Date: Mon, 12 Sep 2005 16:31:24 GMT
From: "aann74@juno.com" <aann74@juno.com>
Subject: Missing You, Missing Me Ch. 5

April's growling stomach woke Jasmine from a deep, contented sleep. She was
lying on her side facing the French doors that stood on the opposite end of
her room, and opened out onto a large balcony that had it's own set of
steps leading down to the side yard. She smiled as she felt April spooned
against her back, her arms draped over Jasmine's waist. She felt good,
happy, and knew that she and April were finally on their way to having a
future together. A very long one, she hoped.

Looking around her room, she studied the big, brown leather couch that
faced the fireplace that was built into the wall facing the bed. Her room
was done in rich, dark tones, browns and hunter greens that were more
suited for a man's room. Actually, the room had been her father's. He'd
slept here whenever he and her mother were having a row, and had decorated
the room himself. Staying here always made her feel closer to him. She
always felt saddened at the memory of that day in the kitchen, when her
world exploded apart. It had taken a very long time before she had finally
understood what had driven him to destruction that day. Love, passion,
could be a powerful, all consuming thing; a creature that drove all
rational thought away. She snuggled against April and knew that she finally
understood what that felt like, being so involved with someone that the
rightness of your world depended on them. It was a scary feeling sometimes,
but could also fill a person's heart with so much happiness; you felt like
you were floating through air, your feet never touching the ground.

She felt April stir against her and smiled. Their tempers, and mountains of
pride, sometimes caused the two of them to fight something awful, but
Jasmine knew April loved her as much as she loved April, and knew that
April would never lift a finger against her. Maybe that's where her parents
had gone wrong. They had a fierce passion, but not enough trust, enough
love. Staring into the darkness, she wasn't afraid of her and April falling
into the same trap. They may fight and scream, even throw things at each
other at times, but they'd never cause each other physical
harm. Instinctively she knew they would both draw the line there.

She remembered the day she and Jade had moved back into this house, as
adults. Jade had been concerned when she had chosen this room for
herself. A picture of Jade's face that day, frowning, concern in her eyes,
formed in her mind and she suddenly missed her sister something
awful. Again, her temper had gotten the better of her and she'd been to
busy yelling instead of listening. Well, she'd fixed things with April, now
it was time to patch up her relationship with her sister, if she could find
her. Jasmine twisted around to face April. Watching her sleep, she wondered
how much progress April had made on her sister's case. John had told her a
little bit, but they'd quickly moved on to discuss her feelings for April,
so she hadn't gotten full disclosure concerning the meeting between April
and her uncle. April's stomach growled again and Jasmine smothered a
laugh. If she could get April to wake up, maybe she would fill her in on
what she'd found, while they raided the kitchen for a midnight snack.

Jasmine gave April's shoulder a gentle push. When that didn't work, she
shook a little harder. Finally, she watched as April pried her eyes open,
saw blurry eyes stare at her for a minute, then watched a sleepy smile
spread across April's face as she realized were she was and who she was
with.

"You real?" April muttered.

"Very much so," Jasmine replied with a chuckle. April was so cute when she
was half asleep.

"Promise?"

"Cross my heart, hope to die." Jasmine pressed her lips to April's and felt
April tug her closer.

"Mmmm. That's nice." April's voice was still thick with sleep and Jasmine
decided she liked the sound of it.

April's stomach growled again and this time Jasmine couldn't stop herself
from laughing. April gave her a sheepish grin and eased herself into a
sitting position, wiping the sleep dust from her eyes. Jasmine rested her
head against April's stomach and kissed the hummingbird that sat low on
April's abdomen, just above her mound.

April groaned as she felt a spark of excitement spread through her. "Mercy,
angel, show mercy. I want you, but I think I'm too sore to do very much,"
she said, laughing.

Jasmine knew there was an evil grin spreading over her face as she
remembered the day's events. Once they got home, they'd gone straight to
her room and had spent the rest of the day making love, over and
over. Sometimes they'd been rough with each other, desperate with
passion. Other times they'd just gone slow, exploring and enjoying each
other. Jasmine wondered if there'd ever come a time when they didn't feel
the need to jump each other's bones at every available moment. Lord, she
hoped not.

With another quick kiss, she climbed out of bed and went in search of a
robe. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw April sitting naked on the edge
of the bed, yawning and still trying to wipe the sleep from her eyes. She
felt a little spark ignite low in her belly and briefly considered going
another round, then remembered how sore April said she was. Thinking it
best to give her lover time to regroup, she fished a second robe out of her
closet and tossed it at April.

