“You need to eat more. You’re too small. Do my people starve you as punishment for being human?”

“No!” It astonished her that his mind would go there. “I just came here before lunch was delivered. I eat three meals a day but I’ve been watching my weight.”

“What does that mean?”

“I am on a diet.”

He blinked, frowning.

“I have put on excess weight and want to lose it. My clothes are getting too tight.”

“Wear bigger ones.”

She wished things were that simple. He removed the covers and her attention fixed on her dinner. She knew her calorie counting had just gone out the window. They’d sent her chicken-fried steak with a river of country gravy and mashed potatoes. Her gaze skirted to his meal. Nearly raw strips of beef were piled high on a plate with uncooked carrots and cauliflower surrounding them.

“You like those?”

He lifted a carrot and it crunched as he bit down. “Yes.”

“You don’t want them cooked at all?”

The disgusted look on his face was almost comical but she didn’t dare laugh.

“Why would they do that?”

“They are good when steamed with butter and cheese. It’s a way they cook them in hot water.”

She noticed he avoided his pills. “You need to take those with your food.”

A soft rumble came from his throat. She wasn’t sure if he’d just growled or it was a sound of dislike. His gaze lifted to hers. She started to speak but he pinched one of the pills between his thumb and finger. “I will take them.”

“Thank you.”

He looked away and just popped them into his mouth. She shuddered a little when he didn’t swallow them down with water but instead chewed. It had to taste horrible.

“You don’t have to—”

His head jerked her way and he growled. “I took them because you’re a doctor. I understand that it’s important to you. How I take them is up to me.”

“Fine.” She lifted her fork and knife to cut her meat. “It’s just that it’s easier if you drink them down.”

His gaze narrowed. “Be silent and eat.”

His hand shot out to the nightstand table and he grabbed the remote control for the television. It came on a second later and she concentrated on her food. He might be a New Species but she decided he had one human trait. He thought it was going to end a conversation just because he turned on a hockey game. Her gaze darted to the sports channel he watched.

The fact he didn’t turn up the volume made her ponder why it was even on. He ate quickly, putting away everything on his plate. She could see why he was gaining weight so quickly. He turned when he was done and watched her. She tried to ignore his intent stare until she’d eaten her fill.

“I’m done.”

“Eat it all.”

She glared back at him. “Listen, 880, you’re being a bully again. I’m stuffed. I ate most of it and that was a huge plate of food. I can’t consume the amount that you do.”

He stood and carried both of their trays out into the hallway and closed the door when he returned, sealing them inside the room together. Dread pitted her stomach as his gaze held hers.

“You’re supposed to leave that open.”

“I don’t take orders.”

“I’d feel better if it weren’t closed.”

“I want to talk to you without the male down the hall listening to us.”

Some of her trepidation faded. “About what?”

He stalked forward and the way he moved was almost predatory and put her on edge. Her heart rate increased and she tensed when he paused near the side of the bed to tower over her.

“Why did you try so hard to save me?”

“We discussed this already. I’m a doctor and you were my patient.”

His head tilted slightly as he watched her face. “Why don’t human males investigate your scents and mate you?”

“What?” She hadn’t expected him to say that and tried to make sense of his words.

“You smell of food to tempt them into being hungry for you.”

“What?”

He sniffed and bent forward a little. “I smell fruit. Strawberries.”

“It’s my shampoo. It’s a common scent people use.”

He sniffed again. “They fed me French toast and you smell of it too.”

“That’s the vanilla from my deodorant. It’s another common scent people use.”

“You remind me of dessert and breakfast. You are urging a male to think of those things and what happens between those times—they go to bed. You wish one to take you there with him.”

Her mouth fell open in stunned surprise.

“Now you are showing me your teeth. They are smooth.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“You wouldn’t be good at using them to nip a male’s skin to bring him greater arousal.” He frowned. “It is your small size. That’s why they avoid you. You’d break, sharing sex with a male. We prefer a sturdier female.”

She gaped at him, not sure if she should feel insulted or not.

“You should bare your body to males. Show them those tiny scraps of material you use to hide your sex and stop restraining your br**sts. They should be free at all times. That would tempt a male more into taking you for a mate. He’d want to put his hands on them and test how soft they are.”