It had been a few of weeks since Harry had been at the lake with Grace and the girls and ever since then, Grace had been polite and pleasant to him, but he knew she was holding herself back.

She seemed to have withdrawn into herself and she never let herself be in a room alone with him.

The times when they were together, and they'd accidentally touched, it was like a spark had shot through them, both feeling it and both trying their hardest to ignore it.

When Rosie had quizzed him, what had happened that day when they returned, and Harry had repeated what Grace had said to him, he saw her visibly pale and immediately go off in search of Grace.

He'd debated whether to approach Grace again and try and speak with her, but eventually he decided that he thought he'd make things worse for her somehow, so he kept quiet and concentrated on doing the job he'd been paid to do.

~~~~~~

Later that evening, after the girls had gone to bed, Harry made his way into the kitchen to grab a snack when he found Grace and Rosie in the kitchen, notes spread out on the bench as they talked animatedly.

Harry hoped that he could slink in unnoticed and out again, without bothering Grace.

"Harry," she called his name and at the sound of her, his heart skipped a beat because it sounded like she actually wanted to talk to him.

He turned around, trying not to look too hopeful.

"We're having a soirée this Saturday evening at the house," she told him.

Oh.

"So, you want me to be watching the girls for the night?" he replied, "of course."

"No," she smiled gently at him, "I'd like you to attend the evening, only if you want to," she added.

"But the girls..." he asked.

"Rosie has generously agreed to look after them if you'd like to attend," she replied.

"I...uh...yeah sure, I'd like that," he stammered, "what do I wear?"

"Don't worry about it," Grace replied, "my stylist is dropping my dress over tomorrow, I'll have her bring some suits for you to try on."

"Um...thanks," he said, "thanks for inviting me," he grabbed his plate and a bottle of water and began to walk back to his room before stopping, "um, Grace?" he asked.

Both Grace and Rosie looked up at him.

"Will Lucy be there?" he asked.

Rosie snorted while Grace tried unsuccessfully to hide a smile.

"She will unfortunately," Grace replied, "but I'll introduce you to some friends of mine that will help keep you safe."

Harry blushed, feeling a bit of a fool that he needed protecting from a woman.

"I get it Harry," Grace nodded her head, "she's scary as fuck."

Rosie snorted again and let out a full-blown laugh.

"Night Grace, night Rosie," he said, an amused smile on his face as he left the two women in the kitchen, buoyed by the fact that he and Grace might have finally gotten over this hurdle.

~~~~~~

It was a loud thump that had Harry sit up quickly in bed.

Was he dreaming?

He heard it again and this time he definitely knew he wasn't.

The girls.

Immediately he was out like a shot, his hand on the door handle, opening the door slowly but ready to run to their room.

There was another loud thump and this time Harry was convinced it was an intruder in the house.

He didn't turn the lamp on in the room, not wanting to give himself away, but his eyes had adjusted to the dim light and he slowly opened his door and crept down the hall to the girl's bedroom, placing himself behind their door.

His heart was thumping as the sounds moved closer and he cursed himself for not grabbing his phone or something to hit the person with.

He frantically looked around for something in the girl's room that he could use as a potential weapon when he heard a phone ring.

It stopped when the person answered it.

"Hello?" they said, causing Harry to freeze, "how can you miss me? I've only just left you..."

Harry's eyes widened in shock.

It was James.

"I know I wish I could have stayed too," they went on, "I would love nothing more than to wake up next to you," they paused, "yes completely naked."

Harry's stomach started to churn to the point he thought he was going to lose his dinner.

"I love it when you're on your knees in front of me too," they agreed before pausing, "you know I can't leave her..." he sighed, "because it's complicated..."

Harry felt him slump against the wall.

"I love you too, you know that," he replied, "I love everything about you...you know I'm yours..."

Harry began to breathe rapidly, anger replacing the fear he'd felt moments earlier.

"Saturday? You're still coming right?" he said, "I'm sure we can slip out at some stage...okay I'll see you then...I love you too."

He hung up before continuing down the hall.

Harry poked his head carefully around the door just in time to see James head into a guest room.

Not his own bedroom?

Maybe he didn't want to wake Grace.

