My head is throbbing and my eyes are gritty from staring at the computer screen for so long. I remove my glasses, tossing them carelessly onto my keyboard, close my eyes, and massage my temples in an attempt to both clear my mind and find some release from my pounding headache.
It's late and I'm one of a handful of people still in the building, so the normal cacophony of my office is blissfully absent. I've got my office lights dimmed while I work after hours, but my door is open. I need for this report to be perfect. My recommendations to my bosses in Washington will hopefully alter the entire face of my agency and more importantly, how it interacts with our community. They've already accepted my proposal for the biggest change; the Department of Justice has recently requested and received the current police chief's resignation. It is a necessary, but not necessarily popular, modification to our organizational structure.
One of my favorite officers pops his head through the open door into my office, speaking softly, so as not to startle me, "Hey, Hope! What are you doing here so late?"
I open my eyes at the sound of his thick country accent, and smile. He really is one of the few guys at work who I can honestly say I respect and like. Maybe because he's relatively new to the agency? Maybe because he's new to town? Either way, he's a welcome diversion from the report over which I've been laboring. "Hi, Campbell. Just catching up on some compliance paperwork. What about you? Isn't your shift over?"
He nods and glances down at his uniform. "Yeah, I can't wait to get this polyester monstrosity off and change into my regular clothes. I'm heading downstairs to the locker-room now to shower and change."
I try very hard not to let my eyes sweep across his tall, broad frame at the mention of him in a shower. I think I'm mostly successful when he doesn't blush or grin knowingly at me. I really need to keep those impure thoughts in check, I think to myself. However, my overactive imagination kicks into overdrive and I envision him in a shower stall, head bowed under the stream of water, dark hair plastered to his head, rivulets of water snaking down his wide shoulders, racing toward what I can only imagine is a stellar ass, if his uniform is a true indication.
He continues speaking, not noticing that I'm harboring slightly illicit thoughts about him.
"So, listen, a couple of us are going to The Fifth Amendment to have a few drinks and show up the DA's office at karaoke. You should come with us." He smiles cajolingly at me.
"I don't think so! I'm a terrible singer. Plus, I've got to get this report ready to send to the Feds by Friday. You're sweet to offer, though and I do appreciate it." I rebuffed his very kind offer with a whopper of a lie and a half-truth. I'm actually a decent singer and the report isn't due until *next* Friday. My earlier foray into sexual harassing thoughts also makes me refuse the invitation.
"Bullshit, Hope. I've heard you singing in your office when you think no one else is around. And I know for a fact that report isn't due to the Feds until next week. Now, what's the real reason you don't want to come?" I grimaced slightly at being caught fibbing to one of the few friends I have at work.
"Listen, I do appreciate the invite. Really. It's just...well, I don't always fit in with the other folks here. You know that, Campbell." I hated having to remind him that some of our co-workers didn't care for me because I was a stickler for rules and regulations. It's the sole reason I work at the police department. After a few high profile incidents, I was brought in to the agency in an effort to clean up the department's image, ensure the continued flow of government dollars into the department's coffers, and to keep the Department of Justice from swooping in and cleaning house completely. Since I often hold the officers' feet to the fire when they became lackadaisical with regard to their paperwork, I've garnered the nickname "The Hope Crusher." Not to mention, the former chief still has quite a few loyal sycophants still walking the halls of the department and they loathe me.