April had her eyes half closed, willing them to focus, when she got a face
full of silk. The rope dropped in her lap and she looked up to find Jasmine
shrugging into her own robe. She watched the silk skim over Jasmine's body,
groaned, and felt a brief moment of sadness as Jasmine's naked body
disappeared from view as she tied the belt around her waist. She climbed
off the bed onto unsteady legs and almost fell backwards onto the bed as
she found her legs too weak to hold her. She heard Jasmine's smug laugh and
shot her a nasty look. It took her a few minutes, but she finally managed
to get the robe on and knotted the belt into place. She looked up to fine
Jasmine watching her, and saw the gleam in her eye, even in the darkened
room.

"Later, angel," she muttered and stumbled towards the short hallway that
led to Jasmine's private bathroom.

"Need any help?"

The sexy sound of Jasmine's exaggerated southern drawl had heat coursing
through April's body. Damn if she wasn't half tempted to turn around and
jump Jasmine right there on the floor. Grabbing the bathroom doorway for
support, she shot Jasmine a withering look over her shoulder.

"Maybe later."

Jasmine grinned like the Cheshire cat as April shoved the door shut,
cutting off her view. She heard the lock click into place, then thought
about the key to the bathroom that was tucked away in a little box on top
of her dresser. Sweet Jesus! April was right; at this rate, they would end
up fucking each other to death. Thinking that would be a fun way to go, she
sat down on the bed and waited for April. She should probably just head for
the kitchen, get herself out of a room filled with temptation, but was
afraid April would kill herself trying to fine the kitchen in this big old
house, in the dark.

Minutes later, April staggered back into the bedroom and Jasmine grabbed
her hand, dragging her towards the door. "Food?" Jasmine laughed at the
hopeful sound in April's voice, then laughed even harder when April's
stomach growled again, right on cue.

Holding onto her hand, Jasmine led April down a set of back steps that went
from the second floor and ended at the back of the kitchen. It was built
over a hundred years ago to allow the servants to move from the kitchen to
rest of the house without begin seen on the main staircase. It was very
close to Jasmine's room and she always found it very useful, especially if
she was trying to sneak to the kitchen, undetected.

As the kitchen came into view, April spotted the counter and immediately
thought back to that night she'd done a body shot here with Jasmine. She
groaned at the memory and saw Jasmine give her a questioning look over her
shoulder. Desperate to get her mind on something else, she pushed past
Jasmine and made a beeline for the refrigerator. "Food," she muttered at
Jasmine as she passed.

Jasmine shook her head, smiling, and went over to help April raid the
kitchen. Ten minutes later, they had a wide assortment of food spread over
the kitchen table. Jasmine sat in April's lap, feeding her crackers,
laughing as April jerked the food out of her hand, too hungry to have any
patience for being feed.

Twenty minutes later, April leaned back in her chair and wrapped both arms
around Jasmine's waist. "Oh God, I feel stuffed!"

"It's about time," came Jasmine's sarcastic reply. "I think there's a piece
of the table you forgot to wolf down, cher."

"Ha, ha," April shot back. "I haven't eaten anything in almost 24
hours. It's a miracle I didn't pass out today, from all that exercise on an
empty stomach."

Jasmine winced at the reminder that, 24 hours ago, April was making love to
Alyshia instead of her. But she was with her now, so Jasmine pushed the
thought aside and got down to business. "Uncle John mentioned that you
found Jade, but there's some kind of problem."

April nodded, then filled Jasmine in on recent events. Once she finished,
she watched Jasmine's reaction. She saw Jasmine's eyes fill with
concern. Well, that answered that question. April hadn't been sure if
Jasmine was all that interested in finding Jade and bringing her home, but
now April could tell that Jasmine was really worried about her sister. Now
that she knew both of them wanted the same thing, to find Jade, she tried
to enlist Jasmine's help.

"Jasmine, do you remember Lonna Tassin at all?"

Jasmine frowned, trying to recall Uncle John's ex-fiancé. Unable to do so,
she shrugged and gave April a sad smile. "I'm sorry, cher. I don't remember
her at all and I have no idea if Jade does. I can tell you I don't remember
Jade ever mentioning her."

April sighed. She was back at square one. Again.

Jasmine watched as April became silent, deep in thought, and felt as if she
had physically left the room. She didn't like it one bit. Jasmine knew that
this was April's job, and a big part of her life, and she realized that she
didn't like knowing there was a part of April's life she wasn't included
in. But maybe she could change that. Jasmine wasn't fool enough to consider
quitting her job and working with April, nothing like that, but she wanted
April to feel comfortable discussing things with her; to know that, at the
very least, she could always bounce ideas off of her. And she had ever
right to stick her nose into this case, even a responsibility to her sister
to do so.

"April?"

