Текст книги "Painless"
Автор книги: Devon Hartford
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Текущая страница: 30 (всего у книги 32 страниц)
Chapter 28
SAMANTHA
The band on stage at the Belly Up Tavern rocked the house. The place was packed. After the crowd at Charboneau Gallery had finally thinned, we all drove here to unwind and celebrate.
Christos and Jake knew the bouncers outside, so they let me, Madison, Romeo, and Kamiko all sneak inside to see the band. But they made us promise not to order any drinks. Christos and Jake told the bouncers they’d keep an eye on us.
The Belly Up was a combination bar and music venue. It had a really big stage at one end, and two bars at the other. A huge great white shark statue hung over one of the bars on cables and surfboards lined the walls.
“I’ve never been in a bar before,” I hissed to Madison.
“What?” she shouted.
The band was so loud, I don’t know why I was whispering. I leaned over to her ear and said loudly, “I’ve never been in a bar before!”
“Me neither!” she hollered. “Isn’t it awesome?!”
I nodded.
We danced casually, swaying to the music.
Romeo randomly started twerking, his butt thrusting behind him as his arms extended in front of him, stirring the butter churn. It didn’t make any sense because the band played rock, not hip hop. I started giggling instantly.
“What are you doing, Romeo?” Kamiko laughed.
“Trying to lasso me a man!” He grinned and looked around, but the only people watching him looked horrified. Romeo didn’t care. He twerked away like crazy.
I glanced back at the stage and noticed the drummer and the bass player looked familiar. I turned to Madison and shouted, “Hey, aren’t those two guys Jake’s friends?!”
“Yeah!” Madison shouted, “That’s Lucas Summer on bass and his brother Logan on the drums!”
“They helped Christos and Jake move my stuff into the house!” I shouted.
Madison nodded.
The band was really good. The song they were playing started to speed up. The whole house was rocking in time to the music.
Logan was going crazy on the drums. He looked like a wild animal. A total contrast to how shy he’d been the day I’d met him. What was that old saying? Still waters ran deep? Or was it hot shy guys made great rock drummers?
Me and Madison really got into the music, banging our heads like idiots until our hair twirled around. We were both laughing and dizzy and had to stop.
I almost tripped over my platform sandals, but Christos caught me in his arms and stood me up.
He hollered, “Me and Jake are going to get some drinks! Do you guys want anything?”
“We told those bouncers we wouldn’t drink!” I hollered uncertainly. I mean, I’d be happy to have a drink or two. I didn’t plan on getting drunk. But I didn’t want to get anyone in trouble.
“You’re such a good girl!” Christos quipped.
“I can be bad!” I grinned.
“Now?! Or do I have to wait until later?!”
“Uh…” I didn’t know how to respond to that. I hadn’t been thinking of getting down and dirty on the dance floor. “Maybe you can have Romeo twerk for you?!”
Christos took one look at Romeo, who was in a jerky twerking trance, and blurted laughter. “No!” Christos shouted. He kissed my cheek and said, “You can show me how bad you are later!” He squeezed my butt and I jumped. “Me and Jake will get you guys some waters! And you can share my drink, if you want!”
“Okay!” I smiled as the two of them squeezed through the crowd toward the bar.
The next song the band played was a slow, heart wrenching ballad. The lights on stage faded to a mellow blue to match the mood of the music. Lucas sang on the mic at the front of the stage while playing his bass guitar. He had a smooth, sexy voice. I’d already thought he was cute with his surfer good looks and blue eyes, but hearing him sing, I had no doubt drooling packs of women chased him everywhere he went.
Based on what I could make out of the lyrics, I think the song was about a guy whose girlfriend had died or had left him. I wasn’t sure which.
Lucas and Logan sang the heartfelt chorus together, in perfect harmony:
“When I awoke
You did fall asleep
Now your eyes are closed, and
I can only weep.”
“Why did you go, girl
I just found myself
Now I’m all alone, and
I really need your love.”
The brother’s voices blended fluidly, expressing a sorrowful sense of loss perfectly. They were both total heart throbs.
