Undercover Love

Partners Meet

Chief’s POV:

It was like any other day at the office. I sighed to myself. Why, why do I have to get paired with someone and why some rookie from the academy? I asked myself this question in the empty office as I slid down into my chair behind the desk. Damn it! I thought. I have too much to worry about without having to train some newbie! The higher ups had been breathing down my neck about an undercover operation that we have been planning for months now and now my workload was being doubled because I would have to train my new partner.

We needed to place people in the music industry to bust up illegal s*x trades and other activities that had been going on for years. Drug running, forgery, assault crimes, s****l favors for promises of fame and fortune, s*x trafficking, murders, you name it. Everyone is just a cog in someone's machine, a pawn that can be disposed of easily. My parents were both cops and were brutally murdered when they were investigating a s****l assault crime at a local club here off the coast and I was placed in foster care. There was only one other child my age in the home and we quickly became friends. My friend Kyle, who also works in this division now, was abandoned by his parents. I vowed to stop my parents' killer and when Kyle came back from Afghanistan he joined the force to help me. I sighed again as I looked up at my open office door.

Hmm, what's going on out there? I wondered when I noticed a few guys looking up from their desks as if they were in a trance. I hear a small soft voice at the reception desk and I think someone must be lost. My ears perk though at the sound of the receptionist saying my name. Yes, Chief Nixon is in. Go straight back, his office is the second door on the left. Hmm, there must be another meeting about our still unsuccessful operation. I sighed again and took a look back out of the office. The men are still focused on whoever is coming to my door, lost in thought, their eyes following every movement. I wondered who it was but I never went to move from my seat.

A woman suddenly appeared in the doorway of my office and I was shocked. Who was this woman? She was beautiful. Her dark brown hair had loose curls and it framed her face nicely. Her deep blue eyes looked calm and unwavering. She was wearing a white halter top dress that stopped just above her knees and hugged her body in all the right places. The sound of her heels tapping the floor as she walked to my desk snapped me back to reality.

"Are you Chief James Nixon?" She asked softly.

"Yes, and what might I be able to help you with?" I replied.

I saw the faintest hint of nervousness in her eyes but her face remained unchanged. She hides her emotions well and it's not often that I can't figure out what someone is thinking. She timidly sticks her hand out to me.

"I'm Destiny Silvers and starting Monday I will be your new partner. I look forward to working with you!" She exclaimed firmly.

Her voice was soft and sounded so lovely. So this was the new recruit, huh? My new partner. I extended my hand, grabbing on to her perfectly manicured hand. Her hands are so soft, I thought. She firmly shook my hand, then released it. I scolded myself internally for my thoughts. Focus, damn it!

"Well Ms. Silvers, most people here just call me Chief and you're not scheduled to start until Monday. What are you doing here today?" I asked calmly.

"Oh, I'm sorry; you must be terribly busy sir. I was just nervous so I thought tha…"She started to speak.

I waved my hand to cut her off.

"You just thought you would come by and introduce yourself and yada, yada, yada. Am I correct?" I replied.

"You could have just saved the introduction for your first day because, as you apparently noticed, we are terribly busy." I said before she could speak again.

"I-I'm terribly sorry sir. I'll just be going then." She stammered out her reply as she turned towards the door.

"Did I say you were dismissed?" I called out.

She froze in place as if she were being hunted. This wasn't a bad sight to be honest, her dress was backless, revealing her sun-kissed skin and her hair was just below her shoulder. She has a nice body, I thought to myself. Sensing my eyes on her, she uncomfortably turned to face me once more. She showed no signs of fear on her face. Most people are afraid of me and cower in my presence; this is a very odd woman. Brave too. She held her ground against me well, without as much as a hint of fear. This could be interesting, I thought.

"Since you're here I will make use of you." I said, as I stood from my chair.

I walked past her, heading towards the entrance.

"Follow me, Ms. Silvers." I replied.

"Where are we going?" She timidly asked.

I turned around and she stopped inches from me. I could smell her perfume. It was the sweetest scent, honeysuckles, and it filled my nostrils.

"I'm going to show you what happens to rookies who interfere with important work!" I exclaimed.

Chief's POV:

I casually looked down at the heels she was wearing and smiled at her.

"By the way, Ms. Silvers, you will need to keep up and pay attention to your surroundings. You need to know this city like the back of your hand. No, even better than that." I said, turning once again to the entrance.

"Yes sir." She replied.

Understanding what I meant, she quickened her pace to catch up to me. The top of her head came to my mouth and she was in three-inch heels. If she didn't have heels on she would come just below my shoulder. I shook my head to rid myself of my thoughts. I knew she would have trouble keeping up, but to my surprise she didn't, and she never once complained or stopped to take a break.

We walked around the inner city for around two and a half hours. We passed the same roads and shops over and over. Destiny was surprisingly stable to be in heels and I wondered to myself how often she wore them. She must be tougher than she looks, or maybe she just didn't want to make me angry at her. She has been quietly following me for hours and she must be getting annoyed. I stole a glance at the woman now walking at my side but I couldn't see any signs of pain or aggravation on her face. Hmm, she is a strange one. As I continue to walk with my thoughts, I look up and notice a familiar sign ahead.

"There's a café up ahead on the left. We're going to stop there." I said firmly.

"Have you been looking for that place all this time?" She asked.

"No. What makes you ask that?" I replied.

"Well, we have passed this place several times already." She replied quickly.

"Ah, so you are observant. That's a good trait to have." I said with a chuckle.

She looked at me questioningly but I quickened my pace as if to deter her from asking more questions.

