The meeting had broken up quickly after Jade and Lisa left. John departed for the meetings he had that afternoon, Tori in tow. Jasmine went back to her temporary office she had set up on John's conference table. April hauled out her own laptop, and settled down to run through the IP addresses again. Running out of ideas, she thought she'd take a swing at seeing if any of the fake names might be a real name, twisted around. Or maybe one of these fake names could be the name of a relative of an employee. It was one hell of a long shot, and would take countless hours to sort through, but she was running out of threads to pull.
"Have you had any luck tracing the books," April asked Jasmine.
"No. The computer records the initials of the person who makes the entry, but when I questioned the people the computer credits with the altered entries, I get solemn oaths that it wasn't them. Several people have even volunteered for lie detectors. Can you believe that?"
"I've seen enough to believe people are capable of damn near anything."
"Well, it all checks out, so far." Studying April, Jasmine felt her curiosity begin to peak. Taking a chance, she decided to find out if she could get April to dish a little.
"So tell me, cher, have you always wanted to be a private investigator?"
April glanced up from her laptop, found Jasmine studying her, and gave the woman her full attention. "No. I just kind of fell into it."
"How?"
Here it comes, the inquisition. "I worked part-time as a secretary for this P.I. back home, when I was in school. Eventually, he started teaching me the basics, like how to do background checks, that kind of thing. When I graduated, I realized that I probably wasn't going to find a job in journalism, and I really liked the work I was doing for Ed, so he helped me get my license and hired me on as another investigator."
"You went to college?" Jasmine seemed a little surprised that April had a college degree.
Feeling defensive at Jasmine's reaction, April's answer was a little sharper than she intended. "What's the matter, Jasmine, think I'm too much of a street punk to have earned a Bachelor's?"
Jasmine winced, realizing that her question had come off like an insult. "No, April, I don't think you're a punk. I was just surprised, that's all. For some reason, I just pictured you knowing what career you wanted from the word go, and then getting it."
"I did. I just didn't get it, so I found something else. That's life," she said with a shrug.
From the way April said it, Jasmine got the impression that April had suffered other disappointments, some of which had really stung. She wanted to know more but, not wanting to anger her further, tried to steer things into a safer subject. "A writing major, huh. Did you have a double major?"
"No. What made you think that?"
"Well, you're really good with computers so, I just figured you probably had a double major."
April saw that, while Jasmine really was interested, she had carefully worded her answer in an attempt to mollify her. She studied Jasmine, unknowingly cocking her head a little as she considered the woman across from her.
Jasmine had to smile. The way April was holding her head made her think of Sassy, the golden retriever she and Jade had when they were little girls.
April finally decided to answer Jasmine. "English Writing was my only major. I minored in U.S. History, Computer Science and Art History."
"Wow! I'm impressed, cher. You're a little bit of a book worm, aren't you?"
"I live for books. Books and music. Now how about you show me those computer entries you mentioned a few minutes ago." April was curious about the accounting entries, but she also wanted to steer Jasmine away from her personal questions before she started to dig too deep.
Hours later, April head the noise associated with a relaxed, mass exiting of people. Quitting time. Seeing that it was five o'clock, she suggested to Jasmine that they back up their work and head out. "We can finish this at your house."
"You're coming home with me?"
"Yeah," April said in a kind of exaggerated voice. "What, you think bodyguards clock out at five like everyone else? I hate to break it to you, angel, but it's a 24/7 kind of job," she said with a teasing grin.
Returning the smile, Jasmine got up and started gathering their papers. She liked the way April had just called her angel. They had spent the rest of the day going over the accounting logs. It didn't take long before they had eased into a kind of rhythm, and Jasmine had found that she really enjoyed working with April. They just kind of clicked. With that thought, Jasmine's mind jumped back to this morning and the kisses they had shared. Oh yeah. We click all right.
April saw the cat like smile on Jasmine's face and paused in the middle of packing up her laptop. "What's up with you," April asked teasingly.
Jasmine's head shot up like a little kid caught sneaking something. "What?"
April laughed at Jasmine's "caught with her hand in the cookie jar" behavior. "What's with the feline grin, angel?"
Man, she could really get used to hearing that endearment, Jasmine thought. She turned coy though, realizing April was watching her. "No grin, cher, I'm just happy to be heading home. I don't know about you, but I could really use a change of clothes and a glass of wine." That said, Jasmine hurried towards the door, before April saw through that too.
