There was a brief pause and then...

"And just where is it that you won't ask me to go, Kylie?" Chance Steele asked in a deep, husky voice that bespoke more than mild curiosity.

Kylie's eyes widened and hot color rushed into her face. If she'd been standing she would have melted to the floor in embarra.s.sment. Instead she found solace in burying her face under the pillow.

But even that couldn't drown out the sound of Chance's voice when he said, "Okay, Kylie, tell me. What's going on and why won't you ask me to go wherever it is that you're going?"

She closed her eyes and moaned. Her only saving grace was that she'd heard the teasing in his voice and was glad he had such a good sense of humor, even if it was at her expense.

"Kylie?"

She pulled her head from beneath the pillow. "What?"

"Are you going to tell me voluntarily or do I have to come over and tickle it out of you?"

The thought of Chance actually tickling anything out of her had a stimulating effect on her rather than an amusing one. Yet she couldn't help but smile. "I doubt if you can tickle anything out of me, Chance."

"Don't let me come over there and prove you wrong," he warned in an even huskier tone of voice.

Kylie closed her eyes and in her mind she could envision him lying in bed saying what he'd just said. He would be propped back against the pillow with a s.e.xy smile on his lips and a teasing glint in his dark eyes.

She allowed her mind to go a little further by envisioning him lying on top of the bedcovers completely naked. Her overactive imagination spread warmth through her as she envisioned her gaze moving down his muscular chest and firm stomach before coming to rest on his exposed groin. He was hard as steel.

She inhaled deeply and wondered what it would be like to touch him there, caress his body all over, bury her face in the curve of his neck, taste his skin and nibble him in a few places to brand him hers. She would let his musky scent fill her nostrils before pressing her mouth to his, getting the deep, tongue-tangling kiss she knew awaited her. She would let her hand reach down to touch him in his most private area, feeling the heat of him, hot, hard and thick. The mere thought of seducing him that way had blood racing recklessly through her veins.

"Kylie?"

She swallowed, trying to bring her thoughts back in check. "Yes?"

"Tell me."

The sensuous tone of his voice was playing havoc on her sensibilities. She leaned back in bed, letting her body cool from the heated thoughts that had flowed through her mind earlier. Her lids lowered and for a long second she didn't say anything, wondering if she should. But she knew he wouldn't let up until she told him.

"Lena mentioned that the American Cancer Society is having their annual ball and she's on the committee," she started off by saying. "So quite naturally she's trying to get rid of as many tickets as she can. I told her I'd get a ticket to support the cause and then she tried talking me into getting two, knowing full well I wouldn't have a date that night."

"And?" he asked when she paused briefly.

That single, softly uttered word stirred an area of her body that it shouldn't have. "And...Lena suggested that I invite you."

"So that's what you meant when you screamed in my ear."

Color rushed into Kylie's face again. "Yes, that's what I meant."

"I see. Don't I have a say in the matter?"

"No. The only reason we met, Chance, is because of the kids," she said, giving voice to her earlier thoughts. "If we had been at any function together you wouldn't have noticed me. I'm not the type of woman you would have been drawn to enough to show any real interest in."

"You think not?"

"Yes."

"What if I said you're wrong?"

"We'll never know, will we?"

When he had no comeback, she said, "Besides, I don't date. I mentioned that to you before."

"Yes, you did mention it. Is that also the reason you won't go camping, because you see that as a date?"

"No, that in itself is a whole other set of problems, Chance. I just think the two of us spending a weekend at a cabin isn't a good idea, even with the kids there. Especially with the kids there."

"Why?"

"I think you know the reason without me having to go into any great detail. For some reason, we're like magnets-we attract."

"And you see that as a bad thing?"

"Yes. Our focus should be on our kids. What would Marcus think if he thought you were attracted to me?"

Chance chuckled. "He would probably think the same thing I did when I finally got to meet Tiffany. That he has great taste. She's a nice girl and so is her mother."

Kylie couldn't help but smile, pleased with his compliment, but still..."Can't you see the problems it will cause if our kids think something is going on between us?"

