Chapter Six

Kristen knocked on Morgan’s office door as the day’s last rays filtered through the windows and into the hall to cast a pink haze across the walls. She rolled her neck in an attempt to unlock the kinks in her shoulders. Even though almost everyone else had left work for the night, Kristen was determined to remain and fix the error in this month’s financials.

Henry was gone on a two-week vacation he and his wife had been planning for a decade. Hawaii. To be so lucky. She, on the other hand, was stuck here mulling over these blasted reports in her hands and the only other person who could help her was Morgan. Well, she had no choice but to ask him. Most of her other projects hinged on an accurate set of financials.

“Come in.”

Opening the door, she stepped inside and halted. When she saw Morgan behind his desk talking to someone on the phone, she made a move to leave. He motioned her forward.

She ventured in and glanced around with interest, having only been in his office a few brief times. As offices went it was pretty standard with two charcoal-colored chairs facing a large oak desk with a credenza, filing cabinets in the same veneer and a tall palm in one corner. Other than a wildlife print, only two paintings adorned the cream wall opposite her.

She walked to them and smiled. In the painting to the right, the artist, with almost wild abandon, had swirled colors of blue, yellow and red paint into an abstract design, while the other painting, much more constrained, consisted of a house, a tree and a short stick figure holding the hand of a taller one—no doubt father and daughter. Katie’s signature looked painstakingly printed across the bottom of both. To have Morgan go out and have them professionally framed and matted bespoke of his pride and love for his daughter, of a father who truly cared. For Kristen, it was becoming harder and harder to envision Morgan as the same man Jeff described or the stranger she met weeks earlier in the restaurant.

At the click of the receiver, she turned to find Morgan studying her with an odd expression, his dark brows drawn into a frown, a sober yet intense look in his brown eyes. Suddenly she thought of that evening in his kitchen and the deep, hungry kiss between them. A shiver raced down her arms and back and she hugged the computer papers to her.

Then she realized she was staring at him with goodness knew what type of expression. Embarrassed and hoping to heaven it didn’t show, she straightened and lifted the green bar report from her chest. “Do you have a minute?”

He sank back against his chair and eyed her with curiosity. “Sure. What can I do for you?”

“I just had a question regarding this month’s general ledger.” Realizing how stilted and clipped her words sounded she cleared her throat and continued with a more relaxed tone. “It’s not balancing. From what I can tell, it looks like a system glitch.”

A blank expression crossed his face, then his brow cleared. “Oh that. I almost forgot, it’s been so long. It happens occasionally. I’m surprised Henry hasn’t mentioned it. But it’s easy enough to fix. Here, I’ll show you how to change it in the system right now.”

She placed the report on his desk. Then, conscious of keeping a respectable distance between them, she walked around to his side of the desk and watched him go through several menus on the computer. “You might want to get a little closer,” he said over a shoulder. “I’m not going to bite.”

She made a face at the amusement in his voice, but edged forward and leaned over his shoulder. A shoulder—she quickly noted—which was wide and strong enough to rest her head on. His tanned neck looked equally strong, the tendons sloping from the short platinum strands of his hair to disappear into the collar of his white shirt.

“Here, let me show you. This is what you need to do,” he was saying, but she wasn’t really paying attention. She was visualizing that if she turned her head just so and leaned lower, her lips would brush across the sensitive pulse beneath his lobe. In mortification, she jacked upright. This was ludicrous. Had she gone completely mad?

Morgan sensed her immediately behind him. The scent of her drifted to him. He closed his eyes briefly. Coconut and something else, something womanly and warm, something that kicked up his heart rate and heated his skin. The urge to lean back and kiss her mouth tempted him. He refrained from the compulsion, knowing the office wasn’t the place and that she’d probably slap him senseless for the effort. Yet, a dark, hungry side of him didn’t care. If he had his way he’d have her, naked and begging him to take her on his bed, on the carpeted floor, or anywhere she’d have him.

“There. That should fix everything. At least for this month.” He inhaled sharply, the scent of coconut vanishing from the air.

“For some reason, I didn’t notice it before, ”Kristen said. “At least, not in person, anyway. But she looks real familiar.”

Startled, he turned. She’d walked around the other side of his desk and picked up Katie’s photograph. She was staring down at it oddly.

Morgan tensed, his spine growing so rigid that he thought it might crack from the pressure. Unable to meet her gaze, he ran a finger back and forth along the glossy edge of his desk and forced a casualness to his voice. “How so?”

