The rest of the room disappeared. It was only the three of them and the Christmas tree. Everything else—the tinsel and the music and the other people in the lobby—they were gone, and Jonas braced for the words that would change his life. One way or the other, things would be different.
“He’s yours,” Rachel said, her voice calm and matter-of-fact.
Yours. The word echoed in his mind until it was big enough to fill the entire lobby of the Elk Lodge, bouncing around in a thousand echoes of itself. “Mine.”
“Yes.” Rachel was at ease with her son, letting him step from side to side, but her shoulders were tensed up to her ears. “It happened after we were—were together that one time.” Her cheeks went a deeper red. “I thought you were another guest. I didn’t know you were Jonas Elkin.”
“And I never told you.” It had seemed like such a good idea at the time. The night had lifted the weight from his shoulders long enough for him to catch his breath. Jonas wasn’t in the habit of asking—he was used to telling people what to do as part of his job as CEO. Nobody wanted a CEO without leadership ability. But Rachel didn’t technically work for him—not for the Elk Lodge, anyway. “You don’t need to leave.”
She raised her eyebrows. “Are you sure? Because this is a huge thing to find out, and I’m sure you’re…” Her voice softened, the sentence petering out. “I’d understand if you didn’t want me here at a time like this.”
His emotions were so huge he thought he might burst. Guilt. A flash of anger. A lightning bolt of fear. Over it all, a layer of shock. He had a son, and the son was this boy, and his mother was Rachel. “What’s his name?”
“Scott,” Rachel offered. “Scott Alexander.”
There was too much to decide at that moment. He hadn’t been there to take care of his own child. Neglected his responsibility. It didn’t matter that there was no way he could have known. Jonas felt like he was falling. It was a terrifying sensation. But he wasn’t going to fire Rachel—no way.
For one thing, the photography job she was working on was his gift to his grandmother and to the rest of his family. If he sent Rachel away now, there would be no replacement photographer. And then he’d have to explain it to his grandmother, which would require a lie—something he didn’t want to do. Not while she was dealing with cancer. Not now, when they might not have much time left.
Decide.
Jonas was the one who had to make a choice. It was his job. It had been his job for years, and nothing had ever been as important as this. “Let me take you back to your suite.”
“Are you sure you don’t want us to head out?”
“I’m sure.” There. Decision made. “Let’s walk together.”
He could almost feel time ticking by. Up in his grandmother’s apartment, his family would be wondering where he’d gone. They might try to call down to the front desk to see if something happened at the resort that demanded his attention. They might try any number of things if he didn’t return to the Christmas celebration soon.
In the elevator, Rachel lifted Scott up to push the buttons, guiding his small finger with her hand. “Floor number three,” she told him.
“Tree,” Scott repeated, his son’s baby voice striking straight to Jonas’s heart.
They rode the elevator up, questions crowding Jonas’s mind. How was he going to fix this situation? Scott looked happy, oblivious to the fact that he was seeing his father for the first time. It didn’t change the problem they faced.
Rachel slipped the key card into her door, and the lock clicked, driving home the reality of the situation.
What had he been thinking? That he’d go back to her room with her and they’d hash everything out while his family waited upstairs? It would have to wait a little longer. He didn’t want his family to come looking for him. And he didn’t want his son to disappear while his back was turned.
But before they did anything, he needed to get his thoughts in order. There were so many variables in this situation. So many people to consider. So many factors. He’d always been proud of the way he could make decisions, keep things moving. Now Jonas felt like he was treading water in the middle of the ocean.
Scott toddled into the suite, and Rachel turned back. “Thank you for letting us stay.” It sounded hopeful, like a question—one last chance for him to change his mind.
“I’m glad you’re staying.” He cleared his throat. “I have to head back upstairs and visit with my family for a short while, but will you meet me in my office later to talk? It’s on the fourth floor.” She was willowy and gorgeous, and he felt a certain desperation rise in him—don’t let her get away. And a competing pull—don’t let this holiday become a disaster.
Rachel took a deep breath. “If you’re sure.”
“I’m very sure,” Jonas said. “Meet me there in an hour.”
She searched his eyes one more time, then gave a small nod. “We will.”
2
Rachel pressed her forehead to the picture window in the guest suite and tried to cool down her feverish skin. It had been an endless morning of holding it together. She had been so close to getting away, too—and then, no. The awkwardness had descended. Who knew that Jonas owned the Elk Lodge? The father of her child wasn’t just another guest—he owned the place.
A place where she could barely afford to stay.
Rachel had visited here as a child with her parents. They’d loved the resort, and so had she. There was a certain magic to it, especially around the holidays. Rachel had fallen in love with the Elk Lodge as a little girl—with the glittering snow on the hills, the hot cocoa they served to guests for free, and evergreens draped in Christmas decorations. It was breathtakingly fancy, with lovely bathrooms and lovely beds and lovely everything.
She’d stayed once as an adult, on a getaway that her fiancé had planned and then bailed on, and then never again. The room rates were too high for a photographer with a business one couldn’t describe as successful by any stretch of the imagination. The opportunity to work here was like a Christmas gift for her and Scott—and a way to earn a little money. It would be a long time before that happened again.
And now there was Jonas to contend with. Rachel had never expected to come across the father of her child again, and why would she have? He could have been from anywhere. Instead, he was an hour away from the town she’d made her home and lived at the resort she’d fallen in love with as a child.
“Okay.” She straightened up and checked her watch. They were set to meet in five minutes and Rachel always left extra time. Those were the rules when you had a two-year-old. Scott was busily tugging at the blankets on the king-size bed. “Come on, buddy. Let’s ride the elevator.”
“Evator!” he squealed, rushing to the door to pull on his shoes. Rachel tucked a toy truck under her arm and helped him with his shoes, one after the other.
They headed down the hall toward the elevator. The alpine theme was understated here, with polished trim that gleamed and snow-white walls. Plush blue carpet boasted a silvery pattern that reminded her of winter, but that would look equally good in the summer.