Jasmine's softly spoken inquiry brought her back to reality. April looked
up at Jasmine, about to apologize for drifting off, then stopped
herself. Jasmine had a weird look on her face and April felt herself
suddenly getting nervous.

Jasmine caught the anxious look on April's face and rubbed her hand up and
down April's arm. "Relax, honey. There's nothing for you to worry
about. It's just that...well, I was just wondering...do you mind if I help
you? Find Jade, that is."

She was surprised at first, at Jasmine's request, then felt a smile tugging
at the corners of her mouth as a feeling of warmth started in her heart. It
was probably just concern for her sister, but April was happy that Jasmine
seemed to be taking an interest in her work, and she didn't waste time
answering Jasmine's question.

"Yeah. Sure. That'd be great," she responded, giving Jasmine a big, genuine
smile. Jasmine's sigh of relief wasn't lost on her and that warm, glowing
feeling got a little stronger. Then that warmth dropped a little lower, and
she felt a familiar tingle between her legs. Her strength renewed, she gave
Jasmine a wicked grin, used one arm to shove all the food to the far side
of the table, then scooped Jasmine up and sat her on the edge of the
table. Standing, she snuck in between Jasmine's legs and swooped down to
steal a loving kiss.

Jasmine sucked in a breath, caught off guard by April's sudden mood
change. Not that she wasn't enjoying their bonding moment, but this quick
shift to the physical had surprised her. Then the kiss deepened, becoming
more passionate and urgent, and thought fled as she focused on the feel of
April's touch as her robe sprang open.

"We'll get started in the morning, but first..." April muttered against
Jasmine's lips. Her hands slid inside Jasmine's robe, both hands cupping
Jasmine's ass, and pulled her in close. Jasmine's lips parted and April
slipped her tongue inside to play with Jasmine's, the heat between them
building. Jasmine pulled away, gasping for air.

"April, please, take off the robe. I want to feel your skin on mine."

Complying, April took a step back, slowly untied the belt, her eyes locked
with Jasmine's. She eased the robe off of her shoulders then let go, the
robe skimming down her body on its way to land on the floor in a pool of
silk. She stepped back to Jasmine and their mouths locked together, tongues
warring. Silently, she urged Jasmine to lie back on the table.

Jasmine eased herself down to lie flat on the table, her legs dangling over
the edge. She could feel April's lips skim down her body as she leaned
back, and moaned at the electric touch.

Hearing Jasmine's response, April felt her hunger increase, but it was also
mixed with love. When she reached the top of Jasmine's mound, she detoured
around and skimmed down Jasmine's leg until she reached the inside of her
thigh. There, she placed a wet, open mouthed kiss on the smooth, sensitive
skin, and used her tongue to trace circles all around the inside of
Jasmine's thigh. Then she switched to the other leg and did the same. After
a few moments, she felt Jasmine's fingers sink into her hair, tugging her
towards her pussy.

April glanced over and could see Jasmine's juices glistening on her
lips. Slowly, she gently licked up one side, stopped just short of touching
Jasmine's clit, and then repeated this on the other side. She stopped, her
mouth hovering just over Jasmine's clit, and looked up at her lover.

Jasmine took a large gulp of air, and then held it as her eyes met
April's. She saw passion, hunger, and love. Smiling, her eyes on April's,
she eased her legs apart, opening herself wide.

April felt her heart swell, tenderness battling with her lust. She began to
lower her mouth to the little nub that was begging for attention, and then
stopped. Standing up, she looked Jasmine in the eye, smiling at her
questioning look. Then she held out a hand.

"This isn't the place for this, angel. Upstairs. In bed. So I can show you
proper attention." Her heart felt like it was being squeezed and she had to
choke out the words, but it was a sweet ache.

Jasmine saw everything she would every need to see in April's eyes right
then. Suddenly feeling like she just won the lottery, she leaped off the
table and into April's arms, claiming her mouth, her tongue slipped inside
and she kissed April as deeply as possible.

Their arms wrapped around each other, mouths locked together, they seemed
to waltz towards the back staircase, then stumbled up them. Kissing
fervently, they spun each other in circles, using the wall to help guide
them back to Jasmine's bedroom.

Finding the door, they stumbled in and April pulled her mouth free, her
chest heaving as she fought for air. She watched as Jasmine struggled free
of her robe, then threw it across the room. Seconds later, Jasmine was back
in her arms and she lifted her up, tossing her onto the bed. As she climbed
up to join her, Jasmine reeled upward, trying to reclaim her
mouth. Laughing, she pushed her back and snuggled between her legs and
quickly found Jasmine's clit.

