Nina flopped onto the hotel bed with a sigh of relief, glad that Aaron had told her to make separate room reservations instead of sharing a suite. In her current emotional state, she wasn't sure how much more she could stand Aaron's presence.
After several minutes of deep, relaxing breathing on the hotel bed, Nina proceeded to unpack her suitcase.
She chewed her lips as she surveyed the sets of skirt suits and casual dresses she had packed. Somehow, they no longer seemed appealing to her. She wanted something that would make her stand out more, appear more confident, more powerful. Something that would compliment Aaron's commanding and intimidating presence, making it clear that she was his right-hand woman.
Inspiration hit her like a lightning bolt.
Nina sprang to her purse, pulled up the navigation app on her phone and frantically searched for a nearby clothes shop.
Still in her black skirt-suit and turtleneck sweater-top she wore on the plane, Nina hurried into the upscale shop that her searching had suggested.
A Japanese woman greeted her politely at the entrance. "Hello, can I help you?" she asked in slow, halting English.
"Yes please, I am looking for a black leather skirt-suit" replied Nina slowly, showing the woman a picture she had pulled from the internet.
The Japanese girl's eyes widened at the picture and nodded.
"This way please" she said and led Nina to the back of the shop.
Nina marvelled at the sight and smell of black leather and latex that adorned the back of the shop.
She suddenly felt a little unsure if she had come to the right place.
An older Japanese woman dressed in an ornate black kimono emerged from behind a red curtain and smiled warmly at Nina.
"Hello, my name is Mio, I understand that you wish to buy a leather suit?" she asked in refined, American-accented English.
"Um yes. I am, I'm not sure if it would suit me though" said Nina uncertainly.
"Not to worry." said Mio with a dismissive wave. She produced a measuring tape, and took Nina's measurements with quick, efficient movements.
"What kind of style are you looking for?" asked Mio.
"Well I think I'll stick to a single breasted style like the one I have right now." said Nina.
Mio nodded. "I would say that a single breasted style would suit you well." she said and pulled a shiny black leather blazer from the rack.
Nina stripped off her black wool-polyester blend blazer and put on the new black leather blazer. The smell of the leather invaded her nostrils and she marvelled at how the shiny black leather material increased the severeness and sexiness of the rest of her clothing.
She ran her hands over the soft buttery material. "Wow!" Nina whispered to herself.
"Wait till you get the full ensemble" chuckled Mio.
Nina stood looking at her reflection in the store's mirror.
The black leather blazer clung to her body with a better fit and silhouette than her wool-polyester blend one, emphasizing her hourglass figure.
The black leather pencil skirt hit just above her knees complimenting the look of the blazer.
Her thick black pantyhose slightly softened the severe look of the leather giving her a slightly demure appearance.
The shiny black material perfectly complimented her brown skin. She felt confident, powerful and exotic in this new suit.
However, it still didn't give her the desired effect. Her wavy hair and face devoid of makeup made her still feel a little frumpy and under-dressed.
"Thank you so much. I'll take it." said Nina as she changed back into her old suit.
"Pleasure doing business with you ma'am. I'll throw in these gloves for free as well." replied Mio, packing Nina's new black leather skirt-suit into a suit-bag.
After paying for the new suit. Nina took a taxi back to the hotel. "I would like to book a spa and salon appointment for today, can you accommodate that?" she asked the hotel receptionist.
"Of course. Let me check availability." replied the Japanese girl manning the reception desk. With quick, efficient keystrokes, she booked Nina an appointment.
Nina surveyed herself in the salon mirror with a mixture of wonder and guilt.
Her bolt of inspiration had faded, and her feminist beliefs were kicking in again.
Her wavy locks had been trimmed and styled to frame her face in soft, wavy shoulder-length curtains, her eyebrows had been shaped to be sharper giving her face a cleaner, more sculpted look.
The black eyeliner added a layer of definition to her large black eyes, making them bolder and stand out more from her face, and the deep red lipstick added a subtle touch of allure, making her look confident, sexy, and alluring.
However, these feelings were being marred by a growing sense of guilt and confusion.
Growing up, Nina had always believed her mother's stance that women didn't need to apply makeup to enhance their beauty, especially not to attract some man.
Any man worth their time would accept their natural beauty and would never pressure them to apply makeup. Yet here she was, with a newly bought black leather skirt-suit, freshly styled hair and the first makeup that she'd ever worn, all to impress Aaron, who was just her boss!
Nina could almost see and hear her mother's shock and disapproval of her new look.
As she continued to look at herself, Nina's guilt slowly morphed into a streak of rebelliousness.
Throughout her life, she had been a dutiful daughter, always obeying her mother, agreeing with, understanding, and promoting her mother's beliefs, while empathizing with her mother's reasons for leaving India, and her rejection of traditionally feminine beauty norms.
Now, she was starting to question her mother's beliefs and views. Her interactions with Aaron's world had opened her to the possibility that women could embrace beauty norms such as skirts and makeup while still being confident and empowered.
Nina started to wonder how she would look with earrings dangling from her earlobes, whether traditional Indian jewelry would suit her new style, and whether it would be a good idea to grow out her nails and apply nail-polish.
"Would that be all ma'am?" asked the soft, polite voice of the stylist, startling Nina out of her revere."Y-yes, thank you" said Nina blushing in embarrassment that she had been day-dreaming in a salon chair.
Back in her hotel room, Nina carefully changed into her new black leather skirt suit and surveyed herself in the room's full length mirror.
Her instincts proved to be right. Her new hairstyle and makeup accentuated the sharp, sleek cut of the suit and made her look bold, confident and sexy. This was her! A sexy, powerful woman, ready to bend others to her will! A loyal lieutenant to Aaron Zakhrov, willing and eager to carry out his orders.
She came to understand Aaron's preference for black leather and relished in the feeling of power and poise it gave her while still leaving her soft and feminine.Her black eyes lit up with a newfound resolution. Grabbing her black leather purse, she left the hotel room once again, this time for the nearby shopping mall, to look for accessories.
It was evening when Nina finally returned to her hotel room. Her ears were slightly sore from the fresh piercings and adorned with large silver hoop earrings.
She again surveyed herself in the hotel mirror.
The silver hoop earrings added a metallic shimmer to her hair, she had swapped out her black turtleneck blouse for a classic white blouse with a pointed collar and had a black leather choker necklace around her neck.
These new elements gave her a sense of completeness to her outfit. They added a touch of glamour, femininity and submissiveness to the severity of the black leather skirt suit making her feel confident, yet submissive at the same time. It was an intoxicating feeling.
With a contented sigh she sat down on the hotel bed and began to get ready for the night, jet-lag finally catching up to her.