objective—Jami.
Jami swam through the fishy lake, her kick awkward, thanks to her sneaker-clad feet. Her total attention focused, she watched the toy boat rock and tilt drunkenly upon the waves, sunshine reflecting off the golden Cupid cradled inside. Thank heavens, the family heirloom was still afloat and nearly within reach. Jami moved deeper into the dark swirling waters, but the closer she got to the boat, the faster it drifted away. The tiny craft raced forward, suddenly drawn into a mad spin. Cupid still held fast as the miniature craft fought to remain upright.
Entering the whirlpool, Jami felt the current tearing at her, dragging her body with unseen power. She battled the underwater forces, drawing on strength, faith, and pure stubbornness. Her muscles screamed in protest, her lungs burned as water swamped over her, breaking her breathing pattern.
Battered by the swirling waters, Jami lost sight of the boat. When her face again broke surface and she gasped for air, she felt the wooden craft just beyond her fingertips. She grasped at it, but merely captured a handful of water. The boat spurted away and she pursued it, mindless of her own personal danger.
Nature cruelly reminded her. The dizzying undercurrent sucked her down, again and again, not allowing her to breathe. Jami knew she was a strong swimmer, yet the lake now encompassed her with so much power she could not break free.
A tiny dark object drifted down through the water in front of her. Cupid! Toby’s boat must have capsized and the brooch fallen overboard. She had to save the golden charm!
Limbs heavy, her lungs feeling as though they would burst, Jami concentrated on her mission. But she needed air. The lake spun and swirled around her, her thoughts fuzzing, whirling with the water.
She must reach the surface. She must have oxygen! Jami kicked harder, fighting upward, her every move warring with the monstrous water. Her tortured mind and body screamed her need for air. Lights seem to burst inside her head as pressure built with excruciating intensity. She must breathe. Or explode.
Suddenly Grant appeared, lifting her, freeing her, holding her.
“Grant!” His name escaped as a hoarse gasp on her lips. Jami clung to him, his warm hard body, a solid sanctuary as he towed her out of the swirling whirlpool into the calm lake water beyond. Overcome by joy, Jami momentarily forgot her anger toward Grant and the hurt he had caused her. She needed him and he was there, strong and caring, tender, and so potently male.
Within seconds, it seemed to Jami, they reached the shallows where she stumbled ashore, leaning on Grant for support.
He roughly spun her to face him, his midnight gaze raking over her. “You crazy fool,” he finally growled. “You could have drowned.”
“I had to save your grandmother’s Cupid pin,” Jami choked, even amid the crisis, drinking in his handsome features as she clung unsteadily to him.
“No family heirloom is worth your life,” Grant groaned, pulling her into his sodden embrace. Against her ear, he murmured, “Stubborn redhead, how could you expect to rescue one tiny piece of jewelry caught in whirlpool turbulence powerful enough to spawn lake monster legends?”
“I don’t believe in monsters.” Laughing and choking, Jami held up her hand to show him the charm. “I saved Cupid!”
Grant stared down at Jami, her beautiful hair corkscrewed into wet dark copper curls framing her face as she gazed at him with those exotic eyes. “You’re amazing.”
“Yes, aren’t I?” Jami impishly grinned up at him, the golden Cupid dancing from her fingertips as she dangled the brooch.
“I’ve never known such a wonderful, maddening, remarkable woman. Or such a crazy one,” he replied, feeling her soft breasts pressed against his chest, their hearts thundering in unison. “You’re a woman in a million.”
She was merely one woman out of many, his words reminded her as fury and hurt renewed to strike her like a tidal wave. “Maybe you haven’t known the right woman,” Jami answered frostily, her body tensing as she pushed away.
Grant released Jami, startled by her icy response. What had he said?
“And I’m not crazy. My son took Cupid, and it was my responsibility to return the jewelry safely.” Ice dripped from every word and Grant felt Jami distance herself, though they still stood within arms reach.
“Mom, you did it!” Toby cried, running and splashing barefooted through the shallow water to fling himself at his mother, encircling Jami’s waist to squeeze her tight. “You’re the best.”
Grant watched mother and son, buffeted by a myriad