Page 70 of Half Notes and Highlights
To Ethan’s utter shock, both Wolf and Tyler shared a laugh.
“What the fuck?” Ethan shouted, completely confused. He thought he’d have to pull the two of them apart. Every single time Wolf and Tyler were together they argued and threw jabs at one another. Now they were sitting here casually laughing. “What’s going on?”
“Oh.” Tyler glanced at Ethan briefly while he continued to dab the brush against Wolf’s cheek. “You missed it. We kissed and made up. Me and Wolfie are BFFs now.”
“Wolfie?” Ethan questioned. The cutesy nickname had him more confused than ever.
“Mm-hmm. Wolf is too manly.” He motioned to Wolf with the fluffy brush. “Tell him how soft your hands are now after the paraffin dip.”
Wolf rubbed the palms of his hands together. “Smooth as a baby’s bottom.”
Thoroughly bewildered, Ethan was sure he fell into an alternate universe. “What’s going on? What the fuck did I miss?”
“A lot.” Tyler straightened up and looked at Ethan. “We talked. We hugged. We cried. And we became friends.”
“Friends?” Ethan asked, incredulously. He thought, at most, the two of them would tolerate one another, not act like teenage girls at a sleepover.
Wolf turned toward Ethan. “We’re good now. Tyler’s cool. The guy’s got spunk. And balls.”
Tyler perked up. “I do?”
“Yeah. I gave you a lot of shit, and you never backed down. You stood up for yourself. You’re no shrinking violet.”
Tyler displayed a playful smile. “Shrinkage? No. There’s no shrinkage here. Everything’s large and in charge.”
Wolf laughed up to the ceiling. “You’re a riot.”
“I just tell it like it is.” Tyler removed the cape from Wolf and took the towel from around his neck. “All finished. You’re more beautiful. Go knock ‘em dead.”
Wolf stood, looked at himself in the mirror, and nodded. “Thanks. What do I owe you?”
“It’s on the house.”
“Thanks.” Wolf offered his hand.
Tyler glanced at it skeptically. “A handshake? Really? After all we’ve been through today?”
The corners of Wolf’s mouth curled.
Just when Ethan thought the day couldn’t get any more bizarre, Wolf and Tyler shared a short hug.
Wolf gave Ethan a hug next and whispered, “Sorry about everything.” And then the guy left.
Ethan watched the door close, then spun around to face Tyler. “How? How did you two make up and suddenly not want to kill each other anymore?”
“I told you,” Tyler said, matter of factly. “We talked.”
“And just like that, you don’t hate each other anymore?”
“I never said I hated him. I love everyone, even those who aren’t especially nice to me all the time. He had his reasons for acting the way he did, and I knew exactly what they were.” Tyler looked pointedly at Ethan. “And so did you. Don’t play dumb. You know he was jealous because he wanted you all to himself. But he assured me he was letting you go and moving on. Unless he does something that makes me think otherwise, I’m going to assume he’s sincere. It took a lot for him to come here and apologize and open up to me. So, I’m going to believe him. As it turns out, he’s not a bad guy. I had no idea he was such a gifted artist. He showed me pictures of some of his work. He’s amazing.” Tyler swatted Ethan’s chest. “Why didn’t you tell me he drew the artwork for my trailer? You know how much I love it.” Tyler’s hands suddenly flew to his cheeks. “I feel like such an idiot. I was going on and on about my stupid painting last week! I can’t believe he didn’t take any cheap shots at how amateurish it was. Why didn’t you stop me?”
Ethan exhaled six months’ worth of tension. “Tyler, I was terrified whenever you two were in the same room. I never knew what would set either one of you off.” He wrapped his arms around Tyler and hugged him to his chest. “I’m so happy things worked out. Thank you.”
“No need to thank me. I’m happy too.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
The rest of the afternoon was slightly chaotic as the guys needed to get ready for the show. With so many headlining bands performing at the festival, Wolf Pack was taking the stage earlier than usual, and Tyler needed to make them look spectacular. In addition, he needed time to get himself pampered and prepped, since he was saving his best outfit for tonight.
