"This is Thomas?" Brenda walked over and gave Thomas a big hug as well. "That is for protecting my Jax when he was a child. If you hadn't given him that good luck charm a great number of good things in MY life would never have happened. Most important being I never would have met him!" She hugged Thomas again and then walked over and put her arm around Jax's waist.

Thomas was amazed at the love that passed so naturally between them. He had known the details of their relationship from his conversations with Jax over the years, but he had never been able to get a feel for the woman who had so captivated Jax's soul the way his Brenda had. Even though he had just met her he knew immediately what it was. It reminded him of something his grandfather had told him when he was approaching the time of his walkabout. His grandfather had said that to just be successful in the walkabout did not make him a man. That would not happen until he met the woman who possessed the other half of his soul. He had not understood that until he had met his Leita, then it all became clear to him. He had loved her that way until her death three years ago. Now he saw that same look in Jax's eyes when he looked at Brenda and in hers when she looked at him. Each was a half of the other's soul. No wonder they had endured through all their problems. He knew immediately he was going to enjoy this assignment. He already loved the woman he was guarding like she was his own family. In a way she was; Jax had been ceremonially adopted by his family when he was just a boy, so it was only natural that he would be here to protect his young brother's wife.

Jax was still amazed. He had not seen Thomas since his wife Leita's funeral almost three years ago. He had known that Thomas had left the Melbourne Police Department shortly after her death and gone into business for himself, but it had never occurred to him that Travis would contact Thomas about this protection job.

"What on earth possessed you to come all the way from Melbourne?" Jax asked, with a smile the size of the outback plastered across his face.

"Well, Travis here called me yesterday and explained the problems you've been having with Jerry. I offered to help any way I could. He mentioned that you were looking for a driver for Brenda that you could trust not to be influenced by Jerry or anyone else, so I volunteered. Acceptable?" Thomas looked from Jax to Brenda and back again. "Brenda? Jax?"

"It's fine by me. It'll give me a chance to find out more about Jax's life in Australia." Brenda looked over at Jax. He had never been very open about the bad times of his childhood in Australia. Then when everything about his family blew up, he seemed to want to forget anything that had to do with them. She had never pushed. She knew that someday he would tell her, when he was ready. With Thomas here now, it sure looked like the time for childhood memories had arrived. "I think it'll be terrific! I can find out all the things about Jax that he never told me!" She pulled Jax closer to her and looked up at him. She wasn't sure but she thought she saw a slight smile cross his face. She knew in her heart that Thomas's arrival was a good thing for both of them. "Well, Jax, is it okay with you?" she asked.

He looked down at her and then over at Thomas. "Of course, it's okay with me! On one condition though -- discussion of my childhood is off limits unless I'm there to defend myself!" He couldn't help but laugh when he saw Brenda's shocked expression and heard Thomas's laughter. "Agreed?"

"How about a compromise, honey. I can ask Thomas questions, and if he feels the answer would be embarrassing to you, he can refuse to answer until you're around. How's that?" Her smile could only be described as mischievous. She knew perfectly well that Thomas would not refuse to answer any question she would ask about Jax. She also knew that Jax would not object in spite of his blustering.

"Do I have a choice? Okay. Agreed." With that said Jax wrapped both arms around Brenda and kissed her goodbye. Thomas and Travis discreetly turned away to allow them some privacy. Jax took Brenda's hand and placed it in Thomas's, "I'm trusting you with the most important thing in my world. Keep her safe. And promise to have dinner with us tonight!" He looked to Brenda to make sure the invitation was okay, and then to Thomas to let him know refusal would not be okay.

"You know I will 'mate. As to dinner, have you ever known me to turn down a free meal? Of course, I'll be there. Are you ready to go, Brenda? You'll have to give me directions for a while, until I get used to this town. You people drive on the wrong side of the road around here, you know!"

