Stubborn as Mules (Romantic #SPG)

4: When Tournament Ends

He turned back to Katrina but she had already filled her bucket and was making a beeline for her room. Keller knew he should do the same but his heart rate was up, and he could still taste her. She wasn't going to avoid him now, he decided. He wanted her too badly. With a fast hand, Keller caught her by the seat of her shorts. She stilled, and with one move, spun around, shoving him away with a single back kick. Her cheeks were flushed, her lips swollen, and her hair fell over her shoulder as she glared at him, breathing heavily. 

"I'm not your type," she said simply. 

"Judging from two minutes ago, I beg to differ."

Katrina swallowed slowly. If she was nervous, it didn't reach her eyes.

"Beg all you want, Keller," she said, running a fingertip over his chest. "As tempting as it sounds, it's not going to happen. I have a tournament to finish. I need ice, food, and sleep, nothing more!"

She turned to open her door, but Keller didn't give up easily . . . not when it came to women. It was more than a little irritating to realize that he finally saw her as one.

"You seem really stressed. You haven't had sex in a while, have you?" he asked with a grin.

With one hand on the doorknob, she turned back to him and glared. "I have no interest in sleeping with you."

"You're very interested," he corrected.

He saw her narrow fingers tighten on the doorknob. Her face colored, and her next words were spoken through gritted teeth. "You want me to admit that I want you? Fine! Dogs and cats fuck all the time; they don't have to like each other. Too bad for you I'm not a dog or a cat. Goodnight Keller , and good luck tomorrow."

"This isn't over Real . . . "

"Oh it is," she said slowly, and before he could answer, she'd slammed the door in his face.

"The tournament ends tomorrow," he said softly, staring at her door, "after that, you're fair game; good luck getting to sleep, Katrina," and with that, he went back to his room.

***

"So what do you think?" Ralph asked as he and Aries attacked the burger and fries they'd dubbed their dinner.

"Well," she replied, pondering a French fry, "Would it be immature of me to say I told you so?"

"Yes." 

"Oh, well, I told you so," Aries smiled.

"How long before they're fucking?" he asked, taking a sip of his drink.

"I give them two weeks." 

"Two weeks? You think too highly of them. I give them two days, max."

"For how much?"

Ralph checked his wallet and frowned. "Ten bucks?"

"Make it twenty."

Ralph stared at her proffered hand and shrugged. He knew Keller. The man was as determined as he was stubborn, and he had every bit of faith in Katrina's involuntary charms. She was hot headed and stubborn; the kind of behavior that would only egg him on. Despite all their fights, he agreed with Aries that Troy and Katrina were too similar for their own good. The only way to put a stop to their blood feud was by giving them a push in the right direction, straight into each other's arms. With a knowing grin, Ralph picked up his soda and toasted her with it.

"You're on," he said.

***

And while Ralph and Aries were debating how long it would take their friends to jump each other, Keller was thinking strategy. He wanted Katrina out of his system, and that meant getting her into bed, or on the floor, or a couch, or in the back seat of a car. Despite her sniping denials, she wanted him; he was experienced enough to know that. All he had to do was convince her to act on it. It wasn't going to be easy, he thought with a frown. He knew Katrina was just as stubborn as he was, which meant she'd put up a hell of a fight.