Chapter 1.5

"Use the vegetables I brought ta make a good soup." Ethan ordered Felix.

"Yes! There's also the broth from the soup I made fer lunch. Good soup comin' right away!" Grinning widely, Felix happily made his way to the kitchen, followed by his brothers. Normally, it would only be one of them who helped the teen with the fire; so, having the three brothers meant they wanted to have a talk where the woman they picked up could not hear them.

"Whatcha wanna do with that woman, Ethan?" Joseph was the first to speak.

Whenever they wanted to take a decision about something important, they would gather like they had done and ask the eldest, since he always had the last word. Ethan remained silent for a moment as he stoked the fire and put a few pieces of firewood while Felix peeled the vegetables and Lucas stood by the door.

"I think we should give 'er a name first. She doesn't remember anythin', and we don't know if she'll remember things in the future." Felix proposed.

"Why, ya look really happy callin' her 'pretty Sis'." Joseph instantly teased his little brother.

"That's 'cause she really is pretty." Felix sulked as his face turned red.

"Felix is right. Since we helped her after Lucas found 'er up in the mountains, we could also give 'er a name. We can't go around callin' her 'hey' or 'you'." Ethan spoke up, agreeing with the youngest. "We'll discuss that together with 'er. Then, with what we can do 'bout her… well, we first need to know if she's stayin' or not..."

"She said she is! She's nowhere to go. She told me she could stay with us if we let 'er. She also said something 'bout repayin' us for the doctor and stuff." Felix quickly interjected, reminded of the conversation he had had with her when doing his chores.

The other three brothers were surprised by her decision. It was kind of logical as she truly had nothing, not even a name; her world suddenly becoming their house and the four brothers. However, they were surprised because she, as a woman, was willing to stay in a house with four men.

Of course, they would not be such beasts to try something nefarious on her, yet that did not erase the fact they were four healthy men. With two even knowing the matters between a man and a woman to a tee. Nothing can happen until it does! As silly as that may have sounded.

"Ah, then… maybe Lucas can decide what ta do? D'ya have any plans? You were the one who brought 'er here after all." Ethan effortlessly threw that hot potato to the taciturn brother. He had a few ideas, but it was best to hear what the real hero had to say about the situation.

And, knowing Lucas always needed time to think, the other three patiently waited for his answer. Felix started cutting the vegetables, Ethan put the pot with the broth on the stove, and Joseph shredded the vegetable peelings to use as fertilizer. Lucas just stood there, pondering.

Honestly, at first, he had no intentions of saving the woman he found by chance when he went hunting for the day. She had been lying beside some bushes, with the side of her head profusely bleeding. Wild animals like hogs and even vultures had, thankfully, not found her body yet, remaining relatively safe. She was just haggard and wounded.

Her lavish dress conspicuously had revealed her status as someone important, or with money. So, no, he had not wanted to get his hands into whatever muddy water she was in. He really had thought of leaving her there and pretend he had not seen anything.

What had changed his mind? … Right, he could not be blamed, but after taking a good look at her, he found she was very beautiful. Leaving such a beauty to her fate bugged him. And, perhaps, there had been that hidden ulterior motive to finally have a woman in the house.

Well, at that moment, the priority had been to save her life. That was why he left the hunting aside, and carried her back to the house where Joseph and Felix stood stunned for a couple of seconds before sending a barrage of questions to him about her.

A glare had silenced the noisy guys, and he laid her on the deck. Joseph had been the first to notice the wound on her head. Without being told, he ran towards the town to find their eldest brother and a doctor. Doctor who had basically robbed them, half-assed the treatment, and only left a little bit of medicine. Like that, their saved money was gone.

Thinking about such a scam, Lucas had regretted carrying the woman to the house as he helped Ethan change her out of her cumbersome dress. His regret dissipated like smoke after witnessing such an alluring body for the first time in his life.

From then on, the thought of making her stay and making her his Wife did not leave his mind.

