“What’s going on?” Jonas’s voice broke into her attentive waiting, and she wanted to sink down onto the floor next to her son. Everything was already fraught with tension, and the last thing she needed was Jonas, wearing a worried expression on his face, slightly out of breath. “Are you having trouble with the landscape photos?”
“No,” she lied, then thought better of it. “Yes.” It was always a fine balancing act, talking about her son with people who hired her. Usually, things weren’t so last-minute. Usually, there was a babysitter, but this morning, there wasn’t one available at the lodge. And usually, she wasn’t trying to wade through the supreme awkwardness of having just revealed your son’s parentage to his father and sticking around to deal with the emotional aftermath.
Jonas’s eyebrows knitted together. “You are?”
“I am,” she admitted, glancing down at Scott to make sure he was all right. Looking like a snow-suited starfish lying in the middle of the carpet in the lobby, he made her wish she was anywhere but here. “It’s too hard to keep Scott entertained while I get the shots. I don’t feel like I’ve gotten more than a couple that do this place justice.”
Rachel braced for his response, fully expecting him to fire her.
Instead, Jonas stepped around so that the two of them were forming a protective barrier around Scott. “I can help,” he said, his words surprising her speechless.
The frustration was clear on her face, obvious to him from all the way across the lobby. Jonas hadn’t been able to see Scott lying on the floor until he was closer, but it made perfect sense. She looked as tense as he felt. Every heartbeat marked another moment that he hadn’t come clean to his family about the situation. And every time they met, his guilt over not telling them intensified. In a way, it was perfect that Rachel hadn’t been able to get the shots. It would give them more time to figure things out.
“Let me take you on a tour,” he said, registering her surprised expression. Was this the first time she’d asked a client for help? “I’ll go with you, and we can get some good photos. And we can spend some time together with Scott.”
It would also have the effect of keeping them away from his family for the time being, but he left that part out. It was more important to contain the situation. They’d have to have a game plan, and now was as good a time as any to come up with it.
“If you’re sure,” Rachel said, leaning down to brush a lock of hair off Scott’s forehead. “I don’t want to take up too much of your time.”
“I’m completely sure. I can go right now—if you still want to do the photos.”
She straightened up, fire in her eyes. “Of course I do. Why wouldn’t I?”
Jonas waved at the receptionist behind the counter, signaling for her to bring his coat out from the back room. He kept coats in several places around the resort in case he needed them. Gabe had once called it overkill. Gabe was wrong—again. “You really don’t have to do the photos,” he offered in a quiet voice. He was trying to do the right thing by her.
Rachel lifted her chin. “No, I do need to do the photos,” she said, her voice tight. “I need the money, and I signed a contract.”
“I’ll pay you anyway. Name the amount. It’s no object, Rachel.”
She blinked, and Scott stood up from the floor. Crouched down. Stood up again. He toddled toward the tree and plopped himself down in front of one of the wrapped boxes, patting gently at the gold ribbon wrapped around it.
Rachel moved toward him, taking her eyes off Jonas at the last moment. She bent down close to Scott, not touching him, just ready, he realized, to stop the boy from ripping open the “gift”.
Jonas wouldn’t mind if he did. At this moment, he wouldn’t mind if the little boy opened every one of the decorated boxes. Rachel’s shoulders were tense, but it couldn’t be because of Scott—she was used to this, she was prepared.
It could only be because of him. Maybe she thought his offer was a bribe. It might have come off as an offer to keep her quiet about Scott, and once he thought that, he knew it was true by the set of her jaw and the thin line of her lips.
“Forget I said that. You’re right,” Jonas said, trying to backtrack a bit.
Rachel’s eyes met his, wary still. She put one hand down on Scott’s chubby one, guiding him away from the edges of the wrapping paper. “Am I?”
“I hired you to do a job. And, in fact, I want the photos. We just need to focus on getting it done right.”
She let out a visible breath. “Right.” She scooped Scott up into her arms, and he put his arms around her neck, burying his face in her shoulder. “About that tour...”
“How about a sleigh ride? With horses?” Scott perked up at that. Jonas got a thrill from his excitement, something he’d never experienced before. Some of the tension in the air dissipated as Rachel smiled, sending a wave of heat through his body and his heart racing. Jonas tried to ignore it as he put his coat on and told Scott about the horses, leading them both outside to a spot near the ski shed.
While Jonas held Scott in his lap for the ride, the sleigh took them down the trails near the resort. Rachel marveled at the decorations on the trees and leaned forward to get photo after photo. Jonas found himself at the opposite end of the lens more than once, and the thought of the photos squeezed at his heart. His first memories with his son.
By the time they returned to the lodge, Rachel was breathless and pink-cheeked, excited about her photos, and Scott was more than ready for a nap. But Jonas didn’t want to watch them walk away.
He escorted them up to her suite and held Scott while Rachel put away her gear and got herself settled. “Are you comfortable here?” He kept his voice low because at some point between the lobby and here, Scott had fallen asleep on his shoulder. “Do you have everything you need?” he added.
She put a hand on his elbow. “I’m sure I do.”
“All your meals are on the house,” Jonas said. “Room service—anything. Don’t hesitate.”
Rachel cracked a smile, and he felt like punching a fist in the air and cheering. “I love room service fries.”
“I think this guy might be out for a while.” He transferred Scott over to her arms, managing the fine art of not waking the child. “You could have quite the dinner with lots of fries.” And you could ask me to stay, and then, and then— “Get some time to yourself.”
“I’ll do that.” Rachel leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “We’ll see you tomorrow for the candid shots, right?”
Tomorrow seemed like a thousand years away.
“Of course.” Jonas left, closing the door behind him, wishing he could stay. Tomorrow. He would do better tomorrow. No mistakes. No tension. Only family photos in his grandmother’s den. He laughed to himself on the way back to his office. A man could dream.
4
Jonas fell asleep thinking that the next day would be a breeze, but when he woke up, there was a pit in his stomach and a weight across his shoulders he couldn’t shake off. An hour in the gym didn’t cure it.