Young ladies after short time had syrup (8)
I believe the answer is:
molasses
'syrup' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'young ladies after short time' is the wordplay.
'young ladies' becomes 'lasses' (lass is a kind of young lady).
'after' says to put letters next to each other.
'short time' becomes 'mo' (slang abbreviation for 'moment').
'lasses' put after 'mo' is 'MOLASSES'.
'had' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for molasses that I've seen before include "US name for treacle" , "Dark syrup from raw sugar" , "Thick dark treacle" , "Slow runner" , "what refinement can bring" .)