Page 54 of Joey

“Joey! Joey Reynolds! What were you doing meeting with Dennis Carter? How do you know him? Ethan, do you have any problems with Joey’s past? Can you forgive him?”

The reporters came out of nowhere, and Ethan jumped at the first shouted question. Joey tightened his hold on Ethan’s hand and increased their speed. There was no getting away from them, though. They surrounded Joey’s car. They pushed through them, and Joey shoved several out of the way, no less hard than they deserved. Joey unlocked the car and opened the door for Ethan while the reporters threw more and more questions at them. Joey climbed into the driver’s seat. He revved the engine, giving the reporters enough warning that they were going to move, but they barely stepped back an inch. Joey shrugged.

“It’s their toes.”

He inched forward and then squealed onto the road, leaving them behind. Ethan doubted it would take them long to follow, but for now, at least, they were free of prying eyes. He rested his hand on Joey’s tense thigh, and it was enough to relax him. Marginally.

“Sometimes, I wish I’d chosen a different career. Or at least, a quieter business. I could have still done tattooing, but for regular people.”

Ethan squeezed his leg. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll deal with it as we’ve dealt with everything that’s been thrown at us so far.”

Joey peered at him for a brief moment and faced the road again. “How are you taking everything so calmly?”

Ethan snorted. “There’s no reason to do anything else. It’s not like I can do anything about it. It’s your life.”

“You could leave.”

Ethan removed his hand and stared out of the window. “Do you want me to?” He was afraid of the answer.

“Not in the slightest.”

There was no hesitation in Joey’s voice, and that, more than anything else, removed the tension in Ethan’s body.

“I was just saying you could leave if you wanted to.”

“No, I can’t.”

“Why?”

“Because I love you too much to leave you alone with this. You’re stuck with me.” Though he had some more questions. Mainly, what did the reporter mean about forgiving Joey for his past? What had he done that needed forgiveness?

“You love me?” Joey asked.

Ethan smiled. “I do.”

“I love you, too.”

There were reporters hanging around the entrance to the car park when they arrived back at Joey’s house, and after inching the car forward enough to tell them he meant business, Joey got them parked. They ignored the questions shouted at them and climbed the steps. When they were secure behind closed doors, Joey pulled him in for a hug.

“Thank you for being here.”

Ethan tightened his hold. “You don’t have to thank me for that.”

Joey lifted his head. “Still, thank you.” He dropped a kiss on his lips and tugged Ethan towards the sofa. “So much has happened. I don’t know what to do with it all.” He rested his head back.

Ethan snuggled beside him, listening to his heartbeat beneath his ear. He didn’t want to bring up his questions, though he would eventually. “It’s a lot to take in. First Grey being Elliott’s brother, and then Robert being their dad, and then Denny being Elliott’s lover. It’s a lot.”

“What else didn’t I know about Elliott? Why was he hiding this all from me?”

“He could’ve been trying to protect you.”

“From what?”

“Robert would be my first guess. It seems like he’s trouble from what Grey and Denny have said.”

Ethan let Joey have the silence while he digested everything. He couldn’t even begin to understand what Joey was going through. If Christi or Kole had secrets like that, he would probably react the same way. He would want to know the truth, just like Joey did, and that meant he would need to broach the subject of his past at some point. He wasn’t sure he wanted to be blindsided by revelations later when they could be cleared up in the beginning. Joey had enough on his plate at the moment. It could wait a few days.

His gaze caught on the wall. “Is something missing there?” He pointed at the wall where it appeared faded.

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