Laughter ran through the hall and he looked up from his book. Sighing, Trevor climbed to his feet and left the library. He walked down the hall to his room and laid the book on a table next to his bed. Silently he left his room and made his way downstairs. His boots hit the floor and he saw the light on in the parlor. Stopping in the door way, he found Kara playing a game with Grace and Liam. He felt the man look up at him and smirked. "Want to join in?" He nodded and sat between his uncle and Grace. A sigh came from the window and he glanced over his shoulder. "He's been moping all day." "Probably misses Mom an awful lot." Trevor smiled and said "Well they'll be home tonight, right?" Liam nodded and they turned back to the game in progress. He glanced down at the two children and found their relationship with his sister unique. He looked across at Grace and caught her gaze. She smiled and he looked down at the game. That woman had slowly worked her way inside him and he found himself praying each night she would change her mind. She had told him yesterday she was still planning on going back home when the two returned. He knew she was only staying for the children but he wasn't sure he could watch her leave. His only option was to either convince her to stay here or return home without a word. The idea of walking away was gut wrenching but he knew he couldn't watch her leave. Tanner's head snapped up and he watched the dog run into the hall. Silently he stood up and followed the animal to the front door. Abigail came into the hall and looked at them. "He seems to think someone's coming." He opened one door and the dog took off outside. Stepping onto the porch, he saw Tanner disappear around the corner of the courtyard and heard someone step outside behind him. Grace met his gaze and they walked down the steps. They left the courtyard and headed done the gravel path. Barking drove them to the stable and they found Tanner running around in circles. He would stand up on his hind legs and then drop back down onto all four. Grace glanced back at him and they watched the dog bolt inside the stable. Laughter soon echoed from inside and they stepped up to the doors. They found Tanner standing on top of Eve, covering her in kisses. "Well I guess that answers the question." Grace nodded and spotted her cousin pulling the dog off. He helped her up and Tanner stopped up on his hind legs. His front paws were on the man's leg and he nudged the man's hand. Jonathan scratched the dog's ear and he slowly returned to the ground. "It seems he wanted to welcome you home first." Eve left her husband and met her brother. He pulled her into a big hug and spun her around. Slowly he lowered her back onto her feet and looked her over. "You look amazing." "We weren't gone that long." She glanced at Grace and said "I'm glad you're still here." The woman smiled and they hugged. Slowly she looked back at Jonathan and he picked up the two bags. She returned to him and took hers, earning her a look from both him and her brother. "Just because you're here doesn't mean I won't carry my own weight around here." Liam opened his mouth to make a comment but saw the small smile on the man's face. She glanced up at the man and he nodded. They stepped around the two and Tanner trotted after them. "She has that much power over him?" Grace laughed and said "They're equally dangerous." He smirked and said "They must have really butted heads when she first came here." "Oh they did. Sometimes we didn't know who was going to end up dead first." "Then how the hell did they end up together?" She smirked and said "We pushed them together." One eyebrow went up as they left the stable and she laughed. "Actually, Oric started it first. He made Jonathan ride with them into town only a few days after she got here." They entered the courtyard and he shook his head. A smile caught his face and he looked down at her. "You were part of that?" She shrugged and said "I could see the interest she caused in my cousin after one week." "Your brother?" "He didn't like it. Tried to steal her away from Jonathan but that didn't turn out so well." "Meaning?" She stopped walking and said "You should ask your sister." His eyes narrowed and she explained. "My brother attacked her a few times. She was sick afterwards. The last time everyone thought Jonathan was going to kill him." "What?" She tried to explain but he stormed into the place. He looked up the stairs and climbed them. Silently he stormed into the master bedroom and found his sister unpacking her bag. Tanner was lying on the bed and lifted his head. He jumped down in front of her and lowered his head. "Tanner?" The dog growled up at Liam and refused to move. She looked at her brother and saw the storm brewing in his eyes. "Why didn't you tell me you were hurt?" Her eyes held his gaze firmly and she said "It didn't concern you." His eyes grew darker and he growled "We don't get sick unless it has something to do with Úna." She held his burning gaze and he asked "She was behind it?" Eve went back to unpacking her bag and said "It's been taken care of." "How? Banishing that man won't do any good." "He doesn't have any of the witch's power left in him." "How?" Her blue eyes turned on him and she said "I drove it out." His eyes lost their fury and she hung her clothes up in the wardrobe. Tanner still separated them and she put the bag beneath