Or maybe he didn't want Grace to smell another woman's scent on him more like it.

Harry made sure the girls were asleep before he slipped back into his own bedroom, flicking the lamp on before he started pacing around his room.

How could that fucking arsehole be cheating on Grace?

Fucking selfish prick!

Did she know?

Did.

She.

Fucking.

Know?

What did he do now?

What the fuck was he supposed to do now that he knew James was cheating on Grace?

He sat himself down on the end of his bed, his head in his hands as he let out a deep breath before falling backwards onto the bed.

What the fuck was he supposed to do?

~~~~~~

Harry awoke after a somewhat restless night's sleep.

To his disappointment, his stomach was still in knots as his mind wandered back to last night.

His head ached as his conscience continued to wage its internal battle of what he should do.

He'd allowed himself to become too close to Grace and now he wasn't quite sure where the line of employee and friend was drawn.

It was all a blur.

He cared for her very much, hell, he cared for all of them.

They'd embraced him into their family without question that at times, he felt like he was one of them.

Harry knew he could simply choose to continue to do the job he's been employed to do and ignore what he knew.

Or he could go to Grace and tell her what he had discovered.

Because that's what friends do, don't they?

And they were friends again right?

The whole notion made Harry's heart ache.

He also knew that if he was in Grace's shoes, he would want someone to tell him no matter how much it hurt.

Harry's conscience made his decision for him.

He was going to do the right thing and tell Grace.

The question was when.

~~~~~

Harry had found Grace was so busy making sure the preparations and any last-minute adjustments were ready that it was Saturday before he knew it.

Maybe it was a sign that he shouldn't say anything to her about James.

He'd wondered whether to mention it to Rosie, but something told him that he wouldn't get much out of her, just another pinch on the cheek and a brownie shoved into his mouth.

He was dressed and ready, pacing nervously in his room as he heard the soft background music playing from downstairs.

He didn't want to be one of the first guests, he wanted to blend into the background a little at first, knowing that a lot of these people were probably rich and smart, certainly above him.

He also knew that James' mother was probably going to be there, and he really wanted to avoid her like the plague.

Harry felt she kind of was the plague.

He gave himself another twenty minutes and decided to head downstairs to see if Grace was there, so she could introduce him to her friends as promised.

He opened his door and walked out, just as someone else did behind him.

Harry turned around only to be met with Grace.

He stood there speechless, looking her up and down.

She truly was stunning.

"You look beautiful," he blurted out, earning a shy smile from her.

"You look handsome," Grace replied and they both chuckled.

Harry's smile faded as he looked her over again and he swallowed nervously.

She's just a friend, he reminded himself.

Grace looked up at him shyly before biting her lip before remembering her lipstick.

He's the au pair, she reminded herself.

Harry remembered his manners and held his arm out for her.

"Would you like me to escort you down, or will James be doing the honours?" he asked, struggling to say the cheating bastard's name.

"He's already downstairs," she said, hesitating slightly before taking Harry's outstretched arm.

Being this close to Harry again made her dizzy.

"More fool him," Harry whispered as he gazed down at her.

Grace's voice seemed to stick in her throat, unable to answer him.

They gazed at each other, neither saying a word before Harry finally broke the silence.

"You should probably be downstairs yeah?" he asked quietly.

"I should," Grace replied, "wifely duties and all..." she felt Harry suddenly stiffen under her touch and she looked at him questioningly.

