He raises a hand placatingly. "Charlie, hear me out. He doesn't think he has anything on us, right now. He understands the need for discretion, of course, but he's in a... similar situation."

It should be clear enough that he means that Ned is also involved with a man, although that relationship seems far more like traditional dating than whatever it is he and Charlie are doing -- he won't question that, for now. There's no reason.

There's also no reason to launch into an explanation of how damn understanding Ned had been. How reassuring. How accepting. It had been almost worse that way, and he doesn't want to think about it.