Good Guard or Bad Guard

Crap. Lily did not want to put that on. Who wore that? Okay, she'd wear if for her boyfriend, but that's it. That shouldn't have even been hanging up in a closet.

"Just get it over with," Billy practically whined. "What do you want me to do, close my eyes?" He covered his eyes. "There. Go change and I'll keep them covered until you say I can open them."

"Then I'll be mute," Lily said, "because that's a big fat no, Sir."

Billy uncovered his eyes. "Fine, let's see if I can help."

How? She watched him go in there and start looking around.

"At least there's sunny colors?" he said to either by funny or comforting. Neither one worked. He jostled around the closet more. "There's not even a robe in here. What are you supposed to wear tomorrow?"

Ah! That thought didn't even hit her. She heard an ow and realized she smacked his hand in the surprise. "Sorry. That thought scared me." They wouldn't make them wear those around the house, right? That was preposterous.

Billy started to fuss with the drawers that had some kind of time lock on them. "I bet you probably get whatever outfit is in here in the morning." He moved away toward the bed and brought back the blanket. "Here. If we don't get the option, you can wear that."

The blanket. That would make her feel better. "Thank you." She took the blanket. She could wrap it around herself after she put the nightie on, but if she did that, maybe she just shouldn't change? "I could sleep with my clothes tonight?"

"I think the clothes were part of the rules," Billy said. "Just take the blanket. The night's warm, I'll be fine, Miss Sunny."

Ugh. He was being nice, yet teasing still. "Please don't call me names."

"I'm not. Your name's over there." Billy pointed to the wall where a name hung above the bed. "You can be Sunny or Sunflower. Which do you want?"

Oh. "Sunny. I didn't see that. That . . . couldn't be more stupid."

Billy chuckled. "Yeah, I know, you were already named Lily. They wanted to change the flower I guess."

Weird. "Okay, stay out here and I'll get changed." She'd put on the skimpy nightie, but he wasn't seeing it. It wasn't hard to put on, it took longer to take off her clothes. Once it was safely on, she wrapped the blanket around herself, opened the door, and moved toward the bed.

"Good night, Sunny," Billy said. "Be prepared for tomorrow. I have no idea what's happening."

"Yeah, I know." At least she was covered up. "Could you get the light?" Billy got up to get the light and lied back down. Lily wasn't used to this kind of heat at night, she never stayed on an island before. "It's so warm."

"Then take the blanket off," Billy said, still up himself. "It's dark in here, I can't see anything."

That was a good point. Lily took the blanket back off, it was starting to make her sweat. She scooted to a better position in bed. Billy liked to sleep more sprawled out. "Don't hit me in the middle of the night."

"I can't," Billy said. "It's past the middle, it's early morning now."

"Is everything a joke with you?" Lily complained as she tried to get comfortable. How was she supposed to get comfortable? She was sleeping in the same bed with another man.

At least said man, though annoying and minorly funny, seemed to be okay. Seemed. So far, Billy was okay. She knew that she had a mountain of name tags in her closet, a whole trash bag full. If he kept being nice to her, maybe she would let him be Billy again.

Maybe. So far, he hadn't been overly nice to her at all. Except, for the letting her have a blanket. Catching the lights. Helping her figure out the clothes. Okay, so maybe he was being okay.

She'd decide tomorrow.

Sweetie's Room

Why? Sweetie looked at all the clothes over and over. Her old dressings were gone now that the show started. The last thing she wanted Devin to see was her in something sexy.

Ever. She never wanted him to see her in something sexy. Ever!

"I can close my eyes, and you can jump in bed," Devin recommended.

She took the offer, got dressed and moved to the bed. Safely under the covers from his prying eyes. As he moved though, he touched her side. "Do you want to die?"

"It was an accident," he said. "You are taking a lot of the bed up. Can you move over more to the right?"

Can he start raising his damned children with her, instead of leaving her to do everything herself? "I doubt it."

"There's room," Devin said. "There's a lot of room. Are you trying to get closer to me?"

Then again, she was too close. She moved away.

"Were you trying to get comfort?" Devin asked like an idiot. "Maybe sleeping nearby made you feel safer?"

"No." Definitely not. "I never had to share my large bed before, that's all."

"Oh." He looked at the size of the bed. "Did you sleep more on the left side? I can switch spots with you."

"No, I am content here," she insisted.

"Okay. Sorry," he apologized.

"For the bed, for leaving me behind again, for Wolfie being hurt, or for our daughter being chained up outside?" She just blurted it all out.

"For all of it," he said politely. "If it was in my control, you never would have been here before the show."

If it was in his control? "Where do you live?" she asked.

"Not on the islands," he admitted.

"Would Wolfie and the girl be safe?" she asked.

"Nowhere is actually safe right now," he said strangely. "Joining you now is the best thing I can do." His eyes lowered on her.

She lowered her eyes too, was something showing? No, she was under the blanket. "What are you looking at?"