to my new office, Chief. ”
“ If that ’ s what you want, Sera. ”
“ Yes, actually, it is . ” I was being curt and probably overly bitchy. But right then, I didn ’ t really care . I opened the door and gave him one more glance . “ Good bye, Brian. Best of luck with Agent Frank running the team. ”
And , with that, I walked out of my old office, not waiting to hear if he bothered to respond. I walked down the pathway that led from my office , through the section of cubicles, and to the exit , head held high, ignoring the whispers and odd looks. Luckily, I caught the elevator right away, pushed the button for the ground floor with my hip, and met anyone looking at me face on. Until the elevator doors closed that is, then I leaned on the wall , closed my eyes, and sighed.
That w ent about as bad ly as it possibly could, I thought to myself. When the doors opened, I walked out to my car, popped the trunk , and put my boxes in. After I closed the trunk, I hopped in the car and started it up. I pulled out of the parking lot without even a backward glance, glad to leave that office behind me. Time to go see what my new office and team were like.
Chapter 3
It was n ’ t hard to find my new office . E veryone kn o w s w h ere it is. That ’ s how agents avoid ed it. Sucking it up and getting ready to make the best of my new situation, I pulled one of the boxes out of the trunk and headed inside. The brick building itself wa s smaller than my old one . N ot being right in the middle of the city, the FBI was free to have the whole building. It was about a mile away from O ’ Hare airport, right off highway 45.
I pushed my way through the glass doors, box in hand, and walked up to the main receptionist ’ s desk, waiting for the gum-smacking woman to get off the phone. I watched as her long glossy-red fingernails tapped rhythmically on the wooden surface of the desk . S he twisted back and forth slightly in her chair while she listened to the person on the other end of the line.
“ Can I help you? ” s he asked when she was done , adjusting her glasses and peering at me closely .
I shifted the box in my arms before responding. “ Yes, I ’ m Special Agent Thomas, ” I answered politely. See? I wasn ’ t always a total witch. Just ninety percent of the time. “ Is Chief Monroe available? Or can someone tell me where my office is? ”
“ Oh, I was told you weren ’ t coming until Monday. ”
“ I don ’ t really start until Monday, but I just cleaned out my old office and thought I could get my new one set up. ”
“ Let me see if the Chief ’ s available, ” she replied with a strained smil e like she really didn ’ t want to . Or maybe she just hated her job. Either way, I didn ’ t care. “ Please have a seat over there. ”
“ Thanks . ” I went over to the fairly worn-looking peach-colored chair on the other side of the room where she had gestured. It creaked unhappily when I sat down as if protesting my using it. Why was she so surprised I was here the Friday before? Didn ’ t everyone get their offices set up before they started? Not to mention I wanted the weekend to look over my new team ’ s files.
“ Agent Thomas? ” a man asked , walking toward me. I had a second to take him in . M an, he was tall. Had to be at least six - five , about two hundred and fifty pounds , dark , shorter hair, and soft blue eyes.
“ Yes, I ’ m Special Agent Thomas, ” I answered as I stood up from the chair, which let out another groan . I shifted the box on my hip so I could extend my hand to shake his. Instantly I was swarmed with images, some of which where I was naked, spread out on what I suspected wa s his bed. Others showed me that he was a shifter as well, a cheetah.
“ I ’ m Agent Mike Harris . ” H e was smiling, shaking my hand longer than I would have liked. I let him have another moment before pulling my hand back.
“ Nice to meet you, Agent Harris, ” I replied.