Hr Seals The Deal

HR: Seals the Deal

Three soft knocks on her bosses door frame was all it took before he invited her in.

"Hey! There she is. Woman of the hour. You did a great job Mrs. Koehler." Her boss said with a jovial smile while toasting her with a congratulatory highball. "You should be proud!"

It was one of the few times she had ever seen him smile. She hated to continue but he had to be made aware.

"Yes Sir, about that ..." she began hesitantly, wringing her hands.

In an instant his whole demeanor changed. No longer was he smiling, the look on his face becoming instantly cold.

"Mr. Johnson has decided to entertain another offer instead." She finished with no small amount of difficulty. His brown eyes may as well have been black as they seemed to pierce her to her soul.

"Ms. Koehler," he began with all the iciness she expected. "did you not assure me just this morning his employment was a 'sure thing?'"

"It was!" she pleaded, trying to defend herself. "He just needed to come back in and sign the paperwork and everything would have been final."

"And!?" he asked with no amount of warmth.

"He called 15 minutes before he was supposed to get here to let me know ..." she trailed off as she saw his eyes, looking at her over his highball, cutting through her again. "I ... I ... I'm sorry Sir. I know how important this was." She said bowing her head in shame.

"You know how important this was ...?" he said acidly. "Do you? Do you really!?" every word cutting her like a knife.

She flinched from the verbal assault.

"You understand that between his rapport and connections, his contribution to the company alone would have netted us an estimated 27% more market share. And that without him, we can expect to lose somewhere in the neighborhood of 10-15%, especially if he's going where I think he is."

"I'm sorry Sir." She apologized. "I'll do better next time."

"Glad to hear you say that Mrs. Koehler, because if Adam Johnson is not an employee of this company" he stated jabbing his fat cigar wielding fingers into the desk. "in the next 24 hours ... neither are you!"

"But Sir! How am I supposed to ...?"

"THAT, is not my problem!" he snapped, cutting her off abruptly. "Now either you get the job done, and seal the deal, or you can go clean out your office. Your choice!" he finished jabbing his fingers at her, the thick ash of his cigar falling off in the process.

"Yes Sir." She muttered timidly, backing slowly out of the room.

It was a long, slow ride home through the humdrum and freeway traffic. Amanda, so preoccupied with her dilemma, only half paid attention to what was going on around her. Suddenly finding herself at home she realized it was nothing short of a miracle she had made it home safe and sound.

Opening her front door, she walked down the hall in a daze. Letting her keys crash down on the kitchen counter she wondered for the umpteenth time how she was going to save her job.

DING DONG!!

Taking a deep breath she turned around to answer the door knowing exactly who it would be.

"I'm so sorry honey!" Amanda apologized as soon as the front door opened. "but I have to cancel our date tonight."

"On my birthday?" her little sister asked, her shoulders and face dropping in disappointment.

Kaylee, her long hair up in twin ponytails, was dressed up in her favorite high heeled knee boots, a low cut sleeveless blouse, and a micro mini denim skirt that was only barely decent. In all, the outfit made her look more like she was 16 or 17 instead of the 21 she had turned the day before.

Even though Kaylee was 10 years Amanda's junior, they had always been close, and for months Amanda had promised to take Kaylee out for her 21st birthday. Why Kaylee didn't want to spend the night with her friends Amanda had no idea. Right now though, going out was the furthest thing from Amanda's mind.

"I'm afraid so." She said walking back to her bedroom. "It's a work thing!" she explained. "I informed the VP of operations this hot shot salesman they've been trying to recruit for the past 6 months had finally accepted our offer." She explained as she walked. "but then he backed out at the last minute. Now I have just a few more hours to get him to change his mind back ..... or I'm out of a job!"

"Is he cute?" Kaylee asked skipping playfully as she followed.

Amanda began rifling through her closet trying to find something appropriate for the meeting she had arranged with Mr. Johnson on her drive home.

Ignoring Kaylee's question Amanda thought back to her first meeting with him. Adam Johnson was tall, well dressed, and had a suave cool confidence some might find desirable; the other girls in the office certainly did. He also had a substantial amount of charisma with his award winning smile, dashing brown eyes, and his jovial laugh. It was the sort of looks and behavior you would expect out of someone who made their living as a salesman. Almost everyone was impressed with him, her boss Mr. Mason certainly was.

