Sebastian woke up with a simmering thirst. The room was too dark, and the unfamiliar surroundings briefly confused him. He crumpled his sheets with his fist, letting his eyes adjust to the pitch-black night. Outside, he glimpsed the outline of trees cut out by the light of the thin moon that hung over them, countless stars surrounding it in a slow dance toward daylight. But the sun was a long way from peaking out of the h...

Chapter 2 The small dirt path was steep, but Sebastian had always been perfectly stable on his feet. His eyelids were heavy, the rising dust making his eyes water as he did his best to focus on Shaun’s raspy voice. “This is a kitchen garden,” he explained. “What’s produced on the farm is mainly for my own use, but I also sell some products on the market on weekends.” “What do you produce?” Sebastian asked, genuinely curio...

Chapter 1 The gravel crunched under Sebastian’s shoes; they were covered in dust and grime, and though he had managed to wash his clothes a few times on his way to this lost part of the United States, money was running out. The few possessions he had managed to snatch away on his way out of his parents’ house weighed on his back. A painful reminder that at barely eighteen, all his future prospects had been swept under the...

Chapter 2 Cole The stall at the end of the bathroom was secluded. Cole loved how intimate it was compared to the rest of the building. The buzzing of the pale neons was the only thing keeping the silence away. Donovan stopped in front of the door, his sturdy back outlined by his sweat-soaked top. “Fuck, man,” Donovan said. “I hope no one saw that.” “Pretty sure nobody did,” Cole reassured him. “But you got an impressive p...

Chapter 1 Cole The gym already smelled of sweat and effort when Cole pushed open the door. Some guys were stocky and short, some were lean, others were gifted with height and broad shoulders. He liked to play with muscular jocks who harbored a clear sense of pride, and the place was filled to the brim with them. One tossed his sweatshirt onto the floor carelessly, his top clinging to straining muscles. But he didn’t come...