“It was,” I agreed, “but this one stepped in to help me against the shifters who attacked Ilianna.”
“I do believe you skipped that little detail,” she said, her voice cross but a twinkle in her eyes. “What have I told you about skipping the important bits?”
“He’s tall, broad-shouldered, golden-haired, and handsome enough to tempt even you.” My grin grew as she snorted. “He’s also an Aedh.”
“Aedh? I didn’t think there were any left in the city.” Tao hesitated. “That’s a bit of a coincidence, isn’t it? I mean, all these men after your father, and you getting rescued by an Aedh.”
“I hadn’t really thought about that.” It wasn’t like I’d actually had a whole lot of time to think during the attack. And afterward, my hormones had well and truly been in control.
Damn it, I wanted the date to be real, wanted it to be based on mutual attraction, not some subversive desire to mine information about a father I’d neither seen nor met.
But now that the seed had been planted, I couldn’t ignore it. Tonight’s date suddenly lost some of its shine, and that was a shame.
“I could be wrong,” Tao said, touching my arm lightly.
I smiled and squeezed his fingers. “You might, but you might not. It’s better that I’m alert and aware rather than lost in attraction.”
“Wolves,” Ilianna commented drily. “All hormones and no common sense.”
Tao laughed and threw an arm around her shoulder. “And you mares are positively virginal by comparison, aren’t you?”
“Hey, I never said it was a bad thing.” She pressed into his embrace a little, but her gaze was sober when it met mine. “What do you plan to do about these men?”
“Well, as it happens, I managed to get the name of the man in charge. He owns a club called the Phoenix—”
“The Phoenix?” Disgust ran across Tao’s face. “That place is a cesspool.”
I raised my eyebrows. “And you know this because?”
“Because the premises are a few doors down from Stane’s, and there are all sorts of drunken misfits coming in and out. Stane had to put grilles on the windows because the bastards kept smashing them.”
“So, it’s not the sort of place someone like me—”
“Certainly not as you are,” he said, voice stern. “And certainly not alone. I’ll come with you.”
I hesitated, then nodded. Tao knew the place, and I didn’t. And although I didn’t want to drag him any deeper into the situation, I also wasn’t stupid enough to go alone. If I called either Rhoan or Riley, they’d simply forbid it.
I wanted—needed—to do this. To do something.
“Okay. The dog shifter told me he usually gets there after eleven, so we’ll head there tonight.”
Ilianna said, “What about your date?”
I looked at her. “What about it?”
“Well, weren’t you the one going on and on about the lack of shaggable men in this city? And now that you actually have a date, you’re ditching him early to go hunt bad men with Tao? That makes no sense.” She nudged Tao with her shoulder, then added with a grin, “Not that you’re bad company or anything less than shaggable, but you’re not Mr. Long Term. Not for Risa, anyway.”
“Oh yeah? Meaning you’ve seen Mr. Long Term?”
Her eyes twinkled. “You know I can’t divulge secrets like that.”
“In other words, she’s just yanking your chain.” Tao’s voice was dry as he pushed away from the table and glanced at his watch. “I?
?m off to the Blue Moon tonight. What time do I need to pick you up?”
“Eleven, at a restaurant called Wintergreen.” I hesitated. “Just how amenable would Stane be to a little detective work?”
“It would make his little hacker’s heart sing with glee,” Tao answered with a smile. “Especially if the request came with a bottle of chilled Bollinger. What do you need?”