She chuckled. “I know this sounds strange, but there’s something about her face. Especially when she smiles. That dimple…”

“Yes, well…” Panic hit him, tearing away any lie rising to his throat. He knew damn well where Katie’d inherited that dimple. Kristen was delving into dangerous territory.

He couldn’t handle Kristen learning the truth. Not now. Not until he had things settled with Katie and Jeff. He gripped the side of his desk, the edges digging into his palms. Jeff. He or his lawyer hadn’t called yet. He probably wanted to string Morgan along. No doubt, the bastard drew pleasure by having Morgan guessing, wondering, worrying before he filed for paternity. He’d bitterly learned how much Jeff loved to play games. But this wasn’t a game, not to Morgan. The stakes were far too high, and Morgan was determined to come out on top or kill himself trying. Katie meant everything to him.

Holding his breath, Morgan watched Kristen replace the photo. He could almost see her brain formulating questions. Oh hell. She was dating Jeff of all people. Given time, she would see the similarities between his ex-partner and Katie. Kristen wasn’t stupid. She’d figure it out. Then the truth would be out. If one person discovered that he wasn’t the father, it wouldn’t be long before another learned the truth and another and another—

Alarmed at how she was still looking at Katie’s picture, he sprang from behind his desk. “Come on.”

Wide eyed, she stared back in confusion. “Where?”

“Out for dinner. You need to get out, and I need to unwind.” Damn it. Even though she’d put Katie’s photograph back down, she kept glancing at it.

“I don’t need to unwind. Besides, I have work to do.”

Inwardly groaning, Morgan realized she was going to be difficult to convince. Not something he needed right now. “Henry’s told me that you’ve been working long hours. I don’t have anything against ambition, but there are times when a person needs some R and R.”

“I can relax at home.”

He deliberately ignored her protest and reached over his desk for the phone. “I need to call the baby-sitter and see if Mary can stay late.”

“Don’t you get it?” she asked harshly, hands fisted at her sides. “I don’t want to go to dinner with you.”

Sighing deeply, he stared at the receiver beneath his palm, but when he glanced back at Kristen, he pulled his hand from the phone and straightened. The stubborn thrust of her chin didn’t mask the shadows beneath her eyes or how exhaustion dimmed their usual sparkle. Maybe he shouldn’t have hired her for the position of assistant controller. She might be doing a hell of a job, but it looked like she was pushing herself too hard.

Or maybe the exhaustion etched across her face was caused by something far more personal?

What would she do when she really saw beyond the façade of Jeff? Would her faith in people be crushed? Would she grow to hate Morgan for forcing her to see Jeff’s true character?

Her vulnerability slammed into his chest. Morgan dragged in a shaky breath. Vainly, he tried to shake off the sudden need to protect her.

Hadn’t he learned with Marla? If he weren’t careful, he’d repeat the past and be picking up the pieces of Kristen’s life just like he had his wife’s. No matter what he did, an innocent woman would lose. He hoped, though, that Kristen wouldn’t make the mistake and generalize all men with the likes of Jeff. Hell, he’d done some generalizing himself after Marla, and it had taken him almost a year and some serious lecturing and complaining from his mother and sister to figure out that he was harming no one but Katie and himself.

“I’m just asking you out for dinner.” Morgan slid a finger along the top of his desk and searched for something to change her mind. “I guess Jeff wouldn’t stand for something like that,” he mused aloud. “Obviously, he’s got you firmly in line.”

She lifted one finely arched brow. “Nice try. But you can save your weak attempt at reverse psychology.”

“You caught me.” He broke into a rueful smile. “Seriously. You’re working far too hard. More than anyone else in the department. The least I can do is take you out to dinner as a reward. What harm is there in that?” When it looked like she was mulling over the possibility, he added, “If you want, we can talk about a way to finally fix that glitch in the computer system.”

After a long pause, she said, “All right, I guess. But first I have to reprint my reports. And I also have to call my parents. My car’s in the shop and I was going to have one of them pick me up. I’d planned on using one of their cars for a couple of days.”

Her enthusiasm or lack of wasn’t exactly flattering. Though, at least she was willing to humor him. “While you’re doing that, I’ll give Mary a call.”

Frowning, she nodded, retrieved the general ledger on his desk and disappeared from the office.

Fifteen minutes later Morgan met her in the hall. “Everything’s set.”

She plucked at the belt cinched around her green and lilac flowered dress. “Maybe this isn’t such a good idea—”

“Chicken?” he asked gently, hoping she’d jump at the challenge.

