PART 1

Elizabeth was tired, withdrawn and downright pissy when it came to love. It was something completely foreign to her because for as long as she could remember, she had always felt as if she were the beacon for the useless and broken males that had no other prospects, but her. UGH!

Her move to New York City a year ago from a small no-name rural town in West Virginia left much to be desired. She had every intention of creeping out of the shy schoolgirl shell that plagued her for years because she was now a woman damn it and she wanted to experience her new life in the city that never sleeps….but unfortunately it also feeds on its young.

New York was a disaster. She found a temporary gig working in a small publishing office and no one gave a damn about her. She was a cute young face with a scrawny body who sat behind a nondescript desk. She answered the phones and everyone there treated her like she was invisible. Yes, that was New York City. It just swallowed her whole.

Elizabeth didn't have much of a life there. She kept to herself, feeling threatened not enlightened by the hustle and bustle of the great city. She rode the subway daily from her stamp-size apartment in Brooklyn to the office; never making eye contact since doing so could possibly get her killed. The poor girl was seriously out of her element. Although she was happy to leave her farm girl life back home, The Big Apple was way past scary and too intimidating to manage. She soon decided to head further north on a whim that she'd find a nice town with a city life that didn't present her with an early grave at the age of nineteen years, ten months and two days.

It was an inquiry to her agency that brought her to Port Charles, NY. On her weekly telephone chat with her agent Marie, Elizabeth learned about an open secretarial position at an FBI field office in Port Charles. Although she truly didn't want to leave the city without giving it a chance, this new opportunity was too good to pass up, besides it s not like she was leaving anyone behind. Elizabeth packed two large suitcases filled with all she had in the world and headed north.

Port Charles was nestled along Lake Ontario and it wasn't a sleepy bedroom town by any means. Apparently, the city harbored a large criminal syndicate that had dealings in drugs, weapons, import/export and more. Who would have thought that the town would have this much going on nearly four hours northwest of New York City. For the new folks in town, Port Chuck as the locals called it, was seriously schizophrenic. The landscape made it seem artistic and manageable, but deep in the belly of the beast the truth about the town was alive and breathing.

Elizabeth rode into the Port Authority station in the wee hours of the morning on a smelly overbooked Greyhound bus filled with transients from all over the country. It was rather amusing how she seemed to fit right in with the wayward travelers. After a short five dollar cab ride to her new studio apartment near the warehouse district that Marie helped secure for her, Elizabeth was ready to see what all her new home town had to offer.

Day one at her new gig was rather uneventful. She arrived at eight o'clock in the morning with a cup of coffee in hand and her best down home smile, which didn't buy her any cool points, but at least she gave the sixty year-old front desk guard something to smile about. It was a blessing that the field office was only a short ten minute walk from her apartment. When she arrived, Elizabeth felt rejuvenated to take on whatever came her way. She was grateful to be in a secure environment. Working for the FBI had to be the safest place for her to be right? No danger there.

Day two was spent getting acclimated with the computer system and the many men in the office. As the only female representation within the walls of the mid-sized warehouse space the agents occupied, Elizabeth wasn't afraid or intimidated. In fact, she felt comforted being the lone female in a sea of deliciously dangerous men.

On day three, she swaggered into the office and gave Henry at the front desk a quick smile and a toasted bagel with cream cheese before she sashayed her cute self up one flight to her desk. Most of the agents were thumping on their keyboards or having desktop discussions about open cases, while she juiced up her computer and shimmied into her chair to begin sifting through overnight emails.

An hour later, she was in full –blown work mode. Her long chestnut curls were pinned atop her head with a cheap drugstore clip, while she yapped into her headset answering a follow-up call from another field office when someone reached into her line of site and unceremoniously plopped a file folder on her keyboard.

Now that was rude!

With a frown on her face, Elizabeth was immediately prepared to give the idiot his comeuppance, when she stopped breathing and just stared.

Icy blue eyes, black Harley-Davidson t-shirt stretched across a broad chest, relaxed fit denim fitting snug around the waist and something huge lying dormant within.

She swallowed.

He returned her stare with a flare of annoyance and mischief.

She gushed in her panties.

He cocked a brow.

She coughed dryly and then tugged the headset off her head.

He licked his slips knowing her eyes followed every single move he made.

She followed suit.

"I'm Jason," he crooned seductively offering his big manly hand that could work her to completion.

"Elizabeth," she squeaked out in a futile attempt to gain some sort of composure. With a shaky hand she captured his in a very weak gesture of hello.

She was taken by him.