“What’s going on?”
“Babe, you don’t even want to know. I just scared the shit out of myself imagining having a kid like Kiki.”
Ethan blanches. “Take it back. Right now. That’s not even funny.”
“Right?”
“What made you think of that?” Ethan asks, still kinda pale.
“Kiki and her damn puppy show.” I turn to him. “It’s not that I’m against kids. It’s just that I’m against kids like that. Dude, she’s an entity unto herself. Serves Jesse right to get one like her after all the whoring he did.”
Ethan lifts a brow.
“What?” I ask.
“We weren’t exactly altar boys.”
I smirk. “No, but we whored with each other.”
“Yeah,” he says quietly, looking away.
“Stop,” I chastise. “I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking about your denial phase when you tried to bang chicks. Get over it, man. It was part of your healing.”
Ethan looks shocked.
“What?”
“I never thought of it like that,” he admits.
I grab his hand. “Do you really think I’d have stayed quiet about it if I didn’t think you were working through something?”
He looks so surprised and a little confused.
I smile softly. “Babe, I love you.”
“I love you too. You’re amazing, you know that?” he tells me.
“I’m not. I just understand what you need. I get you, E.”
“And you never complain.”
“Why would I?” I ask, genuinely confused.
“Linc, I’m a mess. Those times, after.”
He looks so sad, so anguished. It breaks my heart.
“E. Stop. I get it. I was there, remember? When you showed up at Xan’s. You don’t have to explain anything to me. There should be no guilt because of how you feel. Ever. I know,” I relay quietly, hoping he understands he never has to apologize to me for how he feels.
“I just…”
“Stop, just…” I tease.
He smirks. “I’ll work on it.”
“Good. Wanna come beat something up with me in the gym?”
He nods. “I could use a workout.”