"Aahhhh," Jasmine moaned as she felt the wet heat of April's mouth capture
her clit, her tongue flicking against it, and Jasmine arched her back,
pushing her pussy tighter against April's mouth.

April tortured Jasmine's clit until she felt her orgasm break. Before it
was over, April pulled herself across the bed and sunk her fingers into
Jasmine's hair. Holding the back of her head in her hand, she leaned down
and let her tongue delve inside Jasmine's mouth. With her other hand, she
quickly pushed two fingers inside Jasmine's soaked pussy and laid her thumb
over her clit. Without breaking the kiss, she pounded her fingers in and
out of Jasmine's love box, pressing her thumb into Jasmine's clit as she
rubbed her thumb over it in a circular motion.

Jasmine felt another orgasm quickly build, could feel her heart hammering
in her chest. Rolling to her side, forcing April to roll with her, she
mimicked April and buried one hand in April's hair and the other between
her legs.

Feeling the sudden invasion of Jasmine's fingers inside her pussy, her
thumb on her clit, April tried to pull her mouth away to gasp for air, but
Jasmine tighten her grip on the back of her head and wouldn't let her pull
away. Their hips began to buck wildly against each other's hands. April was
so desperate for air, she was afraid her lungs were about to burst, but
Jasmine held fast, their hips picking up speed. As her orgasm began to
break, April felt her entire body spasm and she ripped her mouth away,
screaming Jasmine's name.

Jasmine felt her own body explode and her head fell back as her scream
joined April's. Their bodies arched, pushing their pelvises together, then
they just collapsed, bodies shaking.

It felt like forever before her body started to calm. April opened her eyes
and found she and Jasmine were both lying on their sides, facing each
other. She could feel Jasmine's pussy still quivering around her
fingers. Pulling her hand free, she laid her fingers against Jasmine's lips
and watched her lick them clean. Jasmine did the same, and April kept her
eyes on Jasmine's, as she tasted herself on Jasmine's fingers. When they
had licked each other clean, April leaned in and kissed Jasmine, trying to
pour all her emotions into that one kiss.

"Don't ever leave me," she whispered against Jasmine's lips.

"I won't."

"Promise me."

Jasmine framed April's face in her hands and pulled back just far enough to
allow her to look April in the eye. "I swear to you, on my very soul, I'll
never walk away from you, April. Not ever." Leaning back in, she sealed her
promise with a kiss.

##

Jasmine blinked, the sunlight pouring in through the French doors almost
blinding her. As her eyes slowly adjusted, she realized she and April
remained in the same positions they fell asleep in, both of them lying on
their sides, facing each other in the middle of the King sized bed. April
was so close, their foreheads rested against each other.

Jasmine gave each eyelid a soft kiss, smiling as she watched April stir at
her touch. She brushed her fingers down the side of April's face and April
nestled a little closer, still asleep. Feeling mischievous, she tickled
April's nose with the tip of her finger, then stopped as April twitched and
twisted, but she didn't wake up. Jasmine tickled her again, but still she
didn't wake. Impatient, she pinched her nose shut, laughing as April's eyes
flew open and she sputtered and gasped for air.

"You little witch!"

"Morning, cher. Sleep well, did you?" Jasmine lay there giving April a
wicked smirk.

April just glared at her while she rubbed her nose, then she twisted
around, throwing her legs over the side of the bed. Her hands slightly
behind her, flat on the mattress, she started to push herself up, but
Jasmine reached out, her hand closing around one of April's wrists, and
pulled her arm out from under her.

Swearing, April lost her balance just as she was standing up, and fell to
the floor in a heap. Feeling really irritated, she wasn't the nicest person
in the world when she first woke up anyway, and she scooted forward and
turned around so she was sitting on the floor, facing the bed. She only got
more irritated as she saw Jasmine stretched out on her side along the edge
of the bed, smiling down on her with a twinkle in her eye.

"Please tell me this isn't going to be a regular thing?"

"What thing is that?"

"You waking me up every morning with juvenile pranks," April growled.

"My, someone's grumpy this morning." Jasmine was still grinning at her like
the Cheshire cat.

Glaring, and giving Jasmine another growl, April stood up and headed for
the bathroom. She really needed to pee. She heard Jasmine laughing behind
her and she couldn't help but smile a little as she shut the bathroom door
behind her.

A few minutes later, she padded back down the little hall towards the bed,
noting how silent the room was. If Jasmine had fallen back asleep, she was
definitely going to get some revenge.

Clearing the hall, the bed came back into view, and she saw Jasmine lying
on her back on the bed, her head turning towards her as she felt April's
presence. She stood there a minute, her eyes traveling down Jasmine's body,
then back up, and studied her face for a bit. Seeing those emerald green
eyes staring back at her, April smiled. Ok, she could get use to this. She
walked over and sat on the edge of the bed beside Jasmine.

