When Alex held out his arms to Liam, he was surprised the boy let go of the crib with one hand and reached for him.
“Your Papa might not be so bad after all, oui?”
He grabbed Liam under his arms and the toddler squirmed. Alex took a moment to try and figure out the best way to hold the wiggling baby, and Alex finally found a way to awkwardly fit him against his own left shoulder, with his arm firmly under the boy’s bottom.
“Are you hungry? I hear there’s a bottle out here with your name on it. Let’s get you something to eat.”
Julianne could hold her own when it came to things like playing music in front of large crowds or fighting for the people she loved, but she was stricken utterly defenseless by the sight of Alex sitting on the couch holding Liam in his arms giving the boy his bottle.
With one little hand, Liam reached up and touched Alex’s face. The way father and son gazed at each other was enough to knock the life breath out of her.
No matter how she tried to stop it, the truth seeped in through the cracks in all her reasons why Alex Lejardin had no right to Liam. This picture of father and son, this snapshot of the most unconditional kind of love warmed her and petrified her at the same time.
How could she take Liam’s father away from him? But how could she give up her little boy? She loved him, and she’d promised her sister, who’d chosen not to leave him with his father for reasons unknown. Perhaps she needed to get to the bottom of those reasons so she could better understand?
From this vantage point, it seemed like a no-win situation.
If she stayed in Europe for Liam to be near Alex, she’d have to give up her World of Music students and the new opportunity with the reorganized orchestra. Maybe she could get a job here…or in Paris. But principal flutist positions were few and far between. Plus, she didn’t have the money to move nor the visa that would allow her to work. Sure, between Alex and her they could probably somehow make it work, but at what cost? And through how many miles of red tape?
On the flip side, if she went back to Washington, she’d have to give up Liam because…well, this picture in front of her of this big, strong man holding this little boy…the love emanating from his eyes…that was the reason.
Alex obviously loved his son—although she didn’t want to admit it, probably as much as she loved Liam in his own way. She’d have to be pretty heartless to want to separate them. But could she just turn over this little boy to a man who received death threats? It wouldn’t be like this every day. Alex would go back to work in his Parisian office. Who would watch Liam? Would he be raised by a stranger who stood in for the majority of Liam’s life, except for the brief time when Alex’s job allowed him to pop in?
Alex looked up and smiled when he realized she was standing there.
“Not bad for a guy who’s never given a baby a bottle, don’t you think?”
Nope, not bad at all.
“You’re a fast learner.”
Suddenly, she remembered the clean, grassy masculine scent of him as she’d been in his arms, and the way he’d looked when he’d leaned in and kissed her. She willed away the image.
He’d come early to talk to her, and she knew he was the kind of man who was going to lay his cards on the table about their involvement. Their kiss. Their whatever. But after holding and feeding Liam, there was a completely different vibe about Alex. She hoped he wouldn’t bring up the kiss. Not only did she not want to talk about it, but she also didn’t want his excuses or explanations. She just wanted to get this night over with. Maybe tomorrow, after a good night’s sleep—if that was possible—she’d get a clear-cut sense about what to do.
Because right now, standing here watching Alex with Liam, there was no doubt they were family. Just where she fit in was unclear. She felt more alone than she had since she’d lost Marissa.
Even though they didn’t have to leave the castle, it seemed like they had to walk a good half mile to get to Sophie and Luc’s apartment.
They’d taken the elevator up three floors where a petite redhead named Patrice, the royal family’s social secretary, met them.
“Good evening,” she said. “Please follow me and I’ll let Queen Sophie and His Highness know you’re here.”
The walls of the marble hallway had a similar museum feel to the floor where they were staying, more grand. It was a little unnerving. But the reception they received when they walked in was much more down-to-earth.
Julianne didn’t know whether to curtsey or bow or…but before she could figure it out, Sophie had hugged her and plucked Liam out of her arms and was cooing and bouncing him.
The queen was a willowy, gorgeous, green-eyed brunette who sported a little baby bump front and center. Julianne liked her instantly because she got a sense that Sophie was her own woman. Being a commoner for so many years before assuming the throne probably made Sophie more grounded than the average thirty-something queen. Still, she possessed a quiet, commanding grace.
If Liam grew up here, did it mean he’d benefit from the same down-to-earth upbringing? While living in a castle? With his own staff of Secret Service agents trailing him everywhere he went? Right.
She met Luc, Sophie’s handsome husband, and Henri, the middle brother, who was the state minister of arts and culture.
What a good-looking trio of men, Julianne marveled, as she watched Alex greet his brothers with handshakes that morphed into slap-on-the-back man-hugs.
“What a precious little boy,” Sophie said as she planted a kiss on Liam’s cheek. “We don’t know what we’re going to have.” She placed a hand on her stomach. “We already have a daughter, Savannah. So a boy would be nice, but really I don’t care just as long as the baby is healthy.”
“Speaking of Savannah,” Alex said, “where is she?”
“She’s off on a class trip to Italy,” said Sophie. She turned to Julianne. “Savannah is actually my daughter from a previous marriage. She’s sixteen, and she’s Alex’s biggest fan. When we first arrived in St. Michel, she had such a crush on Alex.”