After Lucas and Logan sang the chorus a second time, the spotlight shifted away from them toward the other side of the stage. It stopped on the guitar player, who I finally noticed was a young woman with long flowing hair. If I had to guess, she was about my age, maybe a little older.
She had been hiding toward the side of the stage for most of the show, not really calling much attention to herself. She was acting so shy, she almost seemed fragile. But when it was time for her guitar solo, she stood at the front of the stage, inches from the crowd.
The spotlight glimmered blue diamonds off her guitar. I saw arms from the crowd reaching up to touch her like she was a pagan shaman performing a magical ritual. Maybe she was. I thought she might be distracted by the reaching hands, but she was in her own world, totally focused. She played her heart out.
The sound of her electric guitar poured out of the speakers like a human wail, the gut wrenching sound of tears and heartbreak and it swept me away. This mystery girl seemed like she was so full of sadness that she couldn’t contain it any longer, and the only way she could release it was through playing her guitar.
I was in total awe of her ability to grab my emotions and connect mine to hers with such immediacy.
As her guitar solo built to a crescendo, she threw her head back, her long hair dangling behind her, her eyes closed, her face overwhelmed with pure emotion. She wasn’t fragile at all. She had to be strong and courageous to channel all the emotion inside her and project it through her guitar with such honesty and vulnerability.
I felt chills coursing through my body and my eyes were suddenly hot and brimming with tears.
This young woman was amazing.
After she finished her guitar solo, Lucas and Logan sang the chorus again, but with new words.
“Now it’s time to heal
Time for me to live,
But it’s hard for me to say…”
Then Lucas sang a line by himself,
“It’s time to let you go…”
followed by Logan singing,
“I’ll never let you go…”
Together, they sang,
“Again. No, not again.”
Based on the lyrics, I wondered if Lucas had lost a girlfriend and Logan was trying to hold onto the one he had? It was all so mysterious.
The only thing I knew for sure was that I was crying and laughing when the song ended. I couldn’t get over how much the band had moved me with their music.
Everyone in the bar cheered and clapped.
A second later, the band ripped into a new song, totally upbeat, and everyone was dancing to the steady, rocking groove. The girl on guitar did another guitar solo toward the end of the song, playing a million miles an hour. People cheered the whole time she played.
This time, instead of looking like she was going to explode with sadness, she had a look of primal rage on her face. At the end of her solo, she hit this one long note that sounded like a scream. She held her free hand up in the air while the note vibrated endlessly.
I couldn’t help myself. I cheered as loud as I could, “Yeah!!”
It was incredibly exciting.
When the song came to a close, the band made a ton of noise, strumming their guitars and hammering the drums at the same time. The stage lights flashed through every color of the rainbow. Then, on cue, the girl and Lucas both jumped in the air. They strummed their instruments a final time when they landed back on the stage. The drums stopped at the exact same moment, the band went silent, and the stage lights went dark.
Everyone in the bar roared their approval.
When white stage lights came back on, illuminating the band, Lucas Summer shouted over the mic and pointed at the guitar player, “Victory Payne on lead guitar, everybody!” He clapped his hands over his head, applauding her while his bass guitar dangled from his shoulder strap. People whistled and screamed. “We’re Lucas and Logan Summer! We’ll be back in a half hour for some more music! All right!!!”
The crowd cheered again as the band walked off the stage.
I turned to Madison and said, “That girl was incredible! I’ve never seen anyone play guitar like that before!”
“Me neither,” Madison said.
“And she’s a girl!” I cheered.
“I think I’ve got a girl crush,” Romeo said genuinely.
Kamiko said, “I thought I was your girl crush.”
“What did they say her name was again?” Romeo asked.
“Victory Payne,” Madison said.
“That’s her name?” I scoffed. “It sounds fake.”
“I think her real name is Victoria,” Madison said thoughtfully. “Victoria Payne.”
“Do you know her?”
“I’ve met her through Lucas and Logan once before. She’s really nice. You’d like her.”
* * *
CHRISTOS
The bar was so busy, I was still waiting for our drinks when the band took a break.
“I’ll be right back,” Jake said. “I’m gonna take a piss.”