Jax suddenly was hit with a wave of panic. Thomas had a point; Jax didn't know if he had ever driven in the US before. "Maybe Brenda should drive until you get used to the roads here?" He couldn't keep the mild panic out of his voice. Both Brenda and Thomas had noticed it and both had burst out laughing.

"Gotcha!!! Of course, I know how to drive over here. I just wanted to see your reaction, and it was priceless! Come on, Brenda. A few directions are all I'll need. Once I get used to your routine, I shouldn't have any problems. Besides, it'll give us more time to talk!" Thomas took Brenda's hand and headed toward the car they would be using. Both of them completely at ease with the other, even though they had just met.

"Travis, how do I thank you? Bringing him here was the best idea you've ever had. Her safety will no longer be a concern. He'll protect her with his life, not that I think that will be necessary. What made you think to call him?"

"Well, I had heard through some contacts that his business was not going all that well. With all the progress Australian society has made there is still, unfortunately, somewhat of a color line, especially in the large cities. I figured there was no one in the world you would trust more with Brenda, and no one we could rely on to give their all for her safety. Besides, when this job is done, I'm hoping to convince Thomas to take over as head of foreign security of Jacks International. That way I can delegate some of the traveling I've had to do. That is, if he would be acceptable to the boss?" Travis looked at Jax, knowing full well what his answer would be.

"When this job is finished, you damn well better convince him to take that job. Otherwise, I may have to turn my secret weapon loose on him. . ."

"BRENDA!!" they both said in unison as they both burst into laughter.

As they walked over to their cars, Travis explained the routine he and Thomas had worked out for Brenda. She would never use the same car two days in a row, and once Thomas was comfortable getting around Port Charles, they would no longer use the same route to get anywhere on a consistent basis. Jax agreed with Travis's plan, and the two men shook hands and got into their own cars: Travis to head to the security center, and Jax to the office complex for his meeting.

It took Thomas and Brenda about twenty minutes to get to the house. The entire time had been spent with Brenda asking questions about Jax. Thomas at first tried to be discreet in his answers, but soon came to realize that Brenda would not be satisfied with vague answers to her questions. She was determined to know everything there was to know about Jax. Thomas also found himself becoming more and more willing to divulge the information. He knew immediately that anything he told her about the tough times of Jax's youth would be filed away in Brenda's brain, used by her only to understand and support her husband to the fullest. He was comfortable with that. Brenda was the woman he had always wished for Jax to find. In many ways she reminded him of his Leita.

When they turned onto the block where the house was located, Thomas asked Brenda to point the house out for him before they got to it. When she pointed to the third house on the left-hand side of the block Thomas purposely parked the car in front of a different house, making a mental note to himself of which house he had used today, so as not to park there tomorrow. Brenda didn't say anything about where they were parked. She simply attributed it to Thomas doing his job -- a job she no longer had any objection to.

Once the car was parked, Brenda started to reach for the door handle to open the door for herself but Thomas reached over to stop her. "Please, pretty lady, allow me to be the gentleman." With that he got out of the car, walked around behind it, quickly glancing to make sure no one was watching, and opened the door for her. "There you go. It's been a while since I've been able to be a gentleman for such a beautiful lady." Thomas reached in to help Brenda out of the car.

"Thomas, we'll get along a lot better if, in the future, you're straight with me. Opening the door had nothing to do with you wanting to be a gentleman. You wanted to check out the street to make sure we weren't followed. Right?" She looked straight at him with an expression that told him she would accept no lies.

"How do you know so much about being protected?" the seriousness in his voice betraying his concern.

"I'm sure Jax has told you all or some of my past. I've had guards before, when I was involved with a man before Jax. Then again for a short time when Jax and I were married the first time when I had a stalker. So I know the drill. All you have to do is tell me what you want, and I'll cooperate. Agreed?"

"Agreed. Do you mean to tell me you will cooperate with what I tell you?" Somehow he had a hard time believing she would be willing to live with restrictions. She struck him as a free spirit, someone that only obeyed those rules that she wanted to obey, the same as Jax.

