Jules 12 - Kim

Author's Note: This is a chapter in a multi-part story and is not intended to stand alone. This is my first attempt at writing erotica, so feedback is highly encouraged.

*****

"Fuck!" I watch the button rattle around in the sink briefly before sliding down the drain.

A knock at the door brings reality crashing in. "Jules, are you okay in there?" Kim's voice calls as the door begins to open. I hastily fasten my jacket and shove the scissors back in my purse.

"Yeah," I answer, trying to sound natural. "Just freshening up."

Kim comes in and her eyes give me a discerning once over. "You sure? I thought I heard voices. It sounded... heated."

"You caught me," I chuckle. "I talk to myself sometimes. Does that make me crazy?"

"Not any more than the rest of us." She smiles warmly. Well, warmly for her. But, she's still looking at me curiously, so I change the subject.

"Hey, uh... Thanks again for your help on Friday. That was embarrassing. I'm still not really sure what happened."

"Don't mention it. We've all been there." Then her smile turns predatory. "I mean, we haven't been naked in the bar with a hairbrush up our twat..." I stare at her with wide eyes, stunned speechless. "But we all have our moments." She lets me stew in my shock and humiliation for a moment before continuing. "I will admit, I was surprised you decided to send me those pictures on Saturday. I thought you were trying to put the whole thing behind you."

Double Fuck!!

"Oh, I wanted to tell you," Kim stands directly in front of me and places a finger on the exposed skin at my collar. "I really like your new fashion choices..." She starts to slowly drag her finger down the smooth flesh of my torso, slightly off-center so my shirt gapes lewdly in its path. "I think you should keep it up." Then she turns and exits the restroom, calling "Don't be too long, we have work to do."

FuckFuckFuckFuckFuck! I'm too panicked to try to expand my vocabulary.

"J?" I call out in a whisper. Nothing happens, so I try a little louder, "J!"

"You rang?" she chirps from behind me, making me jump. I think she enjoys startling me.

"You sent the pictures to Kim, too?"

"No,silly, you did." She smiles. "I'm just a figment of your imagination." Seeing my exasperated expression, she continues, "Oh come on. She's a lot more fun than Paul. Besides, it's nothing she hasn't already seen. She found you at Barry's, remember? And how do you think you ended up in your nightshirt?"

"That's not the point," I say, trying not to let my mind drift to J's question. "Now she has pictures. I don't trust her. She could ruin my career."

"Don't be so dramatic. Embarrass you, yes. But hardly ruin your career. You obviously wanted her to have them or you wouldn't have sent them to her. Why do you suppose that is?" I give her an impatient shrug. "I think you secretly love these situations. You get off on people telling you what to do." My mind reels with this suggestion. "For now, I suggest you play along until you figure out how to get them back. Or, at least, keep her quiet."

My brain is spinning a million miles an hour, as I try to process all of the new information. "All weekend, that was really all me?"

"Every deliciously naughty moment." J's behind me again, whispering in my ear and opening my jacket.

"The sandwich shop?"

"All you." Her fingertips glide lightly over my nipples.

"Oh God, the mall... the pictures..."

"You handed them out as soon as you got there." Her hands cup my breasts, squeezing them gently. "You even told them how to bargain." The warm flush of my shame mixes with the gentle torment of her touch. She kisses my neck softly. "This is fun, but you need to get back to work." J fades from view and I stand before the bathroom mirror, groping my own boobs.

"What the fuck is wrong with me?"

I return to my desk to at least look like I'm working. Kim stops by shortly, looking more upbeat than normal. "All set for tonight's deployment?" Crap, I had forgotten. We finished up our latest release on Friday. Hence the celebration. But we never push to production on Fridays. So tonight will be a long night at the office. We rotate the deployments around the team, to keep things fair. I check the schedule, and confirm my fears. Kim and I are scheduled for tonight's run. "By the way," Kim continues. " I asked Rick to stay as well, I figured the experience would be... enlightening. It should be quite the party." I groan inwardly at the double-entendres.

The rest of the afternoon passes without incident. I'm careful to keep my jacket closed. If anyone else on the team notices my state of dress, they don't mention it. Kim makes frequent stops by my desk making idle chit chat. I figure she just wants to gloat. I need to corner her alone and find out what her game is, but the opportunity never presents itself. Shortly after 5, Dan and Jacob head home and the remaining three of us gather in my cube.

There's really precious little work to do, assuming things go well. A more modern shop wouldn't make us stay late at all, but here we are. The deployment itself is automated, as is the test suite. Just press go, wait for your green checkmark at the end, and be on your merry way. It's when things go wrong that you earn your keep. This is a large deployment, but not overly complicated. It will take a while, but I'm not expecting any trouble. No trouble with the deployment, at least.

