Her dragon jumped in again. Why? His eyes flashed. He's interested. Why not take what he offers?
Because he probably wants more than I can give him, and you know it. Clan doctors rarely have mates, unless their mate is also a doctor who understands the long hours. Chase is an electrician, and it would never work.
How do you know?
Right now, I'm too tired to talk. Leave me alone.
With a huff, her dragon curled up into a ball and ignored her.
After a few bites, she glanced up. Chase watched her.
He said, "Even with pasta sauce on your chin, you're beautiful, lass."
Grabbing a napkin, she wiped her face. Enough. She handled the most stubborn of dragonmen on a daily basis. She would deal with the one currently in her kitchen. "Chase, you're not getting laid tonight, so save your time and go home."
His pupils turned to slits and back. "Aye, well, I can wait. You're worth it."
For the first time, she didn't think of Chase as the younger, easily impressionable male. No, his words were full of promise and determination.
Time slowed as they stared at one another, and a rush of desire flooded her body at the image of Chase looking at her like that when he claimed her.
Her dragon spoke up. You've never had a wild night in your life. Take it. He wants us. It'll be good.
Her beast's words made her stand and back away. No, I can't. There's Alistair who might need us, and Finn is also counting on us.
That's an excuse, and you know it.
Chase moved to stand in front of her. She had to look up a few inches to meet his gaze, and did her best to ignore the heat radiating from his body. "I'm patient, Layla. Remember that."
She half expected for him to kiss her, or touch her, or maybe even press her against the counter and lift her up.
But all he did was wink and head out the door.
When she heard the front door click closed, she slowly slid to the floor and rested her head on her knees.
Not because she was sad Chase had left, although that was a wee bit true. No, more because for a split second, she'd envied the females who didn't have to dedicate sixty, eighty, or more hours a week to keep the clan healthy. Females who had time for males, dating, and even families.
But Layla would most likely never be one of those females.
Medicine had been her life for so long, and she could never abandon it. And since dragon-shifter doctors were in short supply, she would forever be a workaholic.
Fifteen minutes ago, that hadn't mattered. However, now was a different story.
Now it made her want to cry.
Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to eat what was left of her dinner and head upstairs. She was exhausted, that was all. A solid four hours of sleep would do wonders for her mental state, and she'd stop being so silly.
Layla was a doctor and would always be one. Clan came first, no matter what. That was the life she'd signed up for, and she'd best remember that.
Chapter Thirteen
A familiar cadence filtered into Alistair's ears, one he both loved and dreaded.
His mother's.
He couldn't quite make out the words. A fog settled over him, one that seemed to keep his eyelids or any other part of his body from working.
Although the silence inside his head meant something had happened to his dragon.