So he does have that effect on all women, Julianne thought as Alex waved away Sophie’s teasing.
“She’s a great kid, very sweet and endearing,” Alex added. “Going on a class trip without parents in tow? That has to be a teenager’s dream. If the princess leads such a full life, maybe Liam won’t have such a bad time here after all.”
He and Julianne locked gazes. Julianne kept her face neutral. He’d said that for her benefit, of course. Or to bait her. But she wasn’t biting. If she opened for debate the topic of Liam living in St. Michel, she’d be too outnumbered. Alex had nearly all of his family here—each one was taking turns holding and fussing over the baby. She refused to put Liam at the center of such a terribly lopsided tug-of-war.
How long would she be able to stave them off?
Sophie linked her arm through Julianne’s and escorted her over to the sofa. “How about some champagne?”
“Yes, please,” Julianne said. “I’d love some.”
As if by magic, a server with a tray of filled glasses appeared. Until that moment Julianne hadn’t noticed him. She accepted the champagne and then a piece of pâté on toast offered to her from a tray presented by another server.
“Julianne, I understand that you are a musician,” Henri said.
“Yes, I am a flutist.” She started to add, with the Continental Symphony Orchestra, but bit off the words before they escaped. She didn’t feel like explaining that the orchestra had folded. It sounded so tragic. Actually, it was tragic—and it was too early to announce anything about a possible reorganization. Everything, it seemed, was in limbo right now.
“I wish I could’ve caught their final concert in Paris last week,” Henri said. “It’s a shame that so many quality orchestras are disbanding.”
He knew.
Of course he knew. Music, art and culture were his calling. She tried to convince herself that that was the reason he knew—not because St. Michel’s Big Br
other had filled him in on it, along with every other detail of her life.
Even though his tone wasn’t rude or snide, or otherwise condescending, she felt a little sick, thinking about the possibility that her life was an open book. Ever since she’d introduced Alex to Liam—
Liam? Where was Liam?
Her gaze darted around the room searching for him. Her heart raced until she found him sitting on Sophie’s lap in a chair next to the sofa. In the span of thirty seconds of conversation, she’d lost sight of him.
Her knees felt a little weak in the post-adrenaline letdown. He was safe. Not that he wouldn’t be. Not that they’d try to distract her with a party while they made off with her baby, but it just—that had never happened before. She’d never carelessly lost sight of him. Not when he was with her, which was ninety percent of the time. When Liam was in her care, she was always fully cognizant of where he was.
The scariest part was that it had happened so fast. Well, it would never happen again. Never.
“Yes, it is a shame, isn’t it?” She kept her voice steady as she kept Liam in her peripheral vision.
“Are you currently seeking a position with an orchestra?” Henri asked.
“Yes, I am. I have several irons in the fire right now. I’m waiting to hear back.”
“Bon. In the meantime, I’d be pleased to introduce you to Maestro Fernand Leroy, the conductor of the St. Michel National Symphony. I’m not sure of the orchestra’s needs at the moment. But if the maestro is not auditioning flutists, the orchestra still employs substitutes on occasion. It would be a good contact for you.”
Soon the chef called the five of them to dinner. There was a high chair set up for Liam where he enjoyed mashing his freshly mashed vegetables further, while the adults enjoyed a surf-and-turf platter of Kobe beef and lobster tail.
Alex’s family kept her so engaged in conversation that there wasn’t a chance for things to get awkward—with them or Alex. She was touched that they were making such an effort.
By the time they adjourned to the living room to enjoy a selection of coffee, tea, brandy and chocolates, Julianne had forgotten why she’d been so nervous about meeting them. She took a seat on the couch near the chair where Sophie sat and hugged Liam in her lap. Actually, she hadn’t completely forgotten why she’d been worried—and, of course, all the challenges ahead of them hadn’t been solved by one civil dinner. Really, the subject hadn’t even been broached, much less sorted out. But at first glance, this royal family, with their power and money, seemed to be playing fair.
As Julianne sipped a cup of lavender chamomile tea, she tried to resist the scrumptious-looking assortment of chocolates arranged on the silver tray that graced the center of the coffee table. Caffeine right before bed—especially in the form of chocolate—was a recipe for a night of tossing and turning. Even with the soothing tea.
Resistance was futile after all, and Julianne plucked a dark-chocolate-powder-dusted truffle off the tray.
She bit into it and it melted like a silky river of heaven on her tongue.
“Ummm,” she couldn’t help herself. “This is so…decadent. I think it’s the best chocolate I’ve ever tasted. What kind is it?”
Sophie smiled and claimed a piece for herself. “I know, isn’t it delicious? Believe it or not, it’s made right here in St. Michel. It’s from Maya’s Chocolate Shop, downtown off the square. It’s my favorite dessert.”
Julianne was dying to ask if this was how she and Luc lived every day—and if so, how she stayed so trim. She carried her baby bump front and center, and there wasn’t an excess ounce on her willowy figure. Or was the special treatment and delicious food strictly reserved for guests? Or, more specifically, guests they wanted to placate?
