As Matt got up from the table and walked away, Jason wondered why he didn’t look happier about it.
RILEY
Coldness had taken hold deep inside Riley by the time he got back to the motel. He glared at the moon as he got out of his car, then slammed the door of his room against the accusation in the night sky.
Turning on the lights—and why thefuckdid every motel in every town in the world have the same low lighting that made it impossible to see?—he threw himself down in the god-awful green vinyl armchair.
If only he’d never met Jason, he could do his job and get out without a second thought. Except for the occasional twinge when he remembered Mr. Garrity. And Tim, who’d been so welcoming. Sam, too.
Jason, though. Walking away from Jason felt like inflicting a mortal wound. Which made nosense,because they’d only just met, for God’s sake. But it didn’t feel that way.
Even if Riley stayed, if he turned his back on his life and his last chance of reconciliation with his father… Even if he lefteverythingto be with Jason, it could never work. He’d heard the soft wistfulness in Jason’s voice as he’d talked about mates, and having that one person who was made to be with him. The kind of bond shifters formed with their mate was a once-in-a-lifetime, bone-deep connection.
If Riley stayed, one day Jason’s shifter mate would come along. And when that happened, Riley would be left alone, like always. Until then, he’d always be waiting for the other shoe to drop. And Jason would always be waiting for someone else.
Riley didn’t want to leave, but there was no future for him here.
As if on cue, theImperial Marchblasted from his phone.
“What did you find out?” Amy asked before he’d even finished saying hello.
“I’ve met all except one of them, and narrowed it down to three possibilities.” Christian had been a dick, but at least shifting like that meant he’d ruled himself out of the running as the Argent, which left Dave, Karl, and Jesse as potential candidates. Bryce and Tristan had been around too long—Urban would have used them before now if it was either of them.
“Not bad work, Clark,” she said, surprise in her voice. “What’s your next move?”
“I’m angling to get myself invited back tomorrow,” he said, making it up as he went along, because his vague plan for tomorrow of lurking in the bushes with a pair of binoculars on the off-chance the night wasn’t cloudy and the Argent was outside wouldnotimpress her.
“You’reanglingto?”
Oh, shit. That tone took unimpressed to a whole new level. “I’ve made friends with one of them,” he said quickly, “and the alpha’s pretty welcoming now that he knows me. He’s watchful, though—I can’t push too hard.”
“Watchful as if he’s protecting a secret?”
“Maybe.” It was possible she was right, but Riley had the distinct impression that Matt Urban was naturally just that alert.
“That’s not the answer I want,” she snapped. “I don’t care how watchful that alpha is. If you push hard enough, he’ll give himselfaway. I want you back among the pack and with results for me by this time tomorrow. Clear?”
His mouth was dry. There was nowayhe could have an answer for her that quickly, not unless all the bad luck he’d had in his life suddenly decided to make up for itself in one go.
“Clark?”
“I hear you,” he said.
“You know what happens if you don’t deliver this time.” She cut the call without waiting for an answer.
He was shaking as he put the phone down on the desk. Fuck. She was asking the impossible, but he couldn’t lose this job and fail all over again. He justcouldn’t.
Maybe he could simply ask Jason if there was an Argent. He didn’t think Jason knew how to lie, so he’d definitely get an answer. Even if Riley didn’t know which of them it was, finding out for certain whether there was an Argent had to buy him time from Amy.
But his stomach turned at the thought of using Jason like that. He couldn’t. Not least because Riley intended to leave town before his story broke. That way, he’d never have to see the look on Jason’s face when he realized what Riley was.
How couldn’t Amy see that he just needed a little longer? This story was so huge, it made sense to give him the time he needed. After all, if he wasn’t working on this, he’d just be writing lifestyle filler.
As he thought contemptuously about fluff articles, a solution for his dilemma presented itself. Scrabbling eagerly for his laptop, he turned it on. He couldn’t write his real story yet, but what he did have on the Elk Ridge pack was enough information to write a gossipy, suggestive article of the sortThe Daily Sentinel’sreadership loved, hinting at the possibility of an Argent but leaving the readers to fill in the gaps. If he couldn’t get Amy’s answer forher by the deadline, this would persuade her to give him a little more time.
An hour later, when he’d finished editing his article, he looked once more at his chart with the names of each pack member, with columns for yes, no and maybe as to who was the Argent, and noticed that Jason’s name wasn’t on it. It didn’t matter. Itcouldn’tbe him. Jason wasn’t a headline. Jason just… was.
He saved the article for what felt like the fiftieth time, because he was a little obsessive when it came to stuff like that, toed off his shoes, stripped off his jeans, and crawled into bed. Despite the hollowness inside him, he finally fell asleep.
