I Remember Nothing, But I Have Four Husbands

"So… Lucas, why a rabbit?" Ethan spoke up as the four brothers washed at the river.

After dinner, they had boiled a bucket of water for Isabelle so she could wash – or at least clean herself – in the house since the bathtub was not ready yet. Meanwhile, they made their way to the nearby river. They did not usually wash in the river during Spring as the water was still somewhat cold, yet with a woman in the house, they could not go around naked in the backyard to wash up.

Well, they could, but it was not appropriate and they did not know how Isabelle would react to that. Furthermore! They were all happy because Isabelle spent most of the day awake. With a hiccup in the middle, but she looked much better than in past days. So, giving her that modicum of privacy and respect was nothing to them.

The second brother remained silent for a moment as he scooped out water and poured it on his tall and strong body. "Cute like her." He replied, not ashamed to voice out his feelings.

Even though he was the less talkative brother of the four, he was the most honest and straightforward. It could be said that he had always known what he wanted and did his best to get it. Now more so as they had a chance to get a Wife.

He had been a bit downcast when she saw his gift as something to benefit from; but discovering she thought of the profit to help them, it soothed his heart like a gentle breeze on a hot day.

Lucas then looked at Ethan, silently asking the latter about the wood and the bathtub idea. Lucas could even guess that Ethan had specifically looked for a job in a carpentry and asked to be paid with wood to make the bathtub for her. If they had not decided to share the Wife, anyone would think they were competing for her attention and affection.

"Ah, well, as I said, it'd be bad if someone else saw her bathin' in the river. We've no neighbors and the villagers seldom come 'round here, but it's better to be cautious." Ethan replied, glancing at the visible thatched roof of their house where he knew Isabelle was cleaning herself. "Also, it's best to make 'er feel at home." His eyes glinted.

The other two brothers sitting by the shore with him nodded at his words.

"Wait, then, we've to give 'er gifts and all that?" Joseph suddenly frowned. He was horrible at giving presents.

All the women he had been with, apart from the prostitutes he had slept with at town, had all been attracted by his body thanks to some rumors that spread around about his sexual performance. That meant it was all physical. But now, he was hearing that they had to make Isabelle happy with little details.

His eyes, then, rested on his younger brother and a thought came to his mind. "We're losin' Felix!" The third brother relayed to his youngest brother who had started fishing, uncaring of the fact that he was naked in the cool water.

"Huh?" Felix stopped his task to look at Joseph with a puzzled face, having paid little to no attention to what his brothers were conversing.

"Actually, you're the only one who's losin', Joseph." Ethan breezily commented after waving at Felix to continue what he was doing. "Felix cooks for her. He's also talked the most with 'er. If anything, she might be more familiar with him." He sighed, thinking Felix had all the advantages of the world, what with him spending most of his time at home.

"Fuck! For real?!" Joseph exclaimed, realizing it was true. An impending sense of crisis suddenly filled his heart, and he started counting the moments he had interacted with Isabelle. There was that time when she mentioned her amnesia and that one with the embroidery, then two out-of-place comments and then…

Nothing. His mind came up blank. Out of the four, he seemed to be the one who had spoken with her the least!

Unaware of his brother's crisis, Felix approached his brothers and sat on of the rocks ashore to join their conversation. "I don't wanna cook anymore. I wanna eat 'er food my whole life."

Ethan immediately was at his side and started rubbing Felix's hair with an old towel to dry it so the teen would not catch a cold. Their youngest brother was sometimes very careless, and it was always Ethan who had to take care of him.

"This the taste of havin' a Wife?" Felix dreamily asked, making his brothers laugh.

Though, they had to agree with Felix that the dinner they just had was the best they had had in a while. It had been so long since their mother and that other woman died that they had forgotten the touch and taste of a woman's cooking, as the simple soup of mushrooms and cured meat made by Isabelle was truly too delicious.

