Page 1 of His Plaything (Slade, Inc.)

Chapter One

"No, Muffy. You can't come to work with me." Morgan laughed under her breath. It was Monday morning, and she was anxious to get to work. It had been a long and lonely weekend.

Her calico cat was rubbing her head on Morgan's shin, purring. She gently stepped away from her pet to go find her shoes. As she entered her closet, her smile got even bigger as a mental image of whom she would soon be seeing floated through her mind. Mr. Slade. Of course, it was Connor outside of the office, but thinking that had her smile fading.

Over the last two weeks, since he had offered her a more permanent job at Slade Incorporated, she had only seen him outside of the office three times, which wasn't great if this was supposed to be a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship.

One big worry that was always on her mind was what if he really just wanted a fuck-buddy at work? What if any extra time he gave her was forced on his part? Am I just setting myself up for disaster? Trying to cheat the inevitable?

Morgan huffed out a deep breath as she bent down to retrieve her navy blue pumps. She strolled to her bed and sat, putting them on. As she did, she spoke to herself. "No one forced him to hire me long-term. He wants me there."

But for how long?

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Morgan stepped off the elevator and slowly made her way toward the reception desk. Marcie looked up at her, and her expression instantly became colder. Morgan gave her a polite smile, but the other woman didn't return it. Her eyes seemed to flash with contempt just before she went back to her phone conversation.

Morgan shrugged as she walked past the desk. She didn't know exactly why Marcie didn't like her. She'd never been rude to her or anything. Besides that one day she had called in sick, Morgan thought she had been a pretty good employee. So what was Marcie’s problem?

A sneaky suspicion snaked its way through her mind. Marcie wanted to be Mr. Slade's work plaything. Could that be true, though? The other woman had worked here far longer than Morgan, and she had certainly seen girls come and go. Was she always like this?

Morgan tried to force that thought out of her head as she made her way down the long hallway toward her and Mr. Slade's offices. She passed an open door and was startled when a man stepped out from the office, right in front of her.

She made an odd squeaking sound as she came to an abrupt halt so she didn't smash into him. The man stopped, putting his hand up to his tie, which was swinging wildly because of how rapidly he had stopped walking.

"Oh, crap. Sorry." The man moved his hand from his tie up to his head and casually ran it through his hair.

"Don't worry about it." Morgan smiled at him. That small kind gesture felt wrong, though.

"I'm not sure we've met. My name is Cade, Cade Kennedy." The attractive, young man held out his hand.

Again, Morgan felt a bit guilty as she took his hand for a friendly handshake. Was that just because Mr. Slade was nearby and she knew it? "Hi, my name is—"

"I know your name." Cade tilted his head down a little while a crooked grin lifted his lips. "I better get back to work. The boss can really be rough … right?"

Morgan's breath caught in her throat as he released her hand and started to walk around her. What the hell? How offended should I be right now? Was that just good-natured ribbing at work, or was there something darker behind his words?

She stood there for a few seconds, scowling at nothing. Morgan rolled her eyes and started back down the hall. Slade Incorporated was a great but odd place, sometimes. A small smile spread over her face as she neared the end of the hall.

Morgan decided to set her purse down in her nearly complete office before she peeked in on her boss. As she stepped inside, she took a look around. There was a new bookshelf in the corner. Just that sight had her insides warming. Maybe she was a fool for putting so much stock into these little things, but it felt good.

Mr. Slade had allowed her to pick out most of the items for her new space. Well, really, he had let her give him input, but most of the time he went with her suggestion. The walls were painted a beautiful storm gray color. Morgan had been a stickler for this, and she was quite surprised when he gave in to her about it. Didn't that prove that this space was specifically for her and not just for future secretaries?

Morgan set her purse on her new office chair and turned on her computer before spinning around to leave the room. She cautiously stepped up to Mr. Slade's office door. She leaned in, trying to hear what, if anything, was happening inside.

She soon heard his muffled voice. "Yes, we are very excited about this opportunity." There was a long pause, and she waited. "I assure you we won't have a problem getting everything up and running. I'll hire more help, just until everything is under control."

Morgan stepped back from the door, frowning. More help? Temporary help?

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