Inside the café we sat down at a table beside the window and a waiter quickly appeared to take our orders.

"Are you feeling alright?" I asked.

Startled, she looked up at me from across the table.

"Ar-are you all right sir?" She replied and I couldn't help but laugh.

"Answering a question with a question Ms. Silvers?" I asked.

"I'm sorry sir!" She replied.

I chuckled again.

"Ms. Silvers, call me Chief like everyone else does. Calling me Sir all the time makes me feel old." I replied.

"Oh no si… uh, I mean Chief. I didn't mean it that way! You don't look very old at all!" She exclaimed almost in a panic.

I could tell she was nervous now and her eyes were constantly moving, taking in everything she saw at the café. Our drinks and cheese cakes arrived shortly after and I couldn't help but notice that we had both ordered a green tea garnished with orange zest and a strawberry cheesecake. It felt almost strange, no, it felt comforting to have something in common.

"Are you sure you don't want anything more to eat, Ms. Silvers?" I asked.

"Yes I'm sure." She smiled sweetly as she looked at me.

"I have a new recipe at home that I am going to cook for tonight's dinner, so I don’t want to be too full." She replied.

"So you cook?" I asked.

I immediately regretted asking such a bold question.

"Yes." She answered.

"My mother started teaching me how to cook when I was seven and I kept practicing as often as I could. It was something I loved doing and I was always in the kitchen trying to help her, so she started to teach me." She said, smiling fondly.

I nodded as I sipped my tea and I wondered if she was going to be sharing her meal with someone else that night. Thinking about that, I realized that I may have been too hasty making her follow me around. She could have someone waiting for her at home and here I was dragging her around the city.

"When we are through here, Ms. Silvers, I will escort you home." I spoke then took another sip of tea.

"But I thought I was supposed to help you since I interrupted your work?" She replied with a quizzical expression.

That was a cute face, I thought, as I held my hand up to stop her from asking any more questions.

"Enjoy your weekend Ms. Silvers. There will be plenty of work waiting for you on Monday." I replied.

I saw the faintest smile appear on her lips and when we were through I paid our ticket and we went outside to hail a cab.

The city was dyed a deep orange from the setting sun as I helped her into a cab and then sat down on the seat next to her. She told the driver her address and we slowly started to pull away from the curb as my nostrils were once again filled with the sweet scent of her perfume.

"So Ms. Silvers, have you had any police experience prior to the academy?" I asked.

"No." She timidly replied.

"I started at the academy just before I turned twenty-two." She replied, looking down at her lap.

"So that would make you twenty-four then correct?" I replied.

"No. I'm twenty-five." She replied.

"Isn't the program at the academy a three-year course?" I asked.

"Yes it is." She said, sounding as if she were disappointed in herself.

"I was almost kicked out of the academy a few months into the program. They let me stay on the condition that I start the program over from scratch and not fail at any of the courses I took. My friends at the academy were really supportive and helped me study and train, and the instructors always pushed me to be better. Thanks to their support and encouragement, I caught back up and surpassed my classmates and graduated at the top of my class with my friends." She replied, still looking at her lap.

"That's impressive, but how did you manage almost getting kicked out?" I asked.

"Well…"she replied and then slowly trailed off.

I heard her take a deep breath.

"It's really no one's fault but my own. Some things happened and I fell behind on the course. What about you, when did you graduate?" She asked purposely.

I could tell she didn't want to talk about it further, so I left it.

"Well, I'm twenty-seven. I graduated when I was twenty-one, also at the top of my class. I've been doing this line of work since then. After two years on the force, I was promoted to Chief and that's where I've been since." I replied.

There was a long silence between us for a moment before I spoke again.

"What do you expect to gain from this career, Ms. Silvers?"I asked.

"I don't expect to gain anything, I just want to help people. I want them to know there is hope and that they have somewhere they can turn if trouble arises. I want to become a great detective that people can depend on." She replied blatantly.

I sat there, stunned into silence. I had never heard such a straightforward, honest answer before and I couldn't help but wonder what kind of woman was sitting beside me and I found myself wanting to know more about her.

"I guess that sounds kind of silly, huh?" She asked, looking back down at her lap.

"No." I replied.

She looked at me with curiosity in her eyes. Those deep blue eyes, it was as if they were begging me to justify her answer.

"We all have something we need to believe in in order to strive and even achieve greatness." I said with a tone of certainty.

I surprised myself with my own answer and she smiled sweetly at me. She had a beautiful smile, one that could cheer even the unhappiest person in the world up and I silently wished I could see more of that smile.

The taxi stopped in front of a big two-story unit and looked rather large just for her to be living there alone. My gut was right, she probably had a boyfriend.

"This your boyfriend's place?" I asked with a smirk as I helped her out of the car and she laughed at me.

"No, I'm actually divorced. I live here with my friends from the academy. They also work in the department." She replied.

I felt a small tingle in my chest but quickly dismissed the strange sensation.

"When did you divorce?" I asked.

"Shortly after I turned twenty-two." She replied.

There was a light wind and her hair was blowing gently with the breeze. I reached my hand out to move her hair from her face but stopped a mere inch away from her face. There was a look of fear in her eyes and she quickly took a step back away from me and I quickly withdrew my hand.

"I-I'm sorry." She stammered out a reply.

"Have a good night Ms. Silvers." I replied as I quickly climbed back into the cab.

My thoughts constantly drifted back to Destiny over the next two days. I kept asking myself why she had looked like that and why she pulled away from me as if I were trying to hurt her? I turned the questions over in my mind repeatedly with no solid answer or explanation.