I nodded.
A minute later, someone tapped me on the back. I turned around and Tiffany Kingston-Whitehouse stood right behind me.
“Hey, stranger,” she smiled. She wore standard Tiffany garb, which meant a tight top and tighter skirt. She loved to show off her body whenever she had the chance. I couldn’t blame her.
As usual, she seemed happy to see me. “Hey, Tiff.” Had it been a month ago, I would’ve given her a quick brush off, but after the way she’d told Samantha’s tribunal the truth about her ‘stolen credit card’ I was inclined to be nice. “How they hangin?” I grinned.
“Perky as ever,” Tiffany winked, subtly thrusting her chest at me. She wasn’t exaggerating. She did have an amazing rack, which I knew was the real deal. But she didn’t need anyone reminding her how good she looked. Her ego was plenty big enough already.
Changing the subject, I said, “I saw your mom and dad at my solo show tonight. How come you didn’t come? You usually do.”
“Oh,” she glanced awkwardly away, “I, uh, sort of thought maybe I should leave you alone. So you could, you know, enjoy the show. With, uh, Samantha,” she rolled her eyes like it took everything she had to talk nicely about Samantha.
That was progress. Sounded like Tiff was turning over a new leaf.
“What happened to you calling her Scumantha?” I grinned. “She told me about that, you know.”
Tiffany shrugged. For once, she didn’t have her hands all over me. She just stood a foot away, holding a girl drink in her hand, which was half gone.
I decided to be polite and let her off the hook for past transgressions. “Can I buy you another drink, Tiff?”
“I’m good for now,” she smiled. “How were sales tonight? Did you clean up?”
I nodded cockily, “Hells yeah. We sold everything.”
“I heard your dad and your grandfather had paintings on sale tonight?”
“Yeah, their stuff sold too.”
“Congratulations,” she said sincerely, “you should be proud of yourself, Christos. I bet you made a ton of money.”
“I hope.” The next thing I knew, I was opening up to her like I used to. “I just hope it’ll cover the civil suit hanging over my head.”
“Civil suit?” She sipped her drink. “What civil suit?”
“Oh, some douche bag named Hunter Blakeley. Do you know him?”
She shrugged.
“Total prick,” I shook my head. “This guy Hunter Blakeley was harassing Samantha a few months back every time he ran into her. One day he does it in front of me. Tried to start a fight with me, but I tripped him into the dirt. So everything’s fine, right?”
She nodded, cuing me to continue, and sipped her drink.
I gave her the run down about running into Hunter in front of Hooters, and him and his three buddies following me and Jake to our car. I glossed over the part about me and Jake stealing Hunter’s bar babes and buying them drinks because I didn’t want Tiff thinking she had a shot with me, because she didn’t. And I’d been shitfaced that night anyway. I didn’t plan on doing much if any drinking beyond one or two at a time for the foreseeable future. I had too much to lose.
I never wanted to lose Samantha.
“What happened at your car?” Tiff asked, her eyes wide with interest as she sucked down more of her drink.
I had a moment to wonder if she was trying to get buzzed so she would have an excuse to put the moves on me without inhibition. It was her usual strategy. I’d have to keep an eye on her.
“I popped the guy in the nose,” I said. “Once. But I think I broke it. Anyway, this guy Hunter is a model, and it turns out he lost a bunch of work. Now his attorney is asking for close to a million bucks.”
“A million!” Tiff swallowed wrong and coughed several times. “Sorry.” She blotted her chin with her cocktail napkin.
I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“What?” she smiled
“Nothing,” I grinned.
When she finished blotting, she said, “What are you going to do about this Hunter guy?”
“Fuck, I don’t know. Me and Russell think Hunter’s attorney found out how much my family is worth and they’re trying to bend us over.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Tiffany winced. Over the years, I knew Tiffany’s family had seen their fair share of people trying to sue the shit out of them over the littlest thing, just because they had money. She could relate.
