"So brother, do you want to tell me what's going on with you and Grace?" Rainer asked Bryce an hour later as they were riding along a stone wall that ran the length of the estate. They were looking for break in it where sheep had been getting through.

"I might ask you the same thing. After all you're the one who knows she sleeps with her light on."

Rainer was not deceived by his brother's careless tone. When Bryce sounded like he couldn't care less that generally was when he cared the most. Rainer shrugged, not answering the question. He would let Bryce worry a little bit, it would be good for him. Most things came to easily to him.

"I like Grace, she's a very classy lady. I've never heard her say a mean thing about anyone even though I think she, more than anyone, has that right." Rainer frowned as he thought about all of the unanswered questions he had about Grace. "She's a lot like you, she plays her cards very close to her chest. Do you think she tripped this morning?"

"No, I think Crystal pushed her," Bryce said stopping to look down from the horse at the wall more closely. Rainer noted the falling stone and nodded as they moved forward.

"Must be because she's jealous, does she have the right to be?" Rainer eyed Bryce's back. He had always wondered about Crystal and Bryce.

As far as Rainer knew Bryce had had plenty of casual relationships but nothing serious, and at one time, when they were younger, he had thought that Bryce and Crystal would probably get married one day.

"No, Crystal and I have never had anything other than a platonic relationship."

"That surprises me," Rainer admitted.

Bryce shrugged. "I've never trusted her."

"Will you ask her to leave?"

Bryce shook his head. "She will probably be gone when we get back this afternoon."

Rainer was always amazed at Bryce's ability to read people and their actions. It was something that made him very good at his job in contract law.

"How do you know Grace?" Bryce asked his eyes scanning the horizon.

"We met in South America about two years ago. She was just a lovely young grad student trying to decide what interested her the most."

Bryce shot Rainer a look at his lewd tone.

Rainer grinned. "South America or European archaeology. What did you think I was talking about?" he asked innocently.

Bryce shook his head, smiling a little at his brother's good natured teasing.

"Maybe I'll try to woo her a little bit. I'm sure the two of us could have some fun over the next few weeks. Maybe continue what we started a few years ago." Rainer watched Bryce's back, wishing he could see his face.

Bryce had always come across as cold and reserved to most people, but his family, who knew him best, knew that he could feel very deeply and took other's feelings very seriously even if he didn't always seem to.

"Would you object brother?" Rainer asked Bryce.

"No," was all he said, not bothering to turn and look at Rainer.

Rainer got the feeling that he minded very much.

*******

Grace was standing in a hole that was as deep as her waist and she had mud all over her face and in her hair. Alec and Cybil looked just as dirty but the three of them were in their element. They had laid out their grid and they were systematically and carefully digging out each square.

So far, they had been unlucky, but Grace was still hopeful. If this site didn't pan out they had three others to try, but they would be at this one all week.

Grace looked up at Cybil's shout of greeting and saw what could only be Rainer and Bryce headed towards them on horses with cowboy hats pulled low.

They looked so out of place in the English country side that she couldn't help laughing.

Cybil seemed very impressed. "You two look like American cowboys." She giggled.

"That's because we are darlin'," Rainer said in his best Texas drawl, leaning forward over his horse's neck giving her a pat. "And what are you laughing at Dr. Winston?"

Grace shook her head. "I have never seen anything that's more out of place than two cowboys in the middle of the English country side."

"And I have never seen anything so out of place as a future lady standing in a giant mud hole."

"Future lady... what are you talking about, I'm a lady now can't you tell." She posed pretty as a lady might.

"Hmmm that must have been what I meant." Rainer grinned. "Hey lady, why don't we go out to dinner tonight? That's after you get cleaned up of course."

Grace smiled warmly at Rainer. "That sounds like fun, pick me up at eight? Do you know where I live?"

"I do. Every good stalker knows where his prey lives."

Grace laughed. "Well I'm honored to have a famous and handsome man such as Rainer Stevens stalking me. I must be moving up in the world."

"Oh. My. Gosh. That's where I know you from, you are famous. You're Rainer Stevens." Cybil's voice went up an octave in excitement.

Grace shook her head and smiled at Cybil's sudden realization.

Bryce started chuckling at Rainer's shocked expression before turning away and heading towards the house. Rainer just shook his head and turned to follow Bryce, leaving Grace to go back to her digging and pretend that the extra beat of her heart was due to the exercise and not the warm sound of Bryce's laughter.

They worked steadily for the next two hours then they decided to call it a day.

As they trekked back to the house Cybil was teasing Grace about her date with Rainer. "He is so handsome Grace. What are you going to wear?"

Grace shrugged. It was just Rainer, she didn't feel the need to dress up but Cybil insisted that she had to.

When eight o'clock rolled around Grace decided that she was way over dressed. Cybil who had packed for every occasion had loaned her a little red dress that stopped well above her knees because Cybil was a bit shorter than her, as for the shoes Cybil was at a loss until she thought of Elizabeth, who luckily, wore the same size as Grace.

They were able to dig up a pair of red three inch heels that Elizabeth said were from her days in Hollywood.

That led Grace and Cybil to discover that Elizabeth Stevens was famous in her own right and they spent over half an hour researching her on the internet, which left them the very impressed by her acting career. There had actually been a lot on her marriage to Douglas Stevens over thirty-five years earlier. It had been a fairytale romance and wedding that the press had gone crazy for.

