If it was a hint, it was one I didn't understand. I frowned. "So why spend all this time and money on this sort of research? Especially when both you and Talon are successful businessmen in your own right?"
He shrugged again. "It is what we were programmed to do."
"Bullshit."
He grinned. "Then how about money and power? There's a lot of both to be had for the man who unlocks the secret of a vampire's longevity, or the werewolf's ability to heal almost any wound."
"And a lot of power to be had for the man who could create an army specially designed to handle specific locations and situations." He'd said that to me once. I hadn't understood at the time he was actually feeding me a piece of the puzzle. "You could virtually name your own price."
"Exactly."
I toyed with the empty beer bottle. "The military is trying to do the same thing, isn't it?"
"Yes."
"Are you involved with the military, in any way?"
"Not me personally."
"Your company?"
"No."
"Your fellow clones?"
"Sort of."
Well, that was helpful. "Give me a starting place, then."
He raised an eyebrow. "Not without setting terms. Not without a down payment."
Annoyance rushed through me. "You'll get your down payment when I get proof that you're playing it straight."
"Not good enough, Riley. Not when I'm risking my life by even being seen with you."
"You keep saying this, but why would they kill you when they obviously need you?"
"Because my part in the grandeur scheme is only minor. And right now, I'm walking the line of being more a hindrance than a help."
I didn't believe him. Not this time. I had a suspicion he was doing this for reasons that were purely personal. And while I had no doubt he was telling the truth as far as the reasons for wanting a kid went, I also had no doubt there was more to it than that.
Like maybe playing both sides of the fence until he knew for sure who would be the victor.
"If that's the case, how the hell are you going to be my only way out of a return to those damn research pens?"
"Because I have something he wants."
The cold satisfaction in his voice sent a chill down my spine. "What's that?"
He raised an eyebrow. "I swear on the moon that I can, if I want, keep you safe from another attack. Is that enough of a pledge?"
"It would be, if I believed it."
"The lack of attacks will be proof enough."
My fingers tightened around the neck of the beer bottle, but I resisted the urge to throw it at his head. "So, if I agree to your terms, you'll get the dogs called off, but not before?"
"Precisely."
I blew out a breath. "What are your terms?"
"No other wolf but me." His silver eyes gleamed fiercely in the candlelight. "Which means steering well clear of that damn alpha I saw you with earlier."
Like hell. "Everyone but that wolf I was with tonight. He's chipped, so he's no threat that way, and if I stop all contact with wolves other than you, your watchers will be suspicious."
He grunted. Obviously unhappy, yet willing to concede the point. "You meet me at the Rocker, every week-night and on Sunday, at midnight, and give me two hours of your time."
"I thought you said you don't go to the Rocker any more?"
"I'm there every night except Saturday."
"Won't my suddenly turning up raise suspicions?"
"No, simply because my watchers have grown so used to the routine they no longer bother watching me at nights."
"Except tonight."
"They always watch me when I come here, simply because they know you come here. They don't want me with you."
"Why?"
He grinned. "Because they don't want you pregnant with my kid."
I raised an eyebrow. "Again, why?"
The gleam in his eyes suggested that was something he wasn't ready to impart yet. And I had an odd feeling the reason went back to the man behind the crossbreeding.
"Don't tell me," I said dryly. "You can't say."
"You catch on quick."
Not quick enough, obviously. It had taken me entirely too long to realize he—and Talon—were using me. "If I stop coming to the Blue Moon, they'll get suspicious."
"Which is why on Saturdays you will come here and we shall ignore each other."
Oh, goody. I had a night off to play as I desired. "Ignoring you means being with other wolves if my alpha isn't there. That contradicts your terms, doesn't it?"
"You are free to be with whom you wish that day only," he amended. "Do you agree to the terms?"
I hesitated, not wanting to seems overly eager. Not that I was. But he was a means to an end, and besides, whether I liked him personally or not, he was usually a good lover. "What if I do fall pregnant? What then?"
"Then I will support you and the child, and do everything in my power to protect you."
"There's a major flaw in that thinking. You could be dead in five years." So could I, but I wasn't about to point that out.
His smile was hard, his eyes icy. "Believe me, I have ways of ensuring you're protected."
I didn't think I was ready to know just what he meant by that.
"Do you agree?" he asked again.
I would have agreed to just about anything, but he wasn't to know that. So I let the silence stretch between us, letting him think I was mulling over the terms when all I wanted to do was make the down payment and get the first lot of information.
"Yes, I agree."
"And my payment?"
He got it. Then I got my starting point.
The man who didn't exist.
Kade Williams.
Chapter Seven
The first person I saw as I came out of the Blue Moon was Kade himself. He leaned against one of the building's canopy supports, arms crossed and gleaming a rich burgundy in the dying light of the afternoon.
His smile lit his face, warming his eyes, but just as quickly, everything faded. He straightened abruptly.
"Riley—"
I stopped in front of him, and thrust my hands on my hips. "Why the hell didn't you tell me you were military?"
Something skittered through his eyes. Surprise, perhaps. "Because I wasn't sure you were who you said you were."
"And when you knew?"
"You haven't the clearance. You're just a secretary."
"My God," Rhoan said, walking up behind Kade, "you're really looking for a punched nose, making a statement like that."
Kade took a sideways step, probably to ensure we were both in his line of sight. I'm not entirely sure why—I mean, surely I didn't look that angry? I didn't feel that angry, anyway.
"Look, Jack didn't tell you, so I couldn't."
"Regardless of the fact I got your ass out of that place?"
"We got each other out of there, sweetheart. And I couldn't risk identifying myself. Too much was at stake."
"Like what?" Rhoan asked.
Kade's gaze skated around the busy street. "We can't do this here."
"Then at least tell me your name. Your real name."
"Kade is my real name."
"But not Williams?"
"No." He eyed me. "A fact you obviously know."
"Obviously."
"How?"
"As you said, not here." I looked at my brother. "Where's Jack and the van?"
"Still in the car park down the street." He glanced at his watch. "Jack hasn't been out of sunshine restrictions long. I figured we might as well go to him."
"Then let's go."
Rhoan fell in step beside me, his hands shoved in his pockets and whistling tunelessly. Kade stayed one step behind us. Perhaps he felt it was safer not to antagonize the wolf any more than necessary.