“Thanks, Tiff. Yeah, it’s pretty fucked up. We don’t have any videotape evidence or anything to prove that Hunter started it. It’s just me and Jake’s word against Hunter and his three pals. This Hunter guy can come across totally clean cut when he wants too. A jury would probably believe him. Best case scenario, I’m hoping we can get the damages reduced. But even then, it could be a few hundred grand.”
“That’s awful, Christos,” Tiff said, resting her hand on my arm.
I glanced at her hand.
She let it fall away.
“I wish there was something I could do to help…” she gazed into my eyes, but then suddenly got a far away look, lost in thought.
She was gone so long, I finally said, “Tiff? You still there?”
“Yeah,” she smiled. “Sorry. Just thinking about something.”
“Anyway, I was going to say thanks, Tiff. I appreciate you listening. But don’t worry about it. I’ll deal with it.”
She shook her head and smirked, “You always do.”
She set her empty drink on the bar and said, “I need to go freshen up in the ladies room.”
I nodded and she walked off into the crowd.
A minute later, Jake wandered back to the bar. “You get our drinks yet?”
“Still waiting,” I said.
While we waited, I couldn’t help but wonder what was on Tiff’s mind all of a sudden. I could always tell when her wheels started turning over some new scheme in her head. She hadn’t changed a bit.
I’d have to keep my eyes on her.
* * *
SAMANTHA
“Let’s go talk to the band,” Madison said as Lucas, Logan and Victory walked from the stage toward the bar with the big shark hanging over it, “I’ll introduce you to Victory.”
“Okay,” I said as she pulled me along.
Romeo and Kamiko followed.
As we made our way toward them, Madison hollered, “Hey, Lucas!”
“What up, Madison!” Lucas grinned. “How’d you guys like the tunes?”
“Totally rockin’,” Madison said.
The bunch of us were now all standing facing each other.
“You guys were totally awesome!” I said.
“Hey,” Lucas smiled at me, “I remember you. You’re Samantha, right?”
“Yeah,” I grinned.
Lucas said, “Logan, you remember Samantha. We moved her shit out of her apartment into Christos’ pad.”
“Yeah,” Logan smiled. He didn’t say anything else. Still as shy as the first time I’d met him. But he was so cute it didn’t work against.
Madison said, “These are Sam’s friends Romeo and Kamiko.” They both said hello to the boys.
“And this,” Lucas said, “is our friend Victory.”
“Hi,” she said.
I shook her hand, “Your guitar playing is amazing,” I smiled.
“Thanks,” she smiled back, exuding a cool cat rockstar vibe.
I wasn’t sure what to say to her. I couldn’t tell if she was too cool for school or what. So I turned to Lucas and said, “Hey, Lucas, you guys played some really awesome songs tonight. But one of them really stuck out, and I was wondering what it was about.”
“Which one?” he asked.
“The slow sad one,” I said.
“You mean Now Your Eyes Are Closed?” he said, “The ballad?”
“I guess?” I said uncertainly. “It was the really sad one.”
Logan nodded at his brother.
“Yeah,” Lucas said to me, almost wincing, “that was Now Your Eyes Are Closed.”
“Well, it was really amazing,” I smiled sincerely. “But I couldn’t figure out what it was about.”
Logan, the shy one, glanced at Lucas, who suddenly looked miserable.
Had I asked the wrong question? I glanced down to make sure my foot hadn’t stuck itself in my mouth without my approval. Yup, it had, toes and all. At least now it was jammed so far inside my mouth I wouldn’t be able to say anything else to make people uncomfortable.
“Uh,” Logan said, “that song is kind of personal to me and my brother. We don’t really talk about it.”
“I’m totally sorry,” I said nervously. “I shouldn’t have asked.” Maybe one day, like in a few decades, my social awkwardness would disappear completely. But for now, it still lingered. Oh well.
“No worries,” Logan smiled, trying to sound casual, but I could tell he was uneasy with the topic.
Lucas, the talkative one, was now all choked up. His eyes had darkened and a brooding look weighed down on his face.
Had I been right about my guess that their song was about Lucas’ girlfriend dying?
Logan’s features softened with sympathy as he watched his brother Lucas sinking into a deep emotional pit right in front of us. “You okay, bro?” he asked. He rested a gentle hand on Lucas’ shoulder.
