Citrus Blossom

by Sarah Pond

  Jasmine spent the day at home, trying to relax by reading magazines, and watching a bit of television, as she couldn't concentrate on reading a book at the moment. Nothing would take her mind off of Olivia and the monumental mistake that she had made. It would be so much better if she could at least talk to Olivia, and sort things out. She hoped and prayed that Olivia would be understanding, and wouldn't quit her job. Apart from loving having her around, she was damn good at her job. She would accept that her feelings were not reciprocated, and remain professional. Jasmine realised how out of the blue it would have seemed to Olivia. For Jasmine, she had been attracted to Olivia from the day that she had met her, and she thought about her a lot of the time. She hadn't meant to just come out with how she felt like that. Something just came over her, and she couldn't stop herself. Jasmine sighed. She tried Olivia's home number, and Emma picked up. No, Olivia wasn't in, in fact she didn't know what her plans were this weekend. Jasmine decided to leave another voicemail message, dearly hoping she would get a call back this time.

  Olivia opened the door to the flat, and was greeted by Emma who was in the lounge. 'Hi, did you have a good day? A woman rang for you not long ago, I said I didn't know when you would be back.'

  'Oh, do you know who it was?' Olivia asked, hopefully innocently, knowing full well who it must have been.

  'No, she said it wasn't urgent, she would try again another time.'

  Olivia then remembered that she had turned her phone off at the museum, and hadn't turned it back on again. 'Okay, thanks,' she said as she turned and walked into her room.

  She turned her phone on, and sat on the bed. Sure enough, there was a message from Jasmine. Pressing the voicemail button, she waited for the message to start. 'Hi, it's me again. Look, we really should talk. I've been so worried and feel really bad about what happened. Please give me a call so we can talk and clear the air.'

  Olivia realised she couldn't just keep ignoring Jasmine, but she also wasn't ready to talk to her yet. What on earth would she say? If she sent a text, maybe Jasmine would let it be for now. 'Sorry I haven't returned your calls. I'm not sure what to say or even think at the moment. Just give me some time please.' There, that should do it for now. Almost immediately, her phone pinged with a response.

  'Of course. I think it would be good to talk in person, though.'

  Now that she had time to sit and think, Olivia replayed what had happened on Friday. Had she really had no idea? She got on really well with Jasmine, and thought that they had a great working relationship. Occasionally, Jasmine would touch her arm, or smile warmly at her. But she was like that with everyone, wasn't she? Had she lead Jasmine on in some way, given off some signals that she hadn't been aware of. Olivia had no point of reference, what should she do. Could she pretend it hadn't happened. Jasmine certainly seemed very sorry and seemed to want to sort it out. But something was worrying Olivia, at the back of her mind. The kiss had really turned her on. This was a shocking realisation. Fuck. It was the sexiest thing that had ever happened to her. When she had just let go, the feeling was sensational. She had never known that a kiss could convey so much, and the way that Jasmine had held her body close, she felt connected in a way she hadn't known was possible. This is crazy, Olivia told herself. Maybe it was just the attention, the complete surprise, and she was just caught in the moment. Olivia told herself that it was the spontaneity that she had responded to. But why couldn't it have happened with Jason, or some other guy.

  Jasmine was relieved that she'd had a response from Olivia. She had been worried sick. Well, best to leave things for tonight. She would decide in the morning what to do. Now she was feeling a bit easier, she decided to lose herself in a book, curled up on the sofa. Rocky, her beautiful black cat, came padding over and curled up next to her. Rocky looked up at her owner with sparkling green eyes, and purred. Olivia had beautiful green eyes, and the thought made Jasmine sad, like she was losing something which had never been hers in the first place.

  Sunday morning was beautiful. Jasmine got out of bed and opened the curtains, being greeted by sunshine and a clear blue sky. After showering and having breakfast, she fed Rocky and decided that she would go for a walk. One of her favourite places was Regent's Park. Even after all these years she would forget just how green and spacious London was in some areas. It really felt like she was somewhere else, and gave her the space to breathe. After wandering around for a while, she went to the cafe and ordered a pot of tea. She decided to try calling Olivia again. To her surprise, Olivia picked up. 'Hi, how are you?' Jasmine asked, and heard some hesitation before the reply.

  'I'm fine, thank you. Sorry I couldn't talk before. I just needed a bit of time to myself.'

  'Of course. I just wanted to say how sorry I am. I've never done anything like this before, I don't know what came over me. I feel awful. I really hope that you'll stay on working with me, but I do understand you may not want to. I would obviously give you an outstanding reference. Believe me, I would have never made a move if I'd realised... If I'd known... I thought you knew,' Jasmine didn't know what to say.

  Olivia could hear the worry and concern in Jasmine's voice. 'Look, it's fine. You caught me off guard, that's all. I've never had anything like that happen before, not even with a guy,' Olivia hesitated, then before she could stop herself, she said, 'Actually, it was kind of romantic.'

