Agent in Training (2 page)

Ben Templar, Shiloh’s father, meant more to her than anything else in her life. Certainly more than any other man. She’d learned the hard way that men––and women, for that matter––didn’t like strong, independent females like her. Yet, being tough and in control was required for a person in her position. Too bad that when men learned what she did for a living, they high-tailed it out of her life as fast as their leather loafers could carry them.

Hell, her last date seemed like a lifetime ago. And since that uneventful night, she’d come to realize that she’d didn’t need a man to make her feel good about herself, or sexually fulfill her. Though, every once in a while, it’d be nice to feel a warm body next to hers, hear tender words whispered in her ear––instead of the swirl of a battery-operated appliance. But that wasn’t in the cards. Shiloh’s life was too hectic to accommodate romance when she had a demanding job and an ailing father. That’s all she had room for right now.

CHAPTER TWO

Nick turned off the faucets and reached around the corner of the concrete shower stall for a towel. From the adjacent locker room a door closed. He assumed it was another agent coming in from their workout.

He’d just finished his three-mile run and weight training for the day, and after he dressed, he planned to head to the office to wait for the Iron Maiden to swing her axe. The confrontation was inevitable, and he was in no way looking forward to it.

His attempt to locate a towel on the bench where he usually put it, proved futile.

He vigorously shook his head, sending droplets of water splashing against the walls, then walked around the corner to grab one… and stopped dead in his tracks.

Standing directly in front of him, her spectacled eyes as big as dinner plates, was Director Templar.

Her mouth practically hung to the floor.

Nick froze. What the hell was she doing in the men’s shower room? And why didn’t she at least have the decency to turn away?

Her gaze dropped, then instantly snapped back up.

Nick grabbed a towel from a stack on a metal rack, and wrapped it around his waist, waiting for her to come out of the trance she appeared to be in. How could she have the balls to venture into the men’s shower room and not expect to come across a pair or two?

“Is there something you wanted?”

She blinked, then recovered her wits. “I––ah… I’ll wait out in the hall while you get dressed.” Swirling around, she rushed from the room, her black high heels loudly echoing her departure.

Nick walked over to his locker and opened the door, shaking his head. He didn’t know what just happened. But one thing he did know, the director had definitely checked out his privates, which weren’t exactly standing at attention after a shower. Her face had turned rosy red, indicating that she wasn’t used to confronting naked men––and with her cold, uncompromising demeanor, he could well believe that. Hell, she probably hadn’t been laid in years. The thought sent a charge of electricity through his system. A feeling he shied away from.

He thrust a leg into his boxer shorts, wondering what had brought her down to the basement in the first place. And, after the tongue-lashing she’d given him at the briefing, he never dreamed she’d be speechless.

As he reached for his pants, an idea struck. Maybe—just maybe this little impromptu meeting in the shower could work to his advantage.

A smile curved his lips. After all, if the situation were reversed, she’d no doubt be screaming sexual harassment. It wasn’t like she’d given him any kind of warning.
Nope
. She’d just strolled in and ogled him from head to toe.

And hell, she taken her sweet time about that, too.

As blackmail material, it could work. Not that he wanted to use something so underhanded on the director, but he did want to keep his job, and as an equalizer, it wasn’t a bad idea.

He jumped into his gray slacks and zipped up the fly.

His plan wouldn’t have to become common knowledge. It could remain between the two of them. And he’d only use the threat to take it to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission as leverage until he was able to show her he could be the type of agent she was looking for.

This was crazy. What would his father think if he was still alive? Or his mother for that matter? Surely, she wouldn’t be too pleased with him.

Even so, it could give him some time.

Nick wanted to make his mother as proud as she’d been of his father, a decorated agent, and he couldn’t do that hanging out at the beach all day, surfing the waves. He intended to be a celebrated agent as well, even if he had to create his own opportunity.

Nick slipped his arms into his shirt, wavering between what he knew to be right, and what could keep him working for the DNS.

Once his shoes were on, Nick grabbed the jacket and tie hanging inside his locker.

