After Hours Read Online Free PDF

dismissing her proposal, but nothing had prepared her for being fired – not after all her dedication over the past five years. Fortunately, two weeks was plenty of time to come up with a plan. She wouldn’t let him get rid of her so easily, without at least feeling the sting of her wrath.
    She looked at her watch and increased her drumming. She hadn’t heard from him in nearly two hours. That was rare. He always had her doing something. He’d blindsided her twice, first with the factory and then the pink slip, was he preparing for another blow? Or could something be wrong? No, he was probably trying to show her how much she’d already lost her usefulness. Maybe he really wanted to make her angry enough so that she would quit before the end of two weeks. She flattened her hand on the desk. He’d be disappointed. But then again, maybe she’d accepted his bad behavior for too long. Maybe she should just pack her things and disappear. She was about to reach for her box when her phone rang.
    “I need to buy a ring,” Curtis said, without preamble. “Make an appointment.”
    “A ring?” Amera repeated just to make sure. She’d never seen him wear jewelry before.
“Yes, an engagement ring. I want the jeweler in my office by tomorrow.”
    “An engagement ring?”
    “Yes, my little parrot. Isn’t that what I just said?”
    A ring? He was going to get married? Really? She shook her head. That was none of her business, even though most of his life had been. She knew a lot about him, although he didn't have much of a life outside of work. She guessed it was instructions from ‘on high’. He was at the right age and the old man would want to see him settled before he died. Curtis hadn’t shown any interest in any particular woman, but had casually being seeing Crystal Montrose the daughter of a prominent senator. She seemed the best likely candidate.
    “Tomorrow is too soon,” Amera said, automatically thinking over all the details and tasks she would need to get done in order for his proposal of marriage to work. He was not a romantic and if he wanted to have a fiancée by the end of the week, Amera knew she would have to make sure everything was flawless.
    “Why?”
    “Do you want her to say yes?”
    “That’s the plan,” he said in a dry tone.
    “Then give me two days and I’ll prepare everything.”
    “Two days?”
    “Yes, my little parrot,” she said in a cool tone. “Isn’t that what I just said?”
    Silence greeted her from the other end, but she knew he didn’t mind when she threw his words back at him. Besides, in two weeks she’d be gone anyway. She switched the phone to her other ear and waited for him to argue.
    “Good,” he said then hung up.
    Amera set her phone down and leaned back in her chair. Bishop wanted a bride. She already felt sorry for the woman, but at least it would keep her busy. Keeping busy had always been the best way for her to get through the holidays since it was usually a lonely experience for her.
    Amera dove into her assigned task with ruthless efficiency, briefly forgetting about her plan for revenge. She contacted an established florist, a renowned chef and local jeweler, and made a reservation at an exclusive hotel. The following day, she took off some time and went to a local specialty store looking to find something extra special for the occasion. That’s when she spotted an angel figurine sitting in one of the displays. She knew Crystal loved angels. It would add a nice touch.
    “How much is that?” she asked the clerk, a middle aged man with jowls that reminded her of a bloodhound.
    The clerk looked up and sent her a bored look. “Sorry, it’s not for sale.”
    “I’ll pay--”
    “I said it’s not for sale. Sorry, those are the boss’s orders.”
    She wished he’d stop saying he was ‘sorry’, when he clearly didn’t mean it. Amera looked around for something else when an attractive black woman, who smelled of expensive perfume and looked as if