“Of course not.”

“Then let’s go.” At the front entrance, he shut and locked the door and programmed the alarm.

After she slipped into Morgan’s Lexus and he started the car, she glanced over at him from beneath her lashes. His strong, long fingered hands wrapped around the wheel, then slid across the leather as he guided the car onto the street. Unexpected awareness of him as a man shot through her, and suddenly stiff and awkward, she fumbled with the latch of her seat belt until it clicked into place.

Going out with him tonight wasn’t the smartest thing she’d ever done, she realized in dismay. Not with this wild attraction she neither wanted nor needed and not when she was already confused, distrustful and hurt from Jeff’s secrets.

Morgan pulled the car into the parking lot of the Padre, an exclusive restaurant surrounded by lush palms and bougainvillea. The emerald carpet whispered beneath her feet as the maitre’d led them to a table. Sitting down into a paisley brocaded chair, Kristen looked around at the other diners. She wiped clammy hands on her slacks, then reached for her crystal glass of water.

“Is something wrong?”

“I—no, not really. It just feels a little strange going out to a restaurant like this with someone else other than Jeff.” She knew the minute the words were out she’d made a mistake.

His face tightened. “You really should dump the guy.”

“I don’t want to discuss Jeff.”

“Because you know I’m right?”

“No. Because it’s none of your business.”

He dropped an elbow on the table and leaned forward. “When it comes to Jeff, I make it my business.”

Seeing the predatory look on Morgan’s face, Kristen, determined to keep her ground, straightened in her chair. “And that’s why you hired me. Because of Jeff.”

“What gave you a crazy idea like that?”

Morgan didn’t deny the reason why he’d hired her which was some consolation. At least he didn’t think her completely brainless. “I don’t have my head completely buried in the sand. And as much as I know you’d like it, I’m not about to talk behind Jeff’s back.”

“I hate to argue, but when it comes to your boyfriend, honey, you’re drowning in sand. I just hope you come up for air before it’s too late.” He shifted in his seat. “You’re not marrying him, are you?”

“We haven’t set a date.” And she wasn’t about to—not with the way she was feeling toward Jeff.

“That’s smart.” Tension pulsed along the corner of his jaw. “Don’t let him try to talk you into it. I don’t care how glib he can be.”

She didn’t like his possessive tone and she particularly didn’t like the fluttery feeling in the pit of her stomach at his husky baritone. Her feminine response scared her. Even Jeff had never managed to quicken her pulse with a sexy look or soft spoken word.

After the waiter came and left with their order, Morgan said, “I’m sorry about those photos.”

His unexpected words slapped her. “Yes, well, I’d prefer not to talk about them.” She couldn’t keep the animosity from her voice. Those pictures of Jeff had hurt and still did no matter how much she wanted to think otherwise. “That investigator of yours. Did you happen to have him dig up some dirt on me?”

“Of course not!” A dull flush crept into his cheeks. “I want you to know that I burned the negatives.”

“Hmmm.” She shifted, hating the idea of someone prying into her life without her consent or knowledge.

“It’s the truth.” He leaned forward, cupping her hand.

At his touch, she dragged in an uneven breath, but before she had a chance to slip her hand free, he let go and edged back in his chair. She looked across the table draped in ivory linen and met his dark brown eyes. Maybe it was the seriousness in his voice and expression or how he said it that got through to her. She believed him. But could she believe in him? Kristen wanted to trust her instincts, but these days she’d learned that she couldn’t afford to.

She didn’t want to admit that she was growing to like Morgan, knowing if it weren’t for Jeff, she would never have witnessed the coldness yet savage force in Morgan’s demeanor—a demeanor she could never be able to relate to or condone.

“Thank you.” Unable to withstand the intensity in his eyes, she looked beyond his shoulder to the maroon, crushed velvet drapes bracketing the windows on either side of the room, then at the large clay pots filled with glossy green palms and philodendrons. Though, a horrid urge to uncover the truth pulled her gaze back to Morgan. Kristen’s voice deepened and roughened with her next words. “Why…why did you do it? Show me those photos?”

What a question, Morgan thought to himself. How the hell was he supposed to answer that without coming across as a bastard? He inwardly groaned. He couldn’t—he’d acted like one. Ever since he’d given her the photos of Jeff, he hadn’t wanted anything to do with the damn things, probably because he couldn’t stomach his actions.

