This is the story of Samantha Eckhart who works with two of her close friends, Kelli and Paige. Kelli is the outspoken contractor. Paige is the soft spoken interior decorator and Sam is the architect. Together the three of them run their own company. The three have been friends since junior high and maintained their friendship after all these years. They are now in their mid-twenties and trying to balance romance, their personal lives, work and friendship all in their day-to-day activities.

Sam meets new client Adian Masters. Sam comes as a highly recommended architect. However, when Adian meets Sam, he is surprised to find out that Sam Eckhart isn’t the person he thinks he’s hired. Adian thinks he’s hired a man to build his house and is surprised to find that Sam isn’t male at all, but in fact a beautiful smart female. This isn’t the only problem that results in Adian hiring Sam. That’s just the first problem. Another problem is the moral dilemma that Sam has in possibly pursuing a relationship with a client.

Jessica Darian Writes a contemporary romance that is just as fun to read as it is to watch Samantha’s story unfold. The three main female characters in this book provide amusing situations that almost any female can relate to. Paige is the quiet one, who decorates the offices they share beautifully. Kelli is the one that the other girls come to when they have a romantic dilemma. Kelli isn’t the type to shy away from talking to the others about anything. Sam is sort of in the middle of the two. She isn’t shy, and she isn’t quiet and yet she isn’t outspoken either. The romance between Sam and Aidan is well developed and you want the relationship between the two to work out.

After Hours is a book that proves Jessica Darian can write. She writes about characters we can believe in; about strong female characters that the reader can root for. The story Darian tells is one that makes us giggle, and want to read more from her. After reading After Hours, I look forward to reading more from Jessica Darian.

Reviewed by: Audrey