Chapter 14 Morgan #2
“Mr. Henderson wants an explanation today,” Morgan said. “He sounded pretty upset.”
“I’ll handle Henderson,” Richard replied dismissively. “Are you heading to lunch?”
The abrupt change of subject caught Morgan off guard. “Yes, I’ll be leaving soon.”
Richard nodded slowly. “Well, don’t be too long. We have the Parkside presentation this afternoon.”
“I’ll be back before then,” Morgan promised, gathering her purse and phone.
As she headed for the elevator, Morgan couldn’t shake the unsettling feeling that Richard’s response to the fraudulent invoice had been too casual. And he’d never asked her if she was headed to lunch, he usually made her stay back and work during lunch.
Fifteen thousand dollars of unauthorized charges with her signature on them should have elicited more concern from her department head.
By the time she reached her apartment, Morgan had decided to speak with an attorney. She needed to protect herself if someone was using her credentials to approve fraudulent charges. The question was who to call? Corporate law wasn’t exactly her area of expertise.
Kane was already waiting when she arrived, a small toolkit and equipment case beside him.
“Thanks for coming on such short notice,” Morgan said as she unlocked her door—double-checking that it had indeed been locked this time.
“No problem.” Kane followed her inside, immediately surveying the space with a professional eye. “It’s a good layout for a basic camera system.”
While Kane worked, Morgan preheated the oven, made a pot of coffee and popped her pre-made batter from the fridge into the oven once it was hot enough. The mini-muffin cups would cook much faster than a full loaf ever could.
Her mind kept returning to the invoice issue and Richard’s strange reaction. Should she mention it to Archer tonight? He seemed to have connections—maybe he knew a good attorney.
“So how’d you meet Bullet?” Kane asked as he mounted the first camera in a corner of her living room.
Morgan handed him a mug of coffee. “He helped me out of a tight spot with my ex. Just happened to be in the right place at the right time. And he did tell me his name was Archer.”
Kane nodded, accepting the coffee with a grateful nod. “Ahh, so you’ve gotten past some of his defenses. He’s a good man. One of the best I know.”
“You’ve worked with him a long time?” Morgan asked, curious about this connection to Archer’s life.
“Years. Since our military days,” Kane confirmed, returning to his work. “We’ve been through a lot together.”
As the oven chimed, she pulled out muffins and offered some on a plate to Kane who quickly inhaled half the batch.
“Archer invited me on the Sunday ride last weekend,” she said, setting the rest of the plated muffins on the table. “It was a great time, and I really enjoyed meeting Viper, Hawk, and Diesel.”
She paused, watching him. “He mentioned you usually go too. Everything okay?”
Kane paused for a split second, then gave a small nod. “Yeah. Just had something unexpected to take care of.”
Morgan tilted her head, testing the waters. “He doesn’t really talk about himself much.” She offered a casual smile, but her eyes were searching. “You’ve known him a long time—has he always been so... guarded?”
Kane’s expression didn’t change, but there was something thoughtful behind his eyes. “Let’s just say Archer’s not the type to let people in unless he’s sure they’ll stay.”
Morgan wanted to ask more, to glean whatever insights she could about the mysterious man who had become so important to her so quickly. But her phone chimed with a text from Richard: Where are you? Henderson called again.
“I need to get back to the office,” she said reluctantly. “Will you be okay to finish up here? I can leave a key with you.”
“No need,” Kane assured her. “I’m almost done with the installation. The app setup I can walk you through later by phone. Go ahead to work—I’ll lock the handle when I leave.”
Morgan hesitated, then decided to trust Kane’s clear competence. She scribbled her email address on a notepad for the app setup and hurried back to the office, arriving ten minutes past one.
Richard was waiting by her desk, arms crossed. “Nice of you to join us,” he said coolly. “Henderson’s called twice more. I need you to draft an apology letter explaining the invoice was sent in error.”
“But I didn’t send it,” Morgan protested. “Someone used my credentials to approve a fraudulent charge. Shouldn’t we be investigating that?”
“It’s being handled,” Richard said flatly. “Just write the letter. And make it convincing—we can’t afford to lose Henderson over a clerical error.”
Morgan wanted to argue further but recognized the steel in Richard’s tone. This wasn’t a discussion; it was an order.
“Fine,” she said, sitting down at her computer. “I’ll send one over.”
The rest of the afternoon crawled by in a haze of meetings and revisions. The Parkside presentation went well despite Richard’s pointed comment about “team members who prioritize personal errands over client needs”—a clear dig at her late return from lunch.
By five o’clock, Morgan was mentally and emotionally exhausted. The invoice issue, Richard’s bizarre behavior, the persistent worry about her apartment’s security—all of it swirled together into a toxic cocktail of stress.
As she gathered her things to leave for her testing appointment, Richard appeared in her doorway again.
“Early day?” he asked, his tone making it clear he disapproved.
“Medical appointment,” Morgan replied, keeping her voice neutral. “Scheduled weeks ago.”
Richard’s eyes narrowed slightly. “The Henderson situation isn’t resolved. I need you to call him personally before you leave.”
“I have to make this appointment,” Morgan said firmly, standing her ground. “It’s at 5:30 across town. I emailed him as you requested and I can call Henderson first thing tomorrow.”
For a moment, she thought Richard might forbid her to leave—an absurd thought, yet somehow plausible given his increasingly controlling behavior. But he merely shrugged, his expression hardening.
“Your choice. But when client relationships suffer, so do performance reviews.”
The veiled threat hung in the air between them. A week ago, it might have intimidated Morgan into canceling her appointment. But something had shifted inside her—a newfound confidence that she suspected had everything to do with Archer’s steadfast belief in her.
“I understand,” she said calmly. “I’ll call Henderson from the car and follow up properly tomorrow. Good day, Richard.”
She walked past him without waiting for a response, her heartbeat steady despite the confrontation. Whatever game Richard was playing with fraudulent invoices and her digital signature, she wouldn’t be manipulated into becoming some scapegoat.
As she headed to her appointment and made the uncomfortable call to Henderson, Morgan made a mental note to ask Archer about attorney recommendations. She needed professional advice about protecting herself, especially if someone at Vertex was committing fraud and trying to pin it on her.
But first, she had a medical test to complete and an evening with Archer to prepare for.
Despite the day’s stresses, anticipation fluttered in her chest at the thought of seeing him again, of feeling his hands on her body, of deepening the connection that had become so vital to her in such a short time.
Whatever else happened, tonight she would be with the one person who made her feel truly safe, even with his face hidden from view. The irony wasn’t lost on her—finding security with a man whose identity remained a mystery.
Perhaps that was the true test of trust—believing in someone not because of what you could see, but because of what you could feel.