As warm and gracious as Sophie and Luc had been tonight, Julianne felt bad for being so cynical.
“Alex tells me you’ve started a music foundation?” Sophie asked.
Julianne nodded.
“Please tell me about it.”
Julianne gave Sophie the pitch. “Currently, we serve about a hundred kids between the ages of ten and seventeen in the Washington, D.C., area, providing music lessons and instruments to those who need them. Our services supplement their school music program. We’re hoping to gain more support soon so that we can reach even more kids.”
Sophie listened intently. “That’s tremendous. I understand that your focus has been in your hometown, but perhaps you could work with our national orchestra’s music outreach program, and give them some pointers on setting up a similar program here? If you would, we might be inclined to support you in the expansion of your D.C.-based venture.”
The thought made Julianne’s head spin. She hadn’t thought about taking her program international. But why not? After all, the program was called A World of Music. Wouldn’t it be magnificent to bring music into the lives of every child in the world?
“That sounds very exciting. I’d be happy to help.”
Sophie smiled at her warmly. “Just so you know, we can provide you with a babysitter any time you need one. Especially to help with your foundation work, but for personal needs, too. Moms need to take care of themselves. It makes us better moms, doesn’t it?”
At first, Julianne thought she’d heard Sophie wrong, Moms need to take care of themselves, but when she’d said it the second time, she knew it was true.
Julianne bit her bottom lip to keep from smiling too big. Then she realized she’d missed what Sophie was saying…something about moving office equipment into her suite so that she could more efficiently run the foundation…
Wow. It was so much, so fast. “I am grateful, really I am. The only problem is that the administrative end of A World of Music needs minimal upkeep. Most of it is hands-on—delivering instruments, and teaching lessons.” Julianne cleared her throat delicately before speaking, stalling for just the right words—she didn’t want to sound ungrateful. “While I’m here, my kids are missing their flute lessons.”
“I suppose you’ll need to find someone else to take over the lessons for you,” said Luc. “The rest you can run from here.”
Wait a minute. Julianne’s gratitude began to backpedal into something a little more cautious.
“I don’t know if that will be necessary since I don’t know how long Liam and I will be staying.”
A hush fell over the room, as if Julianne had just pulled a skeleton out of a closet and dropped it in front of them.
“Of course, we’ll come as often as we can for visits, but our home is in Washington, D.C. It’s what my sister, Marissa, wanted for Liam.”
As her sister’s name rolled off her tongue, she realized it was the first time that evening anyone had even mentioned Marissa. For a split second Julianne wondered if anyone even knew about her…knew the full story.
Surely they did because their intelligence agents seemed to be able to dig up everything about everybody once it was on their radar.
Alex was looking at her solemnly. “We obviously have a lot to iron out.”
His voice sounded apologetic.
But then Liam started to fuss and it was the perfect time to excuse herself. After the day’s travel she was tired.
“Thank you so much for everything, dinner was delicious,” Julianne said. “If you don’t mind, I think I need to get Liam settled for the evening. He’s had a long, hard day.”
Sophie smiled warmly. “Of course, you must be exhausted, too. It’s so nice to meet you. I’m very glad you’re here. We’ll have to set up a girls’ lunch, just the two of us. Perhaps later this week? We can discuss the music foundation.”
“That would be nice.” Julianne stood with Liam on her hip, feeling a little less at ease as she had earlier. Of course, the reason for the dinner hadn’t been simply to welcome her. It had been to size her up, to see if she’d slide easily into the slot they had picked out for her.
It was surprising that they hadn’t just informed her that along with her new country and her new apart
ment, they had already decided to assign her to their orchestra…. Enough. She was tired and it had been a nice evening. She didn’t want to dampen it any more than she already had.
She tried to push the straps of Liam’s diaper bag upon one of her shoulders, but the large purse slid back down to her elbow with a jolting thud.
Alex was at her side to help.
“Let me carry that,” Alex insisted. “I’ll walk you back to your suite.”
His hand was on her arm. Somehow, he’d managed to slip his fingers beneath the strap and her arm, relieving the pressure where it cut into the crook of her elbow. The warmth of his hand spread over the sensitive skin there, reminding her of how his hands had felt on her body earlier that day when he’d kissed her. Her pulse quickened and she was sure he could feel it. If not, the heat creeping up her neck must’ve been a dead giveaway that his touch made her anxious.
“You’re not ready to leave yet, are you?” she asked. “Really, please stay and talk to your brothers. I’m sure you have a lot of catching up to do.”
“Yes, we would like a little more time with him,” Luc told Julianne. “That is, if you truly don’t mind.”
A rush of relief washed over Julianne. She’d rather not have the long walk back to their twin suites, nor the awkward pause and stilted good-nights at the door. Not after their kiss today. Not after the simple touch of his hand taking the diaper bag from her caused her to flush like one of the vestal virgins caught in an act of impropriety.
“I don’t mind at all. In fact, I insist.”
“Thank you, Julianne,” Luc said. “I’ll call someone to escort you back.”
After Julianne left with her escort, Sophie excused herself, leaving the three brothers alone to talk.
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