Though, he still had his conservative doubts if it was actually a good idea. To begin with, there was the fact that their poverty-stricken situation was the culprit of their single-dogs life. No woman wanted to share difficulties with them; the women that had been interested in Ethan and Joseph had instantly run away after seeing first-hand the way they lived.

Who could assure him that this woman was not going to be the same?

The reassurance, surprisingly, came from the woman herself, who claimed she was willing to stay with them. Lucas felt immensely relieved hearing she did not mind their living conditions and accepted staying. Finding that kind of woman was as hard as wanting to reach the stars; more so because she was the only woman he actually had the audacity to see in all her splendor. Thrice.

The first instance was when he helped his brother change her; the second one had been when she stood at the river in all her naked glory; and the third one was when the two were coming back from the river. Her inappropriately short shirt, no underwear, and a well-timed breeze gave him the perfect view of her wide booty.

Thank Heavens he had never been a lascivious man!

Otherwise…

If it had ben Ethan or Joseph, Lucas wondered if they would have done anything. The two had been with many women since very early in their lives, and they did not have the qualms to search for whores whenever the need arose, and their finances allowed it. Yet, Lucas was different.

Call him naive, innocent, or whatever, but once he had seen the body of the woman who actually wanted to stay with them, he thought there would not be another woman he would be interested in. His mind and heart had set and prepared to spend the rest of his life with her.

Though, his big brother had not married yet. Was it fine for him to do it before?

Anyway, first, he had to voice out his opinion.

"Wife." There, clear as water.

"Eh? Lucas… you wanna make 'er your Wife?!" Joseph was the first to react to his words. Lucas nodded, and Joseph instantly and visibly deflated.

The eldest brother noticed it. "You had also thought of makin' her yer Wife, Joseph?"

"Is there a problem?" Having being caught, the third brother turned belligerent and defensive. "It's been a while since I last fucked..." He trailed off after being glared at by his second brother.

That glare was implicitly telling him that the woman his brother had rescued was not like those loose women that used to constantly look for him. Joseph wilted under the glare and nodded. He had no other choice but to agree with Lucas' opinion. He had seen the dress after all! She was no joke!

If she became the Wife of one of them, she would be respected as such.

"What a problem." Ethan sighed, seeing the exchange between Lucas and Joseph.

As mentioned before, he had already analyzed the situation and came up with some ideas since the moment Felix had mentioned she wanted to stay. He had thought up the pros and cons, beginning with their economic situation. Could they afford having one more mouth to feed? They could barely feed themselves; how would they be able to satisfy a woman like her?

Then, there was also the situation that just came up.

He cared not if his younger brothers married first, as long as they were happy with their chosen spouses. There was no law that dictated an order for marriage between brothers. However, seeing how women tended to bolt out of his life after he presented them to his brothers and their conditions, left a bitter taste in his mouth.

He even started thinking that everybody in his family would die single and alone.

As the eldest brother who had vowed to take care of his younger siblings, he wanted to make sure that at least one of his brothers lived a happily married life. And the chance had presented itself! Now, the problem was on deciding who would marry her. Honestly, he had also harbored a hope of making her his Wife; such a good woman, when would they be able to find another one like her again?

But, with three wanting her as a Wife… what to do?

"For all?" Lucas spoke his own solution to their conundrum. The kitchen fell silent for a moment.

"That's right!" Joseph cried out in excitement.

"It ain't possible, right?" Felix wondered, not knowing much about the goings of life, or if a group of men could have the same Wife. He turned to look at his eldest brother for the answer.

"It can be done." Ethan slowly began. After all, he had heard many things while working in town. And one of those things was about a pair of brothers who lived in another village. They had become the talk of the town for a few days because they had bought a woman to be their Wife.

