Page 70 of The Kiss Keeper
“You shouldn’t steal that boat, Heels.”
She chuckled. “I’m not stealing it. It belongs to Fish, and I promise you, he won’t mind if I borrow it.”
He took a step toward her. “Natalie, I meant what I said.”
She adjusted the oars then froze. “Jake, if you hadn’t noticed, my life just dramatically changed. I need some time on the water,” she replied, not meeting his gaze.
With one last pull, the rowboat pitched forward then rocked in the shallow waters. Steadying the boat, Natalie climbed in and settled herself on the center bench.
He paced the shore. “Where’s your lifejacket?”
“Right here,” she said, holding up a pair of sagging orange floatation devices. “Two to choose from.”
She strapped one on, then gripped the oars, but he couldn’t let her go. His gaze bounced wildly between the little boat and the vast expanse of water. The same waters that had taken his parents. But he wasn’t about to lose Natalie, too. She needed to understand that he was all in. And that started by getting his ass in that rickety as hell boat.
Sprinting through the salty water, he caught up to the tiny boat, gripped the bow, and hoisted himself into the creaky vessel.
“I didn’t think you did water,” she said unblinking.
He glanced from side to side as the boat evened out. “I don’t. But I also don’t do commitment or relationships, but here I am.”
She rested her head on the handle of the oar. “Jake, you don’t have to be here.”
He stroked her cheek. “I don’t think you understand how much I do.”
“You can’t understand,” she said with a shake of her head.
He leaned forward. “I know how important Camp Woolwich is to you. It’s important to me, too. You’re important to me. Can’t you see, we’re good together, Heels, and I never thought I’d find you.”
She frowned. “Find me? We’ve only just met.”
The rowboat drifted in the current, and he strapped on the other lifejacket.
Shit! He couldn’t screw this up, but that meant walking a fine line.
“Find someone like you. Someone who filled the part of my heart that I thought would always remain a gaping hole,” he replied. It wasn’t a lie, but it also wasn’t the whole truth.
Her features softened. “Is that why you don’t do water? Did you have a bad experience?”
He closed his eyes and focused on the rhythmic sway of the boat. A sensation that used to be a comfort. He could almost hear his parents, chatting quietly, as he drifted off to sleep in their trim little Herreshoff sailboat.
He rubbed his hands on his thighs and released a tight breath. “Yes, I lost my parents in a sailing accident when I was thirteen. I grew up on the lake in northern Michigan. My mom and dad were both solid sailors, but they were in unfamiliar waters and, a storm came in.”
She took his hand into hers. “Were you with them?”
He swallowed hard. “No, I wasn’t there. It was just the two of them. They were on a special trip, celebrating their anniversary, and I was...” he trailed off and stared at the land—at where he’d been, safe at Camp Woolwich, while his mother and father drowned out at sea.
“Oh, Jake. I’m so sorry,” she said, filling in the silence and saving him from telling her the whole story.
He nodded. “After that, my life changed completely. My parents had me late in life. My grandparents passed before I was born, and my mom and dad didn’t come from large families. My uncle, my dad’s brother, took me in. He wasn’t happy about it. For the next five years, I worked my ass off on his dairy farm after school, and he never let me forget that I was a financial burden to him. The day I turned eighteen, I left and never looked back. I thought that making money, lots of money, would make me feel complete and fill that damn hole in my heart. I never wanted to rely on anyone but myself ever again.”
Natalie stared out at the water. “I know a thing or two about wanting to feel complete. That’s why I can’t let the camp get sold off. This is the only place where I feel whole. I love my parents, don’t get me wrong, but after they divorced, I became secondary to their careers—a part-time daughter. But when I’m here, I know who I am. I—”
His phone chimed, and she released his hand and sat back. “You can get that if you need to.”
He slid the phone out to find another message from Charlie, and all he wanted was to be free. “I don’t need to check anything. In fact, I’m done with that part of my life.”
“Done with making buckets of money?” she asked.