Shaking her head in amusement, April gathered up her things and followed Jasmine out the door.
Jasmine had driven April to her apartment to pick up some clothes, since she would be spending the night at Jade and Jasmine's place. Then they headed for the home the sisters shared. The drive there took longer than April expected. When she saw they were well past the city limits, she questioned Jasmine as to where, exactly, they were headed. Jasmine had just smiled and told her to be patient.
Ten minutes later, Jasmine steered the car through an open, wrought iron gate that was covered in crawling vines. Working their way up the drive, April gasped as the house came into view. It held a striking resemblance to Tara, from "Gone With the Wind", only slightly smaller.
"No wonder you and Jade live together. Each of you could take over a half of the house and never know the other one was home!"
Jasmine laughed. She had been worried that April would see the sprawling plantation house and decide she and Jade were a couple of first class snobs, but April stared at the house in a kind of awed trance, seemingly fascinated with it.
"You like, cher?"
"I love! God, this is the real thing, isn't it?"
"The real what, cher?"
"An honest to God southern plantation."
"Yes, it is. Our family built the place shortly before the Civil War. They grew cotton here back then. You know much about the war?"
"I told you I minored in U.S. History, right? Well, the Civil War was what I focused on. My mother's family hailed from down south. My mom pretty much grew up in Pittsburgh, but she wasn't born there. I'm a first generation Yankee on her side of the family. I was told I'm suppose to have a great-great-great grandfather, or something like that, who fought for the Confederates."
Jasmine gave April a look of surprise, and then smiled at her. "I knew there was a reason I liked you, cher."
Now it was April's turn to look a bit shocked. "You know, until this morning, I thought you hated my guts."
Jasmine gasped. "God no!" She let out a sigh as it dawned on her just how harsh she had been with April when they first met. "I'm sorry, April. I was upset at the idea that Uncle John hired you because he didn't trust me to handle things. I took it out on you and I shouldn't have. Accept my apology?"
April felt herself relax a little, happy at the turn in Jasmine's attitude towards her. "Accepted. Now how about that wine you mentioned?"
Smiling, Jasmine reached for April's hand and headed into the house.
Jade watched as April helped Jasmine wash the dinner dishes. They had come into the house earlier holding hands. Now they were laughing and joking together. Jade's eyes narrowed with suspicion. That's fine, she thought. April claimed she was going to bed right after dinner. Ok by me, Jade thought. She'll go to bed alright, she just won't be falling asleep. Smirking at her own joke, Jade headed up to her room to set her plan in motion.
April helped Jasmine put the last of the dishes away, then headed upstairs to turn in for the night. She got a little lost in the maze of hallways and doors, but finally found her room. Walking in, she pushed the door shut behind her and sat down on the edge of the bed. She pulled off her boots, socks and pulled her shirt off. Then she sank back on to the bed, sighing at the feel of the soft mattress giving under her weight. God, but she was tired! Laying there, her mind started to drift back to what had happened in the alley this morning. She felt her body rev up a little at the memory of having Jasmine pinned against her, the way her cute little ass felt in the palm of her hand, their tongues warring.
A soft knock at the door had her jumping up. She surprised herself at how quickly she crossed the room to answer the door. She swung it open, finding Jade leaning against the doorway, her robe hanging open. What was under the robe was Jade, in a pair of stockings, garter belt and nothing else. April sucked in a breath.
Jade tapped down her frown, not liking the slight hint of disappointment in April's face when she opened the door. Doesn't matter. In a few more minutes, April won't even remember Jasmine's name.
"Evening, cher. Mind if I come in?" But Jade didn't wait for an answer, and was across the room before she even finished speaking.
April felt a moments' irritation. 'Chill out,' she thought to herself. Jade doesn't know what happened with Jasmine. She has no reason not to assume that I'm sitting up here waiting for her. Now's the time to nip this in the bud, before someone gets hurt.
"Hi, Jade. Can we talk for a minute?"
"No, cher. Talking is the last thing I have in mine." With that, Jade let the robe slide down her arms. Then she tossed it at April.
April gulped down a breath, reaching out to catch the robe before it hit her in the face. She started to open her mouth to speak, but before she could form a word, Jade had her tongue down her throat, her hands roaming all over her body. "Mmmmmmm," was all April could get out. Even that was muffled.
