Page 96 of Christmas with the Elkin Billionaires

Pushing his chair back with more force than necessary, he grabbed the armrest before it tipped over. He had to hurry so Rachel wouldn’t have to face the rest of the Elkin family alone.

Walking into the lounge, he realized his grandmother had a good instinct for what would look good for the photoshoot. The fireplace lounge had two walls of windows, and the mid-morning light cast the room in a pretty glow. It gave the whole scene a magazine layout vibe, something he needed to consider for future advertising campaigns. He made a note to talk to Anna about it, since she’d already approached him with ideas to enhance the resort’s offerings for day visitors.

He found Rachel standing in one corner, adjusting the settings on her camera. Scott was nowhere to be seen. More than likely with Lisa, which was the best possible solution given how rambunctious he was yesterday.

Time to get started.

“Brothers first,” Jonas announced, loud enough for Rachel to hear. Her head snapped up, her gaze seeking him out. Her surprise quickly turned into a smile, making his heart beat faster.

One by one, they each took turns in separate groups, sitting by the window and pretending to have conversations. Jonas laughed at Chase’s jokes, the knot in his chest loosening with every moment that passed. Maybe it would all be fine.

No sooner had he started to relax than two figures appeared in the doorway. No one else noticed the new additions as the family worked on rearranging themselves, his grandmother sitting down, and everyone falling in beside her.

Except for Jonas. He noticed.

Lisa had arrived, Scott in her arms. The moment he saw his mother, his son brightened, pushing away from the nanny and trying to get down. Rachel went over and had a hushed conversation with her. The wordsno big dealdrifted his way as he listened intently.

Except it was a big deal.

Lisa put Scott down, and he clung to Rachel’s leg. Tana, Lindsey, and Anna made anawwwnoise at the side of the room, finding Scott’s antic cute.

Rachel shook her head and laughed, waving them into the next group shot. “If you all sit down,” she said, “we’ll get a few more shots, and then we’ll move to more group standing poses. Remember, this is what I call planned candid, so ignore me and be as comfortable as you can. You could tell a funny story from the boys’ childhood, Mrs. Elkin.”

His grandmother’s smile lit up the room, and she reminded Rachel to call her Elin before launching into a story about the time Chase belly-flopped off the high dive at a campground they’d gone to out east and had ended up with a belly burn to rival any sunburn. It was the first vacation they’d taken after their parents died, and it had served as their first step in working through their grief. Granted, to hear his grandmother speak of the trip, the brothers had been in some sort of competition to see who would end up with the most injuries. Chase had won, hands down.

Jonas wanted to lose himself in the story, wanted to focus on the past, when things had been less complicated, but he couldn’t. They were going to notice. Any second now, they were going to notice that the little boy in the room looked exactly like him.Orthey were going to notice that Jonas couldn’t stop stealing glances at Rachel.

Rachel, on the other hand, showed no sign of nervousness. No fear of discovery. It was up to him to keep them distracted.

So he did what he normally would do. He started directing the photos and making suggestions on sitting arrangements. When Scott started walking toward them, Jonas jumped up again. “What about some photos with just the women?” he said, dragging his brothers with him to the side of the room. He felt Rachel’s eyes on him all the way.

“You don’t have to worry,” she called out. “I’ll get all the shots you need.”

Don’t worry.Well, hewasworried. Scott made his way over to them, and Jonas met the boy halfway across the floor, waving at his brothers to make their way to the windows. “I’ll join you all in a second.”

He took Scott by the hand and led him back toward Rachel. “Hey, kiddo, let’s go over here, by your mom. Rachel, why don’t we move on to portraits of—”

“Let’s take five,” Rachel called. “Everybody get comfortable, and I’ll be back in a few. Jonas, come with me—I need your help.” The tone of her voice didn’t bode well.

* * *

Rachel

Rachel snapped her lens cap back into place and took Scott from Jonas.

He glanced back, the lines of tension on his face deepening as he noticed his family watching them with an unbelievable amount of suspicion.

“Now would be good,” she told him, keeping her smile in place.

Jonas followed her out to the hall. She set Scott down, letting him wander over to a nearby alcove he was intent on exploring. After double-checking to make sure everything was safe, she turned to Jonas, taking a deep, cleansing breath.

His eyes met hers, but then slipped away, glancing back toward the door. How could he look so strong, so powerful, and so worried at the same time?

“You’re driving me insane,” she declared. Shock filled his blue eyes, causing her heart to thump harder despite her irritation.

“I’m trying to help. There’s a lot on the line right now.”

“Okay, but—” she tempered her response, realizing Jonas was nervous. For that matter, shewas nervous too. This was obviously a big deal for him—his son, mingling with his family. But he had to let go and trust her if it was going to work—both the photography gig and any kind of relationship between them. It didn’t necessarily have to be romantic, and he seemed like he wanted to get to know his son. But she wasn’t backing down.

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