It not only filled their stomachs; it also filled their hearts with a warmth they did not know they were missing. More than ever, they felt they needed to keep Isabelle in their house. Even if she could not accept the four as her Husbands, it would still be good if she chose one of them. However, no one knew how to address the matter with her.

Maybe they had to wait for her to spend a few more days with them, see her attitude: if she showed interest in any of them. Only then, they could manifest their desires.

After washing, drying and putting their sleep clothes, they returned to the house, only to find the object of their conversation looking at the rabbit placed in its newly made pen.

He did not look like it, but Joseph was very good at building fences; and it seemed animal pens, too. The rabbit curiously moved from side to side in its space around the only tree in the courtyard. The pen was somewhat big for one rabbit, but thinking there would be more in the future, then it was the perfect size.

Hearing their footsteps, Isabelle turned around and the four brothers found themselves enchanted by her rosy countenance and limpid eyes that sparkled with the setting sun.

For once, it was nice to see that the countenance was not the product of a fever.

"You are back." Isabelle smiled. The demure arc of her lips healed their hearts. Then, she started fidgeting. "I… Can we have a talk?" She stuttered out.

Felix, the youngest, came nothing to his mind bar the fact that she looked very cute doing that gesture. The other three, however, had their eyes locked in a sole place. As she fidgeted, she unconsciously pressed her big breasts together, creating an alluring sight. The three gulped in unison and diverted their gazes.

Ethan coughed to clear his throat, but his voice still came out a bit hoarse. "I'll lit a candle, let's sit at the table."

Gosh, he had fucked like two days ago, and he was already so needy? He felt a bit ashamed for his lack of self-control as he was the oldest, and supposedly the most experienced. He got to pull himself together! He placed the lit candle in the middle of the table, illuminating everybody's faces.

"Then, what d'you wanna talk about?" Ethan gently prompted her.

"Uh, well, I was thinking that since I am staying here, I can also help earn money. I did this, but I am not sure if it can be sold." Saying so, she took out an embroidered handkerchief from her bosom and showed it to the brothers.

Felix had seen her making it, so he had not much of a reaction. It was again the other three who had tight expressions on their faces. Their eyes went from the handkerchief to the place where it came from. Had that really happened?

"I need ta look at it closer." Ethan composedly said.

Ignoring the pointed looks from Lucas and Joseph, he grabbed the handkerchief. His heart started racing when he felt the warmth it still carried. He inwardly thought he was a disgrace, acting as if he was an ignorant virgin. But he could not be helped! He even wanted to pull the fabric closer to his face – pretending to see the embroidery from up close – to sniff it in case it still had her scent.

His impure attempt was stopped by Lucas when the latter pulled his shirt. Ethan pursed his lips dissatisfied.

"It's well-made. We… uh, I can go to those embroidery shops and hear their opinion. Maybe I've luck and one of 'em gets interested in hirin' you." The oldest brother suggested. He was about to say that the two could go, yet she was still not completely recovered.

"Really?" Isabelle smiled delighted.

"Yeah... And, uh, this the only one you made?" Ethan withstood the glares from Lucas and Joseph while voicing out his question. The two knew why he asked that.

Ethan did feel a bit wretched after having asked that, but with him away almost the whole day, it would be hard to spend time with her. How could he, then, nurture a relationship?! It was unfair! Owning something made by her could level the disparity in his opinion.

"Yes, I could only make one because there is no more thread to embroider more." Isabelle said, a bit apologetical. Though, that was more because she had used all the thread without their permission.

Joseph looked at Ethan with a face full of schadenfreude. "It's fine. More important, how're you feeling?" Ethan ignored his brother and inquired about her health. They had done their best to take care of her, but only she knew how she truly felt.

"I am… good." She said with a troubled expression. Fevers was not something she could control, so she could not claim she was perfect.

"Just make sure ta rest and drink yer medicine." Joseph input, wanting to show his concern to her. Though, more than concern, he wanted for her to look at him. Success! He inwardly cried out when she turned to him and flashed him with one of her pretty smiles.

