After Hours by Rochelle Alers Read Free Book Online Page A

wouldn’t have hesitated to hire a driver. But the reality was that she wasn’t working and she’d given away almost half her savings.
    Her eyes hidden behind the lenses of a pair of oversize sunglasses, Adina scanned the crowd. A secret smile parted her lips when she noticed a man standing a few feet away, staring directly at her. He hadn’t been there before.
    With wide eyes she catalogued everything about him in one sweeping glance. The first thing she noticed was his hands: no rings and no telltale lighter band of flesh on his ring finger. The freckles on the backs of his hands matched those dotting the slightly flaring nostrils in a smooth, round redbone face. She lifted her eyebrows, her smile widening when he flashed a friendly smile. His light brown eyes were the same color as the receding sandy-brown hair he wore in a short, natural style.
    Her admirer was average height with a stocky physique. The timepiece circling his wrist, the off-white silk shirt worn outside the waistband of a pair of beige linen slacks and imported Italian slip-ons silently communicated good taste and sophistication. Her gaze lingered briefly on his hands again before shifting to his thin-lipped smile. She saw him as an ordinary-looking, high-yellow brother.
    â€œHi.” Adina was hard-pressed not to laugh out loud when she saw his reaction to her throaty greeting. If the stranger thought she was coming on to him, then he was mistaken. She needed him as a witness just in case Payne decided he wanted to do more than “talk” to her.
    Lancelot Haynes went completely still. Had he imagined that the exotic-looking woman had actually spoken to him because that’s what he wanted? Or was he hearing voices? The first thing he’d noticed was her hair. Parted off-center, it fell in heavy waves down her back. He couldn’t see all of her face behind the sunglasses, but what he saw he liked: a small straight nose and a full pouting mouth. His admiring gaze caressed her off-the-shoulder black-and-white striped top and black cropped pants that hugged every delicious curve of her petite body. A pair of three-inch black patent leather wedge sandals showed off her small feet and shapely legs.
    â€œHello,” he said, smiling and extending his hand. “Lance Haynes.”
    Adina took his hand, finding it soft and comforting. It was apparent Lance Haynes used his head rather than his hands to earn his living. “Dina Gordon.”
    There, she’d said it. She was no longer Adina Jenkins, and what she had to do was think of herself as Dina.
    Lance moved closer, inhaling the sensual scent of her perfume. “Do you come here often?”
    Dina shook her head. “No. This is only my second time.”
    â€œCan I get you something to drink?” he asked. What he wanted to ask was whether she’d come alone or was waiting for someone.
    â€œYes, please.”
    â€œWhat would you like?”
    â€œA soft drink, please.”
    â€œAre you certain you wouldn’t like something a little stronger?”
    Dina smiled, exhibiting a set of straight white teeth. “I’m very certain.”
    Lance nodded. “I’ll be right back.
    She was still watching Lance’s retreating back when she felt pressure on the nape of her neck. Payne had come up on her without making a sound. She let out a soft gasp as his fingers dug into the tender flesh; her hair concealed the savage grip holding her captive.
    â€œNo one runs out on Payne Jefferson,” he whispered in her ear.
    â€œI couldn’t—”
    â€œI don’t want to hear shit from you,” he rasped, cutting off her explanation. “Because you didn’t complete our last deal, I’m going to let you off easy.”
    The initial shock of Payne coming up behind her subsided, replaced by false bravado. “What do you want, PJ?” she drawled. She knew he hated being called PJ, but she was past caring about what he