Natalie and La Parisienne II

Ten years after foiling Diana's hostile takeover of the hotel, Natalie had been named the new hotel manager which she was delighted about, it was her dream to become a manager of a famous hotel one day. However, the past decade had not been a particularly good one for her. Natalie and Maeghan had realised they were not the ones for each other and had divorced after two years. One of the conditions of the divorce was that Maeghan got full custody of Kate, something which angered Natalie profusely. The only time she could see Kate was on a monthly visit. In that time, Maeghan had moved to Seattle with Kate as she felt Natalie would be detrimental to Kate's upbringing as they were always arguing prior to the divorce. This series of events had turned Natalie from an innocent and cheerful young woman into a ruthless and tyrannical woman. She was very strict about conduct and attire in the hotel. Nobody dared to cross her even though they thought that she was nearly as bad if not more ruthless than Diana had been a decade previously. The only time Natalie looked happy was when she was chatting with guests. The moment she had finished speaking with the guests, she had returned to her usual demeanour. 

One bright summer day, a young woman, not that much younger than Natalie, called Kelli had started in the hotel. Making her way to Natalie's office, she knocked on the door. "Come in", Natalie exclaimed. Doing as she was told, Kelli walked inside and sat down. "Good morning, you must be Kelli, I'm Natalie, I'm the manager of this hotel. You were speaking with me over the phone. If I do give you a job I expect you to do your very best at all times. This is a renowned hotel and I will not have my staff doing a bad job. I have one particular demand, it's that you are properly dressed at all times, the first sign of a good hotel is shown by how well its staff is dressed. You shall arrive here every morning early and get straight to work. I expect my staff to do their best work. Now, come with me, I'll bring you to our dressing rooms. Come on, I haven't got all day." Standing up, Kelli followed her out of the office. She watched as Natalie closed and locked her door. Following Natalie down the corridor, they got into the lift. After what seemed like the click of a button they arrived at the floor where the dressing room was situated. Kelli was stunned, the room was huge, it was full of dresses and lots of different items of clothing. There was another section for suits which was of no surprise to her. "The dresses may be on the racks Kelli, but I prefer my staff to all wear a suit and tie. Of course, me being the manager, I am exempt from this rule. I don't have to wear a tie if I don't want to, I sometimes prefer to wear a set of pearls around my neck instead. Now, let's get you dressed for work. You shall serve as my assistant and I expect you to work at a high standard.  Item number one, a black pinstripe suit with a white and black striped shirt and a navy tie, put it on and I shall give you my opinion."

Kelli nodded and put on the suit. Looking at herself in the mirror, she felt stupid wearing a suit. Struggling to do her tie, Kelli sighed. Natalie sighed even louder, "I'll do your tie for you today Kelli, but from here on, you will learn to do it yourself. Even my daughter knows how to tie one and she's ten years old. Of course, I only get to see her once a month thanks to my divorce proceedings, and I have to have a court liaison with me when I do. I have to be supervised while visiting my own daughter, it's disgraceful. Anyways, that's enough of that. Your tie needs doing." Tying Kelli's tie in a Windsor knot, Natalie smiled. "Perfect, now let's try item number two, a cream skirt suit and a powder blue tie." 

An hour later after trying on various suits, Natalie exclaimed, "I think the first one you tried on was the nicest, the black suit with the black and white shirt and the navy tie. Now, get dressed, you have five minutes, and when you are done, you shall return to my office where I will show you the tasks you will have to perform while you are here. Understood?" Kelli nodded, 'yes Natalie, duly noted." Walking out of the room and down the corridor, Natalie smiled and rubbed her hands evilly, "finally, I am the manager of this hotel, I've been waiting for this position for nine years. It's finally mine. You know what, I don't need Maeghan anyway, she was holding me back." Knowing that the hallway was empty, Natalie cackled, "it's mine!!!" 

Returning to her office, Natalie sat down at her desk. She noticed Kelli walking in, exclaiming, "excellent Kelli, you're now dressed for your duties. Now, you are going to be my executive assistant, you shall accompany me on business trips when the occasion presents itself, but when you're here, you shall answer the phones and direct any customer service queries to me. I hate the word secretary, it's so common. It's ok for today, but I prefer you wearing your hair in a bun. I'll recommend one of the stylists in the hotel to to help you with it from tomorrow. Now, time to get to work, chop chop, those queries won't answer themselves.' Kelli nodded, she knew this job was serious work and she did not want to let her boss down on her first day.

Oooh this is very good. I hope she gets quite dominating and mean to her regarding the uniform

N00144119 wrote:Oooh this is very good. I hope she gets quite dominating and mean to her regarding the uniform

Thanks, it's always been an ambition of mine to become an author so forum posts could help. I'll definitely think of some good ideas for it over the next day or so. I felt that I had unfinished business with the story and I felt like there could be room for a darker period in Natalie's working life and that she becomes a ruthless manager. I felt that the divorce I mentioned about and the lack of time seeing Kate would cause Natalie's anger to reach higher levels. It's only a matter of whether she redeems herself in the long run or does she stay on her current path of being a stern authority figure in the hotel.

Walking to her desk, Kelli sat down. She didn't know whether to be delighted to have gotten a great job or worried considering the fact that her boss was a ruthless businesswoman. Straightening her tie, Kelli sighed, "time to get to work". That evening when she had finished her work, Kelli made her way to the staff room which was empty except for one man reading a book. Looking up from his book, the man exclaimed, "you're the new girl here, Kelli is it?" Kelli nodded, "yes, that's right, I'm Natalie's new executive assistant". He smiled, "best of luck with it, I hate to say this but not many people lasted in that job, Natalie is as cold as ice in this hotel and if she thinks you're not doing your duties to the best of your ability, she will have no hesitation in firing you. She's had 13 executive assistants in the ten years she's been in charge here, so just basically work your socks off and you should be fine. Oh my, where are my manners? I'm Jake, Natalie is my sister. Don't let her get you down, she's really a sweetheart, once you get to know her better as an assistant, she'll ease up on you. At home she's always a bubbly little character, but the second she comes in the hotel doors, that bubbly persona goes out the window. She was always a very hard worker when she was growing up, straight As in school and college valedictorian, people always spoke very highly of her. Even though I'm younger, I'm very proud of her. Hotel work has been in our family for years. Anyways, I'd better get back to work, nice to meet you Kelli." Pouring herself a mug of coffee, Kelli sighed, she was exhausted from her first day of work.

The next day Kelli walked into the hotel where she was greeted at the reception by Natalie who exclaimed, "Kelli, you're here twenty minutes early, well done. I like my employees to be on time. This is my friend Helena, she's the hotel stylist. We'll visit her later, but first, we've to get you dressed up, I can't have my executive assistant not properly dressed." Nodding, Kelli followed Natalie into the elevator. Eventually they reached the vast dressing room, it was alway a sight to behold, all the suits and ties on one shelf, dresses on another, shoes, the whole nine yards. Natalie looked at Kelli with eager eyes, "from now on Kelli, I will meet you at the front desk every morning and I shall pick out your work attire, you shall wear what I deem appropriate and you will like it, understood?" Kelli nodded, "yes, Natalie, understood." Going through the vast inventory of clothes, Natalie smiled, "ah here were are, I like this skirt suit and red tie, get dressed, you have five minutes. I hope you learned to do your tie." Nodding with certainty, Kelli replied, "yes, Natalie, I spent all evening watching and studying how to tie a tie." 

