She glanced at Ryan from the corner of her eye. I wonder if ADDA will even let him stay now. Tori is legally mated to my brother, so there's no danger there of them sending her away. Ryan isn't similarly protected.
Her beast fell silent, no doubt because it wasn't as easy for a female dragon-shifter to mate a human male. One major reason was some old-fashioned bullshit about how a male dragon-shifter could protect their human female mate, but a female dragon-shifter wouldn't be able to accomplish the same for her human male.
Gaby kept up with all the male dragons in her firefighting unit. Even against a male dragon bigger than her, she could hold her own.
But even if she convinced ADDA of that, the problem ran deeper. After all, Ryan had fulfilled his lottery contract requirement—she was pregnant. And ADDA didn't see a reason to create more trouble and paperwork by letting human males stay. Neither of the males from the last two lotteries had been allowed to live permanently with the dragon clans. Something about them not being dedicated enough.
Of course they couldn't use the dedicated reasoning with Ryan. Her human was dedicated, more than she'd ever dreamed. She had to believe that between her strength and his actions, he'd get to stay with her.
Because if he didn't, Gaby's heart would break. It hadn't been long, but it was enough. She cared for the human and was halfway in love with him, too.
Her dragon growled. Don't think like that. Otherwise we'll be defeated before we even start.
I'll try my best. But I won't pretend the odds aren't against us.
They have been from the beginning, but that doesn't mean I'm going to just give up.
I'm not giving up, dragon.
Good.
They arrived at the conference room used for visitors—namely ADDA employees—and Gaby tried her best to push all the negative thoughts away so she could face her clan leader with a clear head.
Ryan never loosened his hold on her shoulders as they entered. The three people sitting at the other side of the long table all stared at them.
The three were Wes Dalton, PineRock's clan leader; Cristina Juarez, their head Protector; and Dr. Troy Carter, their head doctor.
It was Wes, the auburn-haired male in the middle, who snorted. "Calm down, human. None of us are going to steal her away from you."
She felt Ryan relax a fraction at her side. The urge to make a quip was strong, but she held back, to allow Ryan the chance to stand his ground.
Her male replied, "All the same, I'll keep her close."
The woman with light brown skin and dark hair rolled her eyes—Cris. "And to think Gaby always complained about how possessive dragon males are. And now she's gone and found herself a human who's no different."
Gaby growled. "He's not the same at all, and he's mine. So be nice, Cris."
Cris raised her brows. "Well, well, has the male made you snippy or have your pregnancy hormones already kicked in?"
The dark-skinned male with a shaved head, Dr. Carter, looked at Cris with raised brows. "Let's just be grateful it's not you, Cris. If you ever get pregnant, I might just have to take a long vacation and let the junior doctor monitor you. Otherwise, I may not survive the ordeal with my balls intact."
Cris raised her brows. "Who says we have to wait for me to be pregnant? I can gladly rid you of your balls now."
Gaby bit her lip to keep from smiling. All three dragon-shifters sitting together were friends and teased each other endlessly. However, she wasn't sure how it'd all appear to Ryan, though.
Not that she got the chance to check on him because Ashley clapped her hands until she had everyone's attention. "Now, now, children, given all the crap that's happened recently, maybe you can save the bickering for later?"
Wes crossed his arms over his chest and gave the human his best stare.
Not that it affected Ashley one bit.
Wes spoke, dominance threaded into his voice. "I think you've been spending too much time on PineRock, Ms. Swift, and you're starting to forget your place."
Ashley raised her dark eyebrows. "My place? Huh. Funny, I thought you were the one who owed me a favor."
Gaby looked between the pair. "Did I miss something?"
Wes grunted. "No, it's just ADDA business." He focused on Gaby and Ryan. "Which brings me to you two. I assume Ms. Swift told you about what happened to Jose and Tori?"