"Wake up." I said as loudly as I could without yelling. The drunken shouts downstairs didn't wake her, so I didn't have much confidence that I could. Still, she flickered her eyes open, before smiling and not moving a single other muscle.

"Good morning, handsome." Pearl stretched her arms and then her legs, and smoothed out the wrinkles in her dress. "I slept well. What about you?"

"I never sleep well." I wasn't in a good mood, and I wasn't up to dealing with her.

"That's too bad. A good night's sleep puts you in the best kind of mood." She sat up. "For example, I'm in such an appreciative mood. You took me to this delightful little town and kept me safe. You made sure no bad men touched me, or took my money, or any other things without asking me politely."

"Are you being sarcastic?" I frowned at her, and she simply smiled back. A lovely disarming smile, to match her cutting one.

"I really am appreciative, Jack." She ran her fingers through her hair. "You're a real gentleman, and that's so rare these days. It really is too bad."

"What's that mean?"

"Well, there are plenty of men who have attempted to court me, and tried to kiss and touch me without my permission. But you, Jack, probably wouldn't kiss or touch me even if I gave you permission."

"You're right."

"Oh come on, Jack. You're hurting my feelings." She came over and sat next to me, and then leaned her head on my shoulder. "I've seen you looking at me."

"You're pretty, but that doesn't mean much to me."

She made a face. "You're strange, Jack." She smoothed down the sleeve of my jacket. "You know, I like you already. You're fun to annoy." Damn it, god damn it.

"Okay, well, let's take you home." I stood up, causing her to lose her balance and topple dramatically to the floor.

"Oh, but I don't want to go home!" She put her hands over her face. "I'm having a great time here with you!"

I stared at her. "How old are you? You're acting like a child."

"I'm not a child." She sat up, crossing her arms. "I'm eighteen."

"You're acting like a child." I took her hand and hauled her up on her feet. "And I'm taking you home."

"Seriously, now, Jack. It's terrible at home. I have two mothers, two! My mother and her twin sister, to be more specific. I'm my mother's only daughter and her twin never had any children. They never approve of anything I do or say or... just anything! I'm never ladylike enough, I never speak properly, I'm too fat, I'm too skinny!"

"And my father, well, he's not bad. But he's never home at all, and when he is home he's in his office working on whatever it is he works on." She shook her head. "And whenever I say something to him, he just smiles and says 'whatever you want dear.' I could ask him for a three headed elephant and he'd just smile and say 'whatever you want dear!'"

"Oh, your life must be a living hell."

"Are you being sarcastic?" She tried to frown but eventually melted into giggles. After a moment she stopped with a hum, and she leaned in close to me. "You're so nice, Jack." She smoothed down the collar of my jacket with one hand, and one of her fingers brushed my neck only firm enough that it didn't tickle. "Have you ever been kissed by a woman before?"

She smelled like lavender and clean powder. She batted her eyelashes and peered up at my eyes in a way that was almost hesitant. I glanced away as sweat coated the back of my neck. My fingers itched, a similar feeling to wanting to grab my gun, but not exactly. Part of me wanted more than anything to shove her and sprint as far away as I could, but her fingers against my neck and the pleasant smell of her locked me in place. Unable to think of the exact words to say, I simply shook my head.

"Really? A tough cowboy like you? You've never been with a working girl, or had some nice lady thank you with a kiss after you rescued her?" I shook my head again. She leaned in close enough to see each of my pores and stared into my eyes despite the fact that I wasn't looking back at her. I could feel her breath on my chin, and she was bold enough to move another finger to rest against my neck. "That's too bad." She pulled away.

The harsh sunlight streamed in, and brought along a headache as well as realization of what just happened. She faced away from me and shook her hair out in the sunlight, combing it with her fingers, while I glared at the back of her head. She turned to me, grinning.

"I'll make you a deal, cowboy." She folded her arms across her stomach. "I'll let you take me home if you take me on horse rather than on that train. Trains smell horribly like sulfur and it reminds me of those pits in hell they talk about in church."

"Hate being reminded of your future home?"

"At least you have a reason to be bitter now." She leaned against the door frame. "You wanted a kiss."

"No. Just thinking about it makes me sick." I scowled.

"Love sick?" She smirked.

"I'll give you a ride home if you just shut up." She clapped her hands excitedly and bounded out of the room. I trudged behind her. The working women recognized me as a man who always had money in his pocket these days, and immediately began calling.

"I can please you better than she can." One said in a thick accent, tossing a dark braid over her shoulder. "That skinny little thing would break in half like a twig."

"Oh, of course." Pearl turned. "In fact, that happened just last night. In the throws of our passion, he looked down and noticed that I had snapped right in half! This corset is the only thing holding me together." She patted her stomach as if that story were true. The woman made a face of disgust. "Perhaps he'll have better luck with you. What do you think, Jack?"

"I'd rather not." I said, and the woman shrugged and walked back into the saloon.

Pearl trotted down the stairs and quickly found my horse. "Oh, what a lovely stallion!" She exclaimed. "Such a shiny dark coat, but a bit on the thin side." She turned to me. "My father's old mare died recently, and we still have some of her food left. How about a meal for your lovely steed when we get to my home?"

I nodded and pulled myself up into the saddle, and then helped her up behind me. "In fact, if my mothers don't object too strongly, I'll see if you can have dinner with us."

"Sure."

"I knew you wouldn't turn down food." She squeezed her arms tightly around me. "I don't know of a single man who would."

"It's not often I get a warm meal these days, not one that's home cooked at least." I replied honestly.

"That's too bad." She pressed her head to my back as we rode out of Armadillo. "Well, you're welcome in my house anytime, whether my mothers approve or not. You won't starve as long as I'm around, nor will your horse."

And as irritating as she was, that was the kindest gesture I had received in a while.