'He actually is kinda cute.' Amanda thought privately, though she would never admit it out loud, especially to Kaylee.

Unable to find anything to wear, Amanda let the gravity of the situation pull her down. Plopping down on the floor, she buried her face in her hands.

"Oh Kaylee! What am I gonna do?" she asked as tears began streaming down her face.

"Well! The first thing you are going to do is stop crying!" Kaylee said climbing off the bed to crawl next to her sister. "Then you should dress up, go over there, and make him an offer he can't refuse."

"An offer he can't refuse?" Amanda asked, moving her hands to look at her little sister. "Have you been watching The Godfather again?"

Rolling over onto her back Kaylee looked up at her sister.

"It's a great movie!" Kaylee defended herself. "Full of good advise. Not to mention the BEST recipe for making spaghetti sauce!"

"OK, so is this a 'leave the gun, take the cannoli' moment or a 'go to the mattresses' one?" Amanda quipped in a sarcastic tone.

"If he's cute enough ... you could go to the mattress AND take the cannoli." Kaylee replied with a naughty wink.

"Would you please be serious for one minute?" Amanda responded in frustration.

"I was being serious!"

Amanda shot her a glaring look.

"Ok. fine. I'll be serious!" Kaylee responded as she climbed to her feet. "Party pooper." She murmured beneath her breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing!" Kaylee responded in a sing sang tone while rifling through the closet herself.

Amanda couldn't help but smile a little bit. Kaylee was like that, fun, funny, and even in the darkest hour was somehow always able to light up the room.

"Why don't you wear this?" Kaylee suggested holding up a dress.

It was black, form-fitting, and sleek. The modest back offset by the deep V-neck that would leave much of the wearers décolletage on display.

"What size is this thing anyway?" Kaylee asked more to herself as she examined the tags.

"Several reasons!" Amanda responded, snapping the dress away when she saw Kaylee's eyes light up in delight as she realized it would fit her. "First off, I don't want to give him the wrong idea. Second, this is a Professional meeting! A dress like that would be entirely inappropriate." Amanda argued. "And third ... because I bought it to wear the night Ted left."

Kaylee was stunned into silence, maybe for the first time ever. Amanda watched her open and close several times before she found her voice.

"Amanda! That was like ... FIVE YEARS AGO!"

"I know."

Kaylee's mouth worked in silence for several moments trying to find something to say.

"You're right." Kaylee finally replied.

"Thank you!" Amanda responded.

"It IS totally inappropriate." Kaylee continued.

"Thank you."

"Which is EXACTLY WHY you SHOULD wear it!" Kaylee continued like she hadn't even heard.

"Kaylee!?"

"I'm serious Amanda. Who knows, maybe he will be so overcome by your beauty" she said as she pirouetted dramatically about the room. "that he will be so swept up by merely being in your presence that he will sign on without a thought." Kaylee finished a she collapsed onto the bed.

"You are ....!"

"A genius!" Kaylee interjected with a smile as she sat up rapidly.

"A precocious little sister, with no filter, and no idea how the world works." Amanda finished.

The banter that ensued went back and forth for several minutes with Amanda certain she was going to make Kaylee understand. Yet round after round it was she that lost ground, pushed back with every exchange until in the end it was she that conceded.

Kaylee was right, the dress would give her an advantage, albeit a small one, but right now she needed every advantage she could get regardless of how small.

Smug with the sense of her victory, Kaylee uncrossed her legs and slid off the bed.

Blowing her sister a kiss, Kaylee left the room to give Amanda a chance to shower and get ready.

After her shower, Kaylee insisted on painting her toenails before she drew up her hose. Amanda had regretted saying yes as soon as she saw the color, a BRIGHT red, that Kaylee had chosen.

After her nails had dried and with Kaylee finally out of the room, Amanda realized how difficult it was to even look at the dress. What Kaylee didn't know was that the dress had only been a small part of a more intricate, and enticing, ensemble.

Finally, with reservation, Amanda forced herself to look.

The dress, even all these years later still made her breath catch and yet as beautiful and sexy as it was, it had just been the outer layer. Furthermore, despite its short hem and plunging neckline, it was also the most modest.

It was the inner layer where the magic lay.

