Текст книги "Love Unscripted"

Автор книги: Tina Reber

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Текущая страница: 12 (всего у книги 40 страниц)

“I have to be in makeup by seven. I have a fourteen hour day scheduled,” he muttered, placing our towels on the counter.

I wondered if I would drive him to our secret transfer place or if a driver would pick him up here in the morning. I’d save that question for later for I

didn’t want to think at all about him leaving.

We climbed into the shower to wash again when Ryan’s expression turned serious.

“Taryn, I want to be honest with you. There are some things you need to know before everyone shows up tonight.”

My heart thumped in my chest, guessing that his honestly would reveal bad news. His timing was perfect though – where could I go at this very

moment? I was naked and standing in a stream of water.

I looked up into his eyes; if he’s going to tell me something horrible then he’d have to face me head on.

“I just want you to know that there’s nothing going on between me and Suzanne, even though I spend a lot of time in situations with her where it

seems like something could be going on.”

“I don’t know what you mean,” I said as the water pelted me in the head.

“She’s the lead in our movie, and I know you haven’t seen it, but there are a lot of scenes where I have to kiss her – but it’s just for the film. We

have to be close, but I want you to know that I don’t have those kinds of feelings for her.” He stared at me intensely, monitoring my reaction.

I looked at him, confused. “What are you trying to say?”

“I think of her like a sister – a sometimes annoying sister. I’m concerned she might say something tonight that’s out of line. And I just wanted you

to know – from me – that there’s nothing there.”

“Okay. So if she says something to me I should just ignore her?”

“Just take it with a grain of salt. She might be cool, but I’m thinking she’s going to say something stupid. If she says anything to you, just tell me,

okay?” he said as he rinsed his face under the water.

“Okay, I will. Are you finished or do you need more time in here?” I was ready to turn the water off. I looked at him expecting an answer to my

question but instead fear struck me in the chest; his face was still troubled.

“There’s something else you need to know,” he continued. I felt the blood rush from my heart as he took a hold of my hands.

“Francesca and I…” He looked down with guilt. The fear from not knowing what his confession would be knocked me for a loop. He looked me

directly in the eyes when he spoke again. “It only happened once, and it was over a year ago.”

I reached behind my back and turned the water off. I had to get a bearing on the admission he just made to me. I pushed the curtain open and

was just about to step out of the tub when he gently grabbed my arm.

“Taryn, look at me. I swear it was only once… and after it happened I realized it was a big mistake. I want you to know that I don’t have any

feelings for her.” His expression was sincere.

“Does she have feelings for you?” I asked. Disappointment coated my whisper.

“I don’t know. Sometimes she says things… I know I should have never crossed that line with her.” His hand lifted my chin so I’d look him in the

eyes. “It doesn’t matter. I don’t care if she has feelings for me or not because I don’t feel the same way. I never did. I never will.”

I stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel tightly around my body. I hoped the constriction of the towel could somehow keep my heart

from cracking.

Ryan quickly wrapped a towel around his waist then grabbed my wrist, forcing me to look at him again.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you like this, but I wanted you to know – directly from me – what the truth is. I’m telling you all of this because I

don’t want any secrets between us. She’s coming here tonight too and I don’t want our relationship to get...” He looked away to choose his words

before looking back into my eyes.

“Taryn, I’m…” he paused to breathe out a deep sigh. “I only want you – just you. But I can’t change the mistakes that I’ve made.”

I had to make an instant decision. I could let the jealousy consume me and be angry or I could thank my lucky stars that the man standing in front

of me cared enough about me to tell me the truth.

I slowly reached my hand up to place it on his cheek. The water from his hair was dripping down his face. My heart skipped a beat from just

touching him and I realized that my feelings for him were way too powerful to let his past change that. For the first time in my life the man who was

holding my heart in his hand was honest with me. It took a lot of courage for him to tell me what he was feeling.

“Thank you for being honest and for telling me.” I softly smiled. Relief coursed into my heart when he took my hand in his and pressed my palm

to his lips.

