“Did you change your mind?” Claire asked, forcing herself to sound like she didn’t care one way or the other.
“No, but I thought we should talk,” Mason said.
“Slamming your door in my face isn’t exactly the best way to start a conversation.”
“Neither is stripping naked.”
Okay, so maybe she’d chosen an odd way to say hello. “I think my method was the friendlier of the two.”
“I apologize. Now can I come in?”
Claire had to admit, she was intrigued by this turn of events. “I was just about to go out, but I suppose you can come in for a few minutes.”
There--casual as she pleased. She didn’t sound like a desperate, hormonal female at all.
She stepped aside, and Mason entered the room, filling it instantly with his overbearing presence.
“I’m hoping we can call a truce and part ways as friends. I feel bad about the way things have gone between us, if for no other reason than our mutual friendship with Lucy.”
Claire thought of their first date--utter disaster--and their subsequent encounters--disasters every one. There was no denying she was partly to blame, especially if it meant she might get Mason into bed at last. “Okay, truce. I don’t know if we can be friends, but we can at least be people who don’t hurl sharp objects at each other.”
He nodded, a smile playing on his lips. “I think I can live with that.”
“Nice resort you’ve got here.” She’d only been at Escapade for a few hours, and already, she could tell it was her kind of place.
“Thanks. It’s great to finally see it up and running.”
“Must have been years of work getting this place built.”
Mason gave her a pointed look, as if he were fully aware of her buttering him up for ulterior purposes.
“It was worth it,” he finally said. “There’s clearly a strong market for upscale resorts.”
“Exactly.”
He ran one hand through his hair and made a move toward the door. “I should be going,” he said.
Claire calculated her next move. Clearly he wasn’t going to just fall into bed with her, but then again, he might still be persuaded if she found the right enticement.
“Being at a resort like this alone--it’s a little odd, you know?” she said.
“Lot’s of singles come here to meet other people.”
“But I don’t want to meet just anyone.”
“I’m sure you have no problem finding men.”
Claire closed the distance between them. How far would she have to go to get him into bed tonight? Her stomach fluttered at the thought of having to humiliate herself again, but what was truly more humiliating? Being so distracted by sexual fantasies that she wrecked her car, or taking charge of the situation and doing what a girl had to do to get her way?
Claire would choose getting her way any day, even if a little begging was involved. “Are you really going to leave me in agony like this?”
“What agony?”
“I want you, Mason.” She slid one dress strap, then the other, down over her shoulders, until her breasts were revealed. “Please don’t make me beg.”
If she wasn’t mistaken, Claire would have sworn she could see the color rising on his neck.
“Us sleeping together would be a bad idea,” he said without much feeling.
“Or maybe it would be the smartest thing you’ve done in a long time.” She took a half-step closer, and her breasts were nearly pressed against his chest.
She slid her hand up his arm and behind his neck. “Just kiss me, and then if you still think our sleeping together is a bad idea, you can walk away and I’ll never bother you again.”
His gaze was locked on her mouth now, and she knew she had him. “You’re a wicked woman.”
“Wicked can be lots of fun,” she whispered, right before their lips collided.
