. He fully expected her to stand, say he would never be a good father for Ethan, and leave.
Then her voice filled the air. “I heard you were only twenty-two when you became the clan’s only doctor. Is that right?”
