Drew shook his head in disbelief as he read page by page, almost

searching for a way out of this. The easiest thing to do would be to flat out

decline such an offer but he knew this probably meant a lot to her. He didn't owe her

a thing yet it would hurt his integrity to not participate in such a

case, especially since it concerned putting a multi-billion dollar crook

away.

"Fine." Drew said finally. "I'll do it, but you gotta pay half upfront

you know, I can do with a cruise."

He smirked. They both knew damn well that he didn't need that money, he just needed to add some salt to the burn. Ya know, show Paula that he wasn't doing this for her.

She leaped out of her chair with joy and wrapped her

arms around him, lying kisses on his cheeks til they were stained with her Ruby Woo lipstick.  "You're the best, Drew", she teased.

"I know. Now get off me, woman." He warned intolerably.

For the rest of the morning they spoke of the agreement, when they

would commence this faux engagement and other matters concerning the

police investigation. Drew knew that they'd need loads of coffee

to get through their conversation.

"You.. must be out.. of your.. your-goddamn-mind!", Drew said in between

uncontrollable laughter. Even if Paula irritated the very fiber of his

being, Drew was glad that she could arise laughter in him with her

sheer insanity among other things.

 Paula snarled at him. He may have thought that she was joking but she

was dead serious."I'm serious Andrew." She said in her most composed tone.

"You are?", he said half joking, half bewildered. Paula opened up her Louis Vuitton brief case that she carried along on her journey and sat it atop her lap. She clicked it open and handed Drew a document of about twenty pages.

"Here", she said as she searched his face for a reaction. "Don't worry,

you will be heavily compensated for such a displeasure!" She rolled

her eyes.

"You have got to be kidding me.... ", he said as his eyes skimmed over

the twenty paged contract in front of him.

Paula was an undercover agent and took her job quite seriously. Her

curvy body had been a major plus in the field since (not surprisingly) the bad guys fell victim to seductive charm and caught themselves right in her traps. However, this

case was different. Paula actually needed Drew's credibility for being

a well known Australian tycoon as well as scholar. This

suspect for the case was quite familiar with the Aussies and actually

spent most of his time over there searching for inspiration to apply

to his novels. He associated himself with only the best of the best,

the most clever and the worlds richest. Having Drew as her partner

would get her close enough to the suspect which in turn would lead to the extraction of well needed information. Enough information which would eventually lead to the to arrest and conviction of Victor

Sokolov. The case had been unsolved for ten years now and closed at the half mark within that time. Paula was adamant about pursuing this case and wanted confirmation of Drew's help before asking to reopen the case.

Her love was something she cherished

Just as a tree lover enjoyed the outdoors

She was simple

She appreciated her solitude

For she knew not many could withstand

the love that she personified

She was more careful than others

Carefully handpicking those she spent her energy on

Like fresh apples from a rich orchard

For the ones who got into her basket

shared a special part of her

And so she would hold onto that Apple

she would polish it

and cherish it

sometimes, she could even see her own reflection in it

with a wet and wanting mouth

she would readily sink her teeth

into the very depths of that apple

and like that, with every bite

She would fall deeper in love with it's richness.

Beating myself up on the inside

for not accepting the fact that

I can't runaway from your love

this spell

that I'm under

like a tidal wave

and I'm drowning

It can very well be my end but

I'm intrigued with every passing minute

I wanna be sucked deeper

but I'm scared

I want you to take me far beneath the ocean

To the very floor

Go deep inside my very core

I want your love to rush through me,

to me

Riptides

Shake my core

ripple effects

I want you to free me.