He could tell she knew he had deliberately failed his attempt. That wasn’t honesty, but, on the other hand, it also hadn’t been bullshit like his need to win earlier at Kerasia.
‘Bravo, Faye. Now, if only you could apply yourself to balancing those accounts.’ He smirked and it earned him a thump to the chest. Wow, the tiny hands packed a punch.
‘God! Ouch! What are you made of? Steel?’ Faye asked, shaking her hand in the air like it was wounded.
‘I have screws only in my foot.’ He paused and then continued. ‘So, without breaching confidentiality, how much are your accounts incorrect by?’
‘It’s not much and, as a guest, it’s not your concern.’
‘Very corporate.’
‘Very confidential, as you just mentioned.’
‘Could I take a guess? Is it something like… one hundred euro.’
He could see from the shift in her expression that he was correct. He smiled.
‘What are you smiling at?’ she asked. ‘It’s not funny. I mean, I know one hundred euro isn’t much to you but?—’
‘So, I guess so much for your “honesty”,’ he said, shaking his head and turning to head back to the road.
‘What?’ she asked, following him.
‘That is where your problem is, no? With the amounts not adding up to the drinks that have been taken?’
She didn’t reply so he stopped and turned around, facing her again. She still wasn’t saying anything, was looking at him like she was waiting for him to continue.
‘I may have paid a little more than the price for the Metaxa the other night.’
She made a noise of disapproval. ‘Do you know how long I spent trying to get those numbers to balance?’
‘You are angry? That I paid more than I should because I was grateful? Because I was honest?’
‘Because you were showing off. And because you didn’t write it down in the book.’
He growled in annoyance then, shaking his head. ‘Showing off.’
‘It’s what you think everybody wants,’ Faye stated with a nonchalant shrug. ‘It doesn’t matter. You’re the guest. It’s my bad. I should have known it was something like that.’ She started to walk away. He didn’t want her to walk away.
‘Hey! Where are you going?’
‘Back to the hotel. We’ve skimmed stones like you asked and I really need some sleep.’
‘I will drive you,’ Kostas said, moving to catch her up.
‘If I jog I will get there before you even get the buggy off the beach.’
‘You are angry with me?’ he asked, moving up alongside her.
‘No, I don’t get angry any more,’ Faye answered. ‘I get mildly frustrated and apparently call people a “maláka” every now and then, but real anger, it doesn’t have a place in my life now.’
‘Good,’ he answered. ‘So, tomorrow I have my associate arriving to stay at the hotel. They could stay in my suite, but I would prefer it if they had their own room.’
‘They use “they” pronouns?’
‘What? No. He is Stathis. I can fill in your automated forms if you need.’ Then he smiled. ‘Ah, you thought I had a woman coming to meet with me. A “she”.’
Faye laughed, her expression undecipherable. ‘That would be none of my business. I will make sure there is a room for him and maybe even a welcome fruit basket.Kalinixta, Kosta.’
