Read Ethan, Who Loved Carter for Free Online

left him just as winded, although from relief rather than stress. “Um. About those chips?”
    “In the cupboard behind you,” Liz said. Carter bent to get them, glad for the chance to escape examination.
    “Are you a turkey man or roast beef?” Nolan asked.
    “Turkey, please,” Carter said. “With mustard.”
    “Coming right up.”
    Carter opened up the cabinet door. Each shelf had several typed labels on its edge that delineated the items above it. The chips sat in their appointed spot. Carter pulled the bag down.
    “Where’s Ethan?” Liz asked. She took the bag.
    “He’s in the bathroom. Um, there’s actually something I wanted to talk to you about.” Liz and Nolan shared a glance. Sometimes the secret language of couples made Carter jealous; sometimes it made him hurt. Carter took a breath. He could get through his embarrassing confession if he dove right in. “Last night when Ethan was over, I was playing my guitar and he started singing and… I kissed him.” Carter stared at the counter, waiting for the justified outrage to come.
    “We know,” Nolan said.
    Carter looked up. “You do?”
    “He told us last night.”
    “You aren’t angry?”
    Nolan put the butter knife down. “Honestly? We’re glad you came to talk to us. It shows you’re a good person, and we appreciate that. As much as we want to, we can’t control our sons’ lives, so it’s good to know you’re a friend who is concerned for Ethan’s well-being.”
    Carter let this sink in. “I didn’t mean to do it. I got carried away. He really was, I mean last night, we were having such a good time, and happy, and I wanted to share it, I guess. I’m so, so sorry. I swear to you it won’t happen again.” Liz and Nolan regarded him with twin expressions of amusement. It was as far away from Carter’s expectations as possible.
    “You know, Carter,” Liz said after a beat, “Ethan is a twenty-seven-year-old man. He’s sexually active.”
    “But he’s not—” Her expression stopped him from carrying that thought further.
    “A lot of people ask what his mental age is, but we don’t like to think in those terms. He looks at situations in black and white, and he needs help finding gray areas and navigating through them. Some physical and mental things he does pretty well, but there are a lot of things he needs assistance with, and some he can’t do at all. He has feelings that are more astute than anyone I know. He deserves to be loved by someone who understands that he lives in a world of absolutes when all around him nothing is certain, because it’s scary for him, and he needs to be cared for. We’ll be honest with you, Carter. He hasn’t had much luck finding the right person yet.”
    Nolan nodded as Liz spoke. “We’ve had to lecture him a few times about having sex. He tends to think that if he’s got an erection and the other boy is cute and willing, sex is a good idea. We’ve hammered into him that he has to use condoms and be in a private place, but it’s difficult to make him understand that horniness is not the end-all excuse to have sex.” He paused. “Actually, we have the same problems getting Elliot to understand that. Must be a boy thing.” Nolan and Liz shared a chuckle. Nolan turned back to Carter. “Does Ethan think you’re dating now?”
    “He did.”
    “I can sit down with him.”
    “No, I… I already did. We straightened it out. I think he’s upset with me, but he agreed we could still be friends.”
    “He did speak highly of you last night.”
    Carter’s hand flew out from his side to smack his shoulder.
    “Not about the kiss, although I understand that was quite a moment,” Nolan said.
    “Oh God.” Carter buried his face in his hands in a futile attempt to muffle his embarrassment.
    Nolan laughed. Liz smacked him on the back of the head. He brushed her away and squeezed her hand. “We’re glad you told us,” Nolan said. “And we are glad that you’re Ethan’s friend, in