He took a deep breath and left the room, still unsure what he should do. He’d wait to see what the director had to say, then decide.

Shiloh rubbed her eyes, trying to extinguish the image of Nicholas Trent. Naked. Wet and glistening. Ripped like no man she’d ever seen. How had he managed to get a tan over his entire body?

She swallowed hard, tucking a wayward strand of hair behind her ear.

Did the man lie naked all day on a beach? Or on a tanning bed? Didn’t he know how bad that was for him?

The image of his buff bronzed body fueled a strange sensation, and a rush of heat warmed her loins. How was she going to face him professionally, after seeing him in his birthday suit?

The door behind her opened, and she stepped back.

“What did you want to see me about?” Trent leaned against the doorframe, looking for all the world as if nothing had happened.

“You missed your appointment with me this morning. It was scheduled for ten o’clock.” Yet another act of insubordination, as far as she was concerned.

He glanced at his watch, then at her. “Are you sure? I thought it was for eleven.”

Shiloh could tell he wasn’t at all worried about his tardiness, and that irritated her even more. “Yes, I’m sure, Agent Trent.”

“Well then, I’m sorry. It must have been a mix-up on my part.”

She closed her eyes, trying to remain calm. But the moment she did, she was bombarded with images of his naked body again.

Her eyes popped open.
Just get this over with
.

“You knew I was meeting with everyone individually to see where they fit in the agency. I went over your file and reviewed your performance record. Not much to report there, I might add. You haven’t really stood out, or taken initiative to crack any major cases.” Shiloh cleared her throat and shifted her weight onto her other leg. “I’m sorry, but I need a go-to guy and I just don’t see that ambition in you, not to mention the fact that you don’t fit the new image I’m trying to infuse here.”

His eyes narrowed, then darkened a shade. “Really? And what kind of image is that, Ms. Templar?” His tone held a hard edge.

“Someone older, more professional.”
Less tanned. Not so attractive
.

“Isn’t that age discrimination?”

“Mr. Trent, the rumor mill has it that you weren’t sure you wanted to stay at DNS anyway.”

“Rumors are just that—rumors.”

She angled her head slightly. “You never insinuated to anyone you were thinking of leaving the agency?”

“Look, Director Templar, I want to stay. Give me a chance to prove myself, then if you still want me gone, I’ll leave.”

“I’m going to be frank with you, Agent Trent. And this comes from higher up, not from me. I have to let some people go. You’re what they call low man on the totem pole.”

His light blue eyes darkened further, and he crossed his arms over his chest. “I see. I didn’t want to have to resort to this, but if you insist on dismissing me, I may just have to tell someone over at EEOC that you entered the men’s shower room unannounced, and made unwanted sexual advances toward me.”

Shiloh’s jaw dropped and her stomach churned at the accusation. “I did no such thing.”

“I saw you take a look at my package. Do you deny that?”

She closed her eyes again.
Damn it
. She couldn’t. This whole thing was totally unbelievable. How could this be happening to her? This was her first week on the job, and she was already in over her head. Unfortunately, she knew all too well, on a personal level, about sexual harassment––thanks to ex-CIA agent, Grady Sheppard.

“What do you want?”

“I told you. Give me a chance to show you I can be an asset here. That I can be this go-to guy you want. That’s all.”

“Do you really think an extortionist like yourself would be an asset?”

“I didn’t want to resort to this. You left me no choice.”

“You have a choice, Mr. Trent. You just chose not to see it.”

His jaw tightened. “What’s with you? You’ve been on my ass since the day you came here. Why?”

“Because you look and act as if you belong at the beach, not in National Security.”

“I don’t think your assessment is fair. Wouldn’t my appearance be a plus? I don’t look the part. I could blend in much better than those stuffed shirts upstairs. Why are you so blind that you can’t see that?”

