Thailyn woke. He lay on the couch in their sitting room with Pisha curled against him. It seemed to be a good position for her hip. It didn’t hurt much. He frowned. Ruzi should be up by now. “Pisha, I need to wake Ruzi. He overslept.” She sat up, wrapping the blanket around herself. He went upstairs. Ruzi’s bed was empty. He hadn’t come home. Pt’this, is Lamdi there? He sent. She is. How about Ruzi? Nope, why? He never came home last night. Let me talk with her. Lamdi said Ann brought them both home. Thanks. I’ll talk with her. “What’s wrong?” Pisha asked. “Ruzi didn’t come home. Lamdi says Ann brought them. I’ll contact her next.” Ann? Yes? Do you know where Ruzi is? He’s sitting across from me eating breakfast. Did he stay at the palace? He didn’t feel comfortable with you doing your best Pt’this imitation right in front of the door. I was not imitating Pt’this. He could hear you purring through the door. So I have a new mother? No. Not yet. You’ll know when you do. I have no intention of using a silence spell. Okay. I’ve got to go. “What happened? Does she know where he is?” Pisha asked. “He stayed with Ann at the palace. He heard me purring and assumed we were doing more than we did.” Pisha turned red. “At least he’s okay.” “Are you okay? You seem upset. You didn’t want him to know about us?” “He heard us.” “I was just purring. He’s heard me before. I can try to suppress it some, but it’s part of me. Dragons purr at most pleasures. If you want, we can look into a charm. I couldn’t hold a silence spell.” She frowned. “We’ll see. Let’s make breakfast.” “What else is bothering you?” He asked as he followed her to the kitchen. “It’s nothing.” She tried to brush it off. “It’s not nothing if it bothers you. Pisha, life is too short to let things build. If I do something wrong, I want you to tell me about it.” “You didn’t do anything wrong.” “You’re hurt that I didn’t want to sleep with you last night,” he guessed. “I’m not going to force you to do something you don’t want.” She started cooking. “Pisha, I want to, just not yet.” This was a conversation they should’ve had first. “First, your hip isn’t ready for that. We need to wait for it to heal more if we don’t want to do more damage.” “I’m sure we could have found a way.” He went up behind her and reached around her. “Your hip hurts here.” He touched a spot where he felt her pain. “And it hurts along here.” He traced a line. “In your chest feels tight and it feels like you’re having trouble breathing, only your chest is fine and so is your breathing. I’m having a mild bout with my heart and you can feel it. “We started bonding while you were in the trance. I didn’t realize it until I was almost done healing you.” “Bonding?” She glanced over her shoulder at him. “Bonding. Dragons form a bond with their mates. We feel what the other feels. It’s how you feel my bout and how I know exactly where your hip hurts. It’s also how I know how upset you are. The stronger the bond, the more we’ll feel. The longer we wait before we mate, the stronger the bond will be. “I need the bond to be strong. I take a lot of green bough root because of my heart. It mutes the bond. It can destroy a weak or forming bond. That would most likely kill me. If by some chance I survived, I’d never be able to bond or take a mate again.” “Other races mate without bonding.” “Dragons are a lot different than other races. We make ourselves look like you so it’s easy to forget how different we are. “I’m a lizard. I have wings and scales and claws as big as your hand. I shed every seven years and need lots of meat. I breathe fire and am telepathic. I can’t go insane, but I can go mad dragon. And I need to be bonded with my mate. If I mated with someone without being bonded, it would kill me. Dragons with healthy hearts just wish they would die. Many kill themselves. “Besides, being bonded brings so much more enjoyment.” He kissed her neck gently. “You’ll feel my pleasure and I’ll feel yours and I so want to feel yours.” “You think pretty highly of your abilities.” “I’ve spent the last 1300 years studying anatomy. I know where and how to touch you. Ask Sinta what sex with a healer is like. I’ll feel what you enjoy the most and what you desire. When we become mates, I’ll give you what you want, when you want.” She nodded. The idea appealed to her. “If waiting is better, then we wait. We should probably see what the kids think about us.” “Most parents sleep together,” Thailyn said. “I know, but…” “That’s what Ruzi said the other night when he gave me permission to court you.” Pisha turned around, frowning. “He did what?” “Apparently, he saw the way we were looking at each other in Erilu and wanted to let me know he was okay with it.” “What about the girls?” “Ann just asked if she had a new mother yet. She doesn’t like me being single. Drepal is harder to read, but I don’t think she’ll make much fuss. Family means a lot to her.” Pisha nodded. “We’ll talk with all three of them.” “Drepal and Ann don’t get along well. Don’t expect them to be willing to sit down together. Both claim the other tried to kill her. I don’t know who did what, but I was the one who had to clean up the mess.” “We’ll talk with them separately.” “I love the way you adapt so well.” He kissed her again. “Growing up in that house, I didn’t have much choice.” “I’m sorry.” “It’s okay. That’s over with. I will never go back to them, even if I’m permitted.” “That saddens me. Family is important to dragons. But what they did to you is an abomination.” “It’s okay. I’ve made my peace with it,” she assured him. In truth, he didn’t feel anything negative from her. “Breakfast isn’t getting made very quickly,” she observed. “Does it matter? I’m not scheduled to work until tomorrow at the palace and Darkham is still watching the clinic.” “He doesn’t mind?” “He misses clinic work, I think. We used to be partners in Thager. He ran the clinic and I would go to the villages. Now, he’s the head army healer.” “And you work in the palace.” “Part-time so I can have a clinic too.” “You really enjoy healing.” “It’s my addiction.” “You told me that didn’t you?” Thailyn shrugged. “I might have. After we eat, I’m going to check on the clinic and pick up some potions to help me breathe easier. Will you be okay alone for a bit?” “I’ll be fine. I’m getting stronger every day. I have my cane if I need to get anything.” “I can ask Dae to come and sit with you.” “I’ll be fine. I have magic too. I can use that if I need something.” Thailyn nodded and let her return to making breakfast.