Page 19 of The Dragon's Surprise
He met her eyes, frowning. “What the hell does that matter?”
“I heard you finished your doctor training quicker than most because you’re really smart. And by any standard, twenty-two is young for shouldering such a great burden alone. No, you weren’t a child. But dragon-shifters don’t fully mature until age twenty, so still young. And I’m guessing you learned from your mistake, but instead of embracing that, you’ve been punishing yourself ever since?”
His dragon sighed.See? I told you. She gets it.
Kyle ignored his beast and narrowed his eyes at the female. “Not punishing, but being fucking responsible.”
“By staying away, having no friends, and being lonely? And how does that help anyone? A sad, isolated doctor can only go on for so long.”
“Stop trying to make excuses for me.”
Her eyes flashed with anger. “I’m not making excuses! Trust me, I’ve seen my fair share of grown-ass people making shit up about why they can’t take responsibility for a child. One that had no choice about being brought into the world, and yet they easily hand the child over to DOCS when they learn the boy or girl is a little different and has an inner dragon.” She pointed a finger at him. “You, on the other hand, are punishing yourself for something you already took responsibility for and learned from.I’m not saying go out and get wasted every night, obviously. But it’s okay to have a little fun, Kyle. To laugh and have a good time with others. That will do your clan more good in the long run.”
He leaned over the table, bracing his hands on the surface, until his face was about six inches from Lexi’s. Ignoring the scent of female and something floral, he focused on his anger. “Is this all part of your plan? To fix me so I can take Ethan, meaning you can leave sooner and get back to your kind?”
As soon as he said it, Kyle regretted his words, especially as hurt flashed in Lexi’s eyes, quickly replaced with fury. She stood, the chair skidding behind her, and she growled, “Fuck you, Kyle Baker.”
With that, she stormed out, and he sat down, holding his head in his hands.
His dragon snarled,Why did you do that? She was genuinely trying to help, and you know it.
I don’t know.
Yes, you do. She was starting to get past your walls, trying to understand and help you, so you pushed her away. And not just any female, but our true mate. You reallyarepunishing us, especially me. I don’t want her to go. You need to fix this.
For a second, he nearly lied, saying he didn’t want to change things. That Lexi had been wrong, and Kyle needed to constantly keep himself isolated so he could focus solely on being a doctor.
And yet, he’d met other dragon doctors, ones with mates and families, and they were no less skilled than him. Maybe, just maybe, he could ease his loneliness a little and still do a good job.
His dragon spoke again.Make an effort. Life will be brighter with her and Ethan in it.
Rubbing his face, Kyle sighed again.I can’t promise that, but I will apologize.
Apologize and spend time with both of them.
And how can I do that? I’ve fucked up, big time. Lexi might not want to talk to me, beyond being professional and ensuring I won’t hurt Ethan.
His dragon paused and then said,Daniel was one of our best friends growing up. Talk to him. He might have some advice, especially since his mate has spent the most time with Lexi.
Daniel Torres had been arguably the best of his friends as a kid. He’d even tried to stop Kyle from completing the ridiculous dare back in the day.
He replied to his beast,I’m not sure he’ll want to be friends with me again, after all this time.
You’ll never know until you try.
Fine. But I’m going to clean up first.
Good. And I’ll think of how you can apologize and grovel, too.
And so Kyle took a shower and got dressed before heading out to visit his former friend, hoping it wasn’t too late to rekindle their friendship. Because Kyle needed help, desperately, if he ever wanted a chance with his true mate.
Which he was starting to think he wanted, maybe more than anything except better knowing his son.
Chapter Seven
Lexi barged out of Kyle’s place and took a long walk, needing to get her temper under control before she saw Ethan again.
By the end of the two hours, reason had returned to her brain, and she realized Kyle deliberately lashed out to keep people away. It still didn’t excuse his behavior toward her or his accusation—he’d need to apologize and mean it—but after so many years, he’d probably forgotten what it was like to have or reach out to a friend.
