Page 55 of Intrigued
Bryn let out a loud, abrasive sound then shook her head. For a moment, I thought she was going to pull the covers off her eldest brother’s and my sex affair. She didn’t. And I took note of it.
Jasper clapped his hands together loudly then turned toward the bartender. “Charles, leave us.”
They all remained very still and quiet until we were alone. I felt special to be privy to this private Christmas moment, and I was pretty sure it wasn’t by accident. I believed Jasper wanted me to feel as though I were part of the family, which made me think that perhaps he was falling for me.
Once the bartender had left the room and pulled the sliding doors shut behind him, Jasper refocused on his siblings.
“Let’s pull it together. Our schedule will go on, business as usual. The servants will get their gifts. The charity will be here to pick up the rest of the presents in about”—he checked his watch—“less than half an hour. We’ll have dinner. Tomorrow morning, family pictures.”
“Without Father?” Spencer asked.
“Yes, without Father. He’s sick.”
“He’s dead,” Bryn said.
“What about the funeral?” I asked, realizing I was pushing my invitation to remain in the room to the limit.
Again, that heavy energy blew through the space and settled in the atmosphere like a thick cloud of smoke. But I was in complete journalist mode, and since I’d already started my inquiry, I figured I might as well finish it.
“There’s not going to be a funeral?” I asked.
“We’ll announce it to our friends and family at the appropriate time,” Jasper said. “However…”
Asher shot to his feet. “What he means is we’re going to lie about it. I’m getting the fuck out of here. Tell everyone I caught pneumonia or something. You know, that bug that’s keeping our dead father bedridden.” He stormed across the floor.
“Asher!” Jasper called after him.
His brother used what appeared to be all his strength to slide open the door to the living room.
My mouth was caught in awe as I watched Bryn down the rest of her drink and set the glass on the table. “You know what?” She calmly rose to her feet. “For once, I’m following Asher’s direction. I’m leaving.”
“No, you’re not.” Jasper’s voice sounded more like a low growl.
“Try to stop me.” She sashayed out of the living room.
Spencer slapped the back of the sofa he was strewn across, grinning impishly. “By the way, journalist, you should stay out of the tunnels. You never know what might happen to you in there.”
“Enough,” Jasper barked.
“That present Gina gave you belonged to me,” he said.
I was lost for words. I couldn’t even look at Jasper. Spencer had exposed me. Jasper was the one who’d introduced me to the secret hallways. Perhaps he’d trusted me not to go exploring on my own. Or maybe he’d known I would. At least I knew who had searched through my luggage and taken the bra.
Spencer made his exit, leaving Jasper and me alone.
The tension was still thick. He looked at me with something indiscernible in his eyes. It certainly wasn’t lust, and it surely wasn’t love.
“You’ll have dinner in your room,” he said. “I’ll send the servers up.”
I nodded. “Are you okay?”
“You were in the tunnels?”
There was no need to lie. “Yes, I was.”
“What were you doing there?”
“Searching.”