"What time is it?"

"Ten." Jasmine was still smiling at her.

April rubbed her hands over her face, trying to clear some of the morning
fog from her mind.

"So. What's the plan for today?"

"Plan?" April didn't think she liked the look in Jasmine's eyes. She could
tell trouble was on the way.

"Yes, plan. You have my sister's address right? It's Saturday, so lets go
back to Baton Rouge and see her."

"Whoa! Hold on a second, Jasmine. It's not quite that easy."

Jasmine frowned. "Why not? We go up there, tell Jade to get her ass in the
car, and bring her home."

"We? You got a mouse in your pocket, or something?"

"I don't have any pockets at the moment, cher." Jasmine gave her a wicked
grin and April watched her trail a hand down her body and dip down in
between her legs. "Unless, of course, you're counting this one."

"Christ, you never quit, do you?" April's voice was a mix of disgust and
amazement, and she shook her head in wonder that Jasmine could be so sharp
after they'd spent almost an entire day making love and had only gotten
about six hours sleep.

"I question the `we' part, angel, because I'd like to know how it is that
you're so sure that Jade doesn't make a run for it the minute she sees you?
The two of you didn't exactly part on the best of terms." She watched
Jasmine's face fall and silently cursed herself. Reaching out, she rubbed
her hand up and down Jasmine's arm in an act of comfort.

"Jasmine, I'm sorry. It's just that, well, part of the reason Jade left was
because you two weren't getting along any more. I'm afraid that, if she
sees you on her doorstep, she'll take off again."

Jasmine remained silent. Sighing, April shifted to lie on her side beside
Jasmine, facing her. She reached out and caught Jasmine's chin in her hand
and turned her head to face her.

"There'll be a time for you to face your sister and work things out. I just
don't think the two of us driving up to Baton Rouge and confronting your
sister is the best thing to do right now. Besides, this Lonna Tassin is
still an unknown. I'm not taking you anywhere with me when I don't know
what we'll be walking into. I won't put you at risk, Jasmine. I just won't
do it, so don't even ask me to."

Jasmine lowered her eyes, suddenly finding the sheets incredibly
interesting. On a grunt, April release Jasmine's chin and lay down on her
back, staring at the ceiling. They were both quiet for a time, lost in
their own thoughts.

Suddenly, April slapped her hands against the mattress and climbed out of
bed, heading for the bathroom again.

"Where are you going?"

"To take a shower. Then I'm going to get dressed and drive up to Baton
Rouge. If I hustle, maybe I can talk to Jade and be back here in time for
dinner."

Jasmine leaped off the bed and followed April down the short hallway. "Wait
a minute! Where the hell do you get off going up there without me?"

April stepped back to lean against the wall, facing Jasmine. "I just told
you why I'm not taking you with me." She rubbed her hands over her face
again, in what Jasmine was quickly noticing to be a habit born of
frustration, or tiredness. "Damn it, Jasmine, I don't want to fight with
you," April admitted as she dropped her hands to her sides.

Jasmine leaned against the opposite wall, silently considering her options
while she studied the carpet. After a few minutes, April caught herself
paying way too much attention to Jasmine's well-built body. After all of
yesterday's activity, she couldn't believe she was standing her considering
jumping Jasmine's bones again!

Reaching a decision, Jasmine looked up to catch April's heated look, and
felt a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "Ok, so maybe I shouldn't
worry that April wants to see Jade by herself because she wanted her
instead of me," she thought. Apparently, April was still very interested in
her. She had to start trusting April sometime, she thought, or they'd never
last together.

"Oh, all right! Go see Jade then, but you damn well better be back by
dinner, or I'll come looking for you."

Hearing Jasmine's words, seeing the look on her face, April finally figured
out why Jasmine was so reluctant for her to go looking for Jade without
her. She crossed to Jasmine and framed her face in her hands.

"Jade and I are just friends now, Jasmine. Just friends. You're the one I'm
in love with. Totally and completely in love, and I'll never do anything
stupid and risk losing you. I just need some time to see if I can talk to
Jade and find out, exactly, what's going on. That's all."

Jasmine nodded and April pressed a kiss to her forehead. "What to help me
with that shower?" April asked with a knowing grin.

Jasmine reached out and slapped April on the ass. Yelping, April sprinted
for the bathroom, Jasmine right on her heels.

##

Hours later, April drove into Baton Rouge and reached for the notes she had
laying on the passenger seat, double checking Jade's address. It took her
another half an hour to fine the apartment building. Climbing out of the
car, she stretched, and then turned around to stare at the building, her
arms resting on the roof of the car as she studied it.