Getting changed, Kelli walked out of the dressing room and returned to her desk which was in the lobby outside Natalie's office. Sitting down, she smiled, "time to get to work, I cannot let Natalie down after she hired me for such an important position." At that moment the phone rang, Kelli answering it, exclaimed, "La Parisienne, Kelli speaking. You're looking for Natalie? I'm sorry, she's currently occupied". A few minutes later Natalie walked out, "was that a woman called Tina? If she rings again, do not answer it, she's a sales representative for a major company that wants to buy the hotel and I refused her. She's constantly trying to contact me." Returning to her desk again, Kelli was inundated with replying to emails and customers queries. Time seemed to fly by and looking at her watch, Kelli noticed it was the end of her shift. Natalie came out of her office to her, "I expect you here early again tomorrow morning at the front desk and you are to follow me to the dressing room. I may be a tough boss, I'll admit that, but you keep up your work standard and you might just last in this job. Many of your predecessors didn't have the work standard you have and one or two of them, their behaviour astounded me, they were often rude to guests and rude to me too. Anyways, you've done your work for today, I'll see you here bright and early tomorrow morning."

Kelli shut down her computer and made her way back to the dressing room to change into the clothes she had arrived in. Walking out of the hotel, she saw a man run towards her with a knife in his hand. "give me your purse or you'll have this knife to deal with." Turning to him, she punched him in the jaw with one left hook and knocked him onto the footpath. Everyone watching applauded Kelli for her bravery and calmness in dealing with the situation. That evening when she returned home, she was so tired that she had her dinner, a glass of wine went straight to bed when she noticed it was 11:30.

On the Saturday morning after she started, Kelli woke up, she had finished her first week in the hotel which she was relieved about. She knew her job was a serious one and there would be no room for error. Walking down through the city centre, she looked around, town was packed with people out with their weekly shopping and the like, and some even just out walking or walking their dog. Sitting down on a bench near the pier, Kelli looked out at the calm blue ocean, the waves were nearly still. She noticed the seagulls squawking as they fought over a piece of bread. Eventually she arrived outside the hotel which had a very expensive car parked outside. Standing at the door, Natalie noticed Kelli walking towards her, "Kelli, follow me, we're getting you dressed and you shall help me with this wedding stuff." Making their way to the dressing room, they browsed the inventory of clothes until Natalie picked out a black tuxedo for Kelli. "There we go Kelli, now you're dressed. Follow me, this wedding stuff is very busy and I need you working to your best standard." Another girl walked past Natalie with a clipboard in her hands when Natalie cleared her throat, "Ana, where is your tie? I will not have my staff not properly dressed. Put on a tie this instant, and don't make me remind you in future." Nodding, Ana mumbled something under her breath. Natalie turned to her with fury, "excuse me? Ana, I did not hire you to mumble under your breath, get a tie right now, if you want to keep this job you will do as I say this instant. If you ever disrespect me like that again, I shall return you to your previous position and I have a number of people here who would desire your job."

Helena joined Natalie and exclaimed, "the nerve of her, Natalie, you are running a famous hotel here and she has the gall to speak to you like that." Natalie looked at her with assurance, "I've never been so insulted in all my years here Helena. Anyways, I'll see you later, this wedding stuff is very busy so I can't stay here and chat." Walking down the corridor, Natalie passed the bride, "wow, you look amazing, that dress is fabulous. I'm Natalie, you spoke with me over the phone about having your wedding here." Shaking hands, the bride replied, "I'm Lily, my mother used to work here twenty-five years ago. Of course, I'm hoping to follow in her footsteps." Cleaning her glasses, Natalie replied, "wow, that's amazing. Here's my number, get in touch with me sometime soon, no hurry, and we can set up an interview. I'd love to have you join us, though one thing, I will work you hard so I'm hoping you step up to the challenge." 

Turning to Kelli, Natalie smiled, "right Kelli, you are to come with me, we have a few things to do." Making their way to the elevator, they returned to the floor where their offices were located. "Kelli, you are to tell the front desk manager to keep an eye on Ana after her behaviour towards me. After that, I want you to set up that dinner meeting with the local councillor I spoke to you about the other day, she is very big in the political scene here and she wants to run for mayor of this city. Of course, she's my age so she'll be the youngest mayor in this city's history. She's launching her campaign here which is a pleasant surprise. When that is sorted, I would like to you to escort Ana to my office, I have to have a little talk with her about her conduct. Now, I shall be in my office if you need anything."

Watching as Natalie walked away, Kelli made her way to the front desk. Standing next to the front desk manager, she exclaimed, "Louisa, Natalie asked me to tell you to keep a good watch on Ana." Turning to Kelli, Louisa replied, "I already do, she's troublesome at times. Last week I heard her being rude to a guest who then complained to me. I was astounded Ana would act like that. I understand working for Natalie is a difficult job but you work as hard as you can and you'll last in that job. Natalie is a hard boss but she cares about the place. Anyways, I'd better get back to work or she'll fire me for chatting on the job." Walking up the stairs, Kelli sighed, she was tired from all the work she was doing, but she was also getting a lucrative salary so she did not know whether to be happy or annoyed. Sitting down in the staff room, she poured some coffee and sipped it. Looking at her phone, it was 7pm, the hours seemed to fly by, but unfortunately Kelli had been asked by Natalie to do a late shift so it meant that she would have very little time to nap and regain her energy.

A week later, Kelli made her way into the hotel where she noticed Natalie waiting by the desk as usual. Without saying a word, Kelli followed Natalie into the elevator. When they reached the dressing room, Natalie exclaimed, "today is the day that the local councillor is launching her campaign and I need you to look the part Kelli, this launch needs to go perfectly. Now, I'm thinking, a nice tuxedo and a satin bow tie, ah, this red one looks the best. I shall help you with the bow tie, you learned how to tie a regular tie, but a bow is different." When she had finished, Natalie walked Kelli over to the mirror, "you look amazing Kelli, you have my approval, now, let's get to work, the launch begins at twelve sharp and I want to get some work out of the way so we're free to attend the launch. Before we go, allow me to change too." Kelli nodded and sat down on a bench in the room. When Natalie had finished getting changed, she emerged from the changing room wearing a business suit with a pair of white pearls around her neck. "You look fabulous Natalie, that pearl necklace is gorgeous." Natalie smiled, "thanks, it was my grandmother's." 

Making their way back to Natalie's office, Kelli sat down at her desk, she knew she had to do her best work. Scrolling through various emails and answering queries, Kelli did not notice the time go by. It was only when Natalie emerged from her office exclaiming, "right Kelli, it's five to twelve, we'd better go down to the auditorium." Kelli nodded and followed Natalie into the elevator. Upon reaching the main reception, they were met by Ana who exclaimed, "Natalie, I wish to apologise for my ill-behaviour yesterday, I was out of line and I'm sorry." Natalie looked at her, "apology accepted Ana, now, get back to work, Kelli and I have important business to do." Nodding, Ana walked away. 