“Are you mad at me?” he asked carefully.

“No, I’m not mad. I’m not happy with the news, but we both have pasts. It’s part of who we are. We’ve both made mistakes.”

He took my face in his hands, staring into my eyes; his thumbs gently stroked my cheeks before he leaned in to softly kiss my lips.

I wrapped my hands around his ribs as he kissed me passionately. There were no cameras, no directors, no witnesses – just Ryan and I and our

raw, unscripted emotions.

“We better get ready. We’re going to have guests soon,” I reminded him.

I started to comb my wet hair while doing everything possible to banish the visions of him and Francesca together.

As long as he was an actor, women would be coming at him from all angles and directions. But he was with me now, by his choice, and the

feelings that he shared were real and as obvious as black and white, with no shades of gray.

Ryan slipped a new black T-shirt over his head; his jeans were hanging on his hips and the elastic waistband of his briefs was showing as he

strung his leather belt through the loops.

I smiled, thinking that it took me three showers to get to this point of the day. My hair and makeup were finally done.

Oh my God he is hot! I really just want to lay naked in bed with him all day.

“What?” he asked softly, noting my stare.

My eyes were still tracing the faint view of his exposed skin on his stomach.

“Tell me what you’re thinking!” he urged. I thought about it for a moment, then decided to be blatantly honest.

“I was just thinking about tearing your clothes off and crawling back under the covers.”

He charged over to where I stood and wrapped his arms around me, lifting me off the floor. His aggressive approach made me laugh.

“I could rip your clothes off too, but actually you are looking so incredibly sexy dressed.” His eyes glanced down at my body.

I was in my favorite True Religion Jeans – the ones that had cute leather lacing up the front, with a black Tee and my black heeled boots.

“I could go back to sleep though. You wore me out!” he snickered. “We’ll just have to kick everyone out early.”

I slipped my fingers into his hair and kissed him, appreciating that for this moment in time, he was mine… all mine.

It was almost three thirty in the afternoon when Pete called to let me know that he and Tammy were out in the alley, getting ready to unload the

food.

“Here Taryn, take this box,” Pete instructed. The back of Tammy’s van was loaded.

“Something smells fantastic!” Ryan said, taking the box from my hands. “Where do you want me to put this?”

“Just put everything on the counters for now. We need to set up tables,” I replied. I couldn’t help but smirk at Ryan. He was smiling at me too.

Ryan helped Pete set up a table for the food and then assisted in transferring all the food from the kitchen to the bar. It was apparent by the

volume and variety of delectables that we were going to eat like kings and queens today.

Marie and Gary arrived soon after we started setting up. I had asked them to arrive early, for I wanted to make sure that my friends were safely

inside before the cast arrived. My friends didn’t need to be photographed today.

Tammy had set out linens to cover the buffet tables and I was in the process of opening one of them up when Ryan walked past me. He pinched

me quickly on the butt cheek when he thought no one was looking.

“So… how’s it going?” Marie grinned and raised her eyebrows. She noticed the way Ryan and I were beaming.

I glanced around to make sure we were alone before holding my hand up and spreading my five fingers out to her.

“Five?” she whispered in amazement.

I smiled a devilish grin and nodded my head.

“Did you take my advice and feed him well to keep his energy level up?”

“Oh, he ate very well this morning – several times. Wait, did you mean feed him food?” I teased.

“So what are you two ladies whispering about over here?” Ryan asked after he set another box on the table.

Marie and I looked at each other and just smiled; it was apparent on our faces that we were talking about – things.

Ryan wrapped his arms around my waist. “I guess our secret is out now?” he chuckled.

“What secret?” Marie’s voice boomed. “It’s so obvious the way you two are glowing around each other. The only thing missing are the words ‘I

had incredible sex’ written on your foreheads!” She motioned the words with her hand.

Ryan and I laughed as he squeezed me tighter. “It was beyond incredible,” he whispered in my ear and kissed me on the neck.

Pete walked into the bar with another box of food, noting Ryan’s hold on me. A not-so-nice word slipped from his lips.

