Lily pressed her forehead against the shower wall, remembering Shade’s own well-stocked bathroom closet. She had been a fool for not realizing it sooner, that the women were in his bedroom enough to keep a regular stock of shampoo in his shower.
She slowly stepped out and dried off. She would have rewashed her hair, but she didn’t know whose shampoo was whose. She was going to the store tomorrow when she got off to buy her own toiletries and return all the clothes at one time.
When she went out into the bedroom, Shade was sitting at the desk, going through his email. Lily saw the empty store bags sitting on the chair. She lifted one of the bags and the tags fell to the floor.
She stormed angrily to the closet, opening the door and seeing all the clothes hanging up. The shoe boxes were even neatly stacked on the floor underneath the hanging clothes.
“I can’t believe you did this! I told you I was taking the clothes back.”
“And I told you that you weren’t,” Shade replied coldly.
Lily stood with her hands on her hips. She would just keep the clothes and give him the money for them. At least she could take the shoes back. They were the most expensive items and there were no tags that he could remove that would keep her from returning them.
Lily bent down, opening one of the boxes and staring in shock at what he had done. One of the shoes was missing. Going down on her knees, she opened each of the boxes and saw each one contained only a single shoe.
She rose to her feet, holding one tennis shoe in her hand. “Where are the other shoes?”
“I’ve put them away. When you want to wear a particular pair, I’ll get you the match.”
“I’m not keeping the shoes.”
“Doesn’t look like you have much choice, does it?” Lily could hear the satisfaction in his voice.
“You think you have it all figured out. Fine, I’ll keep them and the clothes, too. In fact, I’ll share them with all the women in the house. They all share clothes. They’ll love the shoes.”
Shade had the audacity to laugh. “They wouldn’t be seen dead in those clothes.”
Lily had a temper-flare, believing he was shoving her face into the fact that there was no comparison between her and the other women.
“That’s fine then.” Lily did an about-face. “I’ll give you the money for everything. I don’t want to share anything with them, either. Not their clothes, not their shampoo, and certainly not you.” With that, she threw the tennis shoe at his stunned face and he barely dodged it. He probably hadn’t believed she would actually throw the shoe at him until it had almost hit him in his face.
Lily crossed her arms over her chest, proud of herself, wishing she had the other one to throw at him, too. “Do you mind getting me the match?” Lily unwisely mocked him.
Shade got up from the chair, his face impassive. “That robe belongs to Bliss. She didn’t need it because she doesn’t wear it.”
Lily shrieked in anger, jerking the robe off before she threw it at him. He grabbed it, tossing it to the chair.
“The nightgown belongs to Raci. She sleeps in the nude, so she lent it to you.”
Lily wasn’t so far gone that she was about to tear the gown off. Instead, she went back to the closet, getting one of the new pajama sets she had bought. Jerking it off the hanger, she turned back around and ran into Shade’s chest, who had come up behind her while she was going through the closet.
“I thought you didn’t want them?” This time he was mocking her.
“I don’t, jerk-face, but I have to wear something.”
“I don’t see why.” His hands went to her hips, clenching the material of the gown in his hands, bunching it up until it came up to her calves.
Lily released her last remnants of temper and used one of the moves that had worked for her in the past. She raised her knee.
“Oh, no, you don’t.” Shade moved his thigh, blocking her knee and then throwing her off-balance so her body fell against his.
She became determined to take that smug look off his face. Using another move that had worked successfully before, she reached out, resolving to crush his nuts and make him useless to any woman.
“Nuh, uh, you little wildcat.” He used his leg to swipe her foot out from under her, making her begin to fall to the floor; however, he twisted so that he fell first and she landed on top of him.
“You’re a mean, mean person. I don’t even know why I like you.” Lily beat on his chest with her fists. “The only women you haven’t been with in Treepoint are the ones who are either happily married or dead.” He laughed in her face, rolling her onto her back and then lying between her thighs as he took her wrists in one of his, locking them above her head and holding her in place beneath him.
“You don’t hate me; you’re jealous,” he said smugly.
“I’m not jealous of you. You’re a… a—”
“Exactly what am I?” Shade’s face was amused above her own.
“A manwhore,” Lily spat angrily. “I do not think you being promiscuous is funny. I don’t care who you have sex with as long as you leave me alone.”