The auditorium was full of people, some looked very important, and others had decided to attend the launch in support of the councillor. Natalie walked through the crowd of people to get to the main stage. Locating the councillor, she marched over to her with Kelli right behind her. "Kelli, this is councillor Julie Rose. Councillor Rose, this is Kelli, she's my newest executive assistant. She only started a couple of weeks ago so she's learning the ropes. I see great potential in her unlike some of the previous ones I hired." Shaking hands, Kelli exclaimed, it's a pleasure to meet you Councillor Rose." She laughed, "please, call me Julie. I only prefer Councillor Rose when I'm in the courts and the like. Nice to meet you Kelli, excuse me for cutting our conversation short, I've to make my speech, and best of luck with the job." Kelli smiled, "thank you Julie."

Watching as Julie walked up on stage, Kelli sat down next to Natalie at the front of the room. "Ladies and gentlemen, I am here this morning to begin my mayoral campaign, and I am delighted that so many of you are here in person. I would like to thank Natalie for allowing me to be able to launch my campaign here. Firstly, I am all about the people of this city. I believe that it is not just us councillors that have a say in how the city is run, I believe that everyone in this city has their own ideas on how it is run. If you elect me as your mayor, the first woman in this city's history I might add, I will be all for listening to the ideas that you bring forth. I understand some of you probably think I'm too young to be running for mayor which is acceptable, but politics have been in my family for generations and I am following in their footsteps. I plan to tackle some of the key issues that are occurring in this city such as the installation of more soup kitchens for the homeless, the cleaning up of litter on streets, more money into sports development among others. A vote for me is a vote for the people, my opponent is constantly spewing lies about me saying things like I don't care about anyone but myself and that I am clueless and that I have no idea in how to run a city. He claims that the fact I am only out of university a couple of years that I am too young for the position, he claims the fact that he's been in politics a long time that he is more suited for the job, but times are changing and it's time for the new generation to step up to the plate and take control." 

Kelli noticed that the crowd erupted with delight and encouragement, nearly every second person was shouting, "you show em' Julie" or "Julie, you go girl". The crowd of people had a thunderous applause. Natalie smiled, "wow, she really knows her stuff Kelli." Kelli nodded, "indeed she does". After the questions and answers had finished, Julie came down from the stage. "Did I do ok?" Looking at Julie, Natalie replied, "Julie, you killed it up there. I was saying it to Kelli that you were excellent and you know your stuff." Julie blushed, "it's not easy that's for sure." Later that evening after everyone had left, Julie had left the hotel to return to work and when she was finished, Natalie had invited her to join her for dinner in the executive office of the hotel. Kelli was also invited, something which delighted her because she had always wondered what it would be like prior to getting the job. She had been told that only the executive staff could enter the office and all other staff members were not permitted to it. 

Sitting down at the table, Kelli looked around her, the decor of the room was amazing, it was like something she had never seen before. 'Kelli, I would like to officially welcome you to the executive office, this is the really elegant room in the hotel and only the executive staff can enter, i.e. you and I only. Now, we shall have dinner." They were chatting away when the dinner arrived. At one moment Kelli was eating when suddenly she started choking, she did not realise there was pepper in her dish, something that she was allergic to. Natalie walked over to her and proceeded to give her the Heimlich manoeuvre. When the food had been coughed up, Kelli felt embarrassed and walked out of the room in a flood of tears. Following her out, Natalie placed an arm around her, exclaiming, "don't worry Kelli, it could have happened to anyone, you didn't do anything wrong. Come on, we'll bring you downstairs, clean you up and change you out of your tuxedo, it's the least I could do, but first I have one thing to do." Walking back inside, Natalie walked into the kitchen and summoned the head chef. "I am astounded by your mistake, you could have killed poor Kelli, and she ran out of the room in tears." The chef went to explain the mishap when Natalie interjected with fury, "I don't care, get out of this hotel this instant, I will personally see to it that you never get a reference again." Another chef walked past Natalie who turned to her, "Melissa, you are now the head chef, Sheridan has been fired." 

Returning to Kelli, Natalie walked her down the corridor. Getting into the elevator, they made their way to the dressing room. Picking out a cream coloured suit and a blue tie, Natalie exclaimed, get changed and come back to us, there's no hurry Kelli. Take as long as you need to. You are truly the best executive assistant I've hired so far." Kelli smiled with delight, her boss had given her a really nice compliment on her work standard, she knew she had impressed Natalie. Making her way back to the executive room, Kelli walked inside. "There she is, good as new." After what seemed like a click of a finger, Natalie looked at her phone, "oh my, it's nearly ten, I've kept you both for longer than I thought. Kelli, to make up for it, you can come in to work at anytime you wish tomorrow, just give me a heads up and we can get you dressed."

The next day, Kelli decided to take a couple of hours off in the morning which allowed her to take her dog for a long walk. When she arrived back at her house, she went into her office and cleaned it. After a few minutes she decided to head to work. Upon arrival, she noticed Natalie wasn't there at the desk. A front desk staff member walked over to her, "Kelli, Natalie phoned me to say that she is sick and won't be coming in this morning so she told me to tell you that you are in charge for the day, however, she asked me to accompany you to the dressing room and pick out a suit for you, now follow me please." Having no choice, Kelli followed her down the corridor and into the elevator. No matter how many times she saw it, Kelli was always stunned at how many clothes were in the vast dressing room. The staff member walked over to the suits and examined each one, eventually stopping at a navy pinstripe suit, "here we go. Get dressed." Kelli looked at her, "excuse me? I'm your boss for today and you do not have the the authority to tell me what to do, now, I shall get dressed and go to my office and you shall return to the front desk. How dare you have the audacity to speak with me like that?" Putting on the suit, Kelli walked out of the room. Making her way to the elevator, she was disappointed that Natalie was not around especially after her heroics the night before. 

Turning on her computer, Kelli started to write an email to Natalie, "I followed the staff member to the dressing room and then she proceeded to give me orders, I am disgusted by her behaviour." Sending the email, Kelli did not have long to wait for Natalie's reply, "I'm furious that she acted like that to you Kelli, I left you in charge and she had the cheek to speak to you like that. I shall summon her to my office first thing tomorrow morning and have her apologise. Good luck with being in charge today Kelli, you'll do fantastically. Best regards, N." Knowing that she had a duty to Natalie, Kelli thought to herself, "right, let's get to work, Natalie believes I have the ability so it's time to show her that ability." After what seemed like an instant, Kelli looked at her watch, it was 5pm, the day had flown by. Making her way to the executive room, she sat down in one of the armchairs. Loosening her tie a little, Kelli looked out the window and watched as people were walking in different directions, some were carrying bags, others were walking with their children or a pet. "It was always nice to see the city so active", she thought to herself. Getting up, she tightened her tie again and walked out of the room again and made her way to the main reception which was full of people. One woman walked over to her, "excuse me, I couldn't help noticing, your suit is amazing, and the tie is even more amazing. My friend and I are staying here for a few days, and now that we've seen you wear one, we would like to know where we could buy some." Kelli pondered, "there's a great suit shop a couple blocks from here, they do really nice ones." The woman smiled, "thank you very much, we'll be sure to check it out, by the way, where is room 418?" Kelli looked at her, "room 418 is if you go up to the 4th floor and you go down the corridor and through a set of double doors, it's the first room on the left. My boss will be in tomorrow and if you need anything let us know."