Gary was right behind him, and when he saw us he started laughing.

“Looks like you owe me some money,” Gary muttered.

“Doesn’t mean anything,” Pete snapped. He looked over at Marie; she twitched her lips and nodded her head to confirm his suspicions.

“Son-of-a… two more days… you couldn’t hold off for two more days?” Pete busted on us.

I glared over at Marie.

“Don’t look at me! You know how competitive those two are. It wasn’t my idea!”

Ryan released me and turned to Pete. “You bastards betting on us?” he asked jokingly.

“Yep!” Pete replied. “And you cost me twenty bucks, you prick!”

Ryan slipped his hand into his front pocket and peeled a twenty-dollar bill off of a small stack of cash.

“Here you go, Gary. Pete’s loss was my gain.” He laughed. “It was worth every penny!”

Gary didn’t hesitate. He snatched the bill out of Ryan’s hand and stuffed it into his pocket. Marie teasingly nudged me.

“You know Ryan, Gary is a Giants fan,” Pete baited him.

“Oh really?” Ryan asked, looking over at Gary.

“Ugh! Don’t tell me you’re a freaking Steelers fan too,” Gary groaned. “No wonder you and Taryn get along so well.”

“What do you say to another bet?” Ryan’s eyes narrowed on Gary. “I got another twenty in my pocket that says the Giants are going to get their

asses handed to them tonight.”

While the three of them discussed the terms of the wager, Tammy, Marie, and I finished setting up the buffet table.

“He fits in perfectly!” Marie whispered in my ear. “Look at them! They’re like long-lost college buddies!”

“I know!” I whispered back. The sight of the three of them getting along so well was heart-warming.

“Ryan freakin’ Christensen!” Marie giggled as she gave me a shoulder hug. “So, tell me, is he packing or what?”

“What do you think?” I murmured.

She breathed out a rough sigh.

“Hey, no fantasizing about him,” I warned. “You have your own. That one’s mine. And try not to ask too many questions about their stupid movie,

all right? They’re just regular people.”

Tammy set up an elaborate tiered cheese and veggie tray; she had hot and cold hors d'oeuvres, hot entrees to complement the steaks, shrimp

and lobster bites, and several different little desserts and chocolate dipped what-nots.

I started to uncork a bottle of merlot while the guys discussed football trades and names of players. I never understood how men could

remember all those details about sports but, yet, were incapable of remembering where they set their car keys or wallet.

Just like the other day when Ryan asked me where his messenger bag was. Did he really not remember where it was, or is there some primitive

part of a man’s brain that starts to shut down whenever a woman comes into their lives?

Ryan was obviously hungry; he was popping food in his mouth between words. He had just shoved a big piece of cheese in his mouth when his

cell phone rang. After a brief conversation, he met me at the bar.

“Cal and his wife are on their way. They’re driving themselves. The rest of the group is coming separately; they were just picked up at the hotel.

Cal told me that they are being followed by the paparazzi.” Ryan’s words sounded almost angry.

“I have to go start the grill; do you want to come up with me?” I asked, hoping he would follow.

He just nodded at me.

On our way through my apartment, we grabbed our coats. I presumed it would be cold outside. He playfully goosed my rear end all the way up

the steps to the roof. I was getting the hint that he liked my butt.

I opened the rooftop door and turned to look at his reaction. His eyes instantly widened as he stepped outside.

“Oh my God, Taryn! This is incredible!”

I had a good portion of the roof transformed into a nice patio. There was a huge, raised composite deck with an outdoor stone bar with a granite

top. I had designed a corner-raised fireplace at one end of the patio; the other end closest to the door contained the enormous stacked stone

counter and stainless steel grill.

The entire patio area was covered by a wooden pergola roof; I had tried to train vines to grow up the pillars, but the October winds had dried up

most of the leaves. Underneath the open lattice roof, I had attached tiny white lights to make the patio glow in the evening. Centered on the patio

was a large teak table that seated twelve and directly above that, a wrought iron and glass candle chandelier. I turned the lights on for Ryan so he

could see it sparkle in the setting sun.

