“You’ve thought this all through, haven’t you?”

“And you didn’t? Did Christos tell you his family was rich, or did your lawyer figure it out for you? I know how lawyers think, Hunter. Lawyers like yours have been trying to rip off my family for decades. Like I said, Hunter. You’re a leech, and you want what isn’t yours. This is your last chance. Deal or no deal?”

Hunter clenched his jaw and glared at me like he wanted to kill me.

So what.

CHRISTOS

I lounged on the double chaise under the San Diego sun the next morning. Samantha lounged beside me. We were catching rays on the deck by our pool.

We’d been out so late, we crashed when we got home. Neither of us had any energy for sex before bed. I think we’d both used up all our adrenalin during the excitement of my solo show and afterward at the Belly Up. We’d just fallen asleep in each other’s arms. As long as Samantha was by my side, I never cared what we did.

After breakfast this morning, all we wanted to do was rest. It had been a long year.

“Do you want anything to drink?” Samantha asked. “Your lemonade is empty.” She was laying on her back, her bikini top unknotted. She had no idea how incredibly hot she looked, all tan and brown.

“I’m good,” I muttered. Luckily, we were both tan enough to lay out for a long time without getting fried.

“Good, because I’m too tired to stand up,” she giggled, resting her cheek on my shoulder and her arm on my back.

“I’m going to have a Samantha tan line,” I joked. “It’ll be a silhouette in white of where you curl up on top of me.”

“It’ll look stylish. We’ll invent couples tanning. It’ll be all the rage by the end of the summer. Make your own fancy pattern on your lover. Unlike a tattoo, it’s easily removed.”

“That’s genius. Why hadn’t we thought of that before,” I chuckled.

My cell phone rang on the glass table next to me.

“You don’t have to answer that now, do you?” Samantha asked.

I picked up the phone. “It’s Russell.”

“More bad news?” Samantha sighed.

“I hope not. I should answer.” I put it on speaker phone. Samantha may as well know. “What’s up, man?”

“Christos! You’re never going to believe this,” Russell said enthusiastically.

“If it’s bad news, I probably will.” I smirked at Samantha.

She rolled her eyes.

“I got a call from Hunter Blakeley’s attorney this morning.”

“Fabulous,” I sighed.

“He wants to settle.”

“Yeah? For how much? A half million?” I said sarcastically.

“Twenty-four thousand.”

I sat up in my chaise. “What?”

“You heard me. Twenty-four thousand. Eleven thousand for Hunter’s medical bills and lost wages, and thirteen thousand for his attorney’s fees.”

After last night, I could easily cover that. Not that I wanted to throw away that much cash on an asshole like Hunter, but considering I’d hit him instead of walking away, twenty-four grand seemed a small price to pay to get him off my back for good. “What the fuck happened, anyway? I thought Hunter and his lawyer were holding firm.”

“I have no idea,” Russell said dramatically. “I’m as surprised as you are, Christos. There must be an angel out there watching over your ass.”

An angel. I shook my head. Why not? Stranger things.

“Now,” Russell admonished, “Before you go getting the idea that it always works out like this, that you always win your cases or get off easy, may I remind you that it would be far simpler in the future to avoid fighting altogether?”

I chuckled, “Hey, would you believe I actually walked away from a fight last night?”

“You did?” Russell said, all excited. “Good for you.”

“And you’ll never guess with who,” I chuckled.

“Hunter Blakeley?”

“How’d you know?” I chuckled.

“Lucky guess. But that sure is strange.”

“I can’t explain it either. But I’m telling you, he got up in my face and I didn’t lift a finger.”

“Good for you, son. I’m proud of you. With any luck, this will be the last time you ever require my legal services for behaving like a tough guy. Promise me we can keep our relationship entirely social from here on out?” He sounded amused and hopeful at the same time.

“It’s a promise. But I need to ask you one more thing first.”

I could practically hear him rolling his eyes over the phone. “Christos, do I even want to know?”

I glanced at Samantha. To Russell, I said, “You know what? I’ll tell you about it later.”

“All right, son. I’ve got work to do. Let’s talk again soon, all right?”

“Will do,” I smiled and ended the call. I turned to Samantha and grinned.

“Wow,” she said, “that’s good news, right?”

“Totally,” I smiled.

“I mean, it’s a lot of money, but I guess you have enough?”

“Yup.” I laid my head back on the chaise and gazed up at the pure blue sky. “For the first time in years, I finally feel like I can put all the shit in my life behind me.”

“That’s awesome,” Samantha said.

After awhile, I stood up. “Want some lemonade? I’m going to go make a fresh pitcher. We finished off the one my grandad left in the fridge.”

“Now you’re making it too?” she grinned.

“Hey,” I smiled, “it’s a Manos tradition.”

SAMANTHA

Christos and I spent the afternoon under a sun umbrella. All I wanted to do was be outside and relax with him in the perfect San Diego weather.

He made me dinner, which was fresh gyros, because neither of us wanted to bother with anything extravagant.

“Hey, where’s Spiridon?” I asked. “He should join us.”

“I don’t know,” Christos said. “He’s been gone all day.”

I sort of wanted to talk to Spiridon about the show last night, but it would have to wait. Christos and I ate outside at one of the deck tables, watching the ocean waves roll in. The food was super yummy.

A cooling breeze picked up around seven o’clock.

“Hey, you want to go for a hike?” Christos asked.

“Do we have to? I’m so tired.”

“Come on,” he smiled, “we can watch the sunset from up at the bench on the hill.”

“That’s a long hike,” I groused. “Can’t we watch the sun go down from here on the deck?” A dusty hike was the last thing I wanted to do right now.

“The exercise’ll do you good.”

“I ran yesterday morning. I don’t need any exercise.”

“I can carry you,” he said.

“Don’t do that, Christos. I would feel like an invalid. Can’t it wait until tomorrow? I promise we’ll go tomorrow. First thing, if you want.”

“No, it really has to be tonight.”

“Why are you acting weird?” I asked.

“It’s nice out. I just want to go on a hike. Is that so weird?”

I sighed. “Why don’t you go without me. I’ll be right here when you get back.”

“We’re going,” he said as he stood up from his chair at the table, bent over, and picked me up out of my chair.

“Christos! I’m too tired,” I pleaded, but I was sort of laughing.

He carried me upstairs. It had been awhile since he’d carried me places. I never got tired of it. He set me down on the bed.

“Why don’t we have sex instead?” I suggested as I flopped back on the bed.

“Naw, a hike is better.”

I sat up suddenly. “What alien kidnapped my Christos and replaced him with the celibate version?”

He chuckled as he pulled on socks and running shoes. “Let’s go for a hike.”

“You’re not going to let this go, are you?”

“No,” he said as he pulled out my shoes and socks.

“Fine,” I groaned. “But you’re going to have to carry me. I don’t care if I do look like an invalid.”

“I can handle that,” he grinned his dimpled grin.

“I believe you can.”

Ten minutes later, we were walking toward the trailhead near the house, holding hands.

“The hill?” I groaned. “You’re going to make me hike all the way up to the bench, aren’t you?”