The Firstborn

“Bram’s been creating and installing the wrought iron around the house.”

“Yeah? I noticed the gate. What was wrong with the lions?”

Hayley darted an I-told-you-so look in Bram’s direction, but his attention remained focused on Jacob. Bram reminded her of some large, fierce predator ready to spring. It was all too easy to envision Jacob as his rabbit of choice.

“Why were you sneaking in here at this hour of the morning?” Bram demanded softly.

“I live here. Or at least, my mother does.” Jacob appealed to Hayley. “What’s going on? Where is everyone? What happened to the lights?”

Quickly, Hayley explained.

“You weren’t expected,” Bram said.

“Uh, no. I wanted to surprise everyone.” Jacob looked from Bram to Hayley. “Surprise?”

“Oh, Jacob, I’m sorry. It’s just that we’ve had a scare. I think someone is hiding in the house.”

“You’re kidding!”

It annoyed her when he looked to Bram for confirmation.

“Hayley heard voices,” Bram said neutrally.

“Did you call the cops?”

“No,” Hayley told him.

“Big place to search in the dark,” Bram added, rocking back on his heels. His gaze never left the younger man.

“Well, yeah, but the cops have powerful flashlights. I mean, if someone’s in here, we ought to call them, right?”

“Up to Hayley,” Bram told him.

Thoroughly annoyed, she glared at both of them. “There isn’t much point calling them for help. You know that, Jacob.”

“Uh, look, Hayley, I know you don’t like the local cops, but if someone’s in here, we should do something.”

She sensed Bram’s interest, but she wasn’t about to start explaining her relationship with the local police right now.

“We are going to do something. We’re going back to the library and to wait for the power to come back on or daylight, whichever comes first,” Hayley said firmly. “With all this commotion, any sane burglar is long gone by now.”

Jacob looked at Bram, who shrugged. “You heard the lady.”

Hayley wanted to stamp her foot in frustration. Instead, she pivoted and returned to the library. Plopping down on the couch, she fumed until Bram came in and sank down beside her, so close their legs brushed. His action was as deliberately challenging as the look he directed at Jacob.

Jacob stared from one to the other. “Uh, do you two know each other?”

“Not really.”

“Yes,” Bram said firmly at the same time. “We were spending a quiet evening together when all hell broke loose.”

“Oh.” Jacob seemed to have no idea what do to with the conflicting information. “Where, uh, where’s your sister?”

Hayley tried to shift positions but found herself sandwiched between the arm of the couch and Bram’s hard body. “Leigh’s in England visiting friends,” she managed to reply. And if her voice sounded breathless, neither man seemed to notice.

“Oh, yeah. I remember Mom mentioning something about that. A final fling before she starts her new job, right?” Jacob sank down on the couch across from them and yawned. He looked tired and at the same time unconcerned. “Lucky her. Say, have you met Mom’s newest staff yet?”

“No.” Hayley tried to nudge Bram. He didn’t budge a millimeter. Obviously, he wasn’t nearly as pliable as the rigid metal he worked with. “Jacob, what happened to Mrs. Walsh and Kathy?”

“Beats me. They’ve been gone for a long time now. I thought you knew.”

“Not until a couple of hours ago, when I spoke with your mother on the phone. She said they had a better offer.”

Jacob’s shoulders rose and fell. “Mom said they quit when you and Leigh stopped coming home. She’s had trouble finding live-in help ever since. I think this is the fifth or sixth housekeeper she’s hired. Mrs. Norwhich is sort of built like Bram, here. A little older, and she lacks the tattoo, but she’s a force to be reckoned with. Sort of weird, but nothing compared with the new maid. Wait’ll you meet her. Say, maybe it was Mrs. Norwhich and Paula Kerstairs you heard.”

Hayley shook her head. “I don’t think so. Your mother thought Mrs. Norwhich was staying in town tonight. Besides, wouldn’t she have woken me if she came home and found a stranger sleeping on the couch?”

“You’d think so.”

“Maybe she tried,” Bram offered. “You’re a pretty sound sleeper, you know. You didn’t even stir when I got up.”

Bram’s words and tone implied an intimacy that made her squirm. He made it sound as if they’d been sharing a couch. Before she could correct that impression, Jacob yawned hugely.

“Sorry. I’ve been sitting on the Jersey Turnpike for hours thanks to a multicar accident. I think I’m too tired to worry about prowlers or weirdo housekeepers tonight. As far as I’m concerned, they can do whatever they want as long as they let me sleep. Would you mind if I go upstairs and sack out?”

“Take the couch,” Bram said firmly. “Hayley would prefer us to stay together.”

“But there’re only two couches in here.”

“That’s all right. Hayley and I don’t mind sharing. Right, Hayley?”

A protest leaped to her lips, but a warning in Bram’s expression made her hesitate. She did want them to stay together. Jacob shouldn’t go off on his own until they knew what was happening around here. The men might not believe her, but she knew someone else was inside the house.

“Go ahead and take the couch, Jacob. I’m not tired anymore, and Bram’s going to sit here and tell me all the fascinating details of his life, including how he got that tattoo. Right, Bram?” she asked with mock sweetness.

Bram settled back. He had to hand it to Hayley, the woman had a knack for turning the tables. Too bad for her that he’d had years more experience at it than she had.

“I wouldn’t bore anyone with my life story, but I’m sure we can find something more interesting to talk about,” he said suggestively. “We can start with all the things we have in common. Don’t worry, Jacob. We’ll keep our voices down.”

“Uh, sure. Okay.” But he stared at them, obviously perplexed by the exchange.

Bram was relieved when Hayley settled for glaring at him as Jacob stretched out on the couch self-consciously. The man’s arrival seemed entirely too well timed to be a coincidence. If Hayley really had heard people inside the house, Bram suspected Jacob had been one of them.

“If, uh, anything else happens, just wake me,” Jacob told him.

“Count on it.”

Hayley shifted restlessly. Bram ignored her none-too-subtle hint to move over. He was enjoying the feel of her body pressed against his more than he should. And if there was another incident tonight, he wanted to make sure the only way to reach her was to go through him first.