In that moment Amanda, despite her inner reservations, decided she should wear the REST of the outfit as well. That WAS why she had bought it after all.

Reaching to the bottom of her lingerie drawer she drew out a box. Glossy white, it just barely fit in the drawer. Heavy in her hand it was obvious the box itself was of the highest quality, what did that suggest about the contents within.

Walking over to the bed Amanda set it down next to the dress and with a quick breath and a shallow exhale removed the lid.

Drawing back the tissue paper revealed her secret, the secret she had planned for that night long ago.

Sexy, and intimate, the brilliant blue six strap garter was special. It was custom, made to measure for her by a seamstress who specialized in classic lingerie. With it's silver embroidery and lace, it was every bit functional as it was beautiful. Matched up with the accompanying bra and thong panty it made her body look so enticing it was scandalous.

Indeed, just looking at it made her warm inside.

Adding to her lacy secrets were the stockings she had bought for that night. A pair of nude stockings were innocuous enough but with the prominent black backseam and reinforced heel and toe added to the allure. But they were nostalgic, a throwback to the pinup girls of days gone by. Ignoring the butterflies in her belly she topped the entire ensemble off with a pair of black strappy sandals, the ultra high stiletto heel made her heart race.

Taking a deep breath she calmed her nerves and reminded herself that all of her lacy secrets would be covered, hidden by her little black dress. Other than the backseam of course, and her bright red toenails, it would all remain hidden ... but SHE would know it was there.

Then again, that WAS the point. Before he left, Ted had always complained about her attire.

"It's too conservative." He would complain. "You should dress up sometime, show off your body!" Lower cut blouse, shorter skirts, higher heels, he constantly pushed. "Don't be afraid of eyes being on you, you're with me! You're coming home with me!"

Looking at what she was about to wear, from the custom made lingerie to her form fit dress, from her most expensive jewelry to the highest heels she owned but had never worn, she paused.

She shook her head. Was she REALLY going to go through with this?

The SHOES!!! With their 4 ½" stiletto heel, the strappy sandals were well outside her normal realm of comfort but, she justified in her head, along with the rest, the combination would help raise her inner confidence, make her feel more empowered and tonight of all nights she needed every advantage she could get.

Taking her time to get ready she distracted herself by focusing on the smaller details like shaving her legs. But her mind wandered and though she had done it a thousand times before she shaved a little higher than normal. And then unsure of where to stop, decided on shaving her pussy bald as well. It was a new sensation feeling her mound, so soft and smooth, but one she thought she could get used to.

Her hair she curled a bit more before drawing it up with a clip to let it cascade enticingly down the side of her face.

The garter belt. She had never worn one and had only seen them in magazines and catalogs. Remembering what the seamstress who had made it for her had said she put it on first.

It was strange to feel the material as it drew tight against her skin while her breasts and pussy were still exposed.

Ignoring the anxious feeling growing in the pit of her stomach she turned her attention to the stockings. Pulling them up her legs they glided like nothing she had ever worn. It was a bit of a struggle to ensure the backseams were straight but nothing she couldn't handle.

Stepping into the panties was something she was more familiar with but the thin strip of material slipping between the cheeks of her ass was not.

Amanda's nipples hardened and she felt her cheeks flush and her pussy moisten.

'THIS is a BUSINESS meeting!' She scolded herself and her response. You can't go to see him with your hormones raging!'

Slipping her arms through her bra she fastened it a bit more forcefully than normal, a clear sign of her agitation. 'or is it stimulation?' her thoughts teased.

Her makeup, which was normally so light as to almost go unnoticed, was equal to the lacy secrets hidden beneath her dress.

Confident she was ready, she perused herself in the mirror one last time, turning this way and that, in order to see herself from every angle.

Looking at herself in the mirror Amanda became acutely aware of how desirable she looked.

Her breath caught for a moment and all the butterflies in her belly that she had been suppressing suddenly surged with what she saw looking back. She was average! Or at least that was how she saw herself. She wasn't cute and perky like Kaylee, maybe ten years and two kids ago she was but not anymore!!! Yet the woman looking back at her in the mirror WAS Beautiful, and undeniably sexy!

'This isn't how it's supposed to be!' She thought to herself, as it crossed her mind why she was doing all this.

