Free Accidental Father by Nancy Robards Thompson Page B

determined and fiercely protective of Liam, Alex knew Julianne wasn’t stupid.
    When the others had gone and it was just Alex standing by himself, the door clicked shut. He heard the rasp of metal on metal as she released the security latch and opened the door to let him in.

Chapter Seven
    T rapped.
    That’s how Julianne had felt as Alex and his band of secret service agents had shepherded Liam and her aboard a St. Michel state jet.
    Trapped and transported to the small principality at Alex’s command.
    Like a fox that had been outsmarted, cornered and caught, she’d had no choice but to surrender after Alex had allowed her to contact the U.S. Embassy in Paris.
    After some confusion, a legal representative from the Embassy had confirmed the truth of Alex’s assertions. Since Alex was named Liam’sfather on the child’s birth certificate, Alex’s parental rights outranked hers as appointed guardian.
    Alex was the one who had the definitive say as to where Liam would live, and Alex had decreed that he and the boy were going to St. Michel.
    â€œYou’re invited to join us,” he’d assured her.
    For the past twenty-four hours she’d hated him for it. For essentially ripping the child from her life and making her nothing more than an invited guest who had no choice but to accept the precarious invitation.
    She detested Alex Lejardin for forcing her to come to St. Michel. She was prepared to detest everything about the godforsaken…and purportedly unbelievably beautiful place he was taking her to.
    But the conscientious objector in her was short-lived.
    Once they boarded the plane bound for Alex’s home and family, she’d managed to put a cap on her anger. She certainly wasn’t going to cause a scene that would upset Liam. He was a smart little guy. He sensed when she was upset. They were so close that often his moods mirrored hers.
    Having a baby in her life had been a never-ending lesson in humility. For Liam’s sake, as well as her own, she’d learned to defuse stress and anger,keeping him away from negative emotions as much as possible.
    This unexpected sojourn was proving to be one of the toughest tests of her mettle she’d ever experienced.
    She had no choice—even if she didn’t like the situation, she was going to make the best of it and regroup once she had a chance to seek legal counsel.
    Sometime during the flight to St. Michel, somewhere over the ocean, her anger faded away. She realized that once her feet were firmly planted on St. Michel soil.
    It wasn’t the luxury of the private jet that couriered her there that appeased her—if anything, that would’ve added to her displeasure. There were few things she disliked more than someone with money riding roughshod over those who couldn’t fight on the same battlefield. As an artist, she’d witnessed it plenty of times with patrons whose philosophy was my way or the highway.
    Nor was it the first-class treatment she received during the short flight from Paris.
    The tipping point came in the tender way Alex had treated not only Liam, but also her.
    She’d expected him to be angry.
    He wasn’t.
    She’d expected him to at least act sullen or superior.
    He’d been the opposite: open and willing to talk; forthright about explaining why he’d had to do what he’d done; willing to hear Julianne out and let her have a say in certain options involving Liam.
    He’d even taken care to inform her colleagues of her “change of plans” and ensured that they had been given her contact information.
    No wonder her sister had fallen in love with him. Julianne was beginning to understand the effect he could have on women. Maybe her change of heart was caused by something he’d slipped into the sparkling water she’d sipped aboard the jet.
    No, she’d experienced the pull of Alex Lejardin before he’d leveled her with the news that he was