It was like a purge.
And he needed it.
The spray of cum hit Gene in the chest as he took that tumble too.
Together they fell into the pleasure pressed together. There was silence, and only the thudding of their hearts was heard in their ears.
Well, Ethan knew the truth. He had some baggage to unpack with this one.
That was for damn sure.
It took a few minutes before his lover spoke.
“Are you okay?” Gene asked.
Ethan was honest.
“Yes, and no. Yes, because you came for me, and no because I nearly lost the best thing in my life. I’m sorry, Gene. I’m so sorry.”
The heaviness in his words made Gene go into protection mode. He’d fucked the anger out, and he wasn’t upset with the man anymore.
Instead, he wanted to help him.
So, Gene cuddled him.
“It’s okay, Baby,” he reassured. “I’m over it.”
Ethan sat up and stared into his eyes. What he wanted was for Gene to see that heREALLYfelt horrible about all of this.
“No. You shouldn’t have to get over it. Not trusting you to catch me in my spiral hurt you. I know how it feels to be disappointed in someone you love.”
Gene let him talk.
“I won’t run away ever again. I learn, and I adapt. You came for me, Gene. That was all I needed. You get to be angry with me but know that I’m angry with me too.”
Yeah, he could see that.
Instead of letting him carry it alone, Gene spoke as he tucked some of Ethan’s hair behind his ears.
“I won’t lie, EJ. It’s going to take me time to regroup from this. I got off of that plane, and the first thing I saw as I was walking back into Hell was that my partner bailed.”
At his words, tears filled Ethan’s eyes. The last thing he ever wanted to do was hurt this man.
But he had.
“That hurt,” he said. “I didn’t expect you to run away. We’ve come so far as a couple. We’ve lived through so much, and to know that you ran…”
Ethan touched his cheek with gentleness but let him have this moment to get it off his chest.
“It terrified me. You know how you felt when I opened the door and took a bullet to my chest over Christmas? Or how you felt when you realized I’d been taken?”
He nodded.
In those moments, Ethan’s world stopped, and it stole his breath. He’d never forget those feelings of having to do this without Gene.
“It felt like that. I was just coming off of being abducted and hurt,” he said, holding up his casted arm. “And then, my world was decimated.”
A tear slipped down Gene’s cheek, and Ethan kissed it away. That raw honesty was so brave, and he admired Gene for being able to talk about his feelings.
