Chapter Four

Lily

I dust myself off, not that it helps remove the grass stains from my clothes. Then I tidy my hair and wipe the tears from my cheeks. They are mostly from happiness, and a little because I just let a stranger fuck me in a cemetery and enjoyed every minute of it. Plus, the fact I orgasmed so hard I felt like my head was going to explode.

As I walk back toward the town square, I hope everyone has gone home and there aren't any witnesses to my walk of shame, as there's no doubt in my mind that I look like a mess.

"Who is out there?" a voice shouts as I near the edge of the graves. "Oh, Lily, it's you."

I pause like a deer in headlights. "Harlen?" I squint a little as the figure gets closer.

"Yeah, it's me, taking a shortcut to get home. Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine. I wandered too far into the cemetery and tripped over. I just need some food and a bath."

"Come on, I will walk you to the diner."

"Oh, you don't have to do that. You're going in the other direction."

He smiles at me. "I'm a gentleman, and you have already fallen over once. It gives me an excuse to say hello to my brother—he owns the diner."

"Okay." I sigh. "I would love the company."

If I'm going to make things work here, I should make friends. But I'm worried he will be able to smell the sex on me and judge me like Charles did. I expect the rumor mill in a small town would be so much worse.

We're walking side by side down the small hill on the other side of the roped-off haunted trail when Harlen breaks the silence. "So, Lily Harper, is everything they say about you in the paper true?"

I glance over at him and he smirks, so I push his arm lightly, making him chuckle. "Only the part about inheriting the house and dropping out of college. Unfortunately, there is no troubled past I'm running from."

"But you were running tonight?" he says with a raised brow.

I don't answer his question, instead countering with my own. "So, what do you do, Harlen, except for not working at the gas station?"

"I like to build things, furniture mainly. There is a shop in the next town over which sells them on commission for me, but I don't really need to work."

"I wish I didn't need to work. What I wouldn't give to sit by the pool drinking cocktails all day. All I need is a sugar daddy and I'm all set."

Harlen splutters and clears his throat. I clearly took him by surprise with that comment. "Is that what you're into? Old... older men?"

I chuckle at his question. "No, hence why I'm not by a pool right now, sipping cocktails. I guess I will have to find something around here. Know any place hiring?"

"Good luck. Most businesses are family owned, so they hire their children. Other people travel to Willow Grove."

"I have enough money to last me a while, and hopefully the thrift store has a few things I can use for the house. I'll look for a job once I'm settled."

We stop out the front of the diner and Harlen opens the door, the bell chiming as we walk inside. A man who is the spitting image of a slightly older Harlen steps out from the back and frowns at his brother.

"Look what the cat dragged in. Anyone would think you avoid coming here."

"I do because you're a dickhead, but the pretty girl is hungry, and I couldn't let her starve. Lily, meet my older brother, Asher. Not as handsome as me, of course, and he is married," Harlen says. Leaning in a little closer, he adds in a whisper, "His wife is a bitch. She hates me because I live in sin."

"I heard that, Harlen. And she doesn't hate you, she prays for you, there is a difference."

"No amount of prayer will keep things out of my ass. I keep telling you, a finger in the ass will change your life."

I snort and both men look at me. "What? I can't judge. It would blow your mind if you knew the things I'm into."

Asher runs his gaze over me. "Being tackled into the dirt by the look of you." Then he focuses back on his brother. "And why can't you find a nice girl and settle down? It's time to grow up, have some kids, and stop fucking around with your best friends."

Harlen snorts. "I'm twenty-four, not forty. And there is nothing wrong with fucking my best friends—our situation works for us. Maybe one day we will find a woman, yes, we , and then the town will have something else to gossip about."

Asher clears his throat. "Anyway, what can I get you, Lily? I'm sure you don't want to stand there listening to us bicker about his sex life."

"A burger and fries, no tomato, and a water, please."

"Same for me," Harlen says with a smile. "And I'm using your phone."

Asher rolls his eyes at his brother. "Just make it quick. Take a seat, Lily, and I will bring out your food when it's ready."

"Thank you, Asher. It was nice to meet you."

Asher nods and heads behind the counter while I find a seat and pull out my phone. It's almost pointless having it here; there is no reception in this town. I managed to get one bar when I climbed onto the kitchen counter and held the phone on top of the refrigerator to send my best friend, Zoe, a message. All it said was that I arrived safely, and I will get Wi-Fi and a landline installed ASAP.

"So," Harlen says, plopping down into his seat. "What would I be surprised about if I knew?"