Jade's hands slipped down April's back, diving right inside her jeans and panties to cup her ass. She started kneading the flesh while she pushed a knee between April's legs, pressing her thigh up against April's mound, never breaking the kiss. All thought fled out the door when one of Jade's fingers pushed between her ass cheeks to brush over her rosebud. She jerked at the touch, which forced her tighter against Jade's silk covered thigh, her hands automatically reaching up to frame Jade's face.
'Oh yeah. This is working just fine,' Jade thought. Without pulling her hands out of April's panties, she slid one around to her pussy. She starting flicking April's clit with one hand, while teasing around her rosebud with the other.
"Shit, Jade!" April jerked, caught between Jade's hands.
"Wound a little tight, aren't you, cher? Wet too. You've been waiting for me all day, haven't you, baby?" Not giving April time to answer, she pulled her hands free and pushed April onto the bed. She quickly unsnapped April's jeans and, grabbing the jeans and panties together, yanked them down and off. She leaped on top of April and began to finger fuck her while she sucked on her tongue.
April felt her hips begin to buck against Jade in earnest. Lord, she didn't realize just how close she was to the edge. Now that her pussy was getting all this attention, she could fell an orgasm quickly building.
Sensing April was close to cumming, Jade pulled her fingers out of April's wet channel and, sitting up a little, urged April further on to the bed. She helped her out of her bra and sucked one breast into her mouth, teasing the nipple with her tongue. Jade used her other hand to pinch and roll the other nipple between her finger and thumb. Then she stopped, turning around so that she and April were now in the 69 position. Jade looked back over her shoulder at April. "I know you're tired, cher, so I'll let you have the bottom," she said with a wink.
April's laughter was cut short with a gasp, when she felt Jade hook an arm under her leg, then use it to keep April's leg pushed back towards her chest. Jade's head descended down to her wet heat. Her tongue began tracing a line from April's clit, all the way down to her rose bud, Jade pushing just the tip of her tongue down between April's pussy lips as she went.
April's hips bucked, lifting up off the bed, but not getting very far. Jade was using her weight to push April's body into the mattress. Deciding she needed to play catch up, she gripped Jade's hips and shifted her into position. April slid her lips down over Jade's clit and began gently sucking, slowly increasing the pressure, occasionally flicking the little nub with her tongue.
Jade moaned against April's lips, feeling April getting into the moment. Jade smiled against April's pussy. She pulled her head back a little and used two fingers to dip in and scoop up some precious girl honey. Then she pushed those fingers down between April's ass cheeks and began spreading cum on her rosebud.
Again, April's hips bucked in response. She released Jade's clit and started tracing the inside of Jade's labia with her tongue, getting closer and closer to her love hole with each pass.
Jade pulled her fingers away from April's rosebud, and started sucking on her middle finger with her mouth. Once she felt sure the finger was good and wet, she bent down and, while teasing April's pussy with her tongue, slowly working her finger into her bud.
"Aaaaaaah," April moaned. The feel of Jade's finger pushing through the tight little ring was really making her temperature spike. She pushed her tongue into Jade's soaking wet channel as far as it would go. When she felt Jade's hips jerk, she started working her tongue in and out, never pulling completely out. She'd stop just at the tip; wait a few seconds, then push back in with one quick stroke.
Jade starting working her finger in and out of April's ass with quicker strokes, swirling her tongue inside April's love channel. She felt a moan rip from her throat as April's tongue picked up speed.
April moaned as she tongue fucked Jade's glistening pussy. She started to tremble as Jade's finger and tongue, once again, picked up speed, her lower body jerking, trying to get more of Jade's tongue and finger at the same time. She could feel the pressure building, becoming almost painful. She reached around to rub Jade's clit, pushing down on it.
Jade knew April was only seconds away, so she started pounding her finger into April's ass, her tongue licking and pushing inside her vagina. She felt April's voice vibrating against her pussy, causing her to tremble.
Suddenly, April couldn't breath. Ripping her mouth away from Jade's pussy, she slid her hand down from Jade's clit and pushed three fingers inside to replace her tongue. Gasping for air, she felt a scream tear from her throat as her body exploded, her hips pounding against Jade's face. At the same time, Jade's pussy began to piston up and down on her fingers, her vaginal muscles clamping down.
