Page 119 of Christmas with the Elkin Billionaires

“Jonas, this is Mark Hollies, chief of police.”

He stopped short. A call from the chief of police was never good. “Chief Hollies.” Jonas stepped back toward the alcove. “What can I do for you?” A thousand scenarios involving the resort flashed through his brain. Surely, nothing had happened while he was at dinner, or someone would have come to get him.

“I’m calling in regard to an accident that happened two hours ago.”

“An accident?” Adrenaline surged through his body, fear lodging in his throat, making it hard to ask questions. “A guest of the resort?” he asked, forcing the words out.

“A woman and a little boy.”Rachel and Scott.Blood rushed in his ears, a waterfall of life that meant nothing without them, and he struggled to hear what the sheriff was saying. “—paperwork from the resort in the car with them. She had your number on her phone, and we thought we’d start with you.”

“Are they all right?” he rasped. “Please. Tell me they’re all right.” He felt an old horror come to life—the horror of hearing the news that his parents were dead. Jonas hadn’t spent much time thinking about the world without his parents, the memories too painful. How much more so if he lost Rachel and Scott forever.

“They were in stable condition when we arrived on the scene and both are en route to the hospital now,” Hollies said, as Jonas felt a stabbing in the gut. His eyes burned, and he blinked several times to clear them.

“It’s my friend and our son,” he announced without hesitation. “I’ll be at the hospital as soon as I can.”

Getting to the hospital was a process that Jonas had carried out many times, but this time, his brain couldn’t manage the overload of trying to decide what to bring. Or do. He went back to his office but couldn’t remember what he’d come there for. Halfway to the parking lot, he remembered his coat. He’d need that at the hospital. They kept everything cold there, even in winter. And then he had to go back for his keys.

By the time he settled himself behind the wheel, his teeth were chattering. More from shock than the cold. He needed to see them both. To know that they would be okay.

The snow swirled in front of his windshield and made it difficult to see, slowing the drive to an excruciating crawl. The dancing shapes of what looked like deer on the sides of the highway forced him to tap his brakes several times. Jonas kept a firm grip on the wheel and tried not to do any heavy braking, prepared for any contingency that might arise.

An eternity later, or so it seemed, he parked by the emergency doors to the hospital and jogged inside. After what felt like a ridiculously long wait, a woman in scrubs escorted him to a room with the curtains drawn over the big glass doors. He knocked and went in without waiting for an answer. There was only so much his heart could take.

Inside, Rachel sat on the hospital bed. Scott slept in a crib next to her. She appeared to be sleeping, but as he came to a stop, Rachel opened her eyes.

“Hi,” she said, a sheen of tears over her eyes. “I’m so glad you came for us.”

He let out a strangled laugh, then came to sit beside her. “How are you? What happened? Are you going to be all right?”

The details of the accident, he knew, didn’t matter very much. What mattered the most was that Rachel and Scott were both all right. But Jonas needed to hear her say it.

She took a deep breath and squeezed his hand. “I came to an intersection at the bottom of the mountain, before you get on the highway for Denver.” Her brow furrowed as if she couldn’t quite remember. “It was too icy to stop, but the light turned yellow, and another car was there and they couldn’t stop either.”

“Yes.” He rubbed a thumb across the back of her hand. “I know that intersection.”

“I swerved to miss the other car and hit the siderail,” Rachel finished. “Scott’s fine. The doctors have thoroughly checked him over. They say his car seat protected him. I’ve got—”

The doctor bustled into the room, clipboard in hand. “Ms. Alexander?”

“Yes, that’s me,” Rachel said, still holding on to his hand.

“I have the results of your x-ray, if you’d like me to go over them with you and your husband.”

Husband.Jonas realized the word had a nice ring to it. He waited for Rachel to correct the doctor. His heart flew like a bird.

“Go ahead,” she said softly.

“No evidence of fracture but we won’t know the extent of any soft tissue damage without an MRI. There doesn’t seem to be any evidence of whiplash yet, but it’ll be important for both of you to keep on the lookout for signs of damage to the spine. As soon as you can, you’ll need to make an appointment with your primary care physician.” He rattled off more instructions, such as how she shouldn’t be left alone in case of a concussion, but Jonas could only focus on the warmth of her hand in his. “We should be able to get you discharged soon,” the doctor said, explaining everything. “Any questions?”

“No.” Rachel smiled. “Thank you all for taking care of me and my son.”

The doctor flashed her a smile. “No problem. Glad it all worked out well.” Then he was gone, leaving the three of them in the room together.

Jonas looked into Rachel’s eyes. Oh, they were beautiful, the blue so sky-like and ocean deep at the same time. He needed to correct the biggest mistake of his life. “Come stay with me,” he said, keeping his voice low. Scott stirred in the crib.

“I don’t know.” Rachel frowned. “I should get back.”

“Let me take care of you and Scott. You shouldn’t be alone with your injuries. Doctor’s orders,” he pointed out. “Please, Rachel. I want you to get well. If you want to leave when you feel better, you can. It’s only for as long as you want to stay.” Although forever was okay in his book.

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