“This is… beautiful!” he proclaimed, appearing quite mesmerized by it all.

I smiled at him; I was glad that he thought so too.

“You can really see the ocean from here,” he sighed loudly.

I turned the gas on underneath the grill and lit the pilot. The burners popped to life with fire.

“It’s not as cold as I thought it would be tonight,” I mentioned. “Do you think people might like to sit up here too? I could start a fire.”

“Yeah. I know I wouldn’t mind hanging out up here for a little.”

I pulled some wood out of the storage bin and stacked it in the fireplace. Ryan was standing at the edge of the deck with his fingers in his front

pockets, looking out at the ocean and the setting sun. His face was beaming.

“I think this is my new favorite place in the world,” he declared. “I thought your stairwell was the gateway to peace. This is the peace!”

I stood next to him, enjoying the view of the colors over the ocean. I had seen the setting sun over the water a thousand times, but with Ryan

standing next to me, it was like I was seeing it for the first time. Ryan slipped his hand out of his pocket and took my hand in his. He lifted my hand

to his lips, placing a soft kiss on my skin.

He leaned over to give me a kiss. Either he was a brilliant actor, or he was falling for me too. I hoped it was the latter.

I giggled lightly when he pulled my hand behind his back, causing me to get off balance and fall into him. He smiled at me and pressed his lips

to mine. Ryan quickly let go of my hand and placed both of his hands on my neck – raising my face to his. His kiss was so passionate, I was totally

lost in the feeling; so lost that I didn’t hear the roof door open.

I did, however, hear someone when they cleared their throat. Pete had escorted Cal and his wife to the roof. Suzanne and Francesca were

directly behind them. The second we realized we weren’t alone, Ryan immediately let me go.

“My, aren’t you two cozy already,” Suzanne said in her British accent.

Ryan fired a dirty look in her direction. He ignored her and guided me over to Cal and his wife.

“Hey Cal!” Ryan shook his hand. “Taryn, I’d like to introduce you to Cal’s wife, Kelly. Kelly, this is Taryn – Taryn Mitchell. She is the owner of this

beautiful establishment.”

I held out my hand to Kelly. I remembered seeing her many times on television, but she was even lovelier in person. She had straight blond hair,

high cheekbones, and the type of smile that was infectious. I recalled she was only a year or two older than I was. We were about the same in height

and close to the same size too.

“Hi Kelly, it’s very nice to meet you!”

“It’s nice to meet you too, Taryn!” She gave me a nice hug. “Oh wow! Cal, look at this view!” The sound of her voice was very familiar to me. I

spent many years watching her show faithfully.

“Ryan and I were just appreciating the same thing before you arrived,” I said to her. I felt Ryan’s hand in the small of my back.

“This is magnificent, Taryn,” Cal agreed. I saw him look at Ryan and smile.

Kelly walked to the fireplace; I could see that she wanted a closer look. “Cal, this is what we should put in the corner of our patio. I want this!”

“It’s quite easy to build,” I explained. “I understand you have a young daughter? Something like this with the height would be safer for her. You

can easily place a fire screen across the front.”

Kelly and I continued our discussion about the grill and bar area. She was very intrigued about the design.

“I actually sketched the design. I saw it in my head, the way I wanted it to be laid out, and then I had a local contractor build it all for me.”

“It’s beautiful! We’ll have to bring you to California and design one for us. We just built a new home in Malibu.”

It was very easy to talk to Kelly. She was very open and pleasant, and was the type of person I could see myself being good friends with.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Suzanne and Francesca slowly walking towards us. I didn’t want to be rude to the rest of our guests so I

smiled in their general direction. Ryan and Cal were having a conversation about something that happened with one of the cameras on the set the

other day, and I noticed that Ryan barely acknowledged the other girls’ presence.

I looked at the two actresses and gave them my best welcome smile.

“Hi!” I held out my hand to Suzanne. “I’m Taryn. Welcome to my home.” She barely took my fingers in hers and quickly shook my hand.

