Playing Those Mind Games

A friend of mine gave some advice the other day: don't let a man know how much you want him. Make him think you're seeing other people. Don't let him think you'll wait for him, you love him, you don't want anyone else.

I can see where that would be effective but...

I'm too old for this crap.

And I don't think I want someone if the only way I could get him is to manipulate and trick him. For one thing, is it real if you get it under false pretenses? For another, how do you respect someone if you can jerk his chain that easily? If I had to pick I'd rather respect someone than love them. Love can survive just about everything but contempt.