Lucas inhaled forcefully through his nostrils and shook it off. “I’m good.” A second later, the twinkle I’d seen in his blue eyes the day we’d met returned. He turned to Victory and said, “You were on fire tonight, girl. We need to have you sit in for us more often.”
“Thanks,” Victory smiled quietly.
“Wait,” Madison said, “I thought Victory was your regular guitar player?”
“Nah,” Lucas said, “our regular guitar guy is busy doing paying session work up in L.A., so we asked Victory to sit in for our last couple gigs.”
I blurted, “You should totally keep her in your band! She rocks!”
“Victory has a regular gig with another band,” Lucas said.
There went my foot again.
“She’s just doing us a favor,” Logan said.
Victory nodded. She was so quiet. Unlike me, the blurt bomb.
Someone tapped my shoulder. I could only assume it was Christos with our drinks. I totally needed a social save before I said something else awkward.
“Hey, Sam,” the voice said behind me. I turned around to face Hunter Blakeley.
Lameballs.
I meant, slimeballs.
Why was he here? Had he still not gotten the message I wanted nothing to do with him? Oh well, this was a public bar. Was there a quick way to explain to everyone that Hunter was suing my boyfriend for hundreds of thousands of dollars because he was a total ass, and we should all shun him until he went away? Maybe not. So I turned my back to Hunter, hoping he would take the hint and go away.
I should’ve known better.
Hunter squeezed into the circle next to me. He smiled at the Summer brothers and said, “I’m Hunter Blakeley.”
They both shook Hunter’s hand. They didn’t know who he was.
I glanced at Romeo, whose eyes had bugged out of his face.
“Who’s this?” Hunter drawled smarmily, eying Victory like a piece of meat. She was gorgeous, and Hunter was as predictable as he was obvious.
Victory arched an eyebrow at Hunter. I couldn’t tell if she was interested in him or not.
He extended his hand, “I’m Hunter Blakeley.”
Victory didn’t shake his hand. She just stared at it for awhile, then gave Hunter an amused grin. She was kind of hard to read.
Hunter smiled at her. “Are you a friend of Sam’s?”
Victory glanced at me. “Do you know this guy?” she asked me.
“Sort of,” I said uneasily. I wanted to shout, “He’s horrible! Run away!” But I was trying to be polite, so I didn’t.
Victory narrowed her eyes at me, drilling me with her gaze.
That was weird. She seemed mad all of a sudden. Was she mad at me? I don’t know why she would be, but I could feel it coming off of her in waves. I must have pissed her off somehow. Maybe she thought my question to Lucas about his song had been ultra rude, and she was offended for him? Maybe she was irritated I’d suggested she join Lucas and Logan’s band? Was it a sore point between them? I had no idea. Geez, I was the First Lady of Awkwardness & Insecurity tonight.
Victory turned to Hunter and smiled at him.
Maybe she was attracted to Hunter? I hoped not. For her sake.
Victory took a step toward Hunter, until she was right in front of him. Any second, Victory was going to take Hunter’s elbow, then turn to me and say sneeringly, “Let’s ditch these nerds,” before she and Hunter walked away. Then Lucas and Logan would laugh at me and throw things and call me names.
Instead, Victory glared up at Hunter and said, “Dude, you’re making everyone uncomfortable. Samantha doesn’t like you, and I can tell you’re a prick.” Her eyes gleamed when she said it. She looked, I don’t know, dangerous. Standing in front of him, she seemed way too small, but you know what they said about Honey Badgers. She wasn’t afraid of Hunter at all.
Romeo clapped a hand over his mouth, stifling a laugh.
A smile widened across my face. I couldn’t help myself.
Victory said to Hunter, “Why don’t you go elsewhere?”
The grin remained on Hunter’s face. He was never one to listen to basic instructions. He stood his ground. He was enjoying himself way too much to leave when the fun was just starting.
“Hunter Blakeley,” Christos singsonged from behind me. “So good to see you, pal” he said sarcastically.
My very own Motorknight always knew right when to show up.