We take a moment to talk through the steps for Rick's benefit, and soon are underway. "Alright, it's all hurry-up-and-wait from here," Kim says. She nods to me, "You order the pizza. I'm going to the corner for some beer." The pizza is on the company. The beer is technically forbidden, but no one seems to care.

"Hey Rick, would you mind calling the pizza in? I want to go on the beer run with Kim. Girl talk." Rick nods his assent, while Kim eyes me curiously.

Once we're out of the building, Kim turns to me. "Okay, spill."

I'm not really sure how to start. As I mentioned, Kim is a hard person to read. She always comes off a bit gruff, but our encounter earlier felt threatening, or at least ominous.

"What was up with what you said in the bathroom?"

I sense her guard go up. "Which part?"

A dozen things flash through my mind. The part where she tried to humiliate me and talked about my 'twat'. Or the part where she threatened me with the pictures from Friday night. But she has the dirt on me and unloading at her doesn't seem like it's in my best interest. "All of it, really. Look, I know you don't really like me..."

"I have no problem with you," she interjects defensively.

"It never seems like you like me much."

"Where are you going with this, Jules? If you have something to say, just say it."

Okay, here goes. "Were you threatening me in the bathroom?"

"What?" Her surprise seems genuine.

"The way you talked about the pictures, and then the way you touched me. It felt like you were trying to, I don't know, blackmail me or something."

Kim stared back at me, anger rising in her eyes. "Do you really think I would do that?" She speaks in measured words, like she's trying to reign in her temper. Part of me wishes she would just lash out. At least then I would know where I stand. But part of me is afraid of what that would look like.

"I don't know, Kim. I don't know you very well. You've never been very nice to me."

"I'm not very nice to anyone."

"But you're particularly not nice to me."

"And that makes me a criminal?" Kim practically shouts.

"I..." the words won't come.

"Look, Jules," the floodgates are opening and I can feel Kim's frustration pour out. "You've always been a bitch to me. Walking around all high and mighty with a stick up your ass."

"I..." I start to defend myself, but she cuts me off.

"Just shut up and listen!" She's in my face now. "I don't know what I did to get on your bad side, but I'm not going to tiptoe around you. Then Friday, you were all buddy-buddy with me at Barrys, right up until you let your freak flag fly." I feel my cheeks get warm with embarrassment. "And to top it all off, you send me those pictures!"

"Dammit Jules, I helped you out on Friday. You could have been raped! I even stayed to make sure you were okay. I kept your secrets from Rick and the rest of them. I didn't spill about your little performance, or your pictures or the fact that you've been running around with your tits half out all day. And now you come at me with this shit?!?

"Oh, fuck!" I mutter under my breath as I realize just how badly I misread the situation. "So what was that in the bathroom, then?" My head is swimming in confusion.

"I thought you liked me, Jules! I thought you were coming on to me!" She is shouting now. "Turns out I'm just a fucking idiot."

"Oh God, Kim." I reach out to hold her, but she puts a hand up.

"Just... Don't" She turns to walk away. I think I see tears brimming in her eyes.

"Kim, Wait!" I call out to her. "Please!"

She stops, but doesn't face me. "I'm so sorry I said those... I just... God, I think I'm going crazy." I walk up and put a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugs it away. "You didn't do anything wrong. I just... I fucked it all up. You were so nice to me and I couldn't see it." Great, now I'm crying, too.

"Look, I know it's no excuse, but things have been pretty screwed up for me lately. After everything that happened this weekend, I just assumed the worst. I'm really, really sorry."

My apology hangs in the air, with the silence only broken by my sniffles. "Can we just go get some beer," I ask as sincerely as possible, "and maybe see if we can be friends? I could really use a friend right now." She stands as still as a statue, considering my words.

"What happened this weekend?" Kim asks, quietly. Where do I start?

"Well, for starters, I also sent those pictures to Paul."

"Your ex?"

"Yeah."

"I take it back. YOU'RE the fucking idiot." She's not smiling, but she does start to walk in the direction of the liquor store.

"You have no idea. It took a blowjob to get them back."

"No shit?"

By the time we get back to the office, Kim and I are on much better terms. It will take some work to get all the way to friends, but we're well on our way. Her manner takes some getting used to. "I don't do subtle and I don't do polite," she tells me, and her humor is as caustic as it comes. But she shoots straight, and can be a lot of fun. I think this could be the start of something special.