"Yes, in this case I will. At least as long as we can discuss them if I disagree, and not be ordered about like a child. Thomas, I don't want to make life difficult for you. I know what happens if you play games with security. It's a lesson I learned the hard way that ended up with me getting hurt physically, but worse than that, Jax was hurt emotionally, and I will never do anything to cause him any pain ever again. So if we agree on the condition, I don't foresee any problems in our relationship. Besides, why should you be spared my argumentative side when Jax has to deal with it every day? Come on, I want to introduce you to Matthew Rollins, the man who is helping me with the house.

As they walked up the front steps Thomas got a strange feeling, like they were being watched. He gently touched her arm, indicating for her to stop before they entered the house. He looked around but saw no one. He shrugged and indicated it was okay to go on into the house. As they entered the foyer Thomas again got the feeling they were being watched, but when he looked around there was no one there. He decided he must be jumpy because of the job.

Brenda called out to Matthew. "Matthew? Where are you? I've got someone I want you to meet." Brenda turned and smiled at Thomas, noticing his expression. "Thomas, what's wrong?"

"I don't know. I feel like someone is watching us, but there is no one else here. Do you every get that feeling in this house?" He looked at her with an expression that Brenda could not read.

"I did at first. In fact, the first couple weeks we were working on the house, some really strange things happened here."

"Like what?" Thomas paid close attention now, thinking this could help in his assignment.

"Well, the first room we had furniture delivered for was the parlor." She led the way into the room, now completely finished. "When Matthew left the night the furniture was delivered, it was still in its packing materials. When Jax and I came in the next day, not only was it unpacked, but it was arranged and all the purchase documentation was neatly sorted and piled on one of the tables. We checked for all the logical explanations, came up with nothing, and then pretty much forgot about it. Then about a week later, the same thing happened in one of the bedrooms upstairs. The only difference was that one of the pieces of furniture, the bed, was not assembled. It was almost like whomever did it ran out of time. Anyway, that was when Travis and a couple of his detectives found out that the house has two secret entrances. We figured that was how our phantom decorator was getting in and out. Before you ask, both entrances have now been locked and wired into the security system. Since then we haven't had any strange occurrences."

Thomas had been paying close attention to everything Brenda told him. It all made logical sense that the unsecured entrances were the points of entry. The question still stood though of why someone had done it. He knew he would have to talk to both Jax and Brenda at dinner tonight to try to find out. Even after Brenda's explanation, he could not shake the feeling of being watched. He decided to take the first opportunity he got to explore the house by himself. Maybe that would help him shake this feeling.

Just then Matthew came down the stairs. "Brenda, where are you?" Matthew called.

"We're in the parlor, Matthew. Come in, there is someone I'd like you to meet."

As Matthew walked in, he noticed the rather tall man standing with Brenda. The man seemed to be looking Matthew over as he approached. "Brenda, I think you'll really be impressed with the furniture that was delivered. It's in even better condition than I had expected. I have to remember to contact Rich Bennetti and thank him for his help."

"Matthew, I'd like you to meet Thomas Abenela. Thomas, this is Matthew Rollins, the man I told you about who's been helping me with the house."

Thomas extended his hand to Matthew. "It's nice to meet you 'mate. Brenda speaks very highly of you, and if this room is any indication of your work I can see why." Thomas looked around the room waiting for Matthew to respond.

"Well, thanks. I'm not sure if Brenda has told you, but I'm not a decorator by profession. I'm actually a history professor at Port Charles University who specializes in Victorian restorations. When Jax bought this house, he asked the Restoration Society to recommend someone to help Brenda keep the furnishings authentic to the period, so here I am. The credit for the decoration actually goes to Brenda. I merely located the furniture and advised on room set-up. The planning and decoration are all Brenda's work."

Thomas noticed right away that Matthew was very proud of Brenda's accomplishments. He also got the feeling after hearing from Travis about the encounter with Jerry the other day that Matthew was very protective of both Jax and Brenda. This, added to his easy-going manner, gave Thomas the feeling that Matthew would be one person he could probably cross off the threat list, should one need to be created. He would, however, hold off final judgement until he read the investigative report Travis had done on him.