Before she left work, Kelli emailed Natalie telling her about her day in charge, "it was busy being in charge for the day, Natalie, but I gave it my very best effort and many of the guests I met told me to tell you that they thought the hotel was magnificent and that they would be delighted to stay. A few at the start knew I wasn't the usual woman in charge, but they were ones who had stayed before." A few minutes later, Natalie replied, "wow, you did an excellent job Kelli, I'm delighted to hear that you did so well. I'll tell you more about it in the morning but we have a business trip scheduled for Friday, we'll be back here at around 11pm that evening. Meet me at the front desk at 3pm because its a two and a half hour drive and we need to be there by 6pm at the latest. Wear something casual and when we're in the car, I'll give you a suit to wear to the meeting, I'm thinking that black suit with the white and black striped shirt and a navy tie. We shall stop somewhere to change our clothes before we arrive at the meeting. See you tomorrow, N." 

Arriving at the hotel the next day, Kelli walked into the main lobby where she was greeted by Natalie. Another staff member approached her, exclaiming, "Natalie, Kelli is not dressed appropriately for work. You make us dress appropriately at all times." Natalie glared at her, "Samantha, I asked Kelli to dress casually because she is accompanying me on a business trip. You were not hired to complain like a petulant drama queen, I hired you to work. Now, get back to work or I'll think twice about your position here." Natalie sighed, "sometimes Kelli, sometimes I wonder if I chose the right profession. Anyways, let's get moving, I have your suit in this bag." Getting into the car, Kelli smiled, this was the first time she had to accompany Natalie on a business trip, but it wasn't going to be the last.

As they made the journey, they were chatting along the way which helped the journey seem quicker. Pulling up at a filling station, Natalie exclaimed, "you stay here and mind the car and I'll get changed, and when I return, you can get changed." Kelli nodded to understand. After a few minutes, they had both put on their suits. Straightening her tie in the mirror, Kelli felt delighted that she had been given such a lucrative job and even more delighted she was doing an excellent job of it. Eventually they pulled up outside the building where the meeting was to take place. Walking inside, they were greeted at the desk by the receptionist. "Hello, you must be Natalie, and who is this?" Natalie scoffed, "this is my executive assistant Kelli, and my number two in command. Now, I believe the meeting is in room 15." The receptionist nodded, "yes, that's right, up on the second floor, third room on the right." Kelli knew that this is her first foray into the elite world of hotel work and was determined to make it a memorable one.

Arriving at the door to room 15, Kelli was slightly nervous. Natalie could see this nervousness and exclaimed, "don't worry Kelli, it's understandable to be nervous. I was the very first time I did this when I was in your position. Once the first one is done, it's easy, you learn the tricks of the trade quite quickly. Sit next to me and watch what I do, and you'll learn in minutes. After a few of them it's like you're just having an everyday conversation." Hearing these words, Kelli felt more at ease. 

Walking into the boardroom with Natalie, Kelli sat down next to her. They were joined by a group of men and women who sat down in their seats. "Good afternoon everyone and welcome to this meeting. We all know why we are here. Natalie, we're glad you came here, and welcome to your new executive assistant. We've been trying to contact you regarding the buying of La Parisienne for the past six months. You have refused to answer any questions in public regarding our company buying it and you refuse to speak to the press or give an interview. You are a businesswoman with exceptional credentials, but we don't think you are the woman for La Parisienne. We would like to negotiate a deal peacefully and without any fuss, but if you refuse to comply in these meetings we shall have to take you to the courts and see if that will make you listen." Natalie shook her head, "Yes, Tina, and for six months I've been trying to tell you that I'm not selling. You dragged Kelli and I up here to tell us this. I'm not sure why I should have come here in the first place." Tina looked at Natalie with disgust on her face, "fine, you won't sell it or negotiate with us. I'll see you in court Natalie, that will teach you not to mess with me." Natalie scoffed, "fine, see you then."

Kelli and Natalie stormed out of the room, Natalie exclaiming, "she won't do it, Tina has been saying that for ages but she never does it, everyone knows that. I'm sorry to have put you through that Kelli, the other ones should be easier to deal with. Everyone knows Tina is a pain in the teeth and she just wants to be ahead of everyone else. Nearly everyone hates her, even those who were with her in the meeting. Tina thinks she's the greatest person on the planet. Everyone knows that she's also a complete snob and always looks down on those she believes are below her. One of the women there told me once about her. Anyways, let's get going, it's a long journey home. I know a great pizza place about halfway, we can stop there to eat."

Upon arrival back at the hotel, Natalie walked over to the front desk and took a key off the key rack. "Here, take this key, you can sleep here tonight if you wish, or I could drop you home if you prefer." Looking at Natalie, Kelli replied, "thanks Natalie, but I've to get home so that I can feed my dog, he gets rather worried when I'm not there in the mornings to feed her." Nodding, Natalie replied, "I understand, see you in the morning Kelli." When she arrived at her house, Kelli walked in and sat down on the end of her bed, she was shattered from the day's events, especially doing a five hour round trip. Her dog walked over and cuddled her leg to which Kelli exclaimed, "hey there Juno, I'm sorry I wasn't here to play with you after work. It was very busy today." Barking gently, it was understandable to Kelli that Juno was ok with what Kelli had said. 

The next morning Kelli arrived at the hotel with confidence in her eyes. Following Natalie to the dressing room, Kelli was always stunned by the collection of expensive clothes that lay before her. "Kelli, I think today you deserve to be permitted to wear a dress, what do you think?" Kelli shook her head, "no, I want to wear a suit and tie. When I arrived here, I thought it was stupid for a girl to wear a suit and tie, but ever since then, my opinion had significantly changed, if anything I think more women should wear them, who cares what other people may want to think? You wear what you feel comfortable in, and I feel comfortable in a suit and tie." Smiling with delight on her face, Natalie replied, "a suit it is!" Picking out a navy suit, Kelli put it on and glanced at her reflection in the mirror, she looked amazing. Natalie walked over to her with a tie in her hands, "allow me to do your tie for you Kelli." "Ok Natalie, go for it", Kelli replied with delight. 

Walking out of the dressing room, they made their way back to the reception. It was 9am, the debate wasn't for another two hours but already people were making their way in so they could get decent seats for when it began. At that moment Kelli noticed Julie's opponent standing with his wife. Kelli thought to herself that she was far too young to be married to him. She watched further as she straightened his tie, exclaiming, "you got this, babe." He looked like a very smug man, clearly cared more about himself than he probably did about others. Suddenly she noticed him walking over to her. Shaking hands, he exclaimed, "Michael James, and this is my wife Karyn. You must be Kelli, Natalie speaks very highly of you. She says you're a very good worker." Karyn nodded in agreement, "yes, I'm looking for a new chairwoman for the board of directors at my company and I think you might just have the potential, here's my card."