  At those words, Jasmine felt a rush of relief. 'I'm glad you're okay. All I can do is apologise again. I promise I will be completely professional from now on. If there's anything you want me to do, just say.'

  'It's fine. See you at work tomorrow, bye.'

  And Olivia was gone. Jasmine was relieved, although she also felt sad, knowing that it wasn't to be. Of course, nothing changed the way that Jasmine felt, she thought Olivia was gorgeous and she loved being with her. She would just have to shelve those feelings away. She had years of experience, putting a front on things. But Olivia had said she thought it was romantic, and that thought gave Jasmine a kick of longing and excitement.

  Olivia decided to stay in on Sunday, and have a quiet day. Emma was at Matt's today, so she had the place to herself. She could read, watch a film, laze around. Olivia was glad that she had spoken to Jasmine, and she thought that things would be okay now. It had just been a mistake. Jasmine was very apologetic, and now she knew Olivia was straight, so that was that. She still wondered why Jasmine would risk making a move like that, maybe she knew something that Olivia didn't. Despite everything, Olivia couldn't deny that it was the most romantic and sexy thing that had ever happened to her. Still, at the thought of it, she felt that tingle, the excitement, the wonderful feeling of getting swept up in the moment, being lost in something much bigger than she was...

  CHAPTER FIVE

  On Monday morning, Jasmine was feeling nervous. She walked into the outer office, greeted Laura, and went straight into her office, closing the door behind her. She sat at her desk, trying to think about what she had to do today. She didn't have any meetings, as she and Jason usually kept their Mondays clear to catch up with work after the weekend. Also, after the book launch, it would be good to slow things down a little bit. There was a tap on the door, and Jasmine said, 'Come in.' She looked up to see Laura standing there.

  'Just to let you know, Olivia is going to be in a bit later today, she said that you mentioned that it would be okay if she did a half day. I expect she's exhausted after all that work for the book launch, she put in so much time and energy. Anyway, I can cover anything you need today.'

  'Thank you, Laura. I don't have too much to do, mostly I'm going to be reading manuscripts today.'

  'Um, are you alright, Jasmine? You don't seem your usual self, if you don't mind me saying,' Laura looked concerned.

  'I'm fine, thank you. I'm just a bit tired,' and she smiled weakly.

  Laura went back to her desk, closing the door behind her. Jasmine slumped back in her chair, sighing heavily.

  Olivia came in after lunch. Laura thought that sh
e seemed a bit quiet, and put it down to tiredness. Jasmine came out of her office mid afternoon, and stopped in her tracks when she saw Olivia. Olivia's face flushed, then she recovered herself, and they greeted each other. Jasmine just checked something in the diary with Olivia, and then went back to her office. Olivia was pleased that there wasn't much to do today. She was finding it strange, knowing how Jasmine felt about her, but everything appearing to be normal. Well, she thought, if I can get through today, it will get easier.

  Jasmine went back into her office and closed the door. Shit, this is harder than I thought it would be. I really should not have said anything to Olivia. Christ, I kissed her. What was I thinking. Well, thinking hadn't really come into it. Jasmine knew that she would just have to deal with it. Olivia was okay about everything, which was pretty astounding in itself. Things could have gone really badly. Jasmine would just have to go back to putting on a front, as she had become accustomed to do for most of her life. She envied Olivia's freedom, she just seemed comfortable to be herself.

  As the week went on, Laura noticed that Olivia and Jasmine were behaving differently around each other. They were polite, friendly still, but there was a tension there that Laura had not seen before. She assumed it must be something to do with the book launch. They had both been working really long hours, they were probably fed up spending so much time together.

  Olivia distracted herself with work as much as she could, but she was still having trouble trying to forget what had happened. Certainly, if she was that way inclined, Jasmine was beautiful and sexy, quite a catch. Olivia was surprised that Jasmine was single at all. Of all the people she could be with, Olivia didn't understand why Jasmine wanted her. But it had felt exciting and wonderful to be wanted in that way, to be so desired. Fuck, she was in trouble.

  On Friday morning, Emma called out, 'Bye Livvy, I'm off to work now, see you tonight.'

  'Mmm, okay, see you later,' Olivia said sleepily as she turned over to look at her clock.

  It was eight o'clock. She had already decided that she wasn't going to go into work today, this week was proving really difficult. Jasmine was being professional, to the point of formality, but Olivia still couldn't get her head around what had happened. She knew that Jasmine wasn't going to do anything like that again, she had made that clear. But each time Olivia remembered what had happened, it gave her a flush of excitement. And when she saw Jasmine, she felt like a teenager. At least Laura and Jason didn't know anything about it. Also, Jasmine had said that she could take some time off after the launch, so Olivia not going in wouldn't raise any suspicion. She left a message for Laura. Olivia was well aware that this was only a short term measure, she was going to have to find a way of working with Jasmine. She would just pretend that nothing had happened, and they could go back to the way things were. Still, one more day to herself would be good, and then it was the weekend. Olivia got back into bed, turned over and drifted off to sleep again. Some time later Olivia was aware of a noise somewhere. She rubbed her eyes and sat up, and as she came to, realised that someone was knocking on the door. Probably Emma had left her key behind and realised when she got down the road. 'Okay, I'm coming,' and Olivia went to the door. As she opened it, she stopped short when she saw Jasmine standing there.

