The Black Widow was staring down the barrel of her gun at him, and all Tyler could think was how gorgeous her eyes were and how bright her smile was.

He knew that he should probably be focusing on the fact that she was threatening his life in a way by pointing said gun at him. He knew that he should probably be thinking over the short years he had spent on this earth considering he probably wasn't going to make it home alive.

He definitely did not need to be wondering who this woman was during the daytime when life wasn't all secret assignments and espionage.

"This is about the time when you tell me who you are in return, slugger," she said, breaking into his thoughts. She raised an eyebrow at him when he still didn't answer. "Anytime would be good. I'm not the most patient person to point a gun at you."

"Sorry. My name is Tyler." He was practically cursing his words as they came out of his mouth. Giving her his real name was not the right thing to do. Even a rookie knew that.

"Good." She lowered her gun. "Now, Tyler, how do you suppose you're going to get me out of this sticky situation?"

"You're used to having other people get you out of jams, aren't you?" he said hesitantly. He really didn't know what to do with this new development. Enemy agents hadn't been a part of the mission Dixon had given him. And there had definitely been no talk of pretty enemy agents.

Though come to think of it, he had heard his father mumble a time or two that the ones threatening your life were always pretty. Poetic irony or something equally ridiculous.

"I use the resources I come across," she said, responding to his question. "Now I ask you again. What are you going to do?

"Why are you so sure I'll help you? It looks to me like you have the problem and not me."

She rolled her eyes at him and took a step towards him. "Well, I am pointing a gun at you. As much as I'd like to keep this little exchange pleasant, I could just shoot you in the head."

The shift in her tone took Tyler by surprise. She might like to banter while on the job, but this agent was definitely tough. He probably should help her before she made good on her threat. Or at least before she asked him who he worked for and what he was doing in this off-limits room in the first place.

Her easiness at finding him in this room hacking into a computer of the organization she worked for willingly was making him nervous. That and the way she was smiling at him even as she threatened to shoot. "Well, Ana, if I knew what sticky situation you got yourself into, maybe I could tell you how I can get us out of this."

"It seems my employers don't agree with the choices I've been making of late. Guess I'm getting a little too independent for the normal clone agents they have. Not falling into line when they tell me to and all the jazz. They fired me in the usual way of sending a squad of hit men after me." She opened the door an inch and peered out into the hallway. Turning back to meet his eye, she shrugged. "I didn't feel like dying today."

"Me, either," he admitted. "Which is why I'm not getting involved with you. You're trouble. With a capital-" She held the gun up at his head again. "-You've-Got-A-Gun-Pointed-At-My-Head."

"It's a good form of persuasion, no? Walk." She pushed him out into the hall. "So, Agent Tyler, how about your employers? Think there might be a job for me? It seems that I find myself unemployed at the moment."

Tyler gave her a quick once over. That little scrap of cloth she seemed to be calling a dress was definitely illegal in most countries, and the way she was casually scanning the hallways definitely indicated she had been doing this kind of thing for a long time. Too experienced and too dangerous for the CIA. "I don't think they could handle a girl like you."

"That's what my mother and father always used to say."

"Used to?" He groaned as he realized that his questions were getting too personal. Stupid rookie mistake. Personal could get you killed. Even if she seemed to be an ally of sorts at the moment, he really didn't want to know anything about her. She could just as easily turn out to be the enemy. She probably would end up shooting him in the head just to keep him quiet about how she escaped.

He suddenly wondered when such a simple rookie mission had gone so wrong.

"Now is not the time to get into my mommy and daddy issues, honey." She pushed open a door on their right and walked into dark stairway. She punched out the glass of a nearby fire hose case and wrapped it around her arm, tightly. "Now take a deep breath and follow me. It looks like it's all on my shoulders to get us out of here. Try not to get killed."

She grabbed his arm and wrapped the cord around it, too, before tucking her gun into the holster on her thigh and clutching to his body. "And try not to get me shot at. This jacket has to get home in one piece."

The next thing Tyler knew they were flying down at least twenty flights with only a flimsy hose to slow their fall.

Ana was presently surprised by the man currently making an effort to untangle himself from the fire hose. He hadn't screamed once. Not even when she had yelled that she really wasn't sure how they were going to stop before hitting the bottom. He had simply braced himself for impact and even went as far to try to take as much of the impact himself as possible.

A gentleman in the world of spies. Will wonders never cease?

Pulling her gun out, she took off at a run, pausing only a moment to call behind her, "You can either follow me or not. It's up to you."

She was pleased to hear his footsteps behind her as she pushed open a door and ran into the parking garage attached to the office building.

This Tyler character was really surprising. He was clearly new at the whole spy business, but still, he wasn't half bad. Maybe she would really have to check out if his organization was hiring. Working along someone as attractive as him wouldn't be such a bad thing. Almost made her consider decreasing the fee she charged just to make sure she saw him again. Almost. Hey, maybe she could even convince her new boss to make them partners. Yeah, she could think of quite a few ways to work off the adrenaline at the end of a mission if he was her partner.