Brenda blushed at Matthew's praise, even after all this time with Jax she was still not comfortable with praise, having received so little as a child. "Come on, Matthew, you contributed a lot more than that. If it weren't for your research, I wouldn't have known where to start, let alone how. Why don't we compromise and call this a joint project?

"Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that Thomas will be coming to the house with me now. He's a boyhood friend of Jax's from Australia who'll be staying with us for a while, so I thought I'd put him to use while he's here." Brenda looked over at Thomas to let him know she knew she was not supposed to tell anyone the real reason for his being with her. He winked back at her, acknowledging his understanding of her statement.

"Just like Jax, a 'mate comes to visit, and he puts him to work driving his wife around. Not that I mind the company or anything." Thomas looked over at Brenda and winked again.

Matthew noticed the closeness between the two and was glad to know Brenda had a friend. With Jerry's unexpected visit and the strange goings on, he felt better knowing that Brenda would not be driving around Port Charles alone. Somehow though, he had a feeling there was more to this than Jax wanting to keep a visiting friend busy. He knew better than to ask though. Jax and Brenda were a very special couple who had found a very special place in his heart, and if Thomas was a friend of theirs, then who was he to question it?

"Come on, Thomas, let me show you the rest of the house. Matthew, is the furniture set up in the room yet?" Brenda looked over at Matthew. He could not resist the urge to smile since she looked just like a little girl. Even Thomas noticed it. Whatever they were planning, it was very important to Brenda that it be perfect, and by the look on Matthew's face, it looked like it was going to be.

"Yes, they finished about 20 minutes before you got here. Do you want to see it?" Matthew looked from Brenda to Thomas. Since Jax had promised not to set foot in the bedroom until they moved in, Matthew wondered about Thomas. "Will you excuse us, Thomas? Brenda has been keeping the master suite a secret from Jax, and the first of the furniture has arrived."

"No, that's okay, Matthew. I trust Thomas. He won't tell Jax what he sees." She looked at Thomas to make sure and was relieved when he winked at her. She knew he would keep her secrets, whatever they were, as long as they were not harmful to Jax or herself.

The three of them headed up the stairs to the master suite. Matthew slid the doors open to reveal the sitting area of the suite. There was a couch facing the fireplace that was a smaller version of the sofas in the parlor, but covered in a very deep green velvet fabric. There were round, mahogany, pedestal tables at each end. As in the parlor downstairs, there were wingback chairs on either side of the set of the large windows on the opposite wall. Between the chairs was another table, a larger version of the tables by the couch, also made of mahogany.

On the wall near the door was a mahogany sideboard that they would be used as a bar. Matthew had managed to find one that had a small refrigerator concealed inside. Brenda's plan was to use it as a snackbar for the suite. She planned to keep their favorite champagne chilled at all times, along with whatever snacks they would want. She was amazed that Matthew had actually found an authentic piece that had been modified. She walked over to the sideboard and opened it to reveal the refrigerator. "Matthew, how on earth did you actually find what I asked for? I thought we were going to have to settle for a replica, like with Jax's desk chair in the library."

"The credit has to go to Rich Bennetti again. When I told him what you wanted, he said it would not be all that hard to find. Apparently a lot of people over the years have wanted to do the same thing you do, so there are authentic pieces available to meet your requirements.

"He also sent the history documentation for the pieces. When you get a chance to look over them, you'll see that the three tables in here are a set, bought from an estate outside of London. The sideboard he found in a little shop outside of Kent. Apparently the owner didn't realize the value of the piece. According to the invoice it only cost 50 pounds. Rich thinks its actual value, even with the modification, is at least twice that."