But he chose to say nothing and began to lead her downstairs to the guests below.

~~~~~~

The evening went smoothly, Harry managed to stay away from Lucy, Joan and James, all of the people he really wanted to avoid. He had hoped they'd be busy putting on perfect airs for those around them instead of worrying about him.

James had greeted him heartily, introducing him to some people that he had actually enjoyed chatting to, as had Grace. He'd been able to keep Lucy at arm's length as well as earning a slight nod from Joan, which he put down to having his shirt buttoned all the way up to his neck.

Because the night was warm, after the official speeches were done, people were able to move outside to the waiting tables, the fairy lights proving a beautiful way to light the area.

Harry sat with some other men around his age at one of the tables, currently being given a crash course in Australian beers by them, a couple of top buttons on his shirt now undone as he clinked a bottle in a group toast.

"There you are Harry," a voice purred from behind, causing him to visibly sigh.

"Hey Lucy," he said, glancing at her briefly before looking away.

"Did you want to take a walk?" she offered.

"Uh, no I'm good thanks," he gave her a small smile, "chatting here you know?"

The other men smirked behind their beers, earning a glare from Lucy before she huffed and walked off.

"So, you're her flavour of the month?" one of them asked.

"Uh...I guess," he answered.

"Don't stress, she'll move onto some other poor sap," the man shrugged his shoulders.

Harry silently thanked himself that he didn't take her up on any offers since it seemed she wasn't choosy when it came to dating.

Harry leaned back on his chair, surveying the beautifully lit surroundings when he saw the familiar black and cream dress wander off from the party.

Excusing himself, Harry stood up and decided to follow her, not caring if it was a smart idea or not.

She seemed like her old self these past few days and he was dying to talk to her again.

By the time he rounded the corner to catch up with her, she'd disappeared, and he cursed himself in his slowness, but then a sudden movement to his left caught his eye and he raced after it, assuming it was Grace.

He was right.

Grace had walked to one of the barns, empty save for some machinery equipment, the fairy lights casting enough brightness to leave a light glow.

Harry walked into the barn, causing Grace to jump around, her hand flying to her chest as he startled her.

"Jesus Christ Harry," she said, "you scared the shit out of me!"

"Sorry," he replied, "I didn't mean to...what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing," she smiled back, "but if you must know I'm just getting some space, I get tired of smiling and answering the same questions..."

"I could imagine," he shrugged his shoulders.

"And you're here because..?" Grace asked him.

Harry stared at her, not knowing what to say because he didn't know why he was here.

He only knew he wanted to see her.

"Because of you," he whispered, "just...you..."

Harry ached to be closer to her, but he didn't dare step forward.

It wasn't his place.

As much as he wanted it to be.

Then it dawned on him.

Maybe he should tell her about James.

But this was hardly the time nor the place to tell her that her husband was cheating on her.

How's the party going?

Oh, by the way, your husband's cheating on you.

"Um...where's James?" he asked instead.

The smile fell from Grace's face.

"Oh, I think he's lying down, he left earlier, not feeling well..." she said in a small voice, looking down at her shoes.

"Bullshit," Harry murmured, causing Grace's head to snap up.

"What?" she said.

"Nothing," he quickly said, "nothing."

The music suddenly started up again, floating out through the night air.

"At last, my love has come along..."

The song brought back memories of his mum listening to it in their kitchen.

It was one of her favourites.

Harry breathed in deeply before walking over to Grace, holding his hand out to her.

"Would you like to dance?" he asked her, hoping she'd agree.

Grace looked at his outstretched hand and knew she should say no.

But she didn't.

She accepted with a smile and let Harry draw her into him as they began to move in sync around the dimly lit barn.

They stared at each other as they moved, neither one looking away from the other until they eventually came to a standstill.

Tell her, Harry told himself, tell her.

Walk away, Grace told herself, walk away.

But neither moved.

Until Harry closed the gap and leaned down, his mouth finding hers.

At first she stood still, shocked that this was happening, and then just as Harry was about to pull away and apologise, she responded, pulling him closer to her.

She felt his kiss all the way down to her toes, tingling through her entire body, setting her skin on fire.

She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt like this.

Harry pulled away, but kept his forehead against hers, his lips just about touching hers.

"Tell me to stop and I will," he whispered, "tell me to never do it again..."

Grace knew this was so wrong, so very wrong.

But how could something so wrong feel so right?

Instead she chose to reconnect their mouths again, her tongue gently reaching out to touch his bottom lip.

They kissed for several more minutes until Grace finally pulled away, not because of what they were doing, but because anyone could see them at any moment.

"I..." she began, only for Harry to quickly kiss her again.

"We can talk later," he whispered, "but you should probably get back to the party."

Grace stood up on tiptoe and placed a chaste kiss on his lips.

"Thank you," she smiled, squeezing his arm gently before starting to head back, "follow me in a couple of minutes."

He watched her walk away.

His heart filled with joy at what had just happened but also dread, because he didn't know what it meant for them now.

It could mean everything.

It could also mean nothing.

He headed back to the party, joining his newfound friends for a few more beers until the party finished.

