“There are times I can’t, either.” Gabriella turned her head to see her elder children kicking a ball through the grass. “I’d always hoped for this without ever really believing it. I was pregnant with Kristian when we broke ground for the house, so it’s five years now. When we brought him home, we brought him here.”

“Only five,” Eve mused. “When I look at the house, it’s as though it has been here forever.”

“For the children it has.” The kitten let out a squeal. “Dorian, be gentle.”

He looked up, a miniature of his father, and grinned wickedly, but his small, curious hands petted the kitten’s fur easily. “Purrs,” he said, pleased with himself.

“Yes, and if you pull his ears, he’ll scratch.”

“It’s wonderful here in the evening.” Eve watched the sun hang low over the newly planted fields. There were two servants inside, a fraction of what the palace used. The smells of cooking came through the windows, rich and homey, as suited the country. “Is this like your home in Virginia?”

“The house is older there.” Gabriella took her eyes off her son long enough to watch Reeve, Alexander and Bennett circle the barn. She knew what they were talking about. The bomb in Paris was on everyone’s mind. She and Reeve would talk of it later. Now she turned back to Eve. “It seems we’re always fixing something—the roof, the windows. I’m afraid we don’t spend as much time there as Reeve would like.”

“Brie, you don’t have to make conversation with me. I know you’re concerned about your father and what happened this morning.”

“These are uneasy times.” Brie looked at her children again. They were her heart, her life, her continuing link with the real world. “We have to live each day. I know my father will do what’s right for Cordina.”

“And for himself?”

Gabriella’s eyes, a deep, intriguing topaz, seemed to darken, but she smiled. “My father is Cordina, as Alex is. It’s the first thing that has to be understood, and the most difficult. You care for him.”

“For Alexander? Of course.”

“Of course.” Amused, Gabriella rose to pick up her son before he could crawl under the porch after the kitten. “I’m not speaking of ‘of course,’ Eve.” She kissed Dorian on the cheek when he started to squirm, then settled him expertly on her hip. “If you ever allow your feelings for him to come to the surface, you’ll find a great many pitfalls. If you need to talk, come to me.” Then she laughed when Dorian tugged on her hair. “This one needs a good wash before dinner.”

“Go ahead.” Eve managed to smile. “I’ll get the others.”