Christian gave him a small point. "You were just deluding yourself, dude. If you really wanted to face up to it and talk it out, you would have made the time. It just sounds like you got so used to bottling things up that you convinced yourself that you didn't need it. You could cope without it. Turn into an asshole instead so no one thought you have a vulnerable side or a weak side. Maybe even so no one could use Jace or his condition against you." He was quiet for a moment then, contemplating the situation. He had never much been into gay bars. He wasn't completely opposed to them, but they had never been something he really got into or enjoyed. The whole back room sort of thing really wasn't for him. He had always somewhat been holding out for something more of value, which it probably why he let himself get in so deep with the online thing himself. It seemed easier and cut out that straight to fucking thing that was mostly inevitable if you were trawling gay bars. After a long or hard shift, the last thing he wanted to do was go to a bar and pretend he was into all that. "How bad is his condition?"

He shrugged. "I guess I just don't get why it was such a big secret. We're all doctors here, medical professionals. None of us were going to use your little brother to downbeat your position as neurologist. In fact, let's be real here, you pretty spend a lot of your time trying to do that to others to mark your territory. At least Lachlan knows how to keep you right," he added with a bemused smirk. "The way it seems, it's like a dirty little secret or something that you don't want anyone knowing, but why? Has it just become habit for you? What do you do it Jace wants to come here and visit? Pretend he belongs to someone else? Hell, if Maddi and I didn't have breaks together here on the regular, we'd probably hardly ever see each other."