I grinned. “And if you come to my side, I’ll make sure you want to stay.”

She jerked her eyes up to me as I was sliding under the covers. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means there’s obviously tension between us. Sexual,” I added.

Pearl’s tongue slid over her lips. “There isn’t.”

“You can pretend if you want, but I know what’s right in front of me. The two of us would be explosive. That’s all I’m saying.”

“Yeah, maybe we would. But you know the thing about explosions? They tend to be bad for people at the center.”

“Sure are pretty, though.”

She scoffed. “Instead of taunting me, maybe we could try to figure out how we’re going to handle tomorrow?”

“Last time I had a spa day, I pretty much just had to strip down to a towel and sit around while people helped me relax.”

“You aren’t stripping down.”

I was still sitting against the headboard and I turned to get a look at her. She was wearing an old t-shirt, no bra–her nipples were announcing their presence around me, as usual–and I suspected she’d slipped her pants off and tossed them on the floor once she was under the blankets. Call it manly intuition about women in states of undress.

“If you’re so certain there’s no chemistry between us, why are you so afraid of seeing me with my clothes off?” I asked.

“I’m not afraid of it. I could really care less. I just meant–”

“Oh, good. So you won’t mind if I get more comfortable? Because I never sleep with my shirt on. It gets all bunched up when I toss and turn.”

Before she could stop me, I slid my shirt off over my head and watched her eyes fall down my bare chest to my stomach. She was frozen for a full second or two before she lifted her gaze to my eyes defiantly.

“See? Couldn’t care less.”

I grinned. “Great. By the way, I can’t say I’ve ever been treated like that by a woman before. You know, taken by the hips and used like a perverted dog's favorite stuffed animal.”

Pearl’s cheeks went scarlet. “I was just trying to win.”

“Hmm. You’re a strange one, Pearl Moreno. A mysterious woman, to be sure.”

“I’m not mysterious.” She almost sounded defensive.

“Well, you’ve so far refused to tell me anything about yourself. All I know is you barf when cheated on, you seem a little twitchy and nervous at times, and you’re a great kisser. Oh, you’re competitive enough to hump the shit out of me in front of your co-workers, too. So she’s nervous, but willing to step outside of her comfort zone if it’s to get something she really wants. So, what is it you really want, Pearl? Victory at all costs? A happily ever after? Are you a career woman?”

She stared off into space long enough I thought she might simply refuse to answer me. “You say I’m mysterious?” she asked.