Watching as they walked away, Kelli made her way back to Natalie. "That woman, Karyn, she offered me a job as the new board of directors for her company." Natalie looked at Kelli with eager eyes, "Kelli, if you want to take it, you go for it. In the short amount of time you have worked here, your work credentials have been stellar. I would miss you here, but this is a wonderful opportunity to learn more about the business world. If you want to stay here, I'd be delighted, but if you left, I would not have any grudge against you, we're both relatively young women and we would like to explore the working world. As thanks for your work here, if you did leave, I would like you to have all the suits you have worn here as a going away present from me." Kelli noticed Samantha walking past her with a scowl on her face, "I hope you're happy Kelli, because of you I nearly lost my job. I couldn't help but overhear you may be leaving, that's music to my ears because if you do, I'm surely a shoo-in for the vacant executive assistant position. I've been trying to impress Natalie since before you started working here, and I was insulted when she passed me over for the position when you came along. The position was going to be mine." Natalie looked at this with a look of disgust on her face and marched over, "Samantha, this is the second time in two days that I've had to warn you about your conduct, now go to the dressing room and get changed. The staff breakfast shall begin in ten minutes." Nodding, Samantha walked away. As she made her way to the dressing room, she stopped at the dining room which was adorned with each person's breakfast. Noticing Kelli's, she walked over to the spice rack and sprinkled Kelli's breakfast with cayenne pepper, knowing that pepper was Kelli's allergy. Smirking, she exclaimed, "that'll teach her not to cross me."

When she had returned from the dressing room, Samantha walked into the dining room with a sense of secret delight on her face. At that moment Kelli started to eat her toast when she started choking. She knew something was wrong and Samantha smiled to herself with glee. Kelli walked out of the room with tears in her eyes. Muttering to herself under her breath, Samantha exclaimed, ""time to finally get my recognition around here." A few minutes later Kelli returned from the bathroom with a look of outrage, "who put pepper in my food? Speak up now!! Who did this?" Natalie walked into the room when she overheard the situation. "What's this? I hear someone deliberately put pepper in Kelli's food, confess and the repercussions will be less severe. If the culprit is not willing to confess, I shall have to resort to harsher penalties. Kelli, lock the door and we'll get to the bottom of this incident." At that moment Samantha couldn't help sniggering. Glaring at her with fury, Natalie exclaimed, "Samantha, I should have known it would be you. How dare you be so heartless?" Samantha was astounded, "I'm heartless, Natalie? I'm heartless? For the past five and a half years I've been trying to work my hardest so that I could have become your executive assistant, and when you named Kelli as your executive assistant I was furious. You overlooked my work standard for the new girl!" Natalie's voice went dangerously soft, "Samantha, you're acting like this because I gave Kelli the position of my executive assistant? Grow up and act like an adult, you're angry because you didn't get the position and now you're acting like a spoilt brat and taking out your frustration on Kelli. Now, this is the last straw, you're fired! You shall leave here this instant or I will have the security guards throw you out, you'll never work in a hotel ever again. In fact, I shall ask the security regardless." A minute later the security guards arrived, the two of them wearing a suit and tie. "Ladies, you shall escort Samantha here out of the premises and if she returns at any time you have my authority to summon the police." One of them nodded, "certainly Natalie. Right, come along Samantha." The two guards pinned Samantha's hands to her sides, but before she left, Natalie took off her name badge and snapped it in half. 

"Kelli, I'm so sorry for Samantha's behaviour, she acts like such a drama queen when things don't go her way. Right, we had better get a move on." Returning to the lobby, Kelli could see that it was now packed with people. She noticed Karyn walking towards her with another woman who Kelli guessed was her mother, her guess was proven to be correct when Karyn exclaimed, "Mother, this is Kelli, she's potentially going to be the new chairwoman of the board of directors at the company." Karyn's mother nodded enthusiastically, "excellent, it'd be a pleasure to have someone as young as you to take charge." Karyn was delighted, "Come with us Kelli, you can sit with us in the private seats." Taking Kelli by the arm, Karyn walked with her into the auditorium. Sitting down, they were joined by a couple more people who were roughly Kelli's age. Karyn exclaimed, "Kelli, this is Isabella, my daughter, and my son Jacob." Take a seat  next to Jacob, Kelli, you two get familiarised with each other. Kelli nodded with a nervous feeling in her stomach but sat down. Natalie observed this with a look of curiosity.

She smiled anxiously, she did not know what to say to Jacob. Her worries were eased when he exclaimed, "it's very nice to meet you Kelli, tell me, are you single?" She turned to him, "yes, I've been single for the last six months and I miss having a relationship." Smiling, Jacob replied, "wow, same here, I was wondering, it's Bella's birthday on Saturday and we are going out for dinner, would you like to join us?" Karyn smiled with satisfaction, "we'd love it if you would come, it'd give you a chance to get to know us better." Kelli, not knowing what to say to this, replied, "yes, I'd love to come." Leaning over, she took Jacob's tie and fixed it, exclaiming, "I love it when guys dress up for me, and especially when they wear a tie." Bella noticed this with a look of disgust on her face, "she's so dramatic. Please tell me she's not going to be like this on Saturday", Scolding her for her comment, Karyn exclaimed, "Bella, stop that, you're a grown woman. Kelli is just trying to be nice to Jacob, it's just a bit of playful fun."

Kelli still had Karyn's offer swirling around in her head, did she want to become a powerful chairwoman of a board of directors? On the other hand, did she want to stay and work with Natalie?

Should Kelli stay in La Parisienne with Natalie, or take the job with Karyn?

I want Kelli to stay, but converting a new set of women to the suit and tie lifestyle has it’s intrigue

A couple of days later, Kelli had spoken with Karyn and had told her that she was flattered by the offer but she had preferred to stay in the hotel. Karyn had told her that she was sad to hear it, but she fully respected Kelli's wishes and told her she would always keep her in the running for any job she required if Kelli had left the hotel. 

One day when she was making her way into the hotel lobby, Kelli noticed Natalie standing around a circle of about ten women. "Ah, here's Kelli now. Ladies, this is Kelli, she's my executive assistant and my second in command. You shall all be working with her and you shall do everything she says without any questions asked. Now, if you would like to follow us, we're taking you to a special room." Reaching the dressing room, they all looked around. Standing in front of them, Kelli exclaimed, "you ladies shall meet Natalie and I in here every morning, we have our standards about work attire. The attire you have now is not workplace appropriate. Staff at all times must wear a suit and tie, the tie must be worn in a proper fashion and top button closed at all times. We shall pick out your clothes and you shall get dressed without any complaints. Once you are dressed you shall report to my office and I will fill you in on your duties, now get changed, I don't have all day to dilly dally." 

After a couple of minutes, the girls had all changed into their chosen suit and ties. Examining their attire, Kelli stopped at one, exclaiming, "your top button is open, close it immediately. I will not have staff looking scruffy. Now, everyone, kindly follow me." Arriving at Kelli's office, one she had received as a promotion present from Natalie, they all walked in. Sitting down at her desk,  Kelli tightened her tie a little. "Ladies, now that you are dressed appropriately, I would like you all to have a read of this in your own time, it's our staff handbook, it goes into detail on staff conduct. However, you shall all go to your duties." Stopping one, Kelli exclaimed, "you are to stay here, you shall be the private secretary to Natalie and I. You shall answer the phones and direct any guest inquiries or bookings to us and we shall forward the bookings to the front desk staff. What is your name? I forgot to ask." The young woman shuddered and with a slight stammer, exclaimed "Carly." Kelli looked at her with bemusement, "you have a stammer? My father had one a few years back, I know an excellent speech therapist, friend of the family. When you're finished this evening, I'll give you her card. Now, get to work Carly."

A couple of days later, Kelli happened to be walking through the hotel lobby when she noticed a very attractive woman standing there, she was beautiful, and her clothes were amazing. Walking over, Kelli exclaimed, "hi, I'm Kelli, I'm the executive officer for this hotel. I couldn't help but notice your clothes, they're amazing." The woman blushed, "thanks, I'm an airplane captain, we have to wear a uniform and tie at all times. I'm Anna, I booked a room here for a few days until my return flight to Malaga. I was wondering if there was any particularly nice restaurant to get some dinner tonight." Thinking, Kelli replied, "there's a really good place where they do French food, Aurelie's. It's not cheap, but the food quality is very good." Anna glanced at Kelli with eager eyes, "tell me, Kelli, are you single?" Kelli nodded, "yes, I had a boyfriend up until a week ago, his mother had offered me a job. His mother is a very nice woman, but I found he was cheating on me with a girl he works with." "Oh, sorry to hear that, I was just wondering if perhaps you would like to join me for dinner tonight, I'm going through a messy divorce and I need the company of someone, my ex-husband has turned all my friends against me and nobody I know wants to socialise with me." Stunned, Kelli replied, "wow, that's very kind of you Anna, I hope I'm not imposing on your plans." No, of course you're not, don't worry, I was going to be having dinner alone tonight. I'll see you here circa 7pm, if that's alright." Nodding, Kelli replied, "sure, 7pm works for me, I finish at 6:30 so it'll give me a few minutes to freshen up."

Hey Evol, 

Thanks for the ideas, I love it when I hear from my fellow forum members and their feedback, I'm aspiring to be an author and every bit of writing helps me to hone my skills. I've some more ideas for the continuation and I may even do a third part, maybe make a trilogy of it

Returning to her office, Kelli had a radiant smile on her face. As she returned to her office, Natalie walked over to her, "you're looking very cheerful Kelli." "I'm going out to dinner with an airplane captain tonight after I finish, she is going through a divorce and she asked me if I would like to join her for dinner. Could I wear one of the dresses in the dressing room?" "Kelli, that's fantastic, I'm so delighted for you, of course you can, you're the second in command here, you can wear what you wish, feel free to take anything from the dressing room whenever you want. I'm glad you're going out to dinner with this airplane captain tonight, it'll help take your mind off Jacob."

Looking at her watch, Kelli was surprised, it was nearly time for her to finish work. Walking into Natalie's office, Kelli nervously spoke, "Natalie, would it be ok if I could finish a few minutes early to freshen up for the dinner with Anna?" Natalie looked up from her work, "Kelli, of course you can, you're the second in charge here, you don't have to run things by me, you can do what you feel like doing. We are executives, we don't have to answer to anyone in here. The staff answer to us, not the other way around. If you ever want to work late or finish early or anything, go for it, you don't need my permission." 

Making her way to the lobby, Kelli noticed one of the girls at the desk. Walking over to her, she was not happy, "Lily, I am not happy with how you look. Tie that tie properly this instant and put on your jacket, we are running a highly respectable establishment here and the first thing people say about it is by how the staff are dressed. Now, I shall see you all in the dressing room at 9am sharp, Natalie is very strict on attire and even stricter on punctuality. You ladies have been hired in one of the most renowned hotels in the world and we expect hard work and appropriate work attire. I will not tolerate any breach of staff rules and I do not wish to have to reprimand you again, next time I won't be as lenient. Now, get back to work." Sighing, Kelli wondered why some of the staff hired lately were so rude at times, surely this was not something they learned in their hotel studies. Walking to the dressing room, Kelli admired many of the dresses that were hanging on the railings, they all looked so beautiful. At that moment, Natalie appeared at the door, "I thought you'd be here, these dresses are all so beautiful and whatever you choose will be excellent, perhaps I could make a suggestion?" Nodding, Kelli replied, "sure, go for it." Examining all the dresses, Natalie stopped at an emerald green dress that almost touched the floor. "Go ahead, try it on." 

Kelli took the dress and got changed. Looking at her reflection in the mirror, she smiled, the dress was gorgeous. Putting on a pearl necklace and a pair of drop earrings, Kelli looked at her reflection again, she was like that of a supermodel. Making her way back through the lobby, everyone was looking at her in awe, everyone was saying how beautiful she looked, one or two people said that they thought she was extremely hot, especially in the dress.

Soon afterwards, Natalie followed Kelli into the lobby. Furious, Lily walked over to her, incensed that Kelli was violating the staff dress code. "Natalie, why is Kelli not in the staff attire that you specifically asked us to wear at all times? How come she's not wearing a suit and tie?" Shaking her head, Natalie replied, "Lily, Kelli can wear what she wants because she's my second in command here, she's an executive, plus she has a date tonight. I did not hire you to complain or ask questions, I hired you to do hard work, now get cracking." Natalie walked back over to Kelli, "sorry about that, in all my years here, sometimes the new workers can be a bit of a handful, you were like that the first couple of days if I recall." Giggling, Kelli replied, "yes, now that you say it, I was like that. Times have changed, you're a kinder boss to me." Cutting across her, Natalie exclaimed, "you're not my assistant anymore Kelli, you're my partner, a fellow executive. Your training days are well over, you and I run this place. We're co-owners now." At that moment, Natalie heard a voice shout, "Mommy!" Turning around, she was stunned to see Maeghan and Kate. Kate ran over to her with delight and Natalie put her arms around her, "hi honey, it's great to see you." Maeghan smiled, "Natalie, I've good news, Kate and I are moving back here, and there's one more thing, I'm willing to give us another shot, I'm sorry Natalie, I've been so selfish, moving away and taking Kate away from you is the worst mistake I've ever made, I hope you can forgive me, I'll understand completely if you don't or it takes time." Kissing her, Natalie replied, "I agree, let's give it another shot, this time we'll do things right and do what's best for Kate." 

Turning to Kelli, Natalie exclaimed, "Maeghan, this is Kelli, she's my partner here. Kelli, this is Maeghan, my former ex-wife and hopefully soon wife again, and my daughter Kate. Kelli is going on a dinner date tonight so that's why she's dressed to the nines. I'll see you later Kells, enjoy your date." Kelli smiled, "nice to meet you Maeghan, and you too Kate." Walking out of the hotel, Kelli made her way to the restaurant which was full of people sitting down and enjoying their meals. The scent of cooked steak emanating from the kitchen was divine. At that moment she noticed Anna and walked over to her. "Kelli, hi. Wow, you look gorgeous." Anna was wearing a cream coloured suit and a powder blue tie which she wore in a Windsor knot. Looking around the room, Kelli noticed Jacob sitting at another table with a woman she did not recognise. She was not the girl that Jacob was seeing behind Kelli's back. Kelli watched as the girl straightened his tie and then stood up to go to the bathroom. Feeling tears in her eyes, Kelli sat down. Anna noticed Kelli's discomfort, exclaiming, "is that the guy who cheated on you?" Without saying a word, Kelli nodded, she was too upset to say anything.

