Shaundra drug herself out of bed around nine and went into the bathroom for a quick shower. While she was in there, she removed every strand of hair from her body except for the ones on her head in preparation for the photo shoot. She didn't know what she would be wearing, but she didn't want to gross anyone out with unsightly body hair.
She pinned her hair up while she dressed casually in a pair of tan slacks and a creme-colored blouse. She topped the outfit with a tan, short- sleeved blazer before slipping her feet into a pair of sandals. "Not bad for an old broad," she said as she checked out herself in a mirror. She really didn't feel fifty...she just felt like Shaundra.
The telephone rang. "Hello?"
"Hey, it's Dorothy. Are you ready?"
"Yes."
"Good, meet us down in the lobby."
"Okay." Shaundra hung up the phone, grabbed her purse and left her hotel room. She found the others in the lobby talking to Harper.
"Aomori left already," he announced.
"Good," Shaundra replied, hoping he hadn't made that little announcement for her benefit. She was glad to see that everyone else was casually dressed, except for Harper who always looked like he fell out of the pages of GQ magazine. They had been instructed not to put on makeup or do their hair. She looked over at Dorothy. The older woman really needed her makeup. Without it, she looked a bit pale.
"I hope they have some nice strong coffee waiting for us," Dorothy replied as Harper led them out of the lobby. "I'm still dragging ass from last night."
"Don't be disappointed if you only get tea," Shaundra teased to lighten the moment.
"It will do as long as it has caffeine in it."
They loaded into a van this time, but with the same driver. He turned on the music. Shaundra sat back in her seat and listened to the song. It was a nice ballad. "I like this," she announced. "Do any of you know who is singing that song?"
She was met by blank stares.
Harper pressed the button for the chauffer.
"Yes, sir?"
"Do you happen to know who is singing that song?"
"Aomori," the driver announced.
"Thank you," Harper replied. He turned his attention back to her.
"Satisfied?"
Shaundra just smirked at him. She looked out of the window. The windows weren't tinted this time, to her delight, and she finally got a chance to see what Tokyo looked like by daylight.
"Look at all those people and cars," Harper said as they traveled.
Tokyo's streets and sidewalks were bustling with people walking, driving cars and riding bikes. Traffic stopped at several intersections to let hordes of people cross. Tokyo also had some of the tallest buildings in the world. "Can you imagine living here with a population of twelve million people?" she asked the others.
"Not really," Riley replied. "Texas is pretty big and that was too much for me. I have enough just getting used to New York."
"It's pretty pricey to live here too," Harper added. "And the apartments are small."
"I might consider it," Jackson replied. "The technology is phenomenal.
But I'd probably go broke just trying to keep up with phones, computers and MP3 players."
Shaundra settled back in her seat. It was all so overwhelming. If someone had told her a month ago that she would be halfway across the world in Japan, she'd have called them crazy. Move to Japan, no way. It was unthinkable. Pretty as it was, she didn't do typhoons.
Harper nudged her. "I heard we are the hit of YouTube."
Shaundra groaned. She knew it was too much to ask that no one else found out. That little announcement caught everyone's attention. "Go on, fill them in."
"Apparently, someone captured the two of us dancing at the club last night and posted it on the Internet. Of course, Charlotte is back home having a fit."
Dorothy laughed.
"Don't laugh. They got all of you too."
"I hope they captured my good side," Jackson joked.
"What good side?" Riley asked. He struck a pose. "I'm ready for my close up, Mr. DeMille."
Shaundra chuckled. "This isn't funny. They also got me dancing with Yori. My eldest daughter had a fit when she saw that, especially that dress.
She called me every version of old she could think of."
Harper patted her hand. "She's just jealous because her mother has a rocking body."
"Thanks, but that's not helpful. In a way, she's right. I shouldn't be dancing with someone like him."
"What's wrong with him?" Riley asked.
"He's twenty-five."
"So, like you have one foot in the grave? If he didn't want to dance, he wouldn't have asked. And if my two cents mean anything, you did rock that dress."
"Thanks, anyway, I don't plan to get caught like that again. I'll do the photo shoot, but I plan to stay as far away from Aomori as I can after the rehearsal."
"Good," Harper replied. "At least three of them are after you now.
That's steep competition for me."
Shaundra rolled her eyes at him and smiled. "Who is the third?"
"Satoshi?"
"Be serious."
"I am serious. He had his eyes on you all night too. He's just better at hiding it than Ichiro and Yori."
"Well, I don't have to worry about Takumijo. I don't think he likes me much."
"Takumijo is stuck on himself," Jackson told her. "I know the signs.
He's probably in the mirror more than I am."
"You're both gorgeous men," Dorothy replied.
"Thank you, darling."
The car swerved to the left and then the driver left the road and drove into the parking lot of a big building.
"We're here," Harper announced. "I want you all to be on your best behavior and do Kehoe Publishing proud."
"I need coffee," Dorothy announced aloud. "Or some tea bags for these big rings beneath my eyes."
The chauffer opened the door and they scrambled out one by one.
Shaundra looked the outside of the building over. It had at least fifty floors. The grounds were nicely landscaped with bonsai bushes and cherry blossom trees.
"This way," Harper told them as he started walking. They followed him up a large flight of stairs and into the building to the information desk.
"We have an appointment with Flowing Magazine."
"Your name, please?" the man behind the desk asked as he looked them all over.
"Harper Kehoe and company."
The man checked the list for Harper's name. "Nice to meet you, Mr.
Kehoe. Flowing Magazine is on the thirtieth floor. They're expecting you."
"Which way to the elevators?"
The young man pointed. "Around that corner to the left."
Harper thanked him and followed the directions. The lobby was pretty nice with gold and white flooring, wallpaper and furniture. Harper pressed the button for the elevator and they climbed in when it arrived.
Shaundra pressed the button for the thirtieth floor. Her stomach began to wobble and her ears popped as soon as it began to move. "Why do people insist on renting office space in the nose bleed areas?" she moaned.
"Just five more floors," Dorothy told her. "Then you can relax."
"I've never met anyone with so many travel issues," Harper replied.
"I'm surprised you don't get car sick."
"Nope. Cars, trucks, buses and trains I can handle as long as we don't cross over large bodies of water."
"I am so glad that you were sedated on the way here."
Shaundra chuckled. "And I plan to be just as drugged up on the way back," she reminded him.
The door opened and they stepped out into what she could only describe as a fashion magazine wonderland. Beautiful, tall models littered the waiting area flipping through magazines, and sat around drinking water and tea. Harper went up to the desk and gave the young woman their names. She looked at the group, raised an eyebrow and then picked up the phone and made a call. A few minutes later, Goro Niigata arrived and whisked them all off through a double plated glass door.
