but each other. She’ll always have time for me. She promised.” Toby blinked serious brown eyes up at Grant as if expecting the man to challenge his statement.
“Of course your mother will always make time for you.” Grant didn’t understand the correlation of Toby’s reasoning. “Whether she remarries or not.”
“She’s not. Ever.” Toby sounded determined.
The bathroom door opened and Jami stepped out, seductive and delightful all wrapped in a pink, frayed terry cloth bathrobe. Hand flying to her open mouth and amber eyes wide, she gasped, “Oh, Grant!”
“Sorry for the intrusion,” he said, scooting Toby off his lap, then rising to his feet. “I just came to tell you that the hot tub mess is cleaned up. From what I can tell, there will be no problem getting it fully functional again tomorrow morning.”
“Good.” Jami cinched the sash of her robe tighter and stepped backward, watching Grant as if he would pounce on her at any moment. Not that he wouldn’t enjoy devouring her. She was sexy and adorable, her hair curled into damp tendrils of darkened copper around her angel face, her rosy lips parted, and her moist skin slick satin.
“Will you join me in my room a minute?”
“Uh, I guess.”
Two minutes later, she entered his doorway. “Is something wrong?”
“No.” He whipped the open bottle of champagne and two glasses from behind his back. “I think we deserve one last toast.”
“Oh?”
He poured the champagne into the crystal flutes and offered her one. “Here’s to keeping Toby away from the hot tub...” He paused, his lips curling into a grin. “And out of hot water.”
Jami laughed and took a quick sip, then she put her glass aside. “Thanks, but we’d better say good night.”
“Wait. I also wanted to invite the two of you to go camping with me tomorrow. Just an overnighter, not too far,” Grant added, wondering where that invitation had come from and how those words had tumbled out of his mouth. He hadn’t even been considering a camping trip. He thought of the Cupid charm hidden in the drawer under his shirt just waiting to pounce, then shook the crazy idea away. It was only a brooch, after all.
“Camping trip?” Jami repeated, brows raised in puzzlement as she backed several steps through the open doorway into her room.
“I’ve never gone camping!” Toby cried, bouncing on the bed with excitement. “Please, Mom, please?”
“I’ll take care of the tents, sleeping bags and all the camping gear.” Now that camping with Jami and Toby had gotten into Grant’s head, he really did want to take them. “It’d be the perfect opportunity to show Toby an old-fashioned adventure. I have great memories of camping with my dad and brothers back home.” He frowned. Jami had appeared to be softening, but his last statement seemed to make her tense again.
Toby leapt off the bed and scampered to his mother, throwing his arms around her as she stooped to his level. “Please, Mom? Can we?”
Grant watched mother and son with the oddest emotions swirling inside him. When had he begun to feel so protective and possessive about the lovely redhead and her boy? “We could go after lunch tomorrow. Across the lake there’s a great spot where Ralph and I used to camp.”
“Camping in the mountains? Outside? Overnight?” Jami pondered in an unsteady voice as she hugged Toby, then unlatched her son’s arms and stood back up to meet Grant’s gaze. “With you?”
“You aren’t afraid to go camping, are you?” Grant teased, deciding on a new approach. “Which frightens you most? Me or the bears?”
“Bears?” Toby raced back to Grant, tugging on his hand to draw attention down to him. “Will we see bears?”
Grant laughed. “I doubt it, slugger. They prefer the uninhabited side of the mountain where people don’t bother them.”
“Thank goodness.” Jami exhaled. She hadn’t realized that she’d been holding her breath at thought of camping with Grant. Her eyes strayed to her pajama-clad son. With Toby along, she should be safe enough, even with a dangerous womanizer like Grant Carrington. Shouldn’t she?
“I’ve always wanted to go camping. Please, Mom, say yes?” Toby requested, gazing pleadingly at his mother. How could she resist such sweet appeal?
“Please say yes,” Grant coaxed, his low sexy drawl uniting his persuasion with her son’s. “Just one night. What can it hurt? Our vacation is more than half over, and before you know it, you’ll be back home in Houston and Frost Lake will be only a memory.”