Thomas looked around the room with a sense of amazement. Brenda had managed to select pieces that fit the room perfectly. He knew now why Matthew had been so cryptic downstairs about him being here. Obviously Jax was not supposed to know the contents of this room yet. Thomas was amazed when he realized that Brenda trusted him enough already to allow him access to this room, knowing he would not tell Jax. She had been right, too. He was not about to ruin this for her or for Jax. "What's through there?" he asked, pointing to the closed glass doors.

"That's what the Victorians called the sleep chamber. The furniture hasn't arrived for there yet. When is it scheduled, Matthew?" Brenda looked to Matthew. "It's sometime next week, isn't it?"

"Actually, it came early. In fact, it's already here. Do you want to see it?" He knew what her answer would be. She had been planning this room ever since they had started work on the house. This one room had consumed more of his and Rich Bennetti's time than any other room in the house, hands down.

Brenda looked from Matthew to Thomas and then over to the closed glass doors. She nodded her head slowly, but said nothing. She took Matthew's extended hand as he led her to the doors. "Close your eyes, Brenda," Matthew said. He nodded to Thomas to open the doors for them, as he positioned Brenda in the center of the doorway. Once the doors were open, Thomas stepped back out of the way to allow Brenda a clear view into the room. "Okay, you can open them now."

Brenda slowly opened her eyes. Thomas was not looking in the room but at her face, and what he saw there brought a smile to his face. When he looked over at Matthew he saw the same expression he was feeling on his own face. Brenda looked like a little girl whose parents had taken her to a toy store for the first time. Her eyes were open wide, and her mouth hung open slightly.

"Oh, Matthew! It's perfect!!!!! How did you find all of this so quickly? When will the rest arrive? Jax doesn't know about this, does he?" She looked quickly at Matthew and then went into the room, moving from one piece of furniture to the next, gently running her fingers across the surface. "I can't believe how perfect it all looks. I just know Jax is going to love it as much as I do!" She ran back over to Matthew and threw her arms around his neck, giving him a hug that nearly took his breath away.

"Tell me, Matthew, does she always do that?" Thomas asked.

"What's that? Ask you a dozen questions and then not give you a chance to answer them? Yep! But don't worry, if you stay here long enough you get use to it. Actually, I kind of like it. It makes me feel like part of the family a little. As far as I know, the only one who can actually keep up with and understand her is Jax. What's a little scary is I find myself actually starting to keep up myself. I guess I've been around her too long." Matthew couldn't help smiling paternally as he looked down at Brenda.

"It's getting kind of late, Brenda. If we're going to meet Jax for dinner, we should get going." Thomas said.

"I know, I know, I just hate to leave now that this room is starting to take shape. Matthew, will you be here tomorrow? There are some accessory shipments scheduled to be delivered that I'd like your opinion on." She waited for Matthew's answer.

"I was planning on it. The phone company is coming to install the extra phone lines in the library in the morning, and I think Travis is planning on being here to supervise their installation. He said something about guaranteeing they are secure lines. What time will you be here?"

She looked over to Thomas who just shrugged. "I think around 9:00 or so, depending on what time Jax leaves for the office.

"Thomas, are you ready?" she asked as she reluctantly headed for the door, where she turned and took one last look around.

"Lead the way." Thomas started toward the door when he stopped suddenly. The hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end, and he had the feeling they were being watched again. He looked slowly around the room, saw nothing and shrugged, attributing his feeling to nerves. As he was walking out the door to the sitting area, he had the distinct feeling someone had just walked past him going into the bedroom. He could swear he smelled roses. He stopped again, looking around. "Do you smell something?" he asked, looking from Brenda to Matthew and then back into the bedroom.

"No, why? What do you smell?" Brenda asked.

"Oh, nothing. Must be my imagination playing tricks on me. We'd better get going." Thomas took one more look around the room as they left. Matthew slid the doors shut and led the way downstairs. As they were heading down the stairs Thomas could not shake what had happened in the bedroom. He looked over at Brenda talking with Matthew about tomorrow's deliveries and realized that neither of them had felt anything. Something was going on in this house, and until he figured out what it was, he was not leaving Brenda, or Jax, for that matter, alone in here.