It was a yellow brick building six stories tall. Jade's apartment number
was 415. She noticed the building had a security entrance. Should she just
buzz Jade's apartment? Would Jade let her in if she did?

Walking towards the sidewalk, she strode over to the alley that ran along
side the building and noticed a fire escape. That was a possibility, but
she had no way of knowing if it would take her to Jade's apartment. She
walked back towards the front door, and was walking up the steps when a boy
of about ten walked out. Running up the last few steps, April reached out
and grabbed the door before it could swing shut. As she stepped around the
boy to walk inside, she stopped halfway through as she noticed the kid
giving her a weird look. Taking a gamble, she pulled out the key in her
pocket and held it up.

"My friend asked me to run over and get something from her apartment."

The boy's eyes narrowed on her. "Oh yeah? Who's your friend?"

April chuckled. "Lee Anne St. Clair in 415."

The boy's eyes widened. "Oh. Sorry."

"That's ok. You're smart to check."

The kid got a slightly smug look on his face and his chest seemed to puff
out a little at the compliment. "Yeah. You can never be too sure, you
know?"

"Right. You just never know." April was smiling as she watched him walk
away. "Cute kid," she thought. Inside, she debated between the steps and
the elevator. Opting for the elevator, she hit the button and waited for
the doors to slide open. Moments later, she walked through the doors onto
the forth floor and started scanning the numbers on the nearby
doors. Judging how the numbers ran, she turned right and headed down the
hall, scanning doors as she walked. About a third of the way down she found
415. Looking around, she found the hallway deserted, so she felt safe
stepping up and laying her ear against the door. She could hear movement,
but no voices. Well, it was now, or never. Taking a deep breath, she
knocked.

"Be right there." It was definitely Jade's voice, but that didn't calm
April's nerves. She still wasn't sure if Jade was alone or not. She
mentally crossed her fingers. Now wasn't the time to come face to face with
Lonna. She wanted some answers from Jade first.

Seconds later, the door opened. She and Jade stared at each other for what
felt like twenty minutes, but was only seconds. Watching Jade's eyes, she
knew the instant her presence registered in Jade's brain and managed to
shove her foot in the doorway just in time to stop it from slamming shut in
her face.

Pushing it open, she walked inside as Jade darted for the phone that sat on
the table in the middle of the living room. April bolted after her and
grabbed Jade from behind, wrapping her arms around Jade's middle, trapping
her arms at her sides.

"Get off me!" Jade tried to wiggle loose, but April held tight.

"Calm down! I just want to talk to you, Jade!" But Jade continued to try
and pull herself free. "Damn it, Jade!" They struggled a little longer
before April twirled her around and pushed her towards the couch. Jade hit
the couch and immediately sprung back up. Anticipating this, April was
ready and quickly wrapped a hand around Jade's arm and tugged her back
towards the couch.

Sitting down, she pulled Jade down with her and made her sit down beside
her. "I just want to talk, Jade. That's it." Slowly, she let go of Jade's
arms and held both hands up in front of her signaling surrender. The minute
she let go, Jade slid down to sit on the opposite side of the couch, but
didn't try to run again.

"What do you want?" Jade snapped.

Figuring she might not get a lot of time to talk to her, April decided to
cut to the chase. "Who's Lonna Tassin and why is she paying for your
apartment?"

April held her breath, watching Jade's face, half expecting her to bolt
again. She saw Jade's eyes widen at her question, then they started to
flick over the room. Jade seemed skittish and it was making April really
nervous.

"Jade, what's wrong?" April was careful, this time, to keep her voice soft
and calm. When she didn't get an answer, she tried again.

"Are you in some kind of trouble?" Still no response, and Jade was looking
everywhere but at her.

"Jade, baby, what's wrong? Please talk to me. All I want to do is help you,
Jade." Refusing to budge, April just sat there, but didn't say anything
else, just waited Jade out. In the silence that followed, she studied
Jade. She seemed unusually pale, as if she'd been sick recently. April
noticed Jade's eyes had lost some of their normal spark and she had circles
under her eyes. Jade seemed worn out, beaten, and April realized that it
hurt to see Jade this way. She had a strong suspicion that this was Lonna's
doing, and April vowed to punch her lights out, first chance she got.

Time seemed to stretch out for hours as April and Jade sat on the couch,
April watching Jade, Jade refusing to look at her. Running out of patience,
April slowly sank down to kneel on the floor in front of Jade, gently
resting her hands on Jade's thighs.