“It’s a long story.” Wearily, he rubbed his brow as he struggled against the dark, pervasive cloud that threatened to strangle the air from him. He hated the memories and how they still had the power to hurt. There were still days that the past would wash over him, so vivid and unsettling, that at night they melded into his dreams to become nightmares.

The waiter arrived with their meal, giving him the needed time to gather his thoughts. When it came down to it, what did he have to lose by telling her the truth? “I had a couple of reasons for showing you those pictures. Jeff was backing me into a corner. His threats were getting too serious, so I hit back with the only thing I had. And part of me, in all honesty, wanted revenge. I couldn’t pass up the perfect opportunity to ruin Jeff’s relationship as he ruined mine.”

She looked back in disbelief. “I don’t understand. Why revenge after all these years? So he started dating a girl you had a crush on. What Jeff did to you was years ago in college—a longtime to hold a grudge over some girl you both liked.”

“Some girl?” he bit out, outraged at having Jeff dismiss Marla so casually. “Obviously your boyfriend hasn’t clued you in. That girl happened to be my wife!”

“Your wife?”

Her disbelief made him even angrier. “Yes.” On the table, his hand balled into a fist. “He was sleeping with my wife!”

Kristen stared back in shock. She wanted to sink into her chair and disappear into its fibers. It couldn’t be true. Her heartbeat lurched. She couldn’t believe Jeff would be so callous, so self-centered as to sleep with another man’s wife, but she saw the pain, the anger, the reproach in Morgan’s face and new it as the truth.

“I’m sorry,” she finally managed to whisper, feeling like such a fool. What did she really know about Jeff’s life? She was seriously beginning to wonder. “I can’t even imagine—Then to have her pass away only a couple of years ago—” Kristen closed her eyes in mortification. “I apologize again. It’s just that someone at work mentioned it and…” Kristen felt her words seemed so pointless, so useless, and anything else she said would be platitudes.

Against the hard, rigid planes of his face, Morgan’s smile looked forced and at odds with the pain in his eyes. “I take it Henry’s been talking.”

“Actually, I overheard some talk in the lunchroom.”

“She died in a car accident on her way home from work.” His expression turned distant. “Not really an unusual story. The typical drunk not knowing when he’s had enough. I’m just grateful Marla died instantly and Katie was safe at home with our baby-sitter.”

He shrugged. “Time has an amazing way of dulling the pain. Memories begin to fade. I worry about Katie, though. Without a mother, she doesn’t have a female around to emulate.”

“I’m sure there’re many women out there you know who’d like to fill that position.” She smiled with difficulty, convincing herself that the idea of Morgan with another woman didn’t bother her.

“Being married once was more than enough for me.”

The loss must have been terrible to make him turn away from any other commitment, Kristen sadly realized. “You must have loved her very much.”

“Yes…I did.” Bitterness soaked his words while an aloofness settled across his features, making Kristen want to crack through that mask to the man she knew lay hidden beneath.

He trailed his index finger along the lip of his wine glass. Once. Twice. She watched, fascinated, finding the way he caressed the crystal with his long fingered hand sensual. Hairs, burnished gold from the candlelight, sprinkled his knuckles, wrists and forearms and disappeared under the cuffed sleeve at his elbow.

Feeling suddenly awkward at the intimacy of their conversation and the attraction coursing through her veins, she concentrated on her plate and picked at the cooled veal then the asparagus with her fork. The silence lengthened between them, while around them the murmur of voices and chime of silverware increased.

Kristen pointedly looked at her watch, wanting to avoid Morgan and her burgeoning feelings for him. “It’s getting late.”

Glancing over at the front entrance, he rubbed the back of his neck and pulled his lips into a tight line.

“Is anything wrong?”

“No. I just expected—” Abruptly, he rose from the table. “You’re right. It’s getting late. I’ll drive you home.”

He paid the bill, then led her out of the restaurant. Other than Kristen giving directions to her parent’s house, they didn’t talk during the drive, for which she was grateful. She sensed something simmering beneath Morgan’s facade. Frustration, maybe even anger, but she didn’t want to pry for fear of what lay coiled. She was already exhausted from tonight’s emotional battering.

The Lexus whispered to a halt in her parent’s driveway, but not before Kristen caught sight of Jeff’s BMW parked on the street in front of the house.

“I can’t seem to get rid of Jeff tonight.” Morgan’s dark, husky voice floated across the car’s interior.

She tensed, sensing a threat.

A distinct edge hardened his voice. “Maybe it’s about time I paid the man a visit.”