“I’m Suzanne,” she mumbled.

I got the distinct impression that I was supposed to acknowledge that she was famous and I was expected to already know who she was.

“It’s nice to meet you. And you must be Francesca,” I stated warmly, holding my hand out to her.

“Yes,” she said quickly, barely looking at me. Even though she only said one word I could still detect the French accent to her voice. She was as

unpleasant to me as I had expected.

“I didn’t have an opportunity to meet you both when you were in my pub, but I’m glad that you came today.” There was no way I was going to be

impolite, despite the less than warm reception I was getting in return.

I glanced over to Ryan, who gave me a smile and a nod. He was acknowledging my attempts at being cordial.

“Ladies, can I offer you a drink? We have a large variety of wines downstairs, or any other beverage you might prefer.” I was hoping they might

follow me down to the bar. I did not want to be carrying drinks up and down the stairs all night.

Much to my dismay, Suzanne wrapped her coat across her chest and plopped her ass down in one of the chairs. “I’ll have a glass of white wine.”

Francesca sat down next to her. My wishes for them to return to the bar were in vain. While I was running downstairs I was going to make it worth

the trip.

“Francesca, can I get you something to drink?” I asked nicely.

Before she responded, the rooftop door opened again and several new people joined us.

I recognized Shane Richards right away; he had come into the pub once before with Ryan and Cal. Next to him was a petite, twenty-something

looking woman with short blond hair and another man who was lanky with too much gel in his brown hair.

Ryan came to my side and he was smiling at our new guests.

“Hey everyone!” the young woman said. “Hey Ryan!” She came right over to us.

I didn’t know who she was, but it didn’t matter. She was all aglow and looking like she wanted to have a good time, not like the other two who

were glaring at me from their perches.

“Taryn, this is Kathleen Jarrett. She plays my wicked little assistant in our film.” He smiled and gave her a teasing arm hug around her neck.

“Kat, this is Taryn.”

“Hey Taryn!” Kathleen greeted me. I held my hand out to her but instead she gave me a hug. “It’s nice to finally meet you!”

“It’s nice to meet you too!” I said while hugging her back. I was curious as to what she meant by ‘finally;’ I looked over at Ryan, slightly confused.

He was just smiling.

“Ryan has told me a lot about you,” she whispered in my ear. “I’m just so glad to see him happy.”

“Taryn, this is Ben… Ben Harrison.” Kathleen motioned to the man next to her.

“Hi Ben. It’s nice to meet you.” I held out my hand, but the way Kathleen was bobbing around, I wondered if she would pull us all in for a group

hug. I was relieved when Ben shook my hand instead.

Ryan leaned over and whispered in my ear. “I’m allowed to tell you that they are together, even though their characters are mortal enemies. I told

Kat that you’re very trustworthy.”

His eyes flashed to look at Kat, but she was just smiling and bouncing with happiness.

“They’ve been seeing each other for a while, but it’s not public knowledge. They’d prefer if the public stays out of their private life.”

“I completely understand,” I replied. Apparently Ryan had been sharing his private life details with her. It didn’t matter; she looked like she was

trustworthy too.

“Ryan, do you think we can get everyone back down into the pub for a minute? That way I can get everyone drinks and we can start eating

soon.” I was also thinking about my friends, who were noticeably absent from the rooftop gathering.

Ryan made an announcement and ushered everyone towards the door. I was relieved that he took charge. I didn’t want to offend anyone,

especially the two that were still glaring at me. The more they glared, the less I wanted to wait on them hand and foot.

Kelly and Kat stopped as we proceeded through my apartment.

“What do you guys think?” Ryan asked them, looking around at my apartment.

“This is a really cool apartment,” Kat said excitedly. “It’s huge!”

Ryan took them for a quick tour and stopped in my kitchen. I was surprised that it made such an impression on him.

“Taryn designed it,” he stated proudly.

I was glad that the rest of the group went downstairs. I could only imagine Suzanne rolling her eyes at Ryan’s comments.