Isabelle was very touched to see how much they cared for her. However, only resting and taking medicine would not make her recover faster. She wanted to move around and not spend her days holed up in the house! Hesitantly, she glanced at all the brothers and softly voiced out her request.

"Um… tomorrow… is there a way so I… Well, a garden in the courtyard would look nice, would it not?" In the end, she could not ask them to build a garden and only made it a suggestion. It was only an idea that came to her during a fever, nothing they actually needed.

All the while, she once again fidgeted, making her assets wiggle. This time, not even the young and innocent Felix could overlook the movement and stared together with his gulping brothers.

"If ya want a garden, leave it to me!" Joseph quickly reacted to her words and appointed himself to the task. His nostrils were flaring and his gaze was quivering, trying not to go down below her face. It was Joseph's time to endure his brothers' glares, blaming him for being an opportunist.

"It's decided then. I'll take your 'kerchief and show it to the shops 'round town tomorrow and Joseph'll make ye a garden. If I receive an offer, we can go another day to town." Not wanting to fall behind, Ethan hatched a plan regarding the handkerchief in his hands. It had to be said that being the oldest, he was the most cunning of the four and got the most benefits out of the situation.

His words also made Joseph realize that making a garden did not guarantee that he would spend time with her, while his damn brother managed to keep something made by her and a promise to go to town together! Damn, he lost to the perverted fox!

I know what you did there, Ethan…

Isabelle eyed the eldest brother and decided not to tear down the whole theater they mounted. She used a bit of her charm back there, but he took it further. "I will be counting on you, then!" She could only agree to his words.

"I'll pick up flowers for you." Lucas suddenly came up with an idea on what to give Isabelle to earn her affection. Flowers was the all-time favorite for conquering a lady, was it not? His words, though, made the others look at him baffled.

"Oh! That's right! There're no flowers in the roads, or nearby, just trees. You need ta go to the mountains ta look for 'em." Felix explained with an enlightened expression. 

"So, it is like that." Isabelle nodded in understanding. Then, she looked at Lucas with an unreadable expression. "Then… when I feel better, shall we go to the mountains to look for some pretty flowers?" She coyly smiled at him.

Lucas felt heat rise to his face. Ethan pursed his lips while Joseph openly gaped. That was… a promise, right? An outing with the intent to court, right? Both had gone into the 'mountains' to spend some 'quality time' with a woman, so they knew what her words entailed. It was like that, right? Was it Lucas' time to lose his purity?

Although the two were happy for their brother, they also were confused as to how that came to be. How did Lucas manage to get such promise from Isabelle?!

Was it the rabbit?

Lucas, for his part, did not care about their convoluted and dirty thoughts. He was at peace with his chance to nurture his own relationship with her. Ethan sighed, but was also happy to know that the handkerchief would remain in his hands; it was a handkerchief that had been in her bosom after all! Joseph still felt that he had taken the shortest stick in the whole matter, but was relieved to know he could do something for her. He would gift her a garden!

Only then, Felix understood that his brothers were actually fighting for Isabelle's attention. Although he did not feel he was in a crisis, he was still upset that his brothers had not told him anything beforehand. "I'll make delicious food for ya, Belle! Yer still sick after all!" He interjected, also wanting some attention.

"I have a better idea, Felix. You must teach me how to cook! I think my culinary skills cannot go beyond that soup from dinner. Besides, I doubt you or your brothers will allow me to do any other task in my condition." Isabelle jumped at the opportunity of learning how to cook, and even excitedly grabbed Felix's hands in pleading.

Felix dumbly nodded, looking down at his hands that were covered by her soft ones. He suddenly thought her hands had to remain soft, without any blemishes. That she should be spoiled until old.

Seeing the clasped hands – the first time Isabelle initiated contact with any of them without being under the influence of a fever –, the other three brothers had to accept that the winner of the night was Felix.