Jade pulled her mouth away from April's pussy, leaving only her finger hammering away inside her. They both began to scream and moan, their bodies slapping together. All of a sudden, April saw stars, then nothing at all.
She woke the next morning to the sound of zydeco music blasting in her ear. Fumbling for the snooze button, she pulled herself into a sitting position. Leaning against the headboard, she looked around, noticing Jade was gone. Instead, there was a rose laying on the pillow beside her. Smiling, she picked it up, held it to her face and inhaled. Mmmmm, she loved the smell of roses. They were her favorite flower. She bounced out of bed feeling pretty damn good, considering it was six in the morning. Grabbing fresh underwear and a new pair of jeans, she headed for the shower.
Downstairs, Jade stood in the kitchen doorway, leaning against the door jam, watching Jasmine make breakfast. "Since when do you cook at this hour, baby girl?"
Jasmine glanced up, seeing Jade watching her with suspicious eyes. "I don't know. Just felt like cooking this morning, I guess," Jasmine said with a shrug.
Frowning, Jade walked over to the cabinet and pulled out two coffee mugs.
"No thanks, Jade. I've already got a cup."
"I see that, Jasmine. I'm going to take a cup upstairs to April."
"She doesn't drink coffee. I've already got a glass of orange juice poured for her. That's what she prefers."
Jade's eyes narrowed, wondering how in the hell Jasmine knew that. Reaching for the glass she said, "Fine. I'll just take that up to her instead."
Jasmine snatched the glass up before Jade could grab it. "I'm on my way with it now," and she took off for the steps.
Jade smelled the eggs burning and jerked the skillet off the burner with one hand, turning it off with the other. Then she turned and rushed up the steps, hurrying after Jasmine. She damn well intended to find out why Jasmine, who never ate anything more complicated than a muffin for breakfast, was suddenly up before six, cooking for April.
April walked out of the bathroom, dressed only in her underwear and jeans, toweling her hair dry and singing along to Alannah Myles's "Black Velvet". She loved to burn her own CD's and had brought a few with her. She'd listen to music from dawn to dusk everyday, if she could.
The song ended, and Godsmack's "Voodoo" started up. April started dancing to the music while she laid a couple of shirts on the bed, trying to decide what to wear. God, I love this song, she thought. It's just so..so primal. The shirts quickly forgotten, April hooked her arms over her head and began swaying to the music, loving the sensual, erotic drumbeat.
"Shit!" She jerked to a halt, finding Jade and Jasmine standing in her doorway. Both sisters had a hungry look in their eyes, thoroughly enjoying April's little show.
"Sorry, cher," Jasmine purred. "You didn't answer my knock, so I opened the door. I was just checking to see if you were ok."
"She looks pretty fine to me," Jade added, her voice husky.
"Thanks. I'll be down in a minute." Embarrassed, April quickly shut the door on both women, grabbing the glass of orange juice Jasmine shoved at her as she shut the door. Once it was closed, she turned and sagged against it, sliding down until she sat on the floor. "Shit!"
In the hallway, Jasmine frowned at the door, then started back for the kitchen. She had only taken a few steps when Jade's hand locked around her arm, pulling her back around, none too gently.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, baby girl," Jade demanded.
"What?"
"Don't play innocent with me, Jasmine. What do you think you're doing making April breakfast and running up here with orange juice for her?" Jade glared at her sister. "You puttin' the moves on my girl, cher?" Jade asked, her accent thickening as her temper spiked.
"No! You're the one who told me to be nice to her, so I thought I'd make her breakfast," Jasmine flung back.
"Then run through McDonalds and buy her a sandwich while she guards your precious little ass all the way to work," Jade snapped. "I say her first, cher," she added in a warning tone.
"No, actually cher, I saw her first," Jasmine returned snidely, feeling her temper rise.
"Like hell!"
"I literally ran into her on the elevator the day she arrived, so yes, I saw her first," Jasmine's voice defensive.
Jade's eyes narrowed as she glared at her sister. "Back off, Jasmine. She's taken," her voice a serious warning. Then she pushed past her sister and headed for the stairs.
Jasmine watched her sister stalk off down the hallway. "Yes, she is," Jasmine said under her breath, her voice possessive. Jade never heard her.