Like many American offices, Friday was 'casual' for us too.  For men it meant that they could wear jeans but women had fewer choices. The women in the office would often discuss strategies for casual Fridays. As each woman tried to be creative, several interesting outfits would often be seen.  Some took the risk of dressing in stylish outfits while others tried to be as casual as they could, even wearing fleece tops with jeans.

After the conversation with Jeff, however, I had started to think of how he would react to my outfit whenever he was in office. On regular days, I did not want to make any noticeable changes so I pretty much stuck to what I had always used except for picking the colors carefully. The first Friday after our conversation, however, I tried to push the envelope. I chose a pink skirt with a black lace top (thinking about Jeff's fondness for black and mine for pink). The skin color backing gave an impression of no bra (something that I was not wearing anyway) and made one look beyond the sheer fabric of the blouse to see my undergarment. As I stood in front of the mirror, I knew I would invite some attention today but compared to my younger colleagues who pranced around on Fridays in skimpy tank tops, I thought that I would be safely ignored.

When I walked in, Jeff was not in his office. As I settled in my desk, I heard his footsteps. He smiled at me, uttered his usual cheerful greeting, and I think he looked at me longer than usual. With his coffee cup in his hand, as he walked towards his office, he stopped at my desk and said, "Now I know I liked black but it has to be mixed with some other colors."  I am sure I blushed but I was glad that I had produced the intended effect. Later that afternoon, when I went to his office and stood in front of him, I noticed where his eyes were.  "So tell me if I am wrong but is it true that this top is sheer (Arabella sheer bra). Or are you wearing a bra?"  "Why don't you find out for yourself"  I moved closer to him as he got up from his chair. I think I got so carried away by what seemed like a harmless conversation that I stretched up my neckline towards him to show that I was not wearing a bra.  "Oh I see." And he laughed like a kid. I never understood  what he meant by it though.

Only then did I realize what I had done. Here I was standing in front of my boss letting him peek right down my blouse. As I looked into his eyes, Jeff stood up from his chair and brought his face closer. I could now feel his breath on my bare skin. I dropped the yellow pad in my hands and grabbed his face and buried it into my chest. Jeff did not protest and looked up. As we made eye contact, I could not keep mine open. I felt his hands on my top and his tongue was already exploring my gums.

It was the first time I had kissed another man after I got married. Of course it was the first time for that matter ever that I had kissed any non-Indian. Growing up I had stolen a few kisses with boys I knew. They were never more than stolen kisses since I always felt guilty, there never was enough privacy, and we all were so clumsy anyway. With my husband, we learned as we went along but the intensity of Jeff's kiss and the probing style of his tongue left me breathless. We both smiled and I quietly walked back to my desk. Neither of us said a word.  (Related: Neha Dhupia)

~

We did not speak much about our relationship but we both realized that we wanted each other. Since the initial barrier was broken, I was far less inhibited in front of Jeff now. We were working very hard to convince General Corporation to open a Tech Center in India. I had invested in several new sheer blouses and lingerie. I piled up not only on black but red and purple bras too. As fall approached, I could wear whatever I wanted to show to Jeff and hide myself in a cardigan.

Whenever we had privacy, I would simply let Jeff admire it all.  He had particularly liked the idea of burying his face into my ample chest. On the other hand I had gotten used to his probing tongue in sensitive parts of my body. At lunch I would often chew the food in my mouth and then feed him as his tongue extracted all the food out of my mouth. When we would work for long hours, our breaks included not only sweet Indian tea but also my tongue exploring Jeff's privates - he had taught me how to use my tongue and I had discovered hitherto unknown parts of a male body.

~

I was surprised that I did not feel guilty. Was it my way of thanking Jeff for all he had done for me? I did not want to think too much about it.

~The end~