Career Decision--A Sexy Interracial BWWM Erotic Romance Novelette from Steam Books

by Annette Archer

  Table of Contents

  Career Decision Title Page

  CHAPTER 1 - Two Assignments in One

  CHAPTER 2 - Meeting the Man

  CHAPTER 3 - Undercover

  CHAPTER 4 - Unlikely Allies

  CHAPTER 5 - The Aftermath

  About Annette Archer

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  CAREER DECISION

  - A Sexy Interracial BWWM Erotic Romance Novelette from Steam Books

  Annette Archer

  Copyright © 2014 Steam Books Erotica & Romance

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author or publisher except for the use of brief quotations in critical articles or reviews.

  CHAPTER 1 - Two Assignments in One

  I've always known that I've wanted to be in the Secret Service, ever since my parents took me to meet the president of the United States. You could say that was the catalyst to making me who I am today, but I certainly didn't know that I was going to be recruited right out of training.

  Walking into my boss's office, I saw that he and I weren't alone, and one other person stood beside the window looking out at the scenery below.

  “Have a seat, Agent Sloan,” my boss told me.

  Taking a seat in front of his desk, I was really curious what all this was about; I was just about to be sent to Denver to start my career at the very bottom. This wasn't unusual, and I was actually looking forward to cutting my teeth in this profession. It didn't matter to me where I began, it only mattered that one day I would be protecting the President himself—or herself. That was my ultimate goal, and something that every Secret Service agent strove to make a reality.

  “Agent Sloan, here at the agency, we have been very impressed with how efficiently you were able to complete every aspect of the training. It shows us that you think well on your feet and your IQ level is beyond the charts. You seem to have a real knack for seeing things from a different perspective, and that will take you far in this business.”

  “Um,” I started, not used to such flattery. “Thank you for that, but I’m sure you didn't call me in here just to praise my work ethic.” I didn't like it when people beat around the bush.

  “Like I said, you certainly do have good instincts,” my boss said. He sat back in his chair thoughtfully before he continued. “You are right that we didn't call you in here just to praise you, but to offer you a proposition that could put you on the fast track to protecting the president of the United States. We all know that that is what you want more than anything, and if you take this proposal, it will pretty much make it so that you will be able to write your own ticket.”

  He was telling me everything that I wanted to hear, and it was very rare for an African-American woman, or any female for that matter, to be given such high regard, but now I was even more curious about what I would have to do and who I would have to kill to get this opportunity—and part of me wouldn’t be surprised if I literally had to do just that.

  “We would like you to become the partner of one Lucas Stevens. You can learn a lot from him.”

  Now this was even more odd. There were plenty of senior agents that I could learn from, not just the Secret Services James Bond. “If you don't mind me being frank, I think that you are full of shit. Stop beating around the bush and tell me exactly what you want me to do.”

  The other guy by the window didn't turn around, but said “We want you to spy on agent Stevens and find out how he is living so luxuriously with the paycheck that he gets from the government. You'll not only have to keep an eye on him, but also do your job at the same time. You will basically be doing two assignments in one, although I don't think that's going to be a real problem for you.”

  Something here didn't smell right. “Who are you, and what kind of vendetta do you have against agent Stevens, and why do you think I would make a good fit as his partner?”

  “You don't need to know who I am, only that I am way above your pay grade, and I think that you will make a great partner with Stevens, not just because you are in a class all by yourself, but also because he seems to gravitate towards female agents...”

  And there was the catch. I thought that I was getting a good assignment despite being a beautiful woman and here I am getting it because I am a woman. Sometimes working in a man's profession makes me want to be sick.

  “You want me to sleep with him?”

  “No, nothing like that, but we know how things can get physical at times during assignments.”

  Yep, they wanted me to sleep with him. It wasn't as if I was a virgin, but I didn't go around sleeping with people just because someone told me to. I suppose I would just have to play it by ear and see where our working relationship went first.

  “There is no shame in saying no, but if you do that, I'm afraid it will be at least 10 years before you even come close to your real goal,” the man at the window said, dangling a large carrot in front of me.

  I hated that this was being offered to me, but I decided to take it and prove to them that I could keep an eye on Stevens. Without sleeping with him.

  “I’ll do it, but from what I've read on Lucas Stevens, he is nothing but a great agent that has a success rate of over 90%. All of us studied him in detail and were most impressed by some of his feats. If I can be half the agent that he is, I would consider myself lucky and on the right track.”

  “Very well, I think we have taken up more than enough of your time, and I do believe you have a flight to Los Angeles in less than an hour. He is supposed to be waiting to pick you up at the airport, but knowing him as I do, he will most likely not be able to make it for one reason or another.”

