Page 34 of The Kiss Keeper
He followed Natalie’s grandfather into the snug space and found everyone congregating around a granite kitchen island. He grabbed a plate and served himself two slices of pepperoni when he noticed his fake girlfriend hadn’t started eating.
Here was his first chance to look good in front of the fam.
“Natalie, do you want me to get you a slice of pepperoni?”
The chatter stopped, and his fake girlfriend stared at him, panic welling in her eyes.
“Nat’s a vegetarian,” Lara said, sharing a look with Leslie.
“How did you not know that after five months and six days of dating?” Leslie asked with a condescending smirk.
He caught Natalie’s gaze. “I think it’s just been a long day of travel.”
“Jet lag can do that,” Bev offered kindly, but nobody looked convinced.
Natalie crossed the kitchen and came to his side. “And I might be a vegetarian, but Jake knows that I love to watch him eat meat.”
“You like to watch your boyfriend eat meat?” Leo threw back.
Shit! This was going downhill quick.
Marcus raised his hand like a kindergartner. “Meat voyeurism is a thing. People post about it on YouTube. I spent all last weekend watching videos of some chick downing a T-bone.”
“Don’t mind us, Jake. Meat-eat away,” Leslie said with a wave of her hand.
Dammit! Why couldn’t he have offered her a slice of cheese?
He picked up the piece of pepperoni and held it in front of his mouth as Natalie’s family watched her watch him eat the entire slice.
“Riveting stuff!” Marcus said, then jammed a slice into his mouth.
The group’s attention swung to the idiot podiatrist, and everyone had to be thinking the same thing.
How the hell had this man made it through grade school—let alone podiatry school?
But he owed the guy for drawing the family’s quizzical gazes off of him.
“Sorry,” he said under his breath as Natalie chose a slice of cheese.
“It’s okay. We’ll have time tonight to get our stories straight,” she whispered back.
Damn right. Everything was riding on them keeping up this con for another reason.
Charlie knew he was at the camp.
The text he’d received in the van had come from his boss, asking for an update, and the words he’d quickly hammered out in response flashed through his mind.
Met a Woolwich granddaughter on the flight. She invited me to stay at the camp with her. Nothing is standing in my way.
Now, he needed to stick to his plan and use this opportunity to get to know Hal and Bev and see what made them tick. Then, he could start the delicate work of convincing them to sell—and offer up his company as the perfect conduit to attaining that deal.
“So, Hal, how’s everything going with the business? It’s strange you’re not running a camp session this summer,” Leo asked, shifty-eyed as he tucked into a slice, and Jake’s ears perked up.
Maybe it would be easier than he thought to get the dirt on Camp Woolwich.
Hal shared a look with Bev. “We wanted to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the camp and our wedding anniversary with the people we love most without the pressure of preparing for the campers.”
“But won’t the lost revenue be a hit?” the man pressed.