“I love the stove,” Ryan added. “There are enough burners on this thing to make a meal for forty people.”

“Maybe one day I’ll know forty people to cook for,” I joked. “Speaking of cooking… why don’t we all go downstairs for a drink, and then I can get

the steaks on the grill.”

Suzanne and Francesca were sitting at the big, round table. I noticed that they were wearing almost the same look in clothing. Both had

designer T-shirts on and their sneakers were the same, but in different colors. I wondered who was copying whom.

As I looked around at the cast, I could easily see whom Ryan got along with and who presented a challenge. I wondered, besides the obvious

look of her, what attracted Ryan to Francesca. She looked like a model, but she seemed to have the personality of a rock. I didn’t get the appeal;

unless at the time of his moment of weakness he was drunk or just so hard up that he wasn’t looking for a hole with a personality.

Suzanne looked bored. Francesca on the other hand was sitting there taking mental notes. I could sense her wheels were turning. When

Suzanne got up to use the restroom, Francesca trailed behind her.

I set out two bottles of opened wine on the end of the buffet table when I heard the two girls coming out of the bathroom.

“Didn’t take him long to get some in this town,” Suzanne said coldly. “Guess this one is the new flavor of the month.” Her eyes looked me up and

down when she noticed me standing there.

I didn’t move. I just stood there with my arms crossed. The battle lines were being drawn right before my eyes and the evening was still young.

“Don’t let them get to you,” Kelly said as she made a small platter of finger foods behind me. “They’re threatened by you,” she mentioned

casually.

“I don’t understand,” I whispered to her. “I don’t even know them.”

“You’re taking Ryan off the eligible bachelors’ list and they’re jealous. Those two have had issues with every girl he speaks to. Ryan is a nice

guy; he talks to everybody.”

Kelly took a moment to eat a seafood puff. “It’s weird; they act like they have some kind of ownership over him. I’ll be glad once this third movie

is done; then we’ll be rid of them.” She smiled at me, like we were in on some secret joke together.

“I didn’t know what I had done to offend them,” I uttered.

“You captured Ryan’s attention. That was enough.” Kelly giggled.

After she sampled another bite of food, her facial expression turned serious. “So, how did you and Ryan meet?”

I wasn’t prepared to answer that question to anyone. I didn’t know what to say.

“I would prefer if you asked Ryan that question,” I politely requested.

“Very good,” she replied. “You’re a quick learner!” Kelly fired another question at me. “Are you dating him?”

“No. I’m not dating anyone,” I responded. My answer wasn’t altogether a lie. In reality, he had yet to take me on a date. Our relationship was

anything but conventional.

“I like you! He made a good choice.” Kelly put her hand on my shoulder. “Being involved with a celebrity has its own set of challenges. He needs

to know that you can stand on your own while standing by his side. You need to be strong and not let the gossip and trivial actress egos get to you.”

“Is this all a test?” I asked her point blank, my eyes looking around the room. I poured myself a glass of wine to calm my nerves.

“No, this is a party.” She laughed at my worried look. “But it is a good start. You could consider this to be more like dipping your toes in the

water.”

We moved further away from the buffet table to continue our discussion in private.

“I’ve known Ryan for almost two years now.” Kelly smiled to herself, like something she thought of amused her. “Let’s just say he’s very taken

with you. I’ve never seen him like this with anyone.”

I took a sip of wine and moved closer to her. I wanted to know what she knew.

“Taryn, he’s very worried about you and how you’ll cope with being in our world. Ryan is very sensitive. He’s having a hard time coping himself.

He’s not comfortable with all the attention one garners as a celebrity.” She paused to let Francesca pass us.

“You can’t be the star of a major motion picture and not be in the spotlight, and this movie has surely thrown him into the spotlight! He’s learning

how to handle being famous. If you want to be in a relationship with him, you’re going to have to learn with him.”

She nodded her chin in his direction. “That right there is who he really is. But outside that door,” her eyes flashed to my front door,

“photographers are waiting on your sidewalