Staring out the window, her eyes adjusted to the rising sun and she felt her frustration and temper monuting. Holding back a groan, she looked over at her brother and pushed herself to her feet. She wasn't going to be any support if he happened to wake up if she didn't get some answers. Walking down the hall, she knocked on the door to Joe's room and heard silence on the other side. She tested the handle and pushed the door in when it released.

The room was empty and the bed had been made up earlier in the morning. Frowning, she looked behind her and shut the door. Walking around the room, she checked the bedside table drawer and found the stack of letters she recognized. Sitting on the bed, she unwrapped the envelopes and opened one. Unfolding the letter, she found very neat penmenship and began reading.

Joe,

I'm glad to know you're okay. I wish I could be there with you. Grace is just as glad to hear you are safe and recovering. It's getting to the point where school isn't much of a distraction. I wish I could meet him. Promise me you will tell me everything when I see you in the spring.

Love,

William and Grace

Rereading the letter, she folded it up and put it back in the envelope. Taking a deep breath, she wrapped the envelopes up again and stuck them back in the drawer. Leaving the room, she walked downstairs and found Mack in the family room reading a book with Teddy looking at photos on the floor. He looked up as she entered and the man put his book down.

"You look troubled."

She took a set and sighed "I'm not sure what I should believe."

"This is about Joe, isn't it?"

She nodded and Teddy stood up. He put the pictures back in a box on the mantle to the fireplace and left the room.

"That boy of yours is very smart."

She smirked and said "He gets it from your son."

Mack chuckled and asked "What is it that is bothering you?"

"Will."

The man leaned back in his chair and took a deep breath. He had allowed Teddy to look at the family photos they kept hidden because the boy already knew the truth. How was he supposed to tell Reese's sister the truth surrounding Will?

"I think you should ask Joe."

"She won't answer my question when I do ask."

He rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed "It's a very complicated situation."

"Can you at least tell me when he will be arriving?"

"This afternoon if everything goes right."

She took a deep breath and asked "Where is Joe?"

"I think she is outside taking her morning ride."

Nodding, she stood up and left the room. Walking down the hall, she opened the door and walked outside. The morning sun was burning brightly in the sky as she crossed the drivway to the barn. She found Cliff and Billy working in the stalls and spotted Jeff in the office. He was flipping through order forms and she hesitantly knocked on the door.

He looked up and his eyes narrowed in on her like a giant animal spotting his prey. Taking a deep breath, she entered the small room and he stood up.

"Can I help you?"

"Is Joe out riding?"

"Yes."

She wasn't sure if his tone was just a protective edge or if he resented her for uprooting his life.

"Jeff-"

"I know. Don't apologize."

She looked away and heard "I had a talk with Teddy this morning at breakfast. He seems very bright."

Carefully she looked back at him and said "I don't want you to feel obligated to be part of his life just because he's your son."

"Too late."

"I'm not asking you for anything."

"I know, but I am not going to turn my back on my own flesh and blood."

She wanted to bring up his reaction to her brother and Joe's affair but knew that would just make the situation worse.

"Don't worry about Will. He's a sweet hearted kid."

"Kid?"

A knowing grin appeared on and he pulled out his wallet. She watched him dig out a photo and hand it to her. Looking over the image, she found Joe holding a young boy on her lap at what looked like a quiet family holiday with a girl sitting beside her.

"I thought she didn't have any children."

"Grace is adopted."

"Will?"

He nodded toward the photo and said "You'll know when he gets here. I just hope your brother isn't awake then."

She gave him back the photo and heard Bear's barking approaching from the field. Leaving the office, she watched Joe stop Daemon just outside the doors and swing to the ground. He tossed his head as she removed his tack and rinsed him down. Bear trotted over to the porch and collapsed at the top step. Calli watched the woman settling her stallion in for an afternoon rest and felt her pulse jump when the brown eyes turned on her.

"How is our patient this morning?"

"You didn't check in on him?"

"At dawn I did."

They walked out of the barn and headed back to the house. Calli tried to keep her guilt out of her expression but knew she failed when Joe stopped just inside the house.

"Just promise me you won't mention anything to Reese if he is awake this afternoon."

"Why is this such a secret?"

The woman looked away and said "There's so much that we keep quiet that if Reese were to find out everything I doubt he could handle it."

"Joe?"

She smirked and asked "How was your conversation with Jeff?"

"He convinced me not to worry so much about his involvement in Teddy's upbringing."

"Good."

They climbed the stairs to the second floor and entered the guest room. Calli took her seat by the window and watched the woman check her brother's condition.

"Is his fever gone?"

"Yes. It broke this morning when I checked on him."

"Thank goodness."

She smirked and said "He'll just be very restless when he wakes."

Calli laughed and said "That sounds like Reese."

Joe left the room and Calli walked over to the bed. She spotted the moment when she knew he was going to open his eyes and when he did, he seemed out of it. Looking around the room, he tried to get his bearings but was in too much of a daze. She ran a wet cloth over his face and it helped settle some of his nerves.

"You're safe."

He looked at her and asked "Where am I?"

She smirked and said "Andrews."

The groan made her laugh and she wiped his brow again. He looked up at the ceiling and she put the cloth back into the bowl.

"You were injuried and really sick. I was afraid you weren't going to pull through."

"Why am I here?"

"I bet it has something to do with the fact that Champ got help."

