I retreated behind the curtain and stripped off the jeans and shirt. The moment I slipped the dress on over my head, I knew it was perfect for me. The light jersey fabric draped well, and as I wiggled my hips, the skirt swished from side to side.
When I stepped out to show Nate, his cobalt-blue eyes gleamed with appreciation. That sent a tingle down my spine. He made a spinning motion with his finger, and I turned slowly, giving him time to study every inch of me.
"Beautiful." I got the feeling his impassioned tone wasn't for the dress. "We'll get it."
"I'll get it," I corrected him. Nate opened his mouth as if to argue, but I beat him to it. "This is important to me, Nate. I don't want to feel as if I'm being bought."
He pursed his lips and, for almost a minute, said nothing.
"Your credit card could be tracked."
"If he can track my credit card, he can track my phone."
Nate rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then he nodded. "If you want to pay, I won't argue."
It was probably a blow to his pride, so I appreciated him giving up all the more. I changed back into the clothes Eileen gave me and took my purchases to the register. As the cashier rang up the items, I quickly gathered some underwear, a couple of t-shirts, a pair of cowboy boots, and some white sneakers.
"Don't you want to try those on?" Nate asked.
"No, they should fit." I didn't want to waste any more time in here. Our trip to town would be short because Nate had to get back before tonight's shift began, and I wanted to check out the bookstore I'd spotted two doors down.
"If you're sure." Nate sounded skeptical, and I hoped I wouldn't end up paying for my haste with ill-fitting shoes that rubbed my feet.
When the cashier finished totaling my purchases and carefully placing them into white paper bags, with the store logo emblazoned on them, I tapped my card on the payment machine.
"You'll need to insert your card," the cashier said.
I did as she asked and entered my PIN.
"I'm sorry, Miss, it's been declined."
My stomach dropped. "That's not possible. Let me try another card."
I took out the debit card I used for work purposes and tried it. Again the transaction failed. Heat crept up my neck as it dawned on me I'd been cut off. My mother had made some noise about seeing how I would cope without the family, but I hadn't imagined she would immediately freeze my finances.
"Do you have another form of payment?" the cashier asked, not unkindly.
"Uh, no, I'm sorry. Can you put everything back?"
Humiliated, I turned and fled from the store before she could respond. Thankfully Nate hadn't locked his truck since it clearly wasn't the sort of town where he needed to, so I got back into the passenger side.
A few minutes passed before Nate appeared, carrying a half dozen bags, which he put on the back seat of the truck. Anger spiked my pulse as he got into the driver's seat.
"You paid for my clothes?"
Nate didn't answer immediately. He slotted the key in the ignition and started the engine. "Yes, I paid for your clothes."
"I asked you not to."
"That was before."
"Before my family cut me off." I huffed. "It's not your responsibility to buy me clothes."
Nate turned in his seat to face me. "You are my responsibility, Juliet. You needed clothes. I bought them. That's the end of it."
"Like hell it is."
"Careful." Nate shot me a warning look. "If you keep that up, you're going to earn your first punishment."