  He passed me an envelope and told me to read the contents and then burn it after I was done. Being that I had an eidetic memory, all I would have to do was read the contents once and it would be burned into my brain.

  When I left the office, I had this feeling in the pit of my stomach that the person by the window wasn't telling me everything: he was holding out on me. Not that I really could do anything about it anyway, so I would just have to keep my eyes and ears open.

  Being in Washington had made it easy to stay in touch with my family, but now that I was being sent thousands of miles away, I was starting to wonder just what my family would think about that.

  Getting on the plane, I sat down in my seat and opened the file on Lucas.

  I couldn't believe some of the stuff he was responsible for. The things that I had studied about him were only a fraction of what he really was capable of. I now saw through his file that a real agent might have to walk a fine line of what was legal and what wasn't. The only thing I couldn't understand was how he wasn't protecting the president right at this very moment. He had all the credentials and experience, and yet that dream job seemed to be out of his reach, and I just didn't see why.

  When I was finished reading everything about him, I put the file away in my briefcase with the express purpose that I was going to burn them as soon as I could. Lucas was always in the wrong place at the right time. He should've been dead 10 times over, but somehow he always squeaked through with nary a scratch. The only real injury that he had ever sustained in the job was a bullet to his gluteus maximus, when he was taking down a threat to the vice president. That was always a sore point with him, and apparently he wasn't
very keen on talking about that experience with anybody. Even the qualified psychiatrist couldn't make him open up about it.

  CHAPTER 2 - Meeting the Man

  Getting off the plane, I went directly to the bathroom and instead of burning the file, I shredded it with my hands and then flushed it down the toilet. Everything that was in it was now safely stored within my memory, and now it was finally time to meet him in person.

  Standing by the sink, I looked at my reflection and saw a hard and determined young agent with her whole life ahead of her. My hair was pulled back into a ponytail, giving me the air of sophistication and professionalism. This was not the look that was going to make any friends, so I had to soften my approach, giving the appearance that I wasn't so buttoned down and prim and proper.

  The ponytail was the first thing to go, and I let my long dark hair blow over my shoulders, making me look a lot more approachable than I was. Taking off my jacket, I undid the first two buttons on my white blouse, just giving a slight hint to my cleavage.

  Even though I wasn't planning on the whole sleeping-with-him bit in order to complete my mission, there was no harm in a little teasing. My C cups were one of my best assets, although everybody said that I had an ass that just wouldn't quit. Being only 5 foot four and 115 pounds, it gave me the look of someone that was weak, but I was a lot stronger and faster than people realized.

  I couldn't do anything about my skirt, but having it below my knees would show that I was trying to be by the book but wasn't really being successful at it. According to Lucas's psych file, he was prone to having affairs with agents that didn't go by the letter of the law.

  Smiling at myself, I strolled out of there with a confident swagger and went out to baggage claim to get the rest of my luggage. Not really expecting that he was going to be there to greet me, I was pleasantly surprised to see my name, even though it wasn't Lucas holding the card.

  “Ma’am, I have been sent by the agency to take you back to headquarters, because agent Stevens is wrapped up in a case at the moment, and will be meeting you right after.”

  This guy was what Secret Service agents should be like: pressed pants and a dark suit made him look exactly like a government type.

  We drove out of there and I said “So, do you know agent Stevens very well? Can you tell me a little bit about him?”

  “I can only tell you that he is a loner, and he doesn't like being told what to do by anybody. It's the only way he works, and it has garnered results in the past, so I don't think he is going to be very happy when he finds out that he has been saddled with a rookie.”

  “It wasn't my idea, so I hope he doesn't kill the messenger.”

  This guy wasn't saying all that much, and he didn't even give me his name, which was a tad unusual in these circumstances. The next thing I noticed that was out of the ordinary: his shoes were not government issued and seemed to be more expensive than the rest of his attire. Not only that, but the watch on his right wrist was a Rolex and probably cost more than what he could make on a government salary.

  It was one of the stupidest things that I could've done: I’d gotten into this car without using my God-given instinct to take stock of what was going on around me. Now, it was way too late to do anything about that, and I was just going to have to work on the fly.

  “You know, the food on the plane was less than edible, and if we could stop for a moment for some fast food chicken, it would be very much appreciated.”

  He glanced at me through his sunglasses, and I couldn't tell what he was thinking; only hoping that he was going to do as I asked.

  “No, I don't think that's necessary, because there is a full complement of food at headquarters, and I’m sure that you can find something that is edible there.”

  He was making this really difficult, and making me suspect that I was in serious trouble, even if I wasn't getting that kind of vibe from him directly.

  “I have had a craving for chicken ever since I left Washington, and I know that there is a good chicken place in the area.”

  Looking in the distance, I could see KFC coming up on the right-hand side, and it was just fortuitous that the franchise was so near that you could reach out and touch it.