~~~~~~

Harry hung up the jacket onto a coat hanger as he kicked off his shoes.

He was just about to undo his pants when his bedroom door opened, causing him to turn around in surprise.

He thought it might have been Grace, but he was oh so wrong.

It was Lucy.

Fuck.

"Hey Harry," she hiccupped as she tried to walk with what she thought was a sexy sway towards him.

"What are you doing in here?" he replied, eyes wide.

He didn't want her here.

"I came to see you, didn't I?" she replied as she came to stand in front of him.

"You need to get out," he went to place his hands on her shoulders to gently guide her out, but she pushed them off her.

"Why am I not good enough?" she asked in a low voice.

"Excuse me?" Harry asked, confused.

She just wasn't his type.

"Grace is good enough for you but I'm not..." she shrugged her shoulders.

"Grace is my boss..." Harry replied.

"Is she?" Lucy gazed up at him, "is that what she said when she had her tongue down your throat?"

Harry visibly blanched at her comment.

"I saw the two of you," she poked him in the chest with her finger, "I watched the two of you in the barn, I knew you were fucking her..."

"I'm not...we're not..." Harry put his hands up in a gesture of surrender.

"Liar!" she shouted, before stopping herself and patting her hair in place, "so when are we going out on that date?"

"We're not," Harry replied, "I don't think of you in that way, I'm sorry."

Lucy crossed her arms over the front of her chest.

"I wonder what my brother would say if he knew about the two of you?" Lucy questioned.

Harry snorted in response.

"Not bloody much," he replied, earning a frown from Lucy.

"Go out with me or I'll tell him, I'll tell everyone about the two of you and how you're fucking her behind his back," she threatened.

"We're not and I won't!" Harry raised his voice, "I'll tell him first before I let you."

"Really?" Lucy replied, "no...you don't get to win that way..." she stepped back and pulled at her hair and her dress before she slapped herself hard across the face, leaving a red mark on her skin, "no one says no to me..." and with that she ran out of Harry's room, screaming for Grace as she ran into her room.

Grace woke up with a start as Lucy ran in, screaming and crying as she turned the light on.

"Lucy...what?" she stood up, startled by her sister-in-law's appearance, "what happened?"

"Harry..." she sobbed, "Harry...he..." she started crying harder, "he tried to..."

Harry appeared in the doorway, shock and disbelief on his face as he entered Grace's room.

"I didn't," he blurted out, "I didn't...I would never...she came into my room and came onto me and I refused her. Grace you have to believe me..."

"Keep him away from me!" Lucy screamed, "you have to call the police Grace!"

Grace looked from Lucy to Harry.

She knew what Lucy was like, but would she stoop to such a level?

Harry on the other hand just looked plain terrified.

"I would never Grace...never ever do that to a woman..." he begged.

Grace was suddenly reminded of what she had tried so hard to forget.

She looked at Harry.

Really looked at Harry.

He wasn't him.

He wasn't him.

"Grace!" Lucy pulled at her, "get him out! Get him away from me!"

She was also reminded that there was one way in which she could know for certain.

"Where did this happen?" she asked.

"My bedroom," Harry replied.

"Why were you there?" Grace asked Lucy.

"H-Harry invited me..." Lucy trailed off.

Grace said nothing.

Instead she turned to Harry.

"Do you trust me?" she asked him.

Harry shook his head in confusion, not expecting Grace to ask such a thing.

He had expected her to be on the phone to the police, asking them to arrest him.

"Do you trust me?" she repeated the question.

"Yes," he replied quietly, his heart hammering in his chest.

"Then there's something I need to show you," she said, "something in your bedroom," she gestured for him to follow her.

"Grace?" Lucy called after her, causing Grace to turn around.

"If I find out you're lying Lucy..." Grace warned her.

But the alternative?

Grace didn't think she'd cope if Lucy was telling the truth.

She turned and looked up at Harry.

"Follow me," she instructed as she walked towards his bedroom, hoping he would understand what she was about to show him.

Hoping she wouldn't find what Lucy was accusing him of was true.