Elkin Brothers Christmas The Complete Series - Leslie North Page 0,142

happened.”

“Life happened.” Anger pricked at the back of his neck. Things happened. Like Chase’s relationship with Tana, which had happened fast, and which Jonas hadn’t been thrilled about. Tana was a ski instructor at the Elk Lodge, and Chase had felt the need to hide the relationship from his family because of employee-employer relations. And yet, Chase was here, confronting him about Rachel.

“It’s not like you,” Chase said, keeping his voice even, confusion written on his face. “You don’t keep secrets like this. Why now?”

Jonas swallowed another flash of irritation. He’d needed them to look up to him over the years. To listen to him, for the good of the family and the good of the resort. That had been hard enough to maintain over the years, especially with Gabe. His brother had left as soon as humanly possible and only showed up for the holidays because of Grandmother’s illness.

“I’m disappointed, honestly,” Chase said, his hands open on his lap. “You’ve been pushy with us for years, but now you want us to turn a blind eye to your own indiscretions.”

“First of all…” Jonas struggled for control. Scott readjusted in his arms, still drinking from the sippy cup, unaware of the thick tension in the room. “Scott is not an indiscretion. And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t bring this up with Grandmother.”

“What? You can’t have it both ways, Jonas. Either he’s a secret, or he’s not. When do you plan on letting her know?” Chase narrowed his eyes. “Or are you planning on waiting until she passes away to bring your son’s existence to light?”

“I don’t know,” Jonas snapped. “Is that what you want to hear? I don’t know what I’m going to do, or say, or when I’m going to say it. If I recall, you also kept us in the dark about someone close to you until the time was right. Maybe in this situation, the time will never be right.”

“Good morning,” Rachel’s soft voice cut through his soul, and a chill ran down his spine. How long had she been standing there? She padded across the living room and held out her arms to Scott, who beamed at her and leaned forward to scramble into her arms. “We’ll get out of your way.”

“No.” Chase stood up. “I’ll get out of your way. I shouldn’t have come.”

Jonas stood too, at a loss for what to say or who to follow.

Rachel was heading back up the stairs and Chase was making a hasty exit, pulling his coat on as he went.

“Stop,” he said, calling after his brother. “Wait.”

“We’ll talk later,” Chase said. “That’s what you want, isn’t it?” He opened the door and stepped out into the morning light, and then he was gone.

Jonas stood for a heartbeat in the middle of the living room. The meeting between brothers hadn’t gone well. And now, he was left to face Rachel. He ran up the stairs after her and found them in the spare bedroom, Scott playing on the bed while Rachel tugged a shirt over his head. “—go soon, buddy,” she was saying.

“Go, go, go,” Scott repeated.

Jonas’s mind was a storm. No—don’t go. He didn’t want her to leave, not even a little. The closeness from the night before had been shut off, hidden behind a closed door, but that couldn’t be the end of it. His brothers couldn’t be allowed to dictate the relationship. He could not let them take this chance from him.

“Talk to me,” Jonas said.

She looked over her shoulder at him, her eyes bright with hurt. Rachel gave him a brave smile anyway. “You know, if you don’t want your grandmother to find out about us, then we shouldn’t risk the gossip. I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to stay any longer.”

“What I said down there—” He was at loose ends. “What I meant was that I need a better plan of attack when it comes to telling my grandmother about us. And the way I said it came out wrong. I didn’t expect Chase to come over here. I didn’t expect them to know about Scott or us.”

“It’s okay.” Her answer wasn’t convincing. “I know how hard this is for you. The timing. But I know what’s good for me, too. I know I can’t stay here while you struggle to keep me hidden and fight with your brothers.” Rachel’s eyes glistened. “Really, Jonas, I think we have enough photos to make a wonderful picture scrapbook. You can take some