The dress was supposed to have been a surprise for Ted, for their anniversary. And the lingerie ... to rock his world later! Swallowing hard as the memory played out she remembered vividly how instead he had rocked hers, when the week before their anniversary he had gone out with some friends, and just never came home. No small amount of tears later the dress was relegated to the back of the closet, and the lingerie to the bottom of the drawer.

'Tonight though, I'm wearing it for myself!' she tried to convince herself.

It wasn't about Ted or Adam Johnson, it was about HER!

It was something to make her feel beautiful, and bolster her self confidence. The embodiment of an 'I am woman, hear me ROAR' mentality. And if she couldn't get him to change his mind, at the very least she was going to get a nice night out, something she had not had in over five years.

Yet she couldn't shake the fact that from the pushup bra and thong panties, to the matching garterbelt she had bought for that night five years ago, it was all meant for one ... single ... purpose.

Seduction!

Suddenly, far from making her feel empowered, the lingerie, the high heels, and her low cut mini-dress only added to her anxiety.

Her butterflies kicked into overdrive. She never dressed like this! Only once had she ever planned on dressing like this and that seemed like a lifetime ago. No, not a lifetime, another life AND for another man!

She couldn't do this! NO WAY! This was not her! And then, just as she was about to admit defeat and start taking everything off she saw a picture on her dresser. The picture of her and her children, holding each other and smiling. A snapshot of a perfect moment in time, but it was the smiles that got her the most. She could imagine all too well the looks on their faces if she told them she had lost her job. How could she face the future if there was something she do about it.

Taking several slow deep breaths she calmed herself.

Smoothing the dress over her flat stomach and then her hips, she whispered to her reflection in the mirror. "There's no backing out now. You've already called and made the appointment."

Happy her voice didn't shake when she said it, she exited her bedroom.

With a smile, a curtsy, and a quick twirl to show off for Kaylee, she turned on her heel to head for the door.

"Wait!!!!" Kaylee exclaimed, stopping Amanda in her tracks. "One last thing."

"Now what?" Amanda asked wondering what she could have forgotten or what crazy idea Kaylee had now.

"Your ring." Kaylee said softly. "Leave it here."

"Leave it here!?" she responded incredulously, her hand instinctively going to cover her meaningless wedding band.

"Yes!" Kaylee answered. "Leave it here. Why do you still wear that thing anyway." Kaylee asked. "After all this time, you have to know he's not coming back."

That was the hardest thing for Amanda to hear, especially now. Kaylee didn't seem to remember though, but today would have been their tenth anniversary. Swallowing her pride she answered.

"Because I couldn't take all the questions and accusatory looks anymore." She answered pathetically, her other hand twisting the ring on her finger. "No one asks questions of a woman with two kids if she's wearing a wedding band. Take it off though, and the questions start. What's worse are the questions people don't ask. The ones in their eyes that make you feel like you've done something wrong. That you either did something to make him leave, or that you're a whore."

"You, did nothing, wrong!" Kaylee said, defending her big sister. "and you are NOT a whore. This is ALL on him. He couldn't handle the responsibility of being a husband and a father and did the most cowardly thing possible, he ran away!" Kaylee responded with a vehemence that surprised her. "And you ... you stepped up to the plate, and made the most of a bad situation." The pride in her face shone through as she continued. "I only hope I have the strength and courage to do the same. You're my idol Amanda! Now go out there, get this guy to change his mind, and make me proud!"

A quick hug before wiping her eyes Amanda pulled the ring off. There was a bit of a struggle before it finally slipped out of the indent and over her knuckle.

Setting it on the hall table, it fell with a far louder, more ominous, sound than she intended.

Refusing to look at it Amanda cast one more glance at Kaylee and stepped out.

Outwardly Amanda was putting on a good show for Kaylee, inside however, her stomach began to churn again.

Driving to the hotel was the easiest part of the evening for fate itself seemed to guide her. Amanda watched in amazement as shafts of light lanced down from the streetlamps, seeming to grab her car and pull it forward only to pass it off to the next one, on and on, all the way to the hotel.

Her course set, and clearly out of her control, Amanda's mind wandered. She played out the conversation she was about to have. How she should greet him, what she would say, how he might respond. Over and over she worked it out in her mind trying to prepare herself to be the one driving the conversation, its direction, and it's inevitable conclusion.