"No."

"Chance," she said, moaning his name in frustration.

"Kylie. We've had this conversation before and my feelings on the matter haven't changed. We're adults and what we do is our business. In fact I think Marcus will find it strange if I'm not attracted to you. He thinks you're beautiful, so quite naturally he'll a.s.sume that I'll think you're beautiful, too. And I do. I also think you're someone I'd like to get to know better. He would a.s.sume as much as well. But you're right. The camping trip will be about Marcus and Tiffany and not about us. Our time will come later."

She wondered what he meant by that.

"Will it make you feel better if I promise to be on my best behavior when we go camping?"

Kylie shrugged. How could she explain to him that his behavior really had nothing to do with it? It was her own behavior she was concerned about. He didn't have to do anything in particular for her to get turned on. Her dilemma was the fact that just seeing him did that.

"If you don't go, you know what might happen, don't you?"

Chance's question recaptured her attention. "No, what?"

"The kids are going to feel that they can't depend on us to keep our end of the bargain. We did tell them that we would agree for them to take part in supervised activities."

"But we never said anything about overnight activities, Chance."

"Neither did we clarify they had to be only daytime activities. They won't understand what the big deal is since we will be there as chaperones. They will only see it as a cop-out on our part. I don't think it's fair to cancel out a weekend of fun for them just because we can't keep our hormones in check for forty-eight hours. It makes us sound pretty d.a.m.n selfish, don't you think?"

Kylie sighed deeply. It hadn't before, but since he'd put it that way, yes, it did make them-her in particular-sound selfish. Tiffany had never gotten the chance to go camping. Kylie had been too overprotective to even let her go with the Girl Scouts that time when she was ten. And now all her daughter wanted was to experience her first camping trip and her selfish mother, who couldn't keep her overactive hormones in line, was standing in her way.

"Okay, you've convinced me. I'll go."

"Great! The kids will be happy."

She laughed. "Yes, I'm sure they will be."

"I'll make the arrangements for next weekend. Will that work?"

"Yes, that will work."

"And. Kylie...?"

"Yes?"

"The kids aren't the only ones who'll be happy. I'm going to be happy as well. Good night."

Before she could say anything, he hung up the phone.

Chapter 7.

A few days later Kylie was praying that at some point her life would resume a sense of normalcy. Since she'd told Tiffany of her decision to go camping, her daughter had been nothing but a bundle of ma.s.s excitement. So much, in fact, that Kylie had to wonder whether being with Marcus was the primary reason for her daughter's happiness or the camping trip itself. few days later Kylie was praying that at some point her life would resume a sense of normalcy. Since she'd told Tiffany of her decision to go camping, her daughter had been nothing but a bundle of ma.s.s excitement. So much, in fact, that Kylie had to wonder whether being with Marcus was the primary reason for her daughter's happiness or the camping trip itself.

With teenage exuberance, Tiffany had gone on and on about all the things she planned to do, like swimming in the lake, fishing in that same lake, having a picnic by that lake and taking oodles and oodles of pictures of that lake. And she intended to do a lot of bird watching and had even checked out a library book on the various species. Of course that meant she would need a pair of binoculars, which her G.o.dmother had been quick to buy for her.

Kylie hadn't talked to Chance anymore until he'd called early Sat.u.r.day morning saying he would drop off a list of items she might want to bring along. The cabin's kitchen was well-stocked with cooking utensils, but he thought it would be good if they cooked outside on the grill or a camp stove. He'd gone on to tell her that although the cabin had electricity, usually he and Marcus enjoyed faking it by using candles and lanterns.

Antic.i.p.ating his visit, she had been a ma.s.s of nerves, and once she opened the door not even the loud wail of a fire truck siren could intrude on her jolting awareness of him. She pulled in a deep breath. And then another. Neither did a thing to stop the pounding of her heart or the barrage of sensations that overwhelmed her.