Kelli watched as the girl walked back to Jacob's table and sat down again. There was something fishy about the situation, Jacob was with another girl a week after he had cheated on Kelli with a different girl. He seemed to be juggling multiple relationships at a time which was out of line in Kelli's eyes. While she was eating, Kelli still felt uncomfortable considering her ex-boyfriend was in the same restaurant with another woman. Looking up from her conversation with Anna, Kelli noticed that Karyn was approaching Jacob's table, she did not look remotely happy. "Jacob, I did not raise you to party around, I raised you in the hopes that you would find a decent woman and settle down with her. You broke Kelli's heart, that poor girl did nothing to deserve that treatment. Thanks, partially to your stunt, Kelli turned down my offer and I'm still searching for a new chairwoman." Noticing Kelli, Karyn walked over, "Kelli, it's great to see you. Wow, that dress is gorgeous, bit different not seeing you in a suit and tie, but you look gorgeous all the same. I'm sorry for Jacob's behaviour, you didn't do anything wrong Kelli, Jacob has always been promiscuous. If you ever feel like taking on a new job, there's always a position for you at my company, just give me a call and we can settle an interview." Kelli smiled, "thanks Karyn, I'll be sure to contact you if I do decide to leave the hotel."

When Kelli and Anna had finished eating, they made their way outside. With tears in her eyes, Anna exclaimed, "Kelli, I enjoyed our dinner date, but what if I never see you again? We live on opposite sides of the world, I'm hardly ever in America. I'm an airplane pilot, I travel all over the world, I do multiple flights in a single day. Even if we were in contact, we'd be hardly able to chat because of the time difference, you'd be asleep when I'm awake and vice versa. I live in Australia, you live in America. I've to fly to Budapest tomorrow morning, and then from there to London." Kelli looked at her, "here's my number, if I'm ever planning to go to Australia for a holiday, I'll let you know. This is a trifle strange, but could I give you a farewell kiss?" Anna nodded, "sure, I don't see why not." Kissing each other, Kelli and Anna then walked away in different directions.

When Kelli arrived back at the hotel, she noticed Natalie talking to the ten girls she had hired, "ladies, tomorrow is a very busy day and I need you all working your very best." Despite the fact she had only worked with Natalie for a short period so far, Kelli knew that Natalie was being serious, something that Kelli had learned after her first day of working in the hotel. Dismissing the girls, Natalie sighed, "tomorrow is going to be a pain in the ass, two weddings to manage. Sometimes, I think, Kelli, that I chose to go into the wrong profession. I didn't hire you to hear me complain though, anyways, I'll see you in the morning, I'd say show up around 8:00am, just to be safe. I'll meet you here and we'll go to the dressing room." Straightening her hair a little, Kelli replied, "perfect, I'll be here at 7:30am." 

Making her way home, Kelli knew that the following day was going to be very busy and hectic and there was no room for slip-ups of any kind.

The dialogue in these stories needs a little work

bryantfinlay wrote:The dialogue in these stories needs a little work

Thanks bro, I always like getting feedback, both positive and negative, the latter helps me practice.

Should I continue from here, or write part 3 with Natalie staying as the tyrannical and ruthless boss or she redeems herself and slowly wins back the love and respect of her staff? If I was to do part 3, I might put in a new character, I'll see, but if you want Kelli to stay, I'm open to that too. Let me know what you think, I'm also thinking I might add in a few more tuxedos into part 3, I know someone commented once on one of my stories that they didn't see enough tuxedoes in stories so I might add that too.

A bit more ruthlessness would be great and some detail regarding the clothes

Can do, I'm thinking of adding a new character who serves under Natalie and Kelli

The next day, upon reaching Natalie's office, Kelli noticed the ten women Natalie hired standing in front of the desk. "Ladies, I expect you all to conform today, I will have messing around, you are to work, not to play around and be sloppy in your duties. If I see anyone not doing their work properly, there shall be serious repercussions. I did not take this job to be all smiles and good graces, I took this job to mould my staff into hard workers at all times and show why this is a five star hotel and one of the most renowned hotels in the world. Now, you shall all accompany Kelli and I to the dressing room where we will pick out your attire, you will wear what we choose and you will like it, anyone who disobeys us shall be fired! Now, let's go." 

When they arrived at the dressing room, Natalie started to examine the shelves. Handing the women each a skirt, a black suit, blazers, stockings, shirts with tight collars, neckties, flats and high heels among others. "Get dressed this instant, iff I hear so much as sigh, I will not be happy. When you're done you shall report to my office where Kelli and I shall inspect your attire, I want you to wear your ties in a smart manner and your top button closed. There shall be harsh penalties for those not sticking to our dress code." Returning to Natalie's office, Kelli sat down in one of the chairs, "if there's one thing I've learned Natalie, it is that in our position, we have to be ruthless. Some people may believe we're obsessed with power, but we're doing it for the benefit of the hotel, we're running a respectable hotel, a renowned one I might add." At that moment, the women returned from the dressing room. Walking along, carrying out her inspection, Kelli stopped. Looking at one, she shook her head with disapproval, "Sarah, your tie is far too loose, if you're wearing a shirt with a tight collar, you have to wear a tight tie. Fix it immediately." Kelli sighed, she and Natalie had seemingly hired staff who had a little bit of an ego and thought they were the bees knees. Stopping again, "Lucia, button your blazer, Samantha, remove your pearls immediately. Maria, close your top button now. Heather, you look perfect. Excellent, now you're all conforming. Now, get to work. We want to hear nothing but praise for you from the guests."

MatthewJames7 wrote:

bryantfinlay wrote:The dialogue in these stories needs a little work

Thanks bro, I always like getting feedback, both positive and negative, the latter helps me practice.

I just think the dialogue needs to be more realistic and subtle. Someone telling an employee (I'm paraphrasing) "you're an idiot and your style of dress stinks" wouldn't go over well at all

If we're doing some (hopefully) constructive feedback, then here are some thoughts... 

1) Dialogue is really hard to do without sounding fake. A lot of the time, whatever is being told to the reader through the dialogue would sound cooler if it was shown to the reader through action. Like, instead of having a character say "You're an idiot and your style of dress stinks", you describe them inspecting someone's outfit, narrowing their eyes at a poorly tucked in shirt or whatever, and then have the underdressed character think "She thinks I'm an idiot etc..." You convey the same information, but without so much clunky dialogue. 

2) Shirts and ties are mostly a visual kink, it's based around seeing with your eyes. So if you're trying to scratch that itch through writing fiction, you have to make up for the lack of images by describing stuff really well. Not just how a well-knotted tie looks, but how it affects the characters wearing it, looking at it. Like, what does it actually feel like to be woman wearing a tie? A good way to start might be looking at some of your favorite pics, and thinking hard about what it is about them that you like so much, and how you could communicate that with words. 

3) Have the characters interact with each other more. Let them shock each other, push each other's boundaries a little. The idea of someone, male or female, being dressed up smart is exciting because it raises the stakes. If a character experiences a moment of either triumph or embarrassment while wearing a suit and tie, it's more intense because of how they're dressed, so let them do more crazy fun stuff! Having characters doing things that are inappropriate to be doing while dressed smartly is fun. Let them get drunk and dance badly, or have them flirting in the workplace and making out in the supply closet.  

Anyway, these are just some thoughts. Please feel entirely welcome to ignore all of them, cos you're actually writing some cool shirt and tie fiction, and I'm just over here thinking about it. I like reading your stuff, and I hope you keep writing!

slimybutsmart wrote:If we're doing some (hopefully) constructive feedback, then here are some thoughts... 

1) Dialogue is really hard to do without sounding fake. A lot of the time, whatever is being told to the reader through the dialogue would sound cooler if it was shown to the reader through action. Like, instead of having a character say "You're an idiot and your style of dress stinks", you describe them inspecting someone's outfit, narrowing their eyes at a poorly tucked in shirt or whatever, and then have the underdressed character think "She thinks I'm an idiot etc..." You convey the same information, but without so much clunky dialogue. 

