A/N - This is the first chapter of a story I have previously posted but I only ever got as far as five chapters. Sadly, i now only have two chapters left on my hard drive and with my failing Fibro fogged brain, I can't quite remember the rest. I am going to attempt to re-write it so please bear with me while i do. Thank you! As always, please leave your reviews, not just on my stories but on all the ones you read - It lets the writer know you're reading xxx

Elizabeth had always considered herself to be someone who performed faultlessly under pressure. Having spent 20 years as a CIA analyst and having to constantly make decisions where lives were on the line and in her hands, she never doubted her ability to stay calm when the world around her was falling apart. She had even been called 'The Ice Queen' a few times which she actually took as a huge compliment. She had been face to face with some of the most malevolent people imaginable and had kept her heart rate as steady as if she were taking a stroll in the park. She could be a machine when the situation required it which is why she was the best damn analyst in the company. That was until she could no longer stomach the things she was witnessing and had to take the heart wrenching decision to leave - Which led her squarely to her current predicament.

Gripping her cup of coffee as if it held the answers to the universe, she could feel herself trembling and that in itself was unnerving her. She had learned to shut down emotion and stay detached from most situations, so why was this affecting her so badly? She looked down at the untouched bowl of muesli on the kitchen side and almost gagged, her usually present appetite had definitely gone awol and all she felt was a combination of nausea and utter terror. She was about to embark on a new career and as much as she had relished the idea of moving onto something new and taking on a completely different challenge, now that the day was upon her to actually start this adventure, she longed for her old life back.

What had she been thinking? God alive, she'd been a student herself, albeit a good few years ago. But she knew what students were like and the thought of standing in front of them trying to deliver a lecture when at least 85% of them would hate her before she even opened her mouth was almost too much to comprehend. She'd gained experience by teaching at smaller colleges but this was a whole different ball game. They were going to eat her alive and it was possibly going to be the shortest career in history - Well maybe not the shortest, but definitely the most embarrassing. She pushed all thoughts of calling in sick on her first day to the back of her mind and grabbed her bag. If she was going to fail, she may as well do it in spectacular fashion. She never did like to do anything by halves.

The drive to UVA was a tedious one which wasn't helping with the nerves. Her apartment was only 20 minutes away, but traffic was unusually heavy and time was ticking by. Starting to panic a little that she would be late on her first day, she threw her car into the first parking spot she caught sight of and rushed towards the rather daunting looking building. She didn't recall it looking quite so worrying when she'd been here as a Math major all those years ago, but right now, as she stood at the doors and looked up, It felt like she was about to be swallowed whole.

She stepped inside and rushed along the corridor, her blonde hair falling forwards into her face as she kept her eyes on the floor in front of her. She had her bag slung across her body, one arm was cradling a whole load of paperwork and she was holding onto a luke warm coffee she had no real intention of drinking. She was mumbling to herself, trying to remember exactly where her office was supposed to be when she crashed straight into someone as she rounded the corner.

Her coffee hit the floor, soaking her converse, splashing up her jeans and the files she had been carrying went splaying across the floor "Oh fuck! That's just what I didn't need. Have you ever thought about looking where you're going? - Idiot." She was grumbling angrily, desperately trying to collect the paperwork before it got trampled, never casting eyes on who she'd so clumsily bundled into.

She stood back up and flipped her hair so she could get a good look at the perpetrator, totally expecting it to be a student. And then her eyes met his. They stood looking at each other for what seemed like an eternity, but was realistically only a few seconds before he spoke.

"Well that was truly charming, I think you'll find it was you who crashed into me. Do you need help finding your class?" She felt herself starting to blush, which was another thing that unsettled her.

"I - Well - uhhh - No - And just look where you're going in future." She moved around him and carried on her hurried walk to her office. Once inside, she threw her stuff onto her desk and tried to clean up her jeans with a handful of tissues and her converse, well they would undoubtedly end up in the trash. Although, to be fair, they had seen better days anyway. She looked such a state and now she had to go and throw herself head first into the lions den. Yep, this was a great career choice Elizabeth.

She stood at the front of the room, watching the students file in. A part of her had been hoping that the class would be a small one. But as more and more bodies filled the seats and there were none left empty, fear took over and she was worried she may either faint or vomit... Or possibly both. She was thinking that fainting would be the better option as she would at least be unconscious. She tried to take a large, steadying breath, but it did nothing to calm her nerves. Come on then Adams, it's now or never.

Looking out on the sea of faces, her head suddenly seemed to empty of all coherent thought. She wasn't even quite sure at that moment what her name was. And what was she teaching? Oh crap - This was not going well and she hadn't even spoken yet.

"Good Morning Everyone. If you could quiet down please so we can get started."

The noise in the room slowly lulled and all eyes were now on her.

"Welcome to Postwar Politics and the Cold War. My name is Elizabeth Adams, but to you fine people Professor will be just fine." She was about to carry on her spiel when a young man with intricately styled hair decided to be bold

"Since when did they let models teach classes? Are you sure you're in the right place?" He was incredibly pleased with himself and his little quip had earned him a few laughs and pats on the back from his mates.

Elizabeth stood silently for a few moments, collecting her thoughts and inwardly smiling. And then her smile crept onto her face "Wow! You really think I look like a model? I'm so flattered. What's your name?" She waited for the guy in question to respond.

