Firefly Lane (Briar County 1)

“I should probably head in.” Roe stood. “I have to go to work early. Again, good to meet you, man.”

“You too,” Holden replied as they shook one more time.

Goddamn it. Of course his neighbor’s brother would have to be gorgeous. He wondered if the man was straight, before evicting those thoughts. It didn’t matter either way.

CHAPTER SIX

Holden

Trying to sleep on the couch for three months might kill him. It wasn’t made for a guy of Holden’s size, though he guessed most people didn’t spend extended amounts of time sleeping on the sofa.

He’d tossed and turned most of the night, his thoughts running laps between Marilee, Sean, and curiosity over the man next door. He had no reason to think about Monroe, but he was interesting. He seemed to trust easily, talking to Holden about jobs with his parents and at his store. Especially after Holden had discovered late last night, when Marilee had come into the living room to chat with him because she couldn’t sleep, that Adam had stolen from him.

Yet he’d basically taken Marilee and Sean in. Didn’t ask many questions when Marilee said Holden would be staying there.

And again, with the job stuff.

Shit like that blew Holden’s mind. He couldn’t imagine giving his trust so freely, but then, he was a bit of a dick sometimes, so maybe using himself as a comparison wasn’t in his best interests.

“I wish I didn’t have to work today.” Marilee came into the living room, wearing her pale-pink-and-white uniform for the grocery store where she worked. “I really need the money, though.”

“I told you last night, I can help with some of those past-due bills.” He wasn’t wealthy by any stretch of the imagination, but he was comfortable. He’d always been good with his money, made sure to save and invest so he would have as much security as possible.

“I know, but I don’t want you to have to pay off my bills. You already dropped everything to stay with me for three months. That’s too much.”

By Holden’s estimate it wasn’t enough, but he chose to keep that to himself. Marilee would just argue with him, and he didn’t feel like getting into it. “Bunny’s, huh?” He nodded toward her nametag with a rabbit in the corner.

“I know. It’s ridiculous. The owner named it after his wife, whom he calls Bunny. It’s not her real name. It’s where everyone in Harmony shops, though.”

Holden bit back a laugh. “Do you have to wear ears too?” he joked, and Marilee flipped him off. He’d missed this, joking with her.

He opened his mouth, considered asking what Monroe’s story was, but then reminded himself it was none of his damn business and it didn’t matter. Instead, he said, “I’m going to try and hang out with Sean today. He just stays here while you’re at work?”

“I don’t really have any other options.”

“Hey, I wasn’t judging you. I was just asking. He’s thirteen. We stayed by ourselves much younger than that. What kind of things does he like to do for fun?”

“He plays video games. He likes sports but pretends he doesn’t. I think the idea of organized sports makes him nervous, like he won’t fit in or something. I don’t know. I’ve tried to get him to join, told him I’d do whatever I had to so we had the money for it, but he wouldn’t do it. He used to ask Adam to play with him sometimes, but eventually he stopped trying.” She swiped at her face when a loose tear leaked. “Shit. He deserves better. Anyway, I can’t let myself cry before work. He’s asked questions about flying, I assume because of you. He’s an outdoorsy kid, even though you wouldn’t know it right now. I took him camping once—just the two of us. Adam was off doing whatever the hell he did. It was a bit of a mess because I’m not much of a camper, but he loved it.”

Holden nodded. Fuck, he wished Marilee had called him sooner. “Okay, we’ll figure it out. You better go before you’re late.”

“This is Harmony. Everything is so close, it’s nearly impossible to be late,” she teased before hugging him and getting on her way.

Holden tried to keep himself busy at the cabin while Sean slept, but it wasn’t easy. He went outside. Monroe’s truck was gone, so he must have already headed to work. When he went back in, he used his laptop to google local things to do. When his gaze snagged on Covington Acre Farms, he couldn’t help but click the link.

Apparently, they were a large farm that had expanded over the years. They had apple orchards, a small produce farm, and livestock. When he saw a tab for Goat Activities, he cocked his head, wondering what in the hell people would do with goats. A lot, from the looks of it. They watched movies with the goats nearby, ate s’mores with them, did yoga and birthday parties and even had date nights out with them. What the fuck? Small towns were weird.