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I bury my face in my hands, hoping that I’ll become the first person to die of embarrassment. “I’m sorry, Dad. I didn’t think?—”

He waves a hand, cutting me off. “It’s fine, son. You’re both consenting adults. As long as you’re being safe and using protection, your mother and I have no issues with you two having fun in the house.”

I peek at him through my fingers, not quite believing what I’m hearing. “Really?”

“Of course,” he says, grinning. “Where do you think you and Roy were conceived?”

“Dad!” I yelp, dropping my hands and staring at him in horror.

He laughs, the bastard. “What? It’s true. Your mother and I were quite the adventurous couple back in the day.”

I clap my hands over my ears, shaking my head vigorously. “La la la, I can’t hear you!”

Dad rolls his eyes, still chuckling. “All right, all right. I’ll spare you the details. But the point is, we’re not naive, Charlie. We know you’re a strapping young man. It makes sense that you’re sexually active—unlike your brother.”

I snort, some of the tension easing from my shoulders. “Yeah, well, maybe he’s waiting for the right person.”

Dad raises an eyebrow. “Or he’s found it…with Rosie Palm and her five sisters.”

He wiggles his fingers, and that’s all it takes for me to pass out. Whether it’s due to the heat, embarrassment, or the mental image of Roy and his right hand that frightens me half to death, I couldn’t say.

Nothing says relief like the coolness of an air-conditioned diner. It’s a hell of a lot better than passing out in the middle of a field, I’ll tell you that much.

My stomach rumbles in protest as a fresh plate of BLT sandwiches on a silver platter passes me. Daniel snorts as we’re led to a corner booth in the back. The server, a thirty-year-old woman named Darlene, places three menus down on the table and then leaves to tend to another group of walk-ins.

Harrison slides into the booth after me, and his thigh brushes against mine. His arm drapes itself behind me, and even though it’s cold in here, the temperature between us skyrockets.

Daniel takes the seat across from us, stretching out his long legs and accidentally brushing his foot against my ankle. Or at least, I think it’s an accident until I hear his flip-flop slap the floor and feel his big toe tracing lazy patterns on my skin.

I try to focus on the menu in front of me, but between Harrison’s closeness and Daniel’s sneaky footwork, it’s almost impossible. My brain’s about as scrambled as the eggs I’m pretending to read about, and I can’t help feeling like a deer caught in headlights.

I blink at Daniel, trying to telegraph a silent message of what the fuck? But all he does is cock an eyebrow and continue his gentle assault with the toe of doom.

“I’m stretching my legs,” he chuckles.

I narrow my eyes. “You’re about to stretch them right back outside if you’re not careful.”

“Promises, promises,” Daniel says with a wink.

The sounds of the diner swirl around us—forks clinking on plates, the murmur of other customers. But all I can focus on is the fact that I’m sitting here with my boyfriends .

“What can I get y’all to drink and eat?” Darlene asks, appearing out of nowhere.

“Water,” I blurt out, my face burning. “Lots of water. And a cheeseburger and fries, please.”

Harrison and Daniel snicker, then order their drinks and food like the well-behaved gentlemen they definitely are not. Darlene nods and disappears again.

“So,” Daniel says, leaning back in his seat and fixing me with a stare that has my stomach doing flip-flops. “How was your morning on the farm?”

I shrug, trying to play it cool as Harrison starts playing with the strands of hair on the nape of my neck. “Oh, you know. Milking cows, fixing tractors, learning my dad overheard me nailing Harrison into the mattress last night.”

Harrison stiffens, stopping his ministrations, and I smirk. Take that, fucker.

“Wait, what? Are you serious?” Harrison squeaks.

I nod grimly. “Thin walls and all that.”

Daniel whistles. “How did your old man take it?”

“Surprisingly well, believe it or not. He gave me the whole ‘as long as you’re being safe’ speech and then reminisced about his and Mom’s wild days.”

Daniel makes a face. “Ew.”

“Tell me about it,” I mutter, shuddering at the memory.

Darlene comes back with our drinks. “Tell your brother hi for me,” she says, winking at me before sashaying off.

“Will do,” I call after her before mouthing no fucking way to Daniel and Harrison.

Darlene has been chasing after Roy since their high school days.

They were two years apart, but that didn’t stop her from decorating her locker with pictures of him playing baseball and asking him to homecoming and prom.

He said yes whenever she asked, because he’s a nice guy.

But they never went all the way. I think she’s still waiting for that to happen.

“Are your parents truly okay with…you know…us?” Daniel unfolds his napkin and places it on his lap. Harrison does the same.

I follow their example. “Yeah, they are. I think Roy is too.”

Daniel smiles widely and reaches across the table to grab my hand. Harrison covers our hands with his own, completing whatever weird little circuit we’ve got going on here.

“That’s the best news I’ve heard all day, bro.”

And you know what? He’s absolutely right.