Grin.
* * *
CHRISTOS
Hunter turned around and scowled up at me, “Christos Manos, in the flesh.”
I stared him down.
Hunter was a big guy. But I was bigger. And he knew he didn’t stand a chance against me in a fight. We had already proved that on two embarrassing occasions.
“How’s life treating you?” Hunter chuckled like he was my best bud.
“Awesome,” I smiled.
Hunter draped his arm over Samantha’s shoulders, like they were together.
Samantha winced and ducked away, saying, “Get off me, Hunter!”
He laughed it off like it was no big deal.
“You want me to teach Hunter some manners?” Jake asked, cracking his knuckles enthusiastically.
“No, I got this,” I said. The last thing I wanted was for Jake to knock Hunter’s teeth out and have his own civil suit to deal with. Jake and his family didn’t have money to spare like mine did. A big lawsuit would bury them.
Hunter said to Jake, “Easy, tough guy. Looks like your boyfriend is going to protect you. Maybe you can blow him later as a reward for standing up for you.”
“You’re an ass,” Madison said to Hunter. “Don’t you have some dick modeling to go do?”
“You remembered,” Hunter smiled, like he was good friends with Madison because of it.
“I remembered you’re a dickhead,” she scowled. “I’m sure there’s tons of dick modeling out there for a dickface like you.”
“Go, Mads!” Samantha blurted before slapping her hand over her mouth.
Hunter chuckled. “Wow, I’ve never seen so many ballsy women in one place.” He glared at me and Jake as he said it, implying both of us were women.
“Relax, Hunter,” I said.
He stepped up to me until his chest was an inch from mine and said, “I don’t think so.”
I really wanted to crush him like an ant.
“Come on, tough guy,” Hunter hissed. “Show me what you got.”
This was ridiculous. Hunter was doing everything he could to piss me off. He was acting like he had invulnerability armor on because of the civil suit. Sadly, he sort of did. We both knew he would sue me a second time if I hit him again. He had the upper hand and he was playing it to the hilt.
Whatever.
“When did you become such a pussy, Christos?” Hunter asked.
I shook my head dismissively.
“You’re not so tough now, are you?” he sneered.
“Hit me, Hunter,” I said calmly.
His eyes narrowed.
“Go for it,” I said, “I won’t hit back. I know you want to.”
Hunter nodded shrewdly, “I know what you’re trying to do. You want me to hit you so you can file a counter suit.”
“Am I?”
“I’m not stupid, Christos.”
“That’s debatable,” I chuckled.
Samantha and the gang all snickered.
Hunter’s face soured.
“Are you going to leave now?” I asked. “Or maybe you want to call some of your buddies so you can even the odds. Make it eight on two against me and Jake. Bring some guns and knives and shit, so it’ll be a fair fight.”
Hunter huffed derisively.
“You’re a pussy, Hunter,” I said. “I’ll prove it. Hit me as hard as you want. I promise I won’t sue.”
He looked like he was considering it, he was so angry.
“I’ll let you throw three shots before I retaliate. Then it’ll be self defense. But I’ll only swing once. You know that’s all it’ll take. And this time, there’s plenty of witnesses.”
“I’m filming all of this,” Romeo said, pointing his smart phone at me and Hunter.
I kept hearing Russell’s words echoing in my head, “No. More. Fights.” It wasn’t technically a fight if I just used words to win, was it?
“Fuck you, asshole,” Hunter hissed in my face. “I can’t wait to see how tough you are in court.”
“Me neither,” I said to Hunter as he shouldered past me.
* * *
TIFFANY
I watched the entire showdown between Christos and Hunter from a distance after I came out of the ladies room. That Hunter was a complete jerk. He really needed someone to put him in his place.
When Hunter barged past Christos, I considered joining Christos and his friends. I always liked spending time with Christos, but he was with his girlfriend Samantha. Oh well. I decided to leave them in peace.
I’d see Christos some other time.
I went back to the bar to order another drink. I was in the mood to drink alone tonight. After my double martini arrived, I sipped on it in solitude while the band played another set. Sometime later, I watched Christos walk out of the bar with his girlfriend and the rest of his friends.