Standing before her in jogging pants, a T-shirt and a pair of what appeared to have once been expensive tennis shoes, Chance Steele was the epitome of everything hot and spicy. He looked like a man capable of doing anything he pleased, whether it was in the boardroom or in the bedroom. Especially in the bedroom. However, at that very moment she had to concede that there was nothing sophisticated about Chance's appearance. He looked like a man ready for some play time, and his darkly stubbled jaw, which meant he hadn't yet shaved that morning, only added to his sharply male features.

"Here's the camping checklist I told you about," he said, breaking into her heated thoughts.

She took the paper he handed her. "Thanks."

"The only things you'll need to bring for you and Tiffany are the items listed under the first-aid section."

She nodded and quickly scanned the list, okay with everything she saw on it until she noted the snake bite kit. She lifted her gaze back to his. The eyes that met hers were dark, s.e.xy and full of s.e.xual interest he wasn't trying to hide, which made her thankful for two things: that she was a woman and that she was decently dressed. "Snake bite kit?"

A smile touched his eyes. "Yes, just as an added precaution. But I have one if you have trouble finding it. It's a rather popular item this time of the year."

An uninvited shiver ran through her. That wasn't exactly what she wanted to hear. She cleared her throat. "Would you like to come in? Tiffany and I were just sitting down to breakfast. You're welcome to join us."

"No, thanks. I'm on my way to the gym. It's tradition that my brothers and I play basketball every Sat.u.r.day morning. It helps get rid of any compet.i.tive frustrations we might have before the start of a new week."

She lifted a brow. "Compet.i.tive frustrations? Does that happen often?"

"I guess with four adult males it can't help but happen occasionally, given the closeness of our ages and our compet.i.tive natures. Then of course there's Donovan, who often forgets that I'm the oldest and he's the youngest."

It wasn't the first time she felt that an extreme closeness existed between the Steele brothers. It was there in his tone whenever he spoke of them. "Well, enjoy your game."

"I will. And just so you'll know, I'm catching a flight out first thing Monday morning to Dallas. I'll be there until Thursday. Marcus will be spending time with my brothers until I return."

"All right, thanks for letting me know," she said, missing him already, although she didn't want to feel that way. "Have a safe trip."

By the way he was staring at her, she knew without a doubt that if Tiffany hadn't been home he would have come inside and kissed her goodbye. That knowledge caused an ache in certain parts of her body. Their connected gazes were holding just a little too long. She knew it and was fully aware that he knew it as well.

"I'll call you," he finally whispered huskily.

Kylie nodded. A promise made and one she knew he intended to keep. "All right."

She wrapped her arms around her waist, hugging herself so she wouldn't be tempted to reach out and hug him.

He took a step back and looked deeply into her eyes one last time before turning back to his truck.

During the next four days Kylie spent her free time shopping for the items on the list Chance had given her. After that was done, Tiffany had convinced her that they needed to spruce up their wardrobes, with a collection of new outfits suitable for camping.

Kylie enjoyed this carefree, happy-go-lucky side of her daughter. It had been a long time since she'd seen it and she couldn't help but count her blessings now.

She and Tiffany returned home from one of their shopping trips rather late on Wednesday night and were in her bedroom unwrapping their numerous packages.

"Mom, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, honey, you can ask my anything."

"Why don't you have a boyfriend?"

Kylie's hand went still on the new blouse that she was about to place on the hanger. You can ask me anything but that, she wanted to say but decided it was a good question. If only she could give her daughter what she felt was a good answer. She decided to go for the truth...but only after she found out why Tiffany wanted to know.

"Why do you ask?"

"Because I think you're so pretty and all the other girls at school whose moms are single always talk about their mothers' boyfriends. In fact Trisha n.o.bles's mom is getting married next month."

Good for Trisha n.o.bles's mom, Kylie wanted to say. But she knew the only reason Tiffany had asked the question was because the answer was important to her.

"I've been too busy to have a boyfriend," she said honestly. "Running the shop takes up a lot of my time."

"But even before we moved here and you worked for that marketing firm you never went out on a date or anything."