Eventually though, Grace was ready to go and very late.

She was not thinking about making an entrance as she raced down the stairs to meet Rainer and when she reached the bottom of the stairs she practically collided with Bryce, and he reached out and caught her before she could fall, her three inch heels making her teeter a little.

She heard a whistle from the door behind her and she turned still in Bryce's arms.

She was doing her best not to feel his body against hers.

"I think I am going to start calling you legs," Rainer teased. "Arms off big brother, this lady is spoken for."

Bryce unwound his arm from around Grace, leaving her cold, and Rainer took his place, putting his arm around her waist, but it wasn't the same.

"Shall we?" Rainer escorted her to the door. "Don't wait up."

The drive to the restaurant was short and Grace did her best not to fall asleep in the car. Her sleepless night and active day had done the trick, she was exhausted.

They settled into a booth at the back of the restaurant, away from everyone else, before Rainer finally spoke. "You look lovely Grace."

"Thank you Rainer, but you're not really trying to romance me are you?" Grace had never thought of him in that way and didn't want him to get the wrong idea.

He laughed. "No I'm just trying to get under Bryce's skin."

Grace's mouth fell open. "Why on earth would he care if you take me out on a date?"

"Because I think he's very taken with you."

Grace looked at Rainer as if he should have his head examined. "Rainer, I now know that you're crazy."

"Come on Grace, he hasn't expressed any interest in you?"

Grace looked down at her broken nails as she spoke, "So he might be physically attracted to me, but I don't think that it's anything other than that."

"He kissed you, didn't he?" Rainer leaned forward wanting to hear all of the details which Grace was not about to share, and he sighed after Grace remained stubbornly silent.

"Look, all I'll say is that my brother generally does not experience physical attraction without genuine interest. He's not as unfeeling as he seems to be."

"I'm aware," Grace said but their conversation was interrupted by the waitress who was very interested in Rainer and tried to flirt with him, despite the fact Grace was sitting right next to him.

After they had ordered they were both silent for awhile, lost in their own thoughts.

'Rainer...?"Grace began then stopped.

"Ask it Grace, you won't be satisfied until you do." Rainer looked at his drink tracing the edge of the glass with his finger.

"Yvonne?" Grace's voice was barely above a whisper.

"Dead." Rainer's voice lacked any emotion his face was a mask.

"How?"

"She was killed in a bus accident in West Africa. I wasn't with her."

Grace nodded. She guessed there was more to the story but it wasn't her business so she didn't ask any more questions.

"So when you finish digging up our backyard, what's next?"

"I have been offered a position at a university in New York. I'm supposed to start in the fall, unless we find something in your 'backyard', then I'll have to see if they can delay my start date.

They next few hours flew by and Grace had a great time. Rainer could always make her laugh.

When they got back to the house Rainer gave her a brotherly peck goodnight and darted up the stairs as she stopped to take her shoes off before she began the climb.

"Did you have a good time?" Bryce asked from the darkened doorway behind her.

Grace jumped startled and turned to look at him.

"Yes, I did." She gave a genuine smile. "Rainer has always been able to make me laugh."

"How are you feeling?" Bryce moved towards her placing his fingers in her hair where she had hit her head earlier.

"Fine," Grace closed her eyes as his fingers probed her scalp giving her goose bumps. Then his hand moved down her head, then her neck, and moved over her shoulder to her back where she had been hit by the figurine. His hand rubbed her back, hitting the tender spot and she arched forward causing her body to come into full contact with his.

She swallowed keeping her eyes closed. "It's still a little tender," she whispered.

"Grace, look at me." His voice was husky.

She looked up into his face which was hidden in the shadows but when he leaned forward she saw the same fire in his eyes that she had seen the night before as his lips crushed hers in an unforgiving kiss.

This time Grace didn't remain passive. She wound her arms around his neck and pushed her body harder against his. She could feel his response to her as he crushed her to him deepening the kiss. Grace gave a little moan. Why could this man do this to her when no other man could? Bryce had started to back her towards his study when there was a light at the top of the stairs and she heard her name.

It was Cybil. She wanted a report on how her date had gone.

Bryce broke the kiss and looked at her for a second, as if he was debating hauling her into his office and closing the door to the rest of the world.

Grace knew she wouldn't object.

Grace heard her name again and Bryce gave her his crooked grin. "Goodnight Grace,"  he said before he walked back into his study and closed the door behind him.

Grace collected her shoes, which she had dropped, and started up the stairs in a daze.

"There you are, how was it?" Cybil was standing outside of her door.

"It was fun Rainer always could make me laugh," Grace said repeating what she had said to Bryce earlier.

Cybil just looked at her a knowing look on her face. "Well, I think the goodnight kiss was a success."

Grace put her hands up to her lips and felt that they were slightly swollen. "Hmmm," was all she said.

"I'll let you get some sleep, we'll talk more tomorrow," Cybil said moving back into her room.

Grace walked into her own room with her fingers still on her lips. Had she really just kissed him back like that? She got ready for bed in a daze.

The last thing she thought of before she went to sleep was that she had forgotten to turn on a light.