Free Stealing Phin by Avery Hale

as we rested against each other to catch our breath.
    But as I regained my senses, another kind of gravity weighed on me. In those post-coital moments, when the surge of desire had passed and the higher levels of your brain that had been taken hostage were free to function again, I became overwhelmed with sudden panic and regret.
    What have I done?
    Abruptly, I pushed Byron off of me and hoisted myself out of the pool.
    “Phinegan, wait,” I heard him say.
    But I didn’t wait. Instead, I ran into the stormy darkness.
     
     

THE MORNING AFTER
     
     
     
    When I woke up the next morning, I felt like someone had snuck in during the night and embedded an axe into my skull.
    Señor Guaro, you are not mi amigo.
    I cracked my eyes open and groaned at the bright sunlight streaming in through the window. I lay there for several minutes, hopelessly trying to close the curtains by sheer willpower so I didn’t have to physically get up.
    Dez snored noisily in the next bed—a sign that her date had accomplished the task of making her come. She had always claimed that coming was the best sleeping draught. And judging by how completely Dez was knocked out, Estevan must’ve done one hell of a job last night.
    Then, right on cue, a head popped up from behind Dez’s snoring lump. It was Estevan.
    “Speak of the devil,” I said.
    He smiled at me widely and put his finger to his lips as he quietly got out of bed, careful not to disturb his Sleeping Beauty.
    “I will come back in ten minutes,” he whispered to me as he quickly got dressed, “with a present for mi princesa.”
    I nodded, hoping he wasn’t going to run out to the local Tiffany’s for an engagement ring. Poor guy. It was all over his face—he was Dez-struck.
    A few minutes after he’d tiptoed out of the room, I took one of my pillows and threw it at the back of Dez’s head. She jerked awake.
    “What the fuck,” she croaked. When she tried to open her eyes, she winced and drew the pillow over her face. “Turn the sun off, will you? Before my eyeballs explode in my head.”
    “Since when do you let a guy sleep over?” I asked. “In all the years I’ve known you, you’ve always kicked them out as soon as you’re through with them.”
    Dez rolled over and faced me. She had a big grin on her face and peeked at me with one eye open. “I never thought I’d break that rule either. But after making me come three times last night, I figured he deserved a little shut-eye before I sent him on his way. Plus, I thought with his stamina, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d be ready to go another round in the morning.
    “Ugh, while I’m five feet away?”
    “We would’ve kept it quiet.”
    “Who are you kidding? Last night, you were loud enough to scare the spider monkeys out of any trees within a mile radius.”
    Dez couldn’t stop grinning. “I had no idea what these Costa Rican men were capable of. I can confidently say, though, that I now know why they are so good at rolling their R’s.”
    “Can you save the gory details of your sexcapade until after I’ve had my coffee?”
    “Speaking of delicious, full-bodied Costa Rican drinks,” Dez said as she felt the empty spot next to her that was probably still warm, “where is Estevan anyway?”
    “He snuck out a little while ago. Said he was going to bring you a surprise. Very sweet, actually.”
    “I hope it’s a new box of condoms. They’re expensive here. Twenty-five hundred colones for a pair in the gift shop. That’s almost five U.S. dollars per orgasm! Not that it wasn’t worth it.”
    I laid my arm across my forehead. “If you insist on giving me the blow-by-blow of last night, then at least get the coffee maker going.”
    Dez propped herself on her elbows and eyed me with a frown. “So, I take it Little Miss Grouchy Pants didn’t get it in with Carlito last night. I thought you’d taken him for some hot tub action.”
    I wrinkled my nose. “I don’t think he was really in the mood for a