"I'll protect you, Jade, you know that. We're friends. You can tell me
anything." Jade didn't answer and she still wouldn't look at her. Sighing,
she bent her head, resting her forehead on Jade's knees. Closing her eyes,
she rattled her brain trying to figure out what to do next.

April had no idea how long they two of them sat like that, but finally she
felt Jade's fingers brush over her hair. She stayed still, afraid that any
sudden movement would scare Jade away.  More minutes might have passed
before she felt Jade's fingers sink into her hair, Jade's hand resting on
her head.

"You...you have to go, April. She can't find you here and I'm not sure when
she'll be back."

April finally looked up and looked Jade in the eye. "Why can't she find me
here, Jade? Will she get jealous? Angry? God, tell me she doesn't hit you."
April practically growled the last sentence; visions of someone beating
Jade made her eyes darken in anger.

It wasn't lost on Jade. Seeing the concern, the anger on her behalf in
April's eyes, made her feel wistful, and a little sad. If only she'd told
April everything from the beginning. If only she'd gone to Pittsburgh,
looking for April. But those weren't options any more. Upset, she pushed
April away from her and jumped up from the couch, walking behind it towards
her bedroom, which was separated from the living room by pocket doors,
which now stood open.

April stood up. She couldn't remember ever seeing Jade this sad, this
upset, and she followed her into the bedroom. She stopped in the doorway as
Jade sat down on the side of the bed, staring blindly out the window. She
knew Jade wanted her to leave, but it wasn't going to happen. She wasn't
leaving Jade like this; not in the shape she was in now.

"Talk to me," April pleaded. Seconds ticked by in silence.

"She has something on you, doesn't she?" Jade didn't respond, but April
watched as she hung her head.

The silence continued to stretch on and April remained in the doorway,
wheels spinning.

"Lonna tricked you into embezzling funds." April stated it like a known
fact, stepping into the room and to the left so she could see Jade's
reaction. When Jade's head whipped up, her eyes wide, she got the answer
she was looking for. Sighing, she slowly walked over and sat down beside
Jade, Jade's eyes following her every move.

"How did you know?"

"I didn't. Lucky guess," April said with a shrug. Jade burst out laughing,
but it sounded hollow to April, without any heart in it. She waited in
silence, hoping Jade would elaborate.

Jade went back to staring blindly out the window, debating her next
move. She wanted out of here, away from Lonna, but thought she was in too
deep. But April was here now, sitting right beside her, and she seemed to
have figured everything out anyway. If anyone could get her out of this
mess, it was April, but a part of her was very afraid of what would happen
if she went against Lonna. Jade was so lost in thought, she jumped when she
heard April's voice.

"Did you know Lonna was your uncle's ex-fiancé?"

Jade nodded. Feeling ashamed at being duped, she couldn't seem to find her
voice. Then she felt April wrap an arm around her shoulders, tugging her
against her, and Jade felt the dam inside her break open. Her head on
April's shoulder, the tears spilled out in waves.

April laid her other hand against Jade's head and held Jade against her,
giving her time to cry it out. She pressed a kiss to the back of Jade's
head and gently rocked her. It took some time, but she heard Jade's jerky
breathing and could tell that her tears were starting to subside.

April turned towards Jade on the bed, pulling one leg further up, and
pulled Jade against her so she was sitting between her legs, leaning
against April's chest. She kept her arms wrapped around Jade and laid her
cheek against the top of Jade's head.

"Just tell me what happened, Jade, so I can figure out how to get you out
of here and someplace safe."

Jade snuggled closer and took a deep breath. "Jasmine and I couldn't go two
seconds without fighting, and I couldn't even make myself look Uncle John
in the eye, I was just so ashamed of myself. And I knew Jasmine was hurt
because you were gone, that she partly blamed me for it, and I blamed
myself too." Sitting up a little, Jade looked at April and gave her a weak
smile. "To be honest, I missed you too. I...I think that's why I started
sending you e-mail. I needed someone to still like me."

"Oh, Jade! I always liked you. I never stopped. I left because," but Jade
laid her fingers against April's lips, stopping her.

"I know why you left. It wasn't your fault, April. I'm the one who made a
mess of it all."

"You didn't do it alone, Jade. I dug my own hole. Just forget about that
for now, though, and finish telling me what happened."

Jade leaned back against April and went on with her story. "I need to get
away, just for a little while. I told Lonna that, and she suggested I come
up here and stay with her for a while, so I took out some money, packed my
things, and drove up here intending to stay for a few months, or so. I just
wanted some time to get my head straight, but when I got here, told Lonna
it was just for a little while, she turned on me. She starting laughing,
really mean like, and told me my place was with her now; that I belonged to
her. She said if I tried to leave, she'd give the police all the evidence
she has against me."