"Josh - And yeah, You're hot." Once again, he was rather pleased with himself.

"Well Josh."... She was now walking up the steps towards him. "I was actually in the CIA for a little over 20 years and can assure you that I am perfectly qualified to be teaching this class, and will not hesitate to use my exemplary interrogation skills should the need arise. Oh, and nice hair by the way... If you concentrate your efforts as much in my class as you do on achieving that masterpiece, you'll go far."

The young man looked at her open mouthed as her icy blue eyes stared him down and that was all she needed for her confidence to rise.

"Okay then, now that we've got that out of the way we'll move on. I was a student here myself, so know what you're all going though but do not expect me to go easy on you. I had high expectations of myself and I now have them of you - Do not let my friendly demeanour fool you, I can also be your worst nightmare, it will serve you well to remember that."

She headed back down to the front of the room and continued. "I am always available during my office hours should you need me, unless of course I'm on a catwalk somewhere." She flashed a smirk towards Josh who's confidence seemed to have diminished and earned herself a rousing chorus of chuckles from the rest of the room, who's attention she was now easily commanding.

"Now if there are no other questions, please open your books and we will get started."

The rest of the morning flew by and Elizabeth was starting to settle into her new role nicely. She was amused at how her students seemed to think she was one of them rather than their professor. The false sense of security they had would be a rather useful tool and she was somewhat flattered that she still appeared young enough to pass as a student.

She stopped off at her office to deposit the stack of files she'd been carrying around and headed for the canteen to grab a much needed coffee and something to hopefully quiet the rumbling in her stomach that had been getting progressively louder as the hours had ticked by. Before she had a chance to make it anywhere near the food, she was stopped by a rather short, somewhat strange looking man who she figured must be in his mid to late 50's. He extended his hand towards her, a rather unnerving grin spreading across his face.

"So, you must be the new professor. Elizabeth isn't it?"

She opened her mouth to answer but he clearly hadn't finished "I'm Alan Schwartz."

He grabbed her hand with both of his and shook rather vigorously causing her to chuckle slightly "I teach History. How are you settling in?"

She pulled her hand away "It's nice to meet you Alan. And it's all going well so far thank you. I really must go and grab a bite to eat before my next class." She hurried away, looking over her shoulder, making sure Alan hadn't decided to follow her and once again bundled straight into someone. Before she even had a chance to look up, she heard his voice.

"You seem to be making quite the habit of this."

As her eyes landed on him, she sighed "I could say the same of you. If you'll excuse me." She went to move around him for the second time that day but Alan had caught up with her and was hell bent on introducing them. "Elizabeth - I see you've met Henry?"

Her shoulders dropped and she turned back around to face them both, a fake smile plastered across her face "Not exactly."

"Ahh - Well this is Dr Henry McCord. He's a religion professor here." He turned his attention to Henry "Henry, this is out new Political Science professor - Elizabeth Adams."

"You're a professor?" Henry struggled to hide the surprise in his tone.

"Yes."

"Oh - I just assumed you were a student."

"Well you know what they say about those who assume things." Sarcasm was now evident in her voice

"No - Whats's that?" His smirk was starting to annoy her. He knew damn well what she meant and she was not prepared to play into his hands. She couldn't believe how obnoxious he was

"I really must go." She turned on her heels and made a swift exit

"Maybe our paths will cross again sometime soon?" Henry called out as she walked away

"Oh, I do hope not." She shook her head. Only half a day gone and she already hated a colleague. Just perfect.

By 6pm, Elizabeth was dead on her feet. She'd been sitting at her desk going through lesson plans and had lost all track of time. The only thing she had managed to consume all day was a rather limp and vile tasting salad which had done nothing to stave off the hunger pangs in her stomach. She pushed her chair back and wearily stood up, grabbing her bag and slowly heading down the corridor. All she wanted to do was get home and curl up on the sofa was some pasta and a large glass of wine.

It had been a rather testing day and she had no desire to speak to another soul. As she exited the building and looked over towards her car, she could see someone standing by it. She rolled her eyes and called out

"Hey! That's my car - What are you doing?" She upped her pace and her jaw tensed when she got closer. Could this day possibly get any worse.

"Nice car." Henry was standing by the drivers door, blocking her entrance

"Thanks. Is there something else you wanted?"

"Yeah - For you not to park it in my space again."

"Really? I'm sorry, I didn't realise this was your space. It won't happen again. Now can you please move so I can go home?"

"You look like you've had a tough day." Henry smiled at her and for a split second, her stomach did a little flip. A feeling that was neither wanted or welcome.

"Nothing i can't handle."

"It will get easier, I'm sure. I can give you a guided tour sometime if you'd like?"

"I was a student here so I probably know my way around better than you do. Goodnight Dr McCord." She pulled open the door and threw her bag onto the passenger seat

"You can call me Henry."

"I'd rather not."

"You don't like me very much do you?"

She rolled her eyes at him, not wishing to give him the satisfaction of a response and slid behind the wheel, pulling the door closed behind her.

Henry watched her reverse out of the space and drive off and a smile crossed his lips... He needed to know more about this woman... Professor Adams... You are incredibly intriguing.