“What?” she asked suspiciously.
“An invitation.”
Instant wariness telegraphed itself throughout her body and she froze. Krys realized that she was growing more and more attracted to Morgan, but that attraction created a whole new set of problems as far as she could see. Problems that could undoubtedly only get worse. And that was a minefield that she wanted to avoid walking through, at least for the time being.
“Look, Cavanaugh, I’m very flattered,” she told him, trying very hard to be kind about this, “but I think in view of family harmony, I’m going to have to turn you down, at least for now.”
He stared at her, confused. “Turn me down?”
“Yes. Turn you down. For that date you’re asking me out on,” she said, clarifying what she meant by increments.
“Well, I guess that’s rather fortunate for both of us.” Morgan said.
“How so?” Krys questioned.
Morgan smiled at her. This was a definite mix-up. “Well, because for one thing, I’m not asking you to go out with me.”
Her eyebrows drew together. She tried not to pay attention to the wave of embarrassment. “Then what was this invitation all about?”
“Remember I mentioned my Uncle Andrew’s parties? Well, he’s having one this Sunday and he wanted me to extend an invitation to you.”
He was grinning now. Broadly.
Chapter 16
Krys could feel warning signals going off in her head.
“Did he specifically ask that I be there?” she asked. “Or did you suggest that I be there?”
Morgan didn’t believe in lying, but he didn’t want to make it sound as if he’d had to talk his uncle into including her. She definitely wouldn’t go then.
“What does it matter which came first, the chicken or the egg?” he asked her. “The main thing is that Uncle Andrew is going to be throwing a party this coming Sunday and he would really like to have you attend so that he can finally get to meet you. By the way, Uncle Andrew has a high opinion of your sister,” he threw in for good measure.
“Well, that’s nice to hear, but it seems like a lot of trouble for him to go to in order just to meet me,” she countered. “If it’s all the same to him, why don’t I just swing by wherever he lives tomorrow before I go to my interview?”
Morgan stopped her before she was off and verbally running.
“First of all, Uncle Andrew doesn’t see it as a lot of trouble—he likes nothing more than ‘cooking for the masses.’ And second of all, when were you going to tell me about this interview that you’re conducting tomorrow? Who is it that you’re planning on interviewing?” he asked.
She could feel her back going up, but she told herself that Morgan was just focused on doing his job, even though she didn’t like being held accountable by someone, even Morgan.
“I didn’t realize that I was supposed to ask your permission before I did something. I said that I was going to be talking to more people in connection with this article and after what happened to Claire, the other interviews had to be postponed.” She sighed, doing her best to get her temper under control. “But since you asked, specifically I’ve got an appointment to speak with Lawrence Jacobs, the head of the drug research team at Weatherly Pharmaceuticals. The appointment is at two o’clock tomorrow. He’s granting me a fifteen-minute window. According to him,” she said, less than pleased about the way things were playing themselves out, “it’s all he can spare. There. Now you know everything.”
He sincerely doubted that, but he kept the observation to himself. Instead, he asked a far more practical question. “And you think that fifteen minutes is enough time for this interview?”
“It’s going to have to be,” she told him with a sigh. “Besides, I can talk very fast.”
He could testify to that, he thought. But there was one other small problem. “He might not answer fast.”
“I can also tell if someone is stonewalling me,” she told the detective, adding, “I can be very direct and I intend to ask Jacobs if he knew that Claire intended to change her statement about the accuracy of the test results.”
Now there was a bomb waiting to go off, Morgan thought. “In other words, you’re planning on poking at Jacobs with a stick.”
“I’m planning on poking him with whatever I need to use in order to find out if he had any part in eliminating Claire because she posed a threat to the success of his miracle drug.” It was all about the bottom line, she thought. With any luck, she’d get a few answers tomorrow.
He frowned, shaking his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Morgan told her. “But I know you won’t listen to me.”
“Glad we understand each other,” she said with finality because, come hell or high water, she intended to see Jacobs and get him talking. Who knew where that might lead?
“I really doubt that, but I know enough to pick my battles,” Morgan told her. “However, I am coming with you so at least Jacobs realizes that the police department is committed to protecting you.”
She shook her head. “No, you’re not,” she declared. “I let you come with me to the other interviews, but this is the head honcho we’re talking about, the guy who makes things happen. I’m lucky to get him to agree to see me at all.” She was walking a tightrope with this. “He certainly won’t talk to me if you’re there.”
But Morgan wasn’t about to budge on this point. “Too bad,” he said in a deceptively mild voice. “He’s going to have to learn.”
The man was infuriating. Didn’t he see what was at stake here? She tried to bargain with Morgan. “Okay, I’ll go with you to this family gathering of yours if you back off about the interview. I need to do this.”
His expression never changed, but Morgan continued to hold fast. “Sorry, nonnegotiable,