  'Hi. Sorry, but I just had to see you. Can I come in?' Jasmine looked tired and concerned.

  Olivia hesitated, 'Yes, of course.' She stood back to let Jasmine in, and closed the door. For a moment they just stood there looking at each other, then Olivia dropped her gaze.

  'Olivia, I'm so sorry. I know this week has been difficult, and I'm not sure what to do or say. You know now how I feel about you, and I know that you don't feel the same way. I want you to know that I will be completely professional from now on. I just thought that we hadn't spoken about this in person since... it happened.' Jasmine had meant to stop, but seeing Olivia again, standing so close to her, she felt a desperate longing, and couldn't help herself. 'You have completely beguiled me, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about you. You are so beautiful, and when I think of that kiss...' Jasmine looked at Olivia with wide, worried eyes.

  What surprised Olivia more than seeing Jasmine at the door, was her own reaction. Olivia closed the space between them and kissed Jasmine full on the lips. Jasmine couldn't believe what was happening, and responded passionately. Their hands were in each others' hair, and all over each other. Olivia kissed like she had never kissed before, as if her life depended on it. The passion she felt soared through her body, her skin felt highly sensitised and she felt that twist of excitement in her stomach and an intense heat between her legs. She felt Jasmine's hands slide down to her bottom, and then up her back. In response, she slid her hands down Jasmine's body. Olivia had never touched or kissed another woman in this way, but in this moment, it felt so natural to her, and exciting. Fuck, what is this woman doing to me. She pulled back, breathless, looking up at Jasmine, who looked ecstatic, albeit a bit confused. 'This is not at all what I expected!' laughed Jasmine, her face glowing, the signs of concern and tiredness nowhere to be seen.

  'Um, not what I expected either. I've shocked myself, quite frankly!' and they burst into fits of laughter.

  Olivia invited Jasmine in, and went to make a cup of tea for Jasmine, and coffee for herself. 'I fell back to sleep, what time is it?' Olivia asked.

  'It's ten thirty. Once Laura said that you weren't coming in, I just couldn't stay at work, I had to see you. I was hoping to have a chat with you, if you'd even let me in. I've been worried sick.'

  Jasmine watched Olivia making the drinks, and could see that she felt self conscious. She desperately wanted to kiss Olivia again, but didn't want to make the first move. As it was, she still couldn't believe that Olivia had kissed her like she just had. Olivia looked down, 'Sorry I didn't call you back when you left me those messages. I was feeling really confused, my head was all over the place, and I needed some time to myself.'

  Jasmine touched Olivia's arm, and Olivia lifted her head to meet Jasmine's gaze. Could Jasmine feel that electric connection that Olivia was feeling? 'There's really no need to apologise. I completely understood that I caught you off guard. I felt so bad about what happened, and what you thought of me. I've never done anything like that before.'

  Olivia broke her gaze, and looked down at herself. 'Forgive the state of me, I need to get showered and dressed.'

  'You look very cute in your pj's!' Jasmine smiled.

  'I guess I won't be in trouble for not coming in today, then!' laughed Olivia.

  Olivia took the drinks to the coffee table and they sat down on the sofa, Olivia sitting crossed legged opposite Jasmine. They sipped their drinks, and smiled at each other. A strand of hair fell over Olivia's face, and Jasmine leaned forward to gently tuck it behind her ear. As Jasmine's hand gently touched her hair and her face, Olivia felt a tingle of excitement. Jasmine looked right into Olivia's eyes, a look that seemed to touch her very soul. 'I can't tell you how happy I am right now,' whispered Jasmine.

  Olivia found Jasmine tantalising, and very softly, she said, 'Try.' Her heart was so beating so fast. Jasmine leaned forward and began kissing Olivia softly, lingering and savouring every moment. Now she felt that she had permission, Olivia was asking for this, and it felt so good. Jasmine took her time, she didn't want to do anything that Olivia didn't want to, she didn't want a repeat of last Friday and how it had left her feeling over the weekend. Jasmine still couldn't believe that this was happening. Olivia felt Jasmine's tongue gently exploring her mouth, entwining with her tongue. As they kissed, they became more urgent, more passionate, and now their hands were all over each other. Olivia was intoxicated with desire. Now Jasmine moved on top, and began running her hands down Olivia's chest. Olivia was feeling sensations that she wouldn't have dreamed of. Jasmine asked, 'Is this okay?'

  Olivia responded with a nod and a shy smile. Jasmine cupped Olivia's breasts through her pyjamas, massaging them, 'You feel so good,' she whispered. It was a l
ong time since she'd been in a relationship. She spent so much of her time working, and of course one of her rules had been to never get involved with anyone at work. But Olivia was irresistible.