  I continued, “It will only take a few moments, and then we can get back on the road before we know it. Besides, I think that I'm having a bit of a woman problem; I could really use the facilities.”

  I could see that his mouth was grimacing, no doubt thinking about all the times that his wife said she had PMS, and how difficult it might be to deal with me if I didn't get what I wanted.

  Pulling over into the parking lot, he stopped the car and motioned for me to get out and do my business. Climbing out of the car, I walked towards the building and immediately felt like somebody was watching me. There was no way that I was going to look back, or that would risk the man behind the wheel becoming suspicious and following me in.

  Bypassing the counter altogether, I walked straight out the back exit, only to find another black car waiting for me. A man with chiseled good looks was standing by the door, and I knew immediately that it was agent Stevens.

  Up close and personal, I would say that he was more handsome in person than he was on paper. Standing close to 6 feet tall, he had to be hitting 180-plus, with short-cropped dark hair with blonde highlights and blue eyes that seemed to pierce into my very heart. Quite simply put: he was gorgeous.

  But still, sleeping with him to get the job done was not in my plan.

  “That was quick-thinking, agent,” were his first words to me. “Getting out of that car was a test, and you performed brilliantly.”

  “Hmmm, should I be impressed or insulted that you would even think that I need to be tested?” I smiled before the next bit, “And did you just assume I’d be getting off at a fried chicken joint?”

  Grinning at me, he said “You know, I'm not exactly sure how to answer that, only to say that if somebody had tried that on me, they would be eating my fists in a big knuckle sandwich. Now, you may as well get in the car. I'll take you back to headquarters, unless you really do want that chicken.” He had a good laugh at me. “No, chicken, I would never have thought of that, and the way that you used your woman problems was a stroke of genius.”

  He was giving me a compliment, and I had to admit that I did enjoy the attention, although being put on the spot like that was not what I was expecting.

  He touched the microphone on his ear, and said “Jerry, you can go back to work now. I have the new recruit with me and thanks for the help.”

  Shutting it down, he pulled out into traffic and kept his eyes on the road the entire time, not even bothering to look at me or make any conversation to pass the time.

  He drove past Secret Service headquarters. I assumed that he was purposely leaving me in the dark, probably trying to keep the upper hand. So there was no reason to ask him why we weren't going to headquarters because he probably had some kind of plan in mind that involved my ignorance. We pulled up to a warehouse, and he pressed the button on the dash, which opened up the wire gate.

  Parking the car, he put both hands on the steering wheel, turned to me and said, “I don’t know why you are here, but I don't need anyone that is going to need handholding. I needed to test you to see how fast you could ascertain a problem and deal with it without getting into a firefight. Would you mind telling me how you figured out what was going on back there?”

  “I should've realized sooner, but when I saw his shoes, the watch on his right wrist, and the fact that he didn't tell me anything about himself, well I got little suspicious.”

  “Not bad, rookie, but you missed a couple of easy ones. You didn't notice that he was alone, which no agent ever does, or the fact that he was driving in the opposite direction of where you had to go. In all, I would say that you passed my test admirably, but I still think you need more training in the field.”

  “Hey, I would've seen all of that, although what I did see was more than enough to make
me think that something was wrong.”

  He was pretty impressive. I like a man that knows what he is doing and is good at his job.

  “Fair enough, and you certainly were able to handle yourself in a very difficult situation. Every guy knows about woman problems, and that was a really crafty way of getting him to pull over the car. No man ever wants to deal with that, so you used the best weapon in your arsenal, which was your intellect, and not brute force.”

  “I thought you were going to say my feminine wiles.” I laughed a little at my comment.

  Lucas rolled his beautiful blues. “Don't believe everything you hear about me, okay?”

  “What? About you being a womanizer?”

  “Only partially true,” he said and winked at me.

  This man was full of surprises. He was funny and was a hardened veteran that just wanted someone that he could count on. There didn't seem to be any covert or suspicious behavior, but I had just met him and was just making a snap judgment on what I had witnessed so far.

  “You are going to have to get rid of that suit because right now I am undercover, and from this point on you are now with me. We'll stop someplace out of the way, so you can buy some clothes off the rack and get rid of everything Government Issue. That includes your gun because everybody knows what government officials carry.”

  Passing over my weapon, I was feeling a little naked without it, until he passed me over another weapon that was smaller than my other one, but felt really good in my hand. I was good with weapons, but this was the first time ever that one had ever felt natural, and I was starting to enjoy having it with me.

  “I got that in a bust a few months ago, and I always thought it was better suited for a woman, and I guess I was right.”

  “See that remark right there. That's what got you branded. I should be the first to jump in with how sexist you are being, but since I really don't have anything to complain about, I won't go there.”