Shiloh blew out a breath, trying not to lose control. She’d already made the biggest faux pas she could by walking into the men’s showers.
Okay
, so she shouldn’t have gone inside to look for him, but she’d been angry he had chosen not to attend the interview as scheduled––yet another act of insubordination. Then with everything that had been going on with her father, she just hadn’t been thinking straight. She certainly wasn’t going to give him any more ammunition. He had her by the proverbial balls and there wasn’t a darn thing she could do about it.

She’d give him a month, and then he’d be out on his tanned little ass. Until then, she’d just keep her distance and pray this would be the quickest thirty days in history.

“All right, Trent, you win. For now. But a month from today, if you try to use this against me again, I’ll take you before the board and have you terminated. You’ll never work as a security agent again. Do I make myself clear?”

“We’ll see.” He smiled, then turned and sauntered off.

Shiloh watched him leave, anger heating her face. Nicholas Trent was as arrogant as a man could get. He might think she’d given in to his blackmail, but he wasn’t going to enjoy what she had in store for him.

Sure, he still had his job, but let’s see how he liked the assignments she’d give him.

He may think he’s won this round, but the next would be hers.

CHAPTER THREE

Nick studied the large roster board that hung on the wall, looking for his next assignment––then quickly did a double take.
Surveillance at a sewage treatment plant
.

What? This couldn’t be right.

“Is this a typo, Hank? Why the hell would we be watching a sewage plant?”

“The agency received a tip about an alleged bombing threat on the facility. We have to stakeout the place and watch for anything suspicious.”

“And how did we get this crap job?”

Hank smiled at Nick’s pun. “This one came from the director herself.”

Nick scowled. “Yeah, I’ll just bet it did. How long do we have to watch this place?”

“I guess until the threat passes.”

How long would that be? He couldn’t believe he was going to have to watch a treatment plant. Old Iron Maiden did this to him. Clearly, she was trying to get back at him for his sexual harassment threat, which was hardly fair to Hank.

He clenched his teeth. He’d do the job, and follow instructions to the letter. No matter how unpleasant the assignment was. He refused to give her an excuse to send him packing at the end of the month.

“Hey, Trent,” Gary Freeman hollered from across the room.

Nick cringed. He knew the man couldn’t stand him. All Gary did was make Nick the butt of every joke he ever told. Gary had only been with the Department a year longer than Nick, but the man figured his seniority gave him the right to tell Nick what to do. So, whatever came out of Freeman’s mouth had to be a smart-ass remark.

“What?” Nick braced himself for the wisecrack coming.

“Heard you get to go and wallow in our waste.”

Nick smiled, envisioning himself punching the man right in the eye.

Gary grinned back. “I guess our new director must really like you or she wouldn’t have saved such a choice job for you.”

The agents sitting at their desks roared with laughter.

“You know, she’s not too bad on the eye as long as you don’t look at her face.”

Nick’s blood curdled. Gary crossed the line. How dare he say something like that? Talk about objectifying women. Besides, Ms. Templar didn’t have an ugly face—as a matter of fact, she was quite pretty for an Ice Princess.

“I’d even do her,” Gary continued, “if she’d be willing to wear a bag over her head. I mean, she does have nice tits.”

The men in the room laughed again, louder this time, all but Nick and Hank.

Nick shook his head in disgust. And the director thought
he
wasn’t DNS material… Gary Freeman definitely didn’t belong. The man was an imbecile. Whatever Nick thought of Ms. Templar, she was their boss and certainly didn’t need to be talked about like a bimbo by those who worked for the Department.

His control started to slip when the phone on his desk rang.

Saved by the bell, Freeman.

Nick inhaled a deep breath to calm his emotions. He needed to get a handle on his temper since Freeman was clearly baiting him.

“Agent Trent speaking.”

“Nicky, honey, it’s Mia. I was wondering if you were free tomorrow night? I have two tickets to see Breakwater.”

Nick sat on the edge of his desk, leafing through a pile of papers, and held the phone to his ear with his shoulder. “I wish I could, but I have to work.”

“Come on, Nicky. It has been weeks. I miss you. Can’t you get out of it somehow?”

“No. They’re downsizing at the Department. I have to prove myself or I could lose my job.”