He rolled his eyes and tried sitting up. His movements were slow and sluggish but he eventually managed to sit up. Feeling the pulling in his shoulder, he examined the wound and looked back at his sister.

"Why are you here?"

She shrugged and said "Joe promised Teddy she'd bring him here in the spring and so we both came so I could help take care of you."

"Help?"

She nodded and said "Joe kept a pretty strict watch over you. She's been monitoring your fever."

He ran a hand through his hair and pushed the bedding off. Standing up, he felt the room spin and Calli helped him sit back down.

"Easy. You just woke up. Take it easy."

"I need to get out of here."

She chuckled and said "That isn't going to happen until you are cleared for travel."

Groaning, he studied the room in more detail and slowly began to remember spending nights in here when he was real little. Barking came from outdoors and Calli moved to the window.

"They're here!"

Reese slowly rose to his feet and crossed the room. She tried to stop him from looking out the window but when Joe appeared she knew she was going to fail. The woman had just stepped out of the barn and the carriage door was opened. A young girl stepped out and smiled.

"Mom!"

Calli watched the girl race over to Joe and jump into the woman's arms. She glanced at her brother and waited. Joe kissed the girl's check and put her down. Bear came running up to the two and began loving on Grace. Joe stood up and watched the blonde boy step out of the carriage.

He shut the door and the driver handed him down the travel bag. He set it on the ground and looked back at her. He smiled and she knelt down as he ran to her. Taking him into her arms, she hugged him close and kissed his brow.

"I was scared you weren't going to be here when we got home."

She held him at arms length and said "I promised I'd be here."

He nodded and she hugged him again. Grace came over to them and Joe stood up. Bear sniffed Will's hand and the boy took off running.

"Take it easy."

"Ah, I'm not scared of him!"

She watched the two take off for the fields and Grace asked "Can I go?"

Nodding, she watched the girl take after her brother and the smile slowly disappeared. Taking a deep breath, she ran her hand through her hair and looked up at the open window. Calli glanced at her brother and felt his arm shaking beside her. His amber eyes were stuck on the brown eyes down below and she shook her head. Cliff and Billy helped Joe get the bags and they brought them into the house.

As the bags were taken to the two rooms, Calli stepped out of the guest room and heard the brothers talking. She stopped outside what she guessed was Grace's room and saw them talking with Joe.

"He saw?"

"Yeah."

"I guess we'll leave you up here to deal with it."

She took a deep breath and said "I can't."

Cliff wrapped an arm around her shoulder and said "Then we'll just have to keep him up here while you get some air."

"Thanks."

Billy smirked and said "We always have your back."

She left the room and briefly caught Calli's gaze. The woman watched her walk downstairs and turned back to her brothers.

"It's getting worse."

Cliff nodded and said "I'm scared we don't have much more time."

Billy sighed and they turned to her. Calli didn't say a word as they approached and shut the door behind them.

"Your brother still up?"

She nodded and Cliff said "I'll talk to him."

"Need backup?"

"I can handle him."

Calli watched him enter the guest room and the door shut behind him. Reese was staring out the window still and the air screamed danger around him. Cliff waited until he looked over his shoulder and pointed to the chair. The man didn't budge and he pulled another chair over to the door and took a seat.

"Now if you want to leave you either have to hear me out or go out that window. You're a smart guy so I bet you'll take a seat and let me talk."

His amber eyes were dangerously hard and lethal. The fist that had been shaking earlier was still now but his temper was flashing in his eyes.

"Then get talking."

"Grace isn't yours. She's adopted."

"The boy?"

"What do you think?"

"Why wouldn't she tell me I had a son?"

Cliff leaned forward and said "Because at first we wouldn't let her."

"Why?"

"We're the reason she left in the first place. She only left to keep you from being beaten to death."

"I told her I could handle you."

"Not when we blamed your affair for our father's accident."

"What?"

"When we found out, all of us were angry but he took it the hardest. He went out riding and wasn't paying attention. The horse threw him and he suffered head trauma."

"That doesn't explain her leaving me alone at the hotel."

"We gave her a choice. Walk away and come back home where we needed her or we take matters into our own hands."

Reese stared back at him with a clear look that was unnerving and Cliff took a deep breath. He agreed to have this conversation because he knew how to hold back important information from the best people but if the man kept looking at him like this he wasn't sure if he wouldn't crack.

"How old is he?"

"Almost seven."

"She was already pregnant."

Cliff nodded and said "She found out a month after the split. Kept it from the public by wearing looser shirts when it was still early but after a few months she stopped going to town."

"Why didn't she tell me?"

"I just told you."

"You said at first it was because of you."

He smirked and saw some of the quality of thinking that had drawn his sister to this guy in the first place. His wit was uncanning and Cliff was pretty sure you couldn't pull anything over his eyes without him knowing it.

"She didn't tell you once Will was born because she didn't know how to tell you about him. If she had, you would've felt obligated just like our brother Jeff to be involved. Will knows who you are, she made sure of it. However, he also doesn't desperately need his father even though he'd like for you to be involved just a little."

Reese let out a slow breath and Cliff knew he had finally settled down. The man stood up and walked over to the bathroom. Splashing water on his face, he took a deep breath and looked back at the protective brother.

"Where is she?"

"Out in the field with Will and Grace. She needed time."

Cliff walked over to a spare dresser and dug out some of the clothes that Calli had brought from home. He tossed a clean shirt to the man and left the room. The truth for the most part was revealed and now the next move was in the blonde haired man's court.