Page 3 of The Dragon’s Surprise (Tahoe Dragon Mates #7)

His expression softened as his pupils flashed. “I’m a doctor, Ms. Sakamoto. I would never deliberately hurt anyone.”

“Lexi.”

He frowned. “What?”

There she went, being unprofessional again, but it was too late to take it back. “You can call me Lexi.”

He nodded, but said nothing else, so Lexi opened the door and walked in.

She smiled as Ethan met her gaze, then he looked at Kyle and she noticed his whole body stiffened.

His actions made Lexi wonder what his so-called father back in his old home had done to him once he’d found out the truth.

Because in her experience, Ethan always did better with women than men.

Doing her best to hide her concerns, she walked over to Ethan, placed a hand on his shoulder, and gestured toward Kyle. “This is Dr. Kyle Baker, the dragon doctor here.”

Ethan moved to lean against her. “Is he going to poke me?”

Kyle stared at Ethan, his pupils flashing, and Lexi wished she knew what he was thinking.

Please let him be nicer to Ethan. Please.

The dragonman finally cleared his throat and said, “I won’t poke you unless it’s necessary, I promise. I hated needles as a kid, so I try to avoid them, if possible.”

Ethan frowned. “But you’re a doctor. Doctors can’t be afraid of needles.”

Kyle almost smiled, and Lexi did her best not to notice how much more handsome the dragonman was when he wasn’t frowning. The doctor said, “Just because we’re afraid of something when we’re a kid doesn’t mean we can’t learn to be strong and overcome it.”

The boy’s reply was barely audible as he whispered, “I’m afraid of my dragon. Can you help with him?”

The doctor’s pupils flashed rapidly, and she glanced down at Ethan, who watched Kyle closely, with fascination.

An awkward silence fell—one that Lexi could murder the doctor for, as any sort of encouragement would’ve helped Ethan—until Jenny spoke up.

“We’ll all help you, Ethan. And I, for one, have had enough talk about needles and would rather do something more fun.

And since Ethan said he’s never seen a dragon up close, I thought we could go to the second landing area and Kyle could show him his. ”

For a beat, Lexi wondered if the dragon doctor would run. He definitely looked like he wanted to. But she waited, knowing this would be an important first step in learning if the dragonman would eventually accept his son or not. Her hopes weren’t high, but she wanted nothing more than to be wrong.

Kyle was still trying to get his head around the small boy who looked so much like him, to the point he didn’t need DNA results to tell him the child was his.

He had the same eyes and nose, and looked like every baby picture his aunt still showed him, albeit Ethan’s hair was blonder than Kyle’s had been before turning brown.

For a split second, he’d felt regret. Dragon-shifters treasured children, especially given their lower birth rates. At least, they’d been lower until recent years with advancements in medicine.

But then he reminded himself he hadn’t known, and he couldn’t change the past.

Then Jenny had to go and suggest Kyle showing his dragon to the boy, which snapped him back to the present. He frowned at the female. “Why me?”

Jenny stared at him and raised her eyebrows. “Because neither Lexi nor I can do it, and you’re here. And don’t suggest Daniel, since he’s about to do some patrols.”

There were others who could’ve done it instead. And yet, as Jenny continued to stare at him in a way that would make any student squirm in their seats, he mentally sighed. Well, the female did have more experience with kids than him, so he’d take her lead. For now.

He cleared his throat. “All right. Now is best since, barring any emergency, I shouldn’t be needed at the clinic for a while.”

Ethan frowned at him. “You talk weird.”

Both females bit their lips to keep from laughing, but Kyle focused on the boy. “Er, sorry. I don’t have any brothers or sisters and haven’t been around kids for a long time, unless they’re sick.”

Ethan tilted his head. “I don’t have any brothers and sisters. I think.” He glanced down and pushed one crayon around on the desk. “I don’t know my dad. My real dad. My dad, well, not really my dad, he said…”

The boy looked sad and lonely, and utterly miserable, and it wrenched Kyle’s heart.

His beast spoke up. Show him me, and it’ll cheer him up.

Kyle leaned down a little, bracing his hands on his thighs, and waited until Ethan met his eyes. “There are plenty of kids your age here, and you’ll meet them soon. But for now, do you want to see a dragon up close?”

The boy nodded.

Straightening, Kyle met Lexi’s eyes again. For a second, he swore approval flashed there, but it was gone before he could blink. “Then if it’s okay with you, shall we go?”

Lexi glanced at Jenny. “If you don’t mind? I know you’re supposed to show me and Ethan to our temporary place, but…”

Jenny waved a hand in dismissal. “I don’t mind a detour. Walking usually keeps my baby happy and makes them stop doing somersaults in my belly. Although, truth be told, I feel more like a penguin since I waddle more than walk. But that’s okay, because I make a pretty cute penguin.”

She winked, and Lexi smiled uncertainly. Kyle nearly chuckled. Jenny Torres was a kind female, loved her mate, and helped with the school. However, she was a little eccentric, and it took time to get used to her chatter.

Although Ethan didn’t seem to mind it. He took Jenny’s hand. “I like penguins. But you’re too big to be a penguin.”

Jenny tapped her chin. “Maybe that’s true. You’ll have to help me think of a better animal on the way.”

Kyle took that as his cue, so he opened the door and followed the females and the boy.

Jenny’s ramblings allowed him to study Ethan, wondering what to do with him. Maybe Jenny and Daniel would adopt him.

His inner dragon sniffed and spoke up. I still think we should at least get to know him and see if we can make it work. And don’t say we wouldn’t have time. Aunt Rita would help.

He nearly groaned as he remembered his aunt. She’d want to see the boy, to spoil him, and would probably try her best to convince Kyle that he should raise him.

His inner dragon spoke again. Aunt Rita is our only family. So finding out she has a great-nephew will make her happy.

His aunt’s only child had died at the age of ten from a then-untreatable form of dragon deteriorating syndrome—a disease that slowly attacked the dragon half until it died, before eating away at the brain. A cure was close, so very close. But that didn’t help his aunt or Kyle’s late cousin.

And after Kyle’s parents had died from a trap laid by the League—the shorthand used for the America for Humans Only League, who believed the US should be purged of all dragon-shifters—he’d lived with his aunt, and she was like a second mother to him.

His beast added, Just stop thinking of ways to foist Ethan on someone else. At least for now. He just needs to know he belongs on MirrorPeak.

His dragon was right. Kyle was being selfish, thinking of his own future and neglecting the boy’s. He would ultimately do what was best for Ethan, but he could at least help the boy settle in. One of the first things Ethan needs to do is get used to dragons. So let’s show him one.

And maybe even let him slide down our side. That’ll be fun.

They reached the smaller landing area, and Kyle waited for Jenny to turn them all around before he stripped his clothes.

Then he stood, imagined his nose elongating into a snout, wings sprouting from his back, and his arms and legs growing into limbs.

Once he stood in his gold dragon form, he grunted and waited to see how both Ethan and Lexi reacted.

Not that he should care about the human female. And yet, both man and beast wanted to impress her for reasons he didn’t dare think about.