overprotective. But he was sure there had been a look of...something flash across Cordelia’s face when he’d mentioned his son.
It could just be that she’d been taken unawares. But his gut told him something else. His gut could almost sense her take about ten steps back. And he didn’t like that. He didn’t like that at all.
He wasn’t crazy. He didn’t expect the whole world to love his son the way he did. Some folks just didn’t do kids. He got that. But he would never tolerate anyone making his four-year-old feel unwelcome. Long journey or not, if he had to, he’d jump on the next flight back to Texas. Getting a job was never a problem. Getting the right job was more important than anything.
He gave himself a shake as she pulled the car up outside a pizza parlour. She turned around and gave him a nervous kind of smile. ‘What’s your poison?’ she asked. ‘This place is great. Everything’s fresh and their pizzas are to die for.’
He drew in a deep breath. She was making an effort, and it was clear he made her a bit nervous. He dug into his pocket for his wallet, but she shook her head and waved her hand. ‘Don’t be silly. You just got here. This is on me.’ She bit her bottom lip and nodded towards the sleeping figure in the back seat. ‘What about Rory?’
Gene glanced at his son again and felt his heart swell. This little guy was his life. One look of that cheeky little face could brighten the darkest day.
‘Just cheese and ham for him. I’ll have whatever the Swiss equivalent of a meat feast is.’
Cordelia gave him a nod and ducked out of the car. ‘No problem. Give me five minutes.’
She walked into the pizza parlour and he leaned back in the seat again, watching as she interacted with the servers. She seemed at home here—it was obvious that they knew her. She leaned on the counter, giving him a prime view of her curves visible in her pink fitted shirt and black trousers. He gave a small smile. She’d probably look great in a pair of jeans.
Her fingers toyed with a strand of chestnut-brown hair as she chatted. For the first time he looked at her left hand. No ring. Nothing. She’d said they would all be staying in Professor Helier’s mansion. Did she have a partner already there? Or would she be there alone with him and Rory?
His stomach gave a little clench. Maybe that was part of her discomfort. She’d clearly expected a woman to arrive at Geneva airport. Maybe being alone with a strange guy and kid had completely thrown her.
After another five minutes she slid back into the car with the pizza boxes. ‘Do you mind holding these until we reach the house? It will only be another five minutes.’
He nodded and started to pay attention to the scenery as they drove through the outskirts of Geneva. The buildings and architecture were stunning, a mixture of Gothic spires and brand-new glass towers. All this with a backdrop of snow-topped mountains against a darkening sky.
The road gradually became a little more rural and Cordelia indicated and turned through a pair of elaborate iron gates and continued on down a long driveway. Thick green trees lined the driveway, with extensive grounds all around them. After a few minutes a dark house seemed to emerge out of nowhere.
Gene couldn’t help but smile. It was like a real Gothic-style mansion—straight out of a Dracula-style movie. Gargoyles adorned some of the dark grey stonework around the myriad thin windows lining the front of the house. A huge, imposing double door, painted black with a large knocker, was right in front of them.
Cordelia pulled up directly outside and turned to face him. It was the first time she’d looked a little more relaxed since they’d met.
She held out her hand towards the house. ‘Here it is. And I’ll say it before you do. Dracula’s mansion. The inside is much more welcoming than the outside. You’ll love it.’ She glanced nervously over her shoulder towards Rory again. ‘And I’m sure he will too.’ She shot him a big smile. It only seemed a little forced. ‘Welcome to Switzerland, Dr Du Bois.’
SHE WAS BABBLING AGAIN. It was ridiculous. She was a thirty-one-year-old experienced doctor. She had absolutely no reason to be nervous. But somehow the cowboy from Texas with the blond kid had totally knocked her sideways.
She unlocked the front door and switched off the alarm. Rory was tucked up on his dad’s shoulder again. ‘Do you want to put him straight to bed?’ she asked, praying that the beds in the guest quarters were made up.
Gene shook his head. ‘No. I want to wake him up and feed him before letting him sleep right through. I always find it’s best to try and acclimatise as soon as possible.’
She blinked. ‘You move about a lot?’
He shrugged as he glanced around the wide entranceway and huge staircase leading to the upper floors. ‘I have done. Rory will be going to school next year, so I’ll need to have a rethink. But so far he’s been in nursery in the US, the UK and France. He seems to have loved them all.’
She gave a careful nod of her head. ‘Wow. That’s a lot.’ She hesitated then pointed towards the rooms to the right. ‘The formal kind of sitting rooms are that way. But how about we grab the pizzas and go through to the kitchen? The bedrooms are all upstairs, I’ll show you them soon.’
Gene glanced back out to the car. She waved her hand. ‘I can grab the cases.’
‘No way.’ His Texas drawl almost stopped her in her tracks. ‘There’s no way I’m letting you get them. Let me sit Rory down at the table. He’s waking up anyway. Can you get him a drink of water while I grab the cases?’
She nodded quickly and showed him through to the extensive black and white kitchen, with old-fashioned wooden table in the middle, pulling out the high-backed chairs for him to settle Rory.
The little boy watched her with suspicious eyes as she opened the cupboard and nearly pulled out a glass, before changing her mind at the last moment and swapping the glass for a mug. She grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge then filled the mug and sat down next to him. She couldn’t help but feel nervous. What did you talk to a four-year-old about? And the truth was she was a little curious about this little kid. Would he have an accent like his father? ‘Hi, Rory, I’m Cordelia. I’m going to be working with your daddy.’
She flipped open the lid of the smallest pizza box. ‘We got you ham and cheese pizza. Your dad said you’d like that. Would you like some?’ She pulled a slice of the pizza free and left it for him to grab himself.
Rory watched her with dark eyes for a few moments. It was unnerving what the gaze of a four-year-old could do to her. She didn’t blame him. He’d literally just woken up, and was in completely strange surroundings. And she’d seen those big brown eyes before. Rory definitely had his father’s eyes.
She could hear Gene rolling the suitcases inside then closing the main door behind him. He strode through to the kitchen and sat down next to Rory, ruffling his hair again as he looked at the pizza boxes. ‘Which one is mine? Come on. Eat up, little guy. You must be starving.’
Rory stared at him. ‘Where’s the French fries?’
Cordelia almost laughed out loud—there was a definite hint of a Texan accent, but there was also a little bit more. Gene said they’d stayed in France and the UK too. It seemed the little boy had picked up a little of everything. She stood up and flicked the switch on the kettle and glanced over at Gene. ‘Do you want a cup of tea or coffee?’
Gene shook his head. ‘I’ll stick to water, thanks. I want to try and sleep a little tonight.’
Rory stopped staring at her suspiciously now his dad was back and picked up a slice of pizza. He leaned his head on one hand. ‘Where’s my bed?’
Gene glanced at her and Cordelia