"Shit," she muttered, realizing she had lost track of where they were going.

"If you're lost, I think I can help you," Tyler yelled from beside her. He had caught up to her without her noticing. She really needed to start keeping her head in the game considering they weren't out of the woods yet.

Her eyes rested on where he was pointing. A rather sporty looking car was parked a few feet from the other standard SUVs and four door coupes.

"That's my ride," he informed her.

"You really shouldn't have told me that," she said, slowing down and giving the car an appreciative once over. "Can I drive?"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "I'm not even sure I should be offering you a ride."

"I just saved your ass back there," she pointed out. "You owe me one."

"You had a gun pointed to my head most of the time. I think we're even."

"Fine, hunky savior of mine. What do you want as payment for a lift?" She knew that the sarcasm mixed with a sexual undertone would definitely get his blood stirring. It was her secret weapon whenever she got into herself into a bind. By the time he realized that she wasn't going to give him anything his perverted little mind could imagine, he would be lying on the side of the road unconscious.

"Just get in the car." He pulled the keys out of his pocket. "And I'm driving because I don't want to end up a body lying in the gutter."

She let out a little laugh. So, she had been right about him being smart. That didn't surprise her. What surprised her was that he wasn't going to give in to her come-ons. The way he had been staring at her earlier really made it seem like he was entertaining some indecent thoughts about what exactly they could do once they got to safety.

She could be wrong, which meant that, well, she was just going to have to try a little harder.

"But I'd do anything to drive a car like that." She stroked the hood of the car slowly and smiled at him. "To feel that power beneath my body. To really open her up on the road. Oh god, I bet this baby has some kick to it when you get it over one-fifty."

"Hell yeah. But you're not going to find out. It's my turn to be in charge."

"Hey, I gave you the chance, but you had no idea how to get us out of that hallway." She guessed the debate was over because he ignored her taunt, walked over to the driver's side, and slid into the car. "Can I at least get the last name of the guy who's decided to be my knight in shining armor?"

"No way. I shouldn't have even given you my first."

"Rookie mistake," she said once she had joined him in the front seat.

"That obvious?"

"Only slightly. You're pretty good for a rookie." She took a moment to enjoy the feeling of acceleration as Tyler eased them out of the parking garage and into the light of day. "So, why the hell are you giving me this ride?"

"The same reason you didn't shoot me in the head." He chanced a glance in her direction, and she knew he caught sight of the blush on her face. "I really don't understand why you didn't. Because, rookie or not, it's what I would have done if I was in your place. An enemy agent is an enemy agent."

"Some enemy agents aren't always enemies. They can turn out to be a hell of a lot more," she said absentmindedly. When he gave her a funny look, she realized that she might have let herself get a little too personal there. He didn't need to know her whole life history. "An enemy's enemy is your friend. This whole world is twisted, kid."

"Why do you keep calling me kid? I bet I'm older than you."

She shrugged. "Years versus experience. It's the age old question. I'm a much better agent than you, but I'm willing to bet that I'm younger."

"How young is younger?"

She paused, wondering if she should be talking so openly with this guy. She didn't even know who he worked for. He could be CIA or something. That would not be good on so many levels. "I'm legal. That's all you need to know."

"Legal to what? Drink? Drive? Vote?"

"Legal enough to do whatever perverted crap you've been fantasizing about since I burst into your little op." He smirked at her words, and she was happy to see that she had been right. He had been staring at her before. "Not even going to deny it?"

"You have to expect it when you dress like that."

"Shit. I forgot about this ridiculous excuse for a dress." She narrowed her eyes at him. "Do they make the women you work with wear these barely-there outfits, too? Because it gets demeaning after a while."

"Yeah, they do. We live in a chauvinist world, Ana."

"Damn straight."

"You're just going to have to deal with it."

"Yeah, I guess so. Money's money no matter what they make me wear." She looked out the window a moment before turning back to stare at him. "So, you're not taking me into custody or anything silly like that, are you? Because I'd like fair warning if I have to make a run for it."

"I should do something like that, but then you might go back to threatening to shoot me in the head. I don't think you'd like that, and I know I definitely wouldn't like that. So I figured I would just drop you at the nearest Metro station. You seem resourceful enough to take it from there."

"Good plan. The only problem is we've passed at least two or three already."

"We were having some pleasant conversation. I didn't want to interrupt by kicking you out of the car you were dying to ride in a few minutes earlier."

"Thank you, but I was only dying to drive it. I've ridden in cars like this since I was a toddler. My dad--" She shook her head. "Never mind. There's another metro station up ahead. Pull over."