Jade laid a hand on April's chest and pushed herself away. "I bumped into
her almost a year ago at a restaurant back home. I recognized her and we
started talking. We ended up lovers. After a while, we started talking
about my family and what happened to my parents. She started talking about
what happened to me afterwards, starting filling my head with all this
stuff about how unfair Uncle John had treated me, about how I always ended
up in Jasmine's shadow. I was falling in love with her and, like a fool,
hung on every damn word; even started to believe her. Finally, she started
talking about how I needed to put Jasmine and my uncle in their place, and
she had this whole plan all worked out."

Jade sat upright on the bed and hung her head. "I bought into it, lock,
stock, and barrel." She gave a humorless laugh, and then continued. "Lonna
laid out the plan for me to embezzle company funds. `You wont really steal
it, just hide it for a bit.' That's how she explained it to me. She had
this computer whiz available to help me do all of it. What I didn't find
out, until I got here, was that this computer geek was able to make it look
like it was all me, that I did it without help, and he had copies of
everything, which he gave to Lonna. She has enough evidence against me
that, if the D.A.'s office saw it, they'd press charges in a heartbeat. The
case would be a slam dunk for them."

April sucked in a deep breath. If Jade was right, if what Lonna told her
was true, Jade would be in jail in a nanosecond. It wouldn't matter if John
chooses not to press charges. In the case of a felony, the D.A.'s office
could press charges themselves. If they had enough clear-cut evidence, it
wouldn't even matter that John would be testifying as a hostile
witness. Hell, with enough proof, they probably wouldn't even need John's
testimony.

"Did you see this so called proof?"

Jade nodded yes and April swore under her breath. Now that she had started
telling April everything, Jade desperately needed to finish, so she pressed
on. "When Lonna saw that I knew I was trapped, she tossed me keys to this
apartment and papers giving me a new identity. She told me it was all taken
care of, that she was even saving me a job at her club. All I have to do to
stay free, is work at her club and be available when she wants me."

Jade's last few words had April's fist clenching in anger, her gut knotting
up. She knew exactly what `available when she wants me' meant. If Lonna
walked into this apartment right now, April knew she'd probably beat her to
death, she was that angry. Standing up, she grabbed Jade's hand and started
for the door.

"What are you doing?" Jade asked, her voice panicky.

"I'm getting you the hell out of here! Hell'll freeze over before that
bitch touches so much as a hair on your head, every again." April's eyes
were locked on the front door and she didn't immediately notice that Jade
was trying to pull away from her. When it finally registered, she let go of
Jade's hand and spun around, fire in her eyes.

"Don't tell me you want to stay!"

Jade bristled. "I don't want to go to jail! That's exactly what'll happen
if Lonna finds out I skipped town. The minutes she shows up here and finds
me gone, she'll call the police and hand them everything she's got against
me." Jade took a few steps back, afraid April would try and bodily drag her
out the door.

She knew Jade was right, but hated the thought of leaving her here. "Ah!"
she screamed in frustration, beginning to pace around the little apartment.

Jade stood in the middle of the living room, nervously watching April prowl
back and forth. "I have to stay," she whispered.

"Shit!" April whirled around to stare at Jade, feeling torn in two. Jade
was right, but she didn't think she could leave her behind.

Jade saw it in April's eyes and walked over to her, wrapping her arms
around her in a tight hug. "I don't think I can watch you leave anymore
than you can walk away and leave me here, but there's no other way."

April couldn't bring herself to hug Jade back; she just stood there feeling
like complete scum. Jade stepped back.

"Tell Jasmine I'm sorry," Jade whispered. "That is, if she's speaking to
you?" She forced herself to grin at April, trying to lighten things up.

April pulled the key out of her pocket and held it up for Jade to see. Jade
gave her a quizzical look.

"It's the key to your front door, so yeah, she's talking to me," April
explained, grinning back.

Jade felt her heart lift a little. At least something was going
right. "Good. Good. You two are good together. At least I'll know she'll be
ok. You'll take care of her."

April felt her smile disappear. Jade was talking as if she would never go
home again.

"I'll take care of you too, Jade. I know I have to leave now, but I'll be
back for you, and soon. I'm not leaving you with that bitch a moment longer
than absolutely necessary."

She could tell by April's voice that she meant it, and took heart. If
anyone could get her out of this mess, it was April. She trusted her
completely. Giving April the best smile she could manage, she pushed her
towards the door.

"I'm going to hold you to that. Now go." She pushed a reluctant April out
into the hallway and slowly shut the door. Once it was closed, Jade sank
against it and slid to the floor, fighting tears. She hoped April came back
for her soon, because she wasn't sure how much longer she could live like
this.