My eyes widen as he smiles. "Oh, don't be shy now. I announced how I screw my best friends, and in case you hadn't noticed, this town is very small and not quite caught up with the whole LGBTQIA+ movement yet. Don't get me wrong, most people are polite and only talk about us behind our backs. Mrs. Parkinson likes to play matchmaker and find us each a good girl, but there is no better feeling than asking her to find us one to share."

"I will consider telling you if you answer one question for me."

"What question would that be?"

I inhale deeply, then rush out, "How would sharing one girlfriend work exactly?"

Harlen pushes his dark-brown hair out of his eyes and tucks it behind his ears. "Honestly, we have no idea. We all like women, but life is complicated. Three women under one roof would never work. Eli struggles to talk to us, let alone a woman. North is North—he works hard renovating and flipping houses, but normally crashes by the time he walks in the door. And me, if I'm working on something, I could be locked in the shed for days before I come up for air. One woman wouldn't feel neglected if the three of us shared, but right now, if we have an itch to scratch, we handle it between ourselves."

I nod as he talks. His theory sounds good, but I'm not sure how it would work in reality. That being said, more power to them for knowing what they want and not conceding to society's pressure.

"I think that's great, knowing what you want and not being afraid to voice it."

Asher interrupts us as he puts our food on the table—the burgers smell amazing—and a woman puts our drinks down.

"Harlen, it's good to see you with a lady friend."

"Agnes, good to see the scowl removed from your face." Asher slaps Harlen on the back of the head, and then they both leave us to eat. "That's his wife. Now finish what you were saying."

His smile is contagious, but I still hesitate a beat. He's the first person I am willingly saying this out loud to. "I like to be scared, chased, forced—or at least I think I do. It's why I'm here, really."

He raises a brow at me. "You came to a small town to be chased and fucked. Hey, no judgment, it's just not where I would have gone looking."

"Says the one who is looking for one woman to share with his friends, who he also shares."

"Touché. Now I want to hear more."

"There isn't much more to tell besides my ex finding out. He told everyone, and it became a thing. He thinks I'm disgusting for even thinking about it."

"His loss," Harlen says, taking a bite of his burger. After he chews and swallows, he adds, "He hit the jackpot and gave it away."

I smile as my chest fills with warmth. He didn't look at me the way Charles did, so I decide to tell him a little more. "I might have been chased tonight."

His eyes pop up from his plate. "Oh yeah? Anyone I know?"

I shrug. "Not sure who it was. One minute I was in the haunted hospital, and the next thing I knew, I was being chased for real by a man in a glow mask."

His eyes widened. "He didn't . . .?"

"Oh, gosh no. He spoke to me first, kind of, but I gave him consent. I have never felt more alive than I did in those moments. He told me not to get caught again because two is better than one."

"What if it's some old guy with a wrinkly dick?"

I snort at his comment. "He had abs, so it at least narrows it down a little, and honestly, I don't think I care. Not knowing makes it so much better. I don't have to worry and be embarrassed if I see him out in public, and he smelled super nice, like rain on a hot day."

"As long as you weren't hurt and consented. Now let's double back to his warning. Next time he will bring a friend... how do you feel about that?"

"Excited. Scared. I have only ever been with Charles, the ex. I was the nerd in high school who never had many friends—we moved around a bit after Dad left. It was hard until I met Zoe in high school, and luckily, mom put down roots and I finished high school in one place. College is when I met Charles, and he was the perfect man on paper: good looks, from a great family, treated me well, and took me on dates. Everything I should have wanted." I cleared my throat and took a sip of water. " Anyway, enough about me. You said you lived with two friends—I met North earlier; he warned me about the small-town gossip. Who is your other friend?"

"Eli, but you won't see him around. He doesn't really leave the house. He hates people looking at him. He had an accident not long after we first met. We were all sent here for foster care placement as kids. We were made to work, not in an abusive way, but more to keep us busy and out of trouble." Harlen snorts, probably thinking of a childhood memory. "Long story short, North, Eli, and I were inseparable from the day we met. Kids came and went, but not us. Asher was taken in eventually by a nice family—he was a good kid and worked hard. It's how he married Agnes. Her family took him in, and he worked on their land. Eventually he saved enough to buy this place. It used to be a video store, but everyone in town had seen everything so many times and streaming services became popular, so Miss Betty sold it to him for cheap."

We talk while we eat, and before I know it, our food is gone and Harlen is walking me home. It might only be my first night, but I have a feeling I'm going to love it here.