“He’s good, isn’t he?” Ben said.
Joe nodded.
“Not easy having a relationship with a stand-up comedian. They have to travel so much and work at weekends too. Lots of late nights and time spent away. And they party pretty hard.”
Joe said nothing.
“Has he introduced you into his routine yet?”
“No.”
“He probably will. I hope you’ve got thick skin.” Ben chuckled and looked him up and down. “His skeleton boyfriend. He can do a lot with that.”
Joe understood what Ben was doing. “My skin is thicker than you’d imagine.” Formerly armour-plated. “And I have sharp teeth.” Well, not now, but Ben’s eyes widened. “Kaden only does this for fun. He doesn’t want to make a living from it. It’s more of a hobby.”
“Yeah, well, a reaction like he got tonight is hard to walk away from.”
Joe quietly sighed.
“What do you do for a living?” Danny asked.
“I’m not allowed to work until my claim for asylum’s been assessed.”
“So Kaden has to support you.” Ben smirked.
“Ben! Don’t be a dick,” Lars said.
“I’m not, but Joe’s yet another guy coming over here to make his fortune. Small boat, right?” Ben was getting louder and more aggressive. “Sponging off the state.”
“I will work once I’m allowed to,” Joe said quietly.
Kaden and Euan had arrived back with the drinks and judging by the look on Kaden’s face, he’d caught the end of the conversation.
“Joe’s not sponging off the state or off me. He has money.”
“That’s not the point,” Ben shot back, folding his arms. “It’s the principle, isn’t it? People coming over, skipping the queue.”
“There isn’t a queue,” Joe said, still calm but firmer now. “Not like you think.”
“Oh yeah? So everyone else just waits nicely, do they?” Ben laughed, but there was an edge to it. “Funny how that works.”
“Ben, seriously, drop it,” Euan said, setting the drinks down a little harder than necessary. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I know what I see,” Ben replied. “Country’s full, services stretched, and we’re supposed to just—what—clap and welcome everyone in to misuse our hospitality, our health service?”
Kaden stepped closer, placing a hand on the back of Joe’s chair, a quiet but unmistakable gesture. “You’re not ‘seeing’ anything. You’re repeating headlines.”
“And you’re what, his spokesperson now?” Ben huffed. “Bit convenient, that.”
“No,” Kaden said. “I’m someone who’s actually listened to him. His life was threatened. His family wanted him dead. They tried to kill him.”
A brief silence settled, tight and uncomfortable.
“So he says,” Ben muttered.
Lars exhaled sharply. “Mate, you’re out of line.”
“I’m asking questions,” Ben insisted, though his voice had lost some of its earlier certainty.