2) Shirts and ties are mostly a visual kink, it's based around seeing with your eyes. So if you're trying to scratch that itch through writing fiction, you have to make up for the lack of images by describing stuff really well. Not just how a well-knotted tie looks, but how it affects the characters wearing it, looking at it. Like, what does it actually feel like to be woman wearing a tie? A good way to start might be looking at some of your favorite pics, and thinking hard about what it is about them that you like so much, and how you could communicate that with words. 

3) Have the characters interact with each other more. Let them shock each other, push each other's boundaries a little. The idea of someone, male or female, being dressed up smart is exciting because it raises the stakes. If a character experiences a moment of either triumph or embarrassment while wearing a suit and tie, it's more intense because of how they're dressed, so let them do more crazy fun stuff! Having characters doing things that are inappropriate to be doing while dressed smartly is fun. Let them get drunk and dance badly, or have them flirting in the workplace and making out in the supply closet.  

Anyway, these are just some thoughts. Please feel entirely welcome to ignore all of them, cos you're actually writing some cool shirt and tie fiction, and I'm just over here thinking about it. I like reading your stuff, and I hope you keep writing!

Thanks for the feedback, I always love it when people comment on my stories, I'm aspiring to be an author in addition to my college study, so I like all feedback my friend! I'm hoping to write part 3 so I'll see how I can incorporate your suggestions into the story. It always brings a smile to my face hearing the ideas that you, my fellow forum members, give me. It helps me to develop my writing skills and hopefully it'll help augment it if I do write books in the future.

Sitting in the executive room, Kelli looked at her reflection in the mirror, sighing. Deep down inside, she always felt stupid in a suit and tie, she felt it was not feminine for a woman to wear a suit, and especially wearing a tie. It was too late for her to object to Natalie's wishes, Kelli had been in the job for a few months so she was not in any position to complain, she was the second in command in the hotel. There was a dress code standard she had to uphold despite her own feelings of her attire. Upon returning to the lobby, Kelli noticed a group of girls looking at her and giggling silently. Kelli knew they were laughing at her outlandish attire, and especially her tie. Angered by this, Kelli walked into the bar. Standing at the bar, she exclaimed, "six strong whiskeys, and don't go easy." The bartender returned a couple of minutes later with the tray in her hand. Kelli laid the drinks down on the countertop and proceeded to gulp them down like they were shots. Ordering another six, she gulped those down too. The entire bar was shocked by Kelli's behaviour, they couldn't believe that a senior staff member was behaving in such an inappropriate way. Clearly drunk, Kelli walked over to the nearest man and kissed him, an action which angered his wife. Furious, she walked out to the lobby, "excuse me, I would like to complain about that staff member." After the complaint had been made, Natalie stormed down to the lobby. "Kelli!! Kelli, get out here right now!!" she screamed with fury. Staggering out of the bar, Kelli walked over to Natalie with a cheerful look on her face, she had no clue of how irate Natalie was with her actions. 

The rest of the staff in the hotel looked at each other, they were mortified by their deputy boss's behaviour, they couldn't believe that she would act in such a fashion, one that would cause embarrassment, both to Natalie and the other staff. Sarah, one of the girls behind the desk looked at her friend with a look of suppressed laughter. Straightening her blue spotted tie, Sarah watched as the events unfolded. Natalie was seething with rage that nobody had ever seen in her eyes before. This was not a time to mess about or make jokes, Natalie was clearly more than just angry, she had a look in her eyes that would scare anyone, this was serious. Sarah was one of the staff who loved to wear a suit and tie, she always told her best friend Lenore who worked alongside her, that a suit and tie was always the best look in 95 percent of public surroundings. When they weren't at work, Sarah and Lenore would often travel up and down the country looking for shops to buy suits in. Sarah had come from a wealthy family so she could always afford to buy the most lavish suits. There was hardly a place where Sarah went without wearing a suit and tie. She was also very diligent in how she looked, and she made her daughters wear nothing but suits and ties at all times, something they didn't take kindly to at first, but after a few weeks, they had fallen in love with the idea and were never seen out in public without a suit and tie on. The fact that Sarah was also extremely wealthy, it enabled her to send her daughters to the fanciest prep school in the area. 

Natalie faced Kelli, she was not messing around. "Kelli, I am disgusted, no, I am outraged by your behaviour. I am running a very famous hotel, one of the most renowned in the world, and I will not have my staff running around getting drunk on the job and kissing people's spouses. Seeing as this is your first offence here, I'm suspending you for a week without pay. Now, I'll call a taxi to take you home." 

Sarah walked from behind the desk, Lenore urging her not to, but her efforts were clearly in vain. Looking up from Kelli in the armchair, Natalie noticed Sarah walking towards her. Lenore sighed, she knew Sarah was going to do something stupid. With a look at Kelli, and back at Sarah, Natalie exclaimed, "ah Sarah, I'm suspending Kelli for a week so I need you and Lenore to do her duties for me, I will give you each double pay. You can make use of the suits in the dressing room, or you're both also free to wear whatever suits you possess yourself." Lenore was stunned, she thought that her best friend, since the age of 3, was going to do something stupid, but she had ended up getting them a better position, even if it was only for a week and they'd get double pay for their work. Another staff member walked past with a file in their hand when Lenore stuck out her hand. She noticed the staff member's shirt wasn't tucked in properly, it angered her to see a professional not being properly dressed. The staff member thought to herself, "it's just my shirt, next she'll probably say my tie isn't tied properly, she'll find something else to complain about."

A week later, Kelli had returned to work. Walking through the lobby, she noticed many of the staff were staring at her with keen attention, she knew that secretly they were still in gales of laughter from her actions the previous week. Sarah had a smile on her face that caught Kelli's attention. Glaring at her, Kelli marched over to the desk. "I don't see anything remotely funny so I don't know why you have that smile on your face, Sarah, I am your superior, and I demand you to get back to work." Every other staff member in the lobby knew something that Kelli did not. "I don't think so, Kelli, you see, Lenore and I, we've each been made new executive directors, and you on the hand, you've been demoted to junior desk staff. Last evening, Natalie summoned us to her office and gave us both positions as her executives. Normally, it's only one staff member who gets the job but Lenore did such a great job that Natalie was inspired to hire us both, now if you will excuse us, we've got a meeting to attend." Kelli knew her job was in jeopardy but she was powerless to do anything. She had been replaced. She knew her prestigious position had been given to someone else.

Getting into the elevator, she arrived at the top floor. Marching down the corridor with fury, she walked into Natalie's office. "Why have I been replaced?" Natalie looked up from her work, "after your behaviour last week, I decided to give Lenore and Sarah a trial run as my executive assistants, and they did an exceptional job so I decided to give them the job permanently. Seeing as you seemingly have no control over your actions and you just barged your way in here, your services are no longer required, I want you leave now or I shall have security throw you out." Counting down from five, Natalie sighed, "alright, you won't leave by yourself?" Pressing a button on her desk, Natalie had a mischievous smile on her face. A minute later, Sarah, Lenore and two security guards arrived. The two security guards pinned Kelli's hands to her sides, "alright, let's go." Kelli watched as Sarah and Lenore both smugly straightened their ties as she was escorted out of the hotel.