She felt both relief and agitation when he did as she asked. Granted, it meant he was letting her little slip of the tongue go by without question, but he was also eliminating her slowly increasing suspicion that he just wanted to take advantage of her in the back of his car now that she had gotten him out of the line of fire in his assignment. He really had meant to take her to a metro station.

What a pity. She could have used a little fun.

"Hope you enjoyed the ride even though I wasn't stupid enough to let you drive," he said as he pulled the car to a stop.

Choosing not to respond to the reemergence of the driving/riding topic, she simply turned to him and started unbuttoning his shirt.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he yelled even though he made no move to stop her.

Okay, maybe a little fun might still be an option. Too bad she had already killed her mood with that stupid driving comment.

"I can't walk around London in this dress. At least, not unless I want to be mistaken as a prostitute by every pervert and cop out there. I need your shirt to cover up."

"That's great for you, but how the hell am I supposed to explain why I lost my shirt on my mission? I'll be labeled as the rookie who couldn't even keep his clothes on during a simple snatch and grab."

"Tell them the truth. A rather attractive woman asked for it, and you couldn't refuse. You seem as chivalrous as they come. They'll believe you." She pulled the shirt down off his arms.

"You're just lucky that I'm wearing an undershirt."

"And a bullet proof vest! You really are a Boy Scout, aren't you?"

"Always be prepared."

She pulled the shirt on and buttoned it up before exiting the car. "Thanks for the ride."

"Anytime."

She gave him her best sexy smirk before making her way to the metro station in front of them. It was weird how comfortable she was with this total stranger. She had never really been able to relate to any of the other agents she worked with. It seemed from the way he had acted that it was the same for him.

Which was why she wasn't surprised to hear him calling her name. However, she was pleasantly surprised to realize that his voice seemed to be giving her goosebumps in all the right places. Maybe her playful mood hadn't completely disappeared. Fun still might be had by all.

"Yes?" she said, turning to smile at him again.

"You forgot your jacket," he said, holding the article in question out the window at her.

She laughed and made her way back to the car. "Wouldn't want to do that."

"No. Your mother would probably be mad."

Still smirking, she grabbed the jacket out of his hand. "You heard that, did you?"

"I heard all of what you said. I was trying to catalogue every bit of information you volunteered in a search for any weak spot in your armor."

"Any luck?"

"None so far."

"I think you're stalling, Tyler," she pointed out, narrowing her eyes at him in playful suspicion.

"I think I might be."

She rolled her eyes and leaned in on the open window. "Let me give you a little advice before we part ways. The whole knight in shining armor business looks really great on paper, but you kind of miss out on all the fun."

Laughing, she waved goodbye to him as she made her way down the stairs to catch the next train. She really hoped that the next time she saw him in the field, he was a little less uptight. A guy who looked like that could be just what she needed to keep this game interesting.

Ana let herself into the rather spacious house she had been calling home for the past few years and threw her keys on a nearby table. Her bags were thrown into a corner. The slightly-beaten up jacket she had been so concerned about earlier was deposited on a chair as she made her way to the kitchen. Missions always made her hungry. There really hadn't been time to grab food on her way home.

She had been late catching her flight because her temper and pride seemed to get the best of her again. She couldn't just let that stupid agency think they could walk all over her. Plus, that building was getting rather run down. Her returning the day after they had tried to kill her in order to set those explosives was practically doing them a favor. She had cleaned up the mess she had made the day before, and now it can be rebuilt from scratch.

Sighing, she grabbed a half-eaten sandwich out of the refrigerator and took a seat at the counter. A good explosion also made her hungry. That might explain why she felt like she hadn't eaten in a month.

Turning back to her thoughts, she tackled the other reason why she had made such a rash decision which could have brought unwanted attention her way. She couldn't let the spy agencies out there that she worked with think that they had the upper hand. She was the best there was in the field, and she didn't want to be grouped with those sissy agents who couldn't even take a proper punch. So many people assumed that she worked for the CIA because of her accent, but she wanted to make it clear that was not the case. She was better than that.

It was slightly ironic, considering the first mission she ever went on she had thought was with the CIA. Within minutes, she had realized she was wrong, but she finished the job anyway. She hadn't been in it for the protection of state. She had been in it for the thrill of the hunt.

And so began her wonderful career of covert freelance work.

The door slammed shut, breaking into her thoughts before she could travel farther down memory lane.

"Hi, honey," yelled a man's voice from the front hall. "Where are you?"

"I'm in the kitchen," she called back. "Sorry I didn't clean up my stuff. I just got back from my trip to Dallas."

When there was no immediate response, she realized the stupid mistake she had made when she came in. Her realization took place at the same moment her mother's voice rang through the house.

"Hope Anastasia Lazarey! What the hell did you do to my favorite jacket?"

She cringed and turned to watch the sun set in the Los Angeles horizon. "It's going to be a long night."