Sigh.
I really needed to accept that Christos was no longer on the market. Another martini would certainly help. I signaled the bartender for another and he nodded in reply.
“Heeeyyyy, Tiffany,” Hunter Blakeley drawled. The band was taking a break, so he didn’t have to shout. He squeezed up to the bar next to me, pushing some random chick out of his way.
“Hey!” Random Chick blurted at Hunter, “Watch where you’re going!”
Hunter tossed a casual smirk in Random Chick’s direction while giving me a look that said, “Can you believe her?” He didn’t care. Hunter was totally full of himself.
Why hadn’t I noticed before that Hunter could be such a lout? Maybe because his good looks were very deceiving. Maybe because when I’d met Hunter, Christos had been dating his girlfriend for a couple of months and I was lonely. I was susceptible to Hunter’s quick smile and his golden amber eyes. And his ample muscles. And his washboard abs.
Hunter smiled, “How come you stopped returning my calls, Tiffany?”
I shrugged while absently playing with the red plastic sword that skewered the olive in my empty martini glass.
“I had a lot of fun that night,” he said hopefully. I could tell he was fishing for another shot with me.
I was torn between distaste for his bad behavior with Christos and my own desperation. I didn’t know which would win out tonight. I think the number of martinis I drank would affect my decision. I really didn’t care.
When the martini I’d ordered arrived, Hunter pulled out his wallet and said to the bartender, “I’ll get that. And could you bring me a Corona?”
The bartender nodded and pulled a bottle out of the bar fridge, popped the cap, and handed it to Hunter.
Hunter laid bills on the bar, including a tip.
I sipped my martini. Hopefully the gin would blot out my emotions. I was tired of feeling sad all the time. It had definitely gotten worse in the last month. The last thing I wanted to do tonight was think about things.
(Christos)
Hunter sipped his beer and grinned at me.
He really was a good looking guy with a friendly smile.
He lifted his beer and said, “Cheers.”
I clinked my martini glass against his beer, then gulped down a swallow.
I couldn’t decide if I was making a mistake drinking with Hunter or not. I mean, we’d had sex once before. He wasn’t a total loss.
For the next thirty minutes, Hunter talked about himself. And talked, and talked, and talked. And talked. I almost asked the bartender for some earplugs, which they had on hand because of the live music. But the band was still on break. I didn’t want to be entirely rude. So I nodded a lot, focused on his smoldering amber eyes, shaggy blond hair, and pretended to care about Hunter’s boring life.
I wondered if he would talk this much during sex. He was so much better looking with his mouth shut.
“Anyway,” he said, finishing some story I’d already forgotten, “that’s why I spent last summer in Cannes.” He pronounced Cannes as “cans.”
I suspected Hunter had never been to Cannes, let alone France, or anywhere else in the Mediterranean, from the way he talked about it. He sounded like a guide book, not someone who travelled.
“You want another drink?” Hunter asked.
I held my hand over my glass, “I’m good.” Then, without warning, the wheels in my head started turning. They always did, no matter how much I drank. “Hey, Hunter, how is work going?” The first time he’d taken me out, he’d told me about his modeling for two hours straight.
“Oh, I haven’t done too many gigs lately.”
“Oh? Why?”
“I got in a fight with this guy.”
“Really,” I said, all ears. “What guy?”
“Some guy named Christos Manos. Do you know him?”
“No,” I lied. “What happened?”
“This guy Christos started some shit with me awhile back. So I fought him. I ended up with a broken nose. But you should’ve seen his face when I was finished with him.”
I had. Christos’ face was flawless as always, and I believed his version of events over Hunter’s. “Really?” I gasped. “Did you put him in the hospital or something?”
Hunter chuckled confidently, “Close.”
Such a scam artist. But then, Christos had already told me as much. I said, “Aren’t you worried about getting sued for beating up this Christos guy?”
Hunter frowned, “Why do you ask?”
“Oh, people sue all the time, don’t they?” I hoped I sounded every bit the dumb blonde. I giggled for effect.
