Page 29 of The Kiss Keeper
“They own it?” Jake repeated.
“They sure do,” Fish said, extending his hand to Jake. “You must be Jake. It’s good to meet you. Call me, Fish.” The man squinted, looking out the window at the airport’s passenger drop-off zone, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes grew deeper. “I drive the camp van that may be parked illegally out front, so we better hit the road. I’ll go tell your cousins.”
The man left, and she met Jake’s gaze, now clouded with disbelief.
Of course, the guy was gobsmacked. What she’d asked him to do was utterly insane. But that didn’t change the fact that she needed a Jake.
She held his gaze, doing her best not to look like a lunatic. “I know this is nuts. I know we barely know each other. I know you—”
“I’ll do it,” he replied, cutting her off.
She cocked her head to the side. Now, she was gobsmacked.
“You’ll do it?”
He swallowed hard as pain flashed in his eyes, then blinked, and the emotion disappeared and was replaced with that stoic expression from when she’d first seen him in the security line.
He nodded, seemingly more to himself than to her. “I’ll join you at Camp Woolwich. I’ll be your Jake.”
Overcome with relief, she grabbed onto the lapels of his jacket, pulled him down, and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Thank you. I promise I’m not insane.”
He smiled down at her. But the emotion didn’t reach his eyes.
“Enough PDA, Nat! Let’s go!” Leslie called as the Dix brigade followed Fish out of the airport.
She hooked her arm with Jake’s and started working out their ruse. “Okay, I haven’t said much about Jake number six. Sorry for calling him by his number, but you know what I mean.”
Jake the seventh nodded.
“All the Jakes may play to our advantage. It’s a little confusing,” she added.
“I can imagine,” he answered, still a little out of it.
She glanced out the sliding glass doors as everyone piled into the camp van. “Here’s the rundown. My grandparents are Hal and Bev Woolwich. I have five uncles. My mom is the only Woolwich daughter. My parents are divorced, and my dad lives in California.”
“Will he be coming to the camp?” Jake asked.
She shook her head. “No, my parents aren’t a-holes to each other, but they’ve been divorced since I was young and have led very separate lives. And my mom is on assignment in New Zealand. She’s a travel writer and won’t be able to attend the celebration.”
“Okay,” he answered, but he seemed conflicted, which didn’t make much sense. He had no connection to Camp Woolwich. If anyone were to go down for this little masquerade, it would be her.
She stared up at him. “Are you ready?”
A muscle ticked in his jaw. “Yes.”
They passed through the glass doors, and Jake loaded their bags into the back of the van.
So far, so good.
She poked her head into the vehicle to find all three bench seats occupied. “Les, why aren’t you sitting next to Leo?”
Marcus and Lara sat together on one bench while Leslie and Leo each sat on their own.
“I think it best if you sit by me, Natalie. I should examine your feet after your prolonged high heel exposure,” Leo said as if it were totally normal to examine somebody’s feet in the back of a van.
Jake joined her, then pinned Leo with his gaze. “I suggest you sit next to your lovely wife, Dr. Dix. You don’t need to worry about Natalie’s feet anymore.”
The man puffed up. “Why is that?”