They did so because they were too ugly and poor to find a decent Wife. It seemed the Civil Affairs Bureau had no objections on the matter. Though, it was difficult to be against it considering many men and women could have several lovers if they could afford them. The four brothers were not ugly, in his opinion, but they were poor. So, he guessed they could share a Wife.

"But, we've to convince her to be the Wife of four men."

And, that was the heart of the matter.

The brothers fell silent again. This time, they were unable to come up with any good ideas. To be the Wife of four men was quite a challenge, even they had to accept that. Besides, that she was amnesiac did not erase her real background. What if people from her family found her? What if after reuniting with her family she left them? What if she did not even want to get married?

There were many holes in their plan; so, they had to thread carefully.

With the soup cooked, the four moved towards the table. As always, Felix volunteered to wake her up so she could eat. But, when he came out of the house, he did it alone and with a strained face.

"Ethan… she's havin' a fever again." He relayed with worry.

Ethan hurriedly made his way in and towards the bed, the others right behind; however, it was only Lucas who approached the bed together with Ethan. The two immediately noticed her red face, her labored breathing, the sweat, and heard the incoherent mumbling. It was a sight they were getting used to after a week of tending to her.

After the quack doctor treated her, leaving them with some expensive medicine, the brothers were the ones who took care of her. Joseph was too temperamental and Felix too nervous, though, so the task fell on the silent Lucas and the eldest brother. They were experts at taking care of a sick person anyway, so they knew what to do.

Ethan grabbed some pieces of cloth while Lucas went to fetch some cold water from the well. Then, wetting the pieces of cloth, they plastered them all over her body before covering her with their thickest sheets. As soon as they did that, she opened her eyes.

"Please… do not… not leave…" With an unfocused gaze, she repeated those words.

"It's fine. We're here." Ethan softly whispered to her, brushing the corner of her eyes, wet from tears.

Lucas handed Ethan the bowl of soup. Before, they would give her water, keeping her hydrated during her fevers, and the medicine. For a week, she would never be conscious enough to swallow food, so they never tried. But, after two days of her finally waking up, they thought it would be better to give her some soup. It was not that savory but more filling than plain water.

And talking about the first time she woke up, they still felt bad that her first time awake was in the kitchen.

It was not their plan to leave her there for more than a night. It was just that Ethan had planned to bring his last conquest to the house that afternoon, so he did not want her to see the woman in the bed. So, they temporarily put her in the kitchen, where Lucas looked after her. Joseph had tactfully taken Felix to the patch, too. All to give the couple some privacy to talk and such.

In the end, they just shagged and she left after rejecting his proposal to live together.

The brothers, naturally, stuck together that night, talking to and comforting the eldest brother. The presence of the woman was forgotten until she screamed. Honestly, after she woke up, they thought she was finally recovering. However, she stilled suffered from fevers. Ethan wondered if the injury was too deep and she would become feverish for the rest of her life.

Lucas sat her up and leaned her body on his torso while Ethan started feeding her. Undeterred by her rambling and broken words, he fed her spoon after spoon of soup.

"Will she get better?" Felix broke the heavy silence that formed from seeing her like that. Although used to the scene, it was still distressing.

"Just give 'er time." Ethan reassured his little brother. Finally, she fell asleep again; her soup not even halfway eaten. Lucas laid her down, changed the cloths on her body, cleaned her face and tucked her in.

"I'll take the board." Joseph suddenly volunteered. With the woman on their bed, it was only less space for them. Since he could not help that much during her fevers, he made his contribution by sacrificing his spot on the bed.

The others nodded, accepting his words. The only one who had not slept on the board was Felix since he was a bit weak, yet the others had taken turns on it. The board was uncomfortable as they were tall, their feet always hanging in the air, but they would still take it to give her some space on the bed to properly rest.

The brothers quickly ate their own soup, already cold by the time they did so, and started preparing to go to bed themselves. Tacitly, Lucas slept the closest to her since he was going to check on her throughout the night after such an episode. It was going to be a sleepless night for him again.