the hanging clothes. "You cleaned his system of every ounce of power?" She nodded and he asked "How the hell are you still alive?" "Liam." He shook his head and said "Father is going to kill you for this." "He doesn't need to know." "Eve! You know how dangerous that is. It's forbidden for a reason." "And yet I'm standing right here listening to my brother lecturing me." "Eve." "I don't want to hear it." He met her fiery gaze and let out a sigh. When he wasn't thinking about Grace, he would find himself reliving the day she had been on the brink of death. She shouldn't have made it but all their father did was lend her some strength. The wound was gone and he had taken her up to the surface to catch her breath. He couldn't hear anything but when he saw the witch he know something had gone wrong. He had watched the woman jump into the water and swam back to warn his father. The woman was faster and when he found her stopping in front of his father he thought it was too late. She ended her chant and he watched the power toss itself straight for the king's chest. Something swam straight into the light and it shattered. He heard the witch's scream and watched her disappear. He looked back at his father and found him looking down at the woman in his arms. He watched his father race to the surface and now he was looking at his sister. He couldn't understand where that strength came from but she had always been different. Her ability to heal others was so strong it consumed them all when they were growing up. When they weren't forcing suitors away, they were watching her heal the injured people and animals. "Liam." He cleared his thoughts and looked at her. She was watching him with the same fierce look and he sighed. "Eve." "You done yelling?" The cold tone sent a chill up his spine and his jaw tightened. He looked over his shoulder and met the brown gaze. The man was leaning against the doorway and had a murderous look in his eyes. "This is between me and my sister." His eyes narrowed and they heard "Liam, please just leave." He looked back at his sister and watched her look away. Meeting the gaze at the door again, he watched the man step aside and slid into the hall. "Are you okay?" He looked back into the bedroom and saw the man sitting on his bed. "Yeah." Liam saw the man pull her onto his lap and watched her rested her head against his shoulder. "Do you want me to throw him out?" "No." "Liam?" He looked behind him and found Grace watching him. She glanced at the open room at the end of the hall and rested a hand on his arm. "You should come downstairs before you get caught by her." "I'm more worried about that husband of hers." "He already knows you're standing here." He looked back at the room and asked "How?" She smiled and said "He's more alert than you'd believe." The woman guided him down the stairs and they stepped into the parlor. She shut the door and watched him take a seat on the couch. He raked a hand through his hair and let out a sigh. "What's wrong?" He looked up and said "She's so different." Grace sat beside him and said "Eve went through a lot the year she was here." "She told me what she did to your brother." "Did she? She hasn't told anyone what she did but all we know is he isn't a problem anymore." "Your brother was allied with the woman that attacked here." She closed her eyes and said "I know." "You did?" "Christopher didn't use to be so persistent when it came to Jonathan but in the last couple of years he wanted to see the man married." He held her brown gaze and asked "That's why he brought you here?" She nodded and said "I was fond of him, but I knew he would never see me as anything more than the little cousin that use to trail after him." He smirked and she said "I knew I could get you to feel better." "Unfortunately." He watched her smile and stood up. He needed space from this woman. She was driving him insane and he didn't trust himself around her. Grace watched him approach the window and took a deep breath. "Liam? "I think you should leave." She stared at him and asked "What?" He slowly looked at her and said "You're leaving tomorrow, so maybe you should go pack." Grace stared at him like he had struck her and silently left the room. She pulled the door shut behind her and stopped when she saw Eve. "Grace?" She stepped past the woman and climbed the steps. Letting out a sigh, Eve followed her upstairs to her room and stopped in the doorway. "Where are you going?" The woman threw her clothes into her bag and said "Home, first thing in the morning." Eve caught her arm and the woman looked away. She smiled and couldn't hold back the laugh. "What is so funny?" She sat down on the bed and said "My brother and you." Grace looked away and took a deep breath. "He offended you didn't he?" She nodded and said "But I brought it on. I delayed leaving until you two got home." "Grace, do you like him?" "It's not that simple." She smiled and said "Yes it is." The woman sighed and sat next to her. Eve wrapped an arm around her shoulder and smirked. "If you really care for him that much, then just tell him." "I wish it were that simple." "Well let's unpack your things and go downstairs for dinner." "And if I see Liam?" She smiled and said "I'll handle him." Grace met her gaze and nodded. The woman had a way of making her feel better and a smile slowly came back to her. They put her clothes away and left the bedroom.