Present Day

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" Natalie asked, again, but Will shook his head.

"No, you go home to Owen." He told her, hesitating for a second before he continued. "If it's okay… maybe you could tell him I say hi?"

Her face softened immediately but it didn't feel the same when he couldn't pull her closer the way he wanted to. "He would like that. He misses you."

"Well, tell him I miss him too."

"I will. Let me know if Jay or Tess need anything. Or if you do."

"I will. Thanks Nat." Will shared another smile with her, pleased they weren't angry with each other anymore but still hurt that they were so far from where they'd been, an ache that grew stronger as he watched her walk away.

Would they ever get back there?

Will didn't know but he knew it wasn't something he could focus on right now. He needed to be thinking about his brother. He sent Jay a quick text to let him know he was off shift, surprised when he said he was at work; the way he had been last night he'd thought it would have taken a city-wide emergency to get him away from her but apparently a pair of sad eyes did the trick. He got that. The same thing worked on him. It had worked on their dad too, the only time the iron-backed man would break was against their mothers' warm brown gaze. He'd never thought of his brother as being like their father before, sure they had their similarities but their differences were so stark he didn't often make the comparison but seeing him with Tess it was almost impossible not to. Jay had been there the last few months of their mother's life but he was the one who'd been there from the beginning, had watched his father go from staunch refusal that she was sick to begrudging acceptance to poorly concealed terror that he was going to lose the love of his life.

The same look that had been in his brother's eyes last night.

It didn't surprise him, he knew how Jay felt about her, had figured it out about two seconds after he'd seen her beside him at their mother's funeral, when he'd realized Jay had given her their grandfather's necklace. What bothered him was that he didn't know Tess. Not really. He understood why they'd lied to him, he never would have betrayed their confidence but he and Jay hadn't been close back then and if it had kept her safe then that outweighed his hurt feelings. But he wanted to know her now. And not just for his brother's sake but because she seemed like a hell of a woman. She had to be to own a building like this, The Haven, a name he realized was more apt than he'd first thought when he saw all the people milling about in the lobby. But aside from sharing a few smiles he headed straight for the elevators, taking them up to the fifteenth story like Jay had told him too, stunned when he saw their apartment.

Hers because no way Jay could afford a place like this.

It was massive, she had the whole floor but all he could see was a kitchen and a living room, and a wall of windows that gave a spectacular view of the city. And Chicago was always a sight, no matter the time of day but that wasn't what he was here for. When he looked around he found Tess easily, she was sitting on that massive couch watching him, a very tired but genuine smile gracing her lips as they made eye contact.

"I hope you don't take offense to this but this is a lot nicer than his first apartment."

"Well he didn't decorate it." She replied wryly, tracking him as he came closer in a way that made him wonder how he'd ever missed the truth about her.

The signs had been there, if he'd cared to look, but he'd been so focused on himself that he hadn't.

Will didn't want to do that anymore.

"I hope I spend more time here."

Her face softened immediately, a smile that reminded him of both Nat and his mom as she patted the couch next to her. "Me too."

"Where's Jay?" He asked as he took a seat, curious what answer she would give him.

"I asked him to go to work but knowing your brother-"

"He'll be home any minute." She nodded in agreement but he could see a sadness in her eyes, but as much as he wanted to he didn't think it was his place to ask why she'd sent him away.

What he could ask was how she was doing though her pale skin, circles under her eyes and lethargic movements gave him a pretty good indication.

"How are you feeling?"

"Not bad. A little nauseous but I also haven't eaten anything."

"You'll need to keep your strength up."

Tess just gave him a dry look. "I have a very nutritious bone broth just for that. And some very good teas."

"Smart. And I assume there's some gummies in your diet as well?" Will teased, knowing how much she liked her 'alternative' medicine but while he obviously preferred the modern stuff he understood the benefits of medical marijuana. And after the debate they'd had years ago over it he wouldn't dare say otherwise.

"I do have some ready, but I haven't taken any yet."

"Have you taken anything?"

"Not yet."

"Tess-"

"Do you realize how much you look like him?" She interrupted, definitely a stall but he could see from the way she was looking at him that it was weirding her out.

"I catch it sometimes."

She cocked her head at him and Will got the distinct impression she was seeing a lot more than just their physical similarities. "It's kind of eerie."

"You're telling me."

She smiled and while she looked him over he did the same to her; she didn't look much different from when he'd known her, shorter hair and a little older but that was it. Except for her eyes. Tess's eyes had always been so much older than her actual age, the kind weariness that came not just from a life well lived but a life lived hard and that was even more true now. It was still strange for him sometimes to appreciate what his brother did, even when he'd seen it first hand but her… What did being an operative even look like?

Just how much pain had she experienced?

And how comfortable was she with it?

"You don't have to suffer through this."

But Tess just smiled, nodding as she gently took his hand. "I do for a little while. For safety and for sanity purposes, I need to know what I'm dealing with."

For sanity reasons he understood, most people wanted to know their limits but for safety… did she really think there was a chance this could hurt her, aside from the obvious ways it already was?

Yes, she did.

Jay probably did too, but then he lived in the same world. It was him who was the outsider and even though he knew there were some things he just wouldn't ever get Will wanted to change that. He wanted to be in their lives, as much as they would let him.

"Alright. Then I hope you like company."

"Will that's sweet but I'm not planning on being a martyr. If I need the meds I'll take them."

"I believe you. At least I think I do. I think our definition of you needing them is probably different." He added quickly when she raised a brow. "So, as your doctor, let's find out what we're dealing with."

She was quiet for a moment but then nodded, probably understanding that shy of forcing him out she wasn't going to get him to leave. "Okay."

"Good. Now, tell me where that bone broth is and then maybe we can start catching up on the last five years. Maybe…"

Maybe it was more than five years he needed to catch up on.

As much as it had hurt to find out that Jay had lied to him about who she was and why she'd left Will understood it, but he didn't like it. He didn't like that his brother hadn't thought he was someone he could trust and even more than that he didn't like that he hadn't been. When he'd gone off to med school he'd been so glad to be out of his dad's house that he hadn't bothered to look back at the family he'd left behind and it had taken him a long time to see that mistake. Too long.

"Maybe you can catch me up on the last fifteen."

Her face froze but then went soft, really soft, reminding him of the few times he'd seen it ferocious; she'd only gone at him once but apparently she'd put their dad in his place a couple times. She was the only one he knew who'd been able to do it aside from his mom and their aunt. Speaking of Carol she was going to flip when she found out she was back. She'd never understood why she'd left, or why Jay hadn't gone after her but living in Florida there wasn't much she'd been able to do. That was supposed to have been on him.

It would be now. Will was determined to be here for his brother.

And his new sister.

"I'll get us started." Tess said quietly, right before she pointed at her freezer.

Right.

The broth.

He got her to eat two bowls, slowly but after the first her colour had started coming back, so much that he'd asked for the recipe. He asked for a lot and though she didn't tell him everything, Tess was firm that there were some conversations he needed to have with Jay she gave him a lot, more than he'd been expecting. She told him all about her time with the agency, why she'd chosen to join, why she'd chosen to leave, why she'd left Jay. He'd only met her aunt once but he knew the loss of a mother and to think that both she and Jay had lost two now… it wasn't fair and it wasn't right, but at least they still had each other. The same look he'd seen in his brother's eyes last night was in hers whenever she spoke about it, the light that was just un-dimmable when you were speaking about the love of your life.

The way he'd looked at Natalie.

"You should tell her about me."

"Tell who about you?"

"Natalie." Tess said simply, smiling where she was sitting at the table watching him wash her dishes. Jay had joked that she was a mind reader and at first he'd laughed him off but now he was starting to wonder.

"Jay said-"

"Jay is like a mother hen with a machine gun."

Will couldn't help laughing, that was a hell of a mental image but he couldn't bring himself to be as relaxed as she was. "He said it was for your safety."

"I am as safe as I can be." She replied with a shrug, giving him a look that was both soft and firm. "Natalie knowing could save her one day."

He didn't want that, didn't want anything that could put her in danger but that was where he'd gone wrong last time.

As Tess very kindly and very succinctly reminded him.

"Regardless of whether you get back together, which I think you would be idiots not to, you lied to her. Multiple times about very important things. It would go a long way if you told her the truth about something now, especially because you don't have to."

Well it was hard to argue with that logic. And Natalie did deserve better from him, and if this could keep her safe…

Thankfully he was saved from having to answer by a soft chime he quickly realized was the elevator welcoming in his very unhappy looking brother.

"Who'd you yell at?" Will asked him with a smirk, though he did hide a wince at the fierce glare he sent back, shooting Tess a wink before he made his way over to him, raising his hands to show he wasn't a threat and relaxing when Jay rolled his eyes. "She's okay. We talked and she knows to take the meds when she needs. She's strong."

"I know." He said hoarsely, briefly but firmly squeezing his arm in thanks.

"Besides, you think I'd let anything happen to my sister?"

He only had a second to see the surprise in Jay's eyes at the title before they were both turning to Tess as she shot them a wide grin. "Bring us a sister!"

If things worked out he just might.

With a promise to stop by later to check on her he left them alone, they had a lot to talk about, the least of which was that Jay had definitely yelled at someone, taking his phone out as soon as he was in the elevator.

"Hey Nat? No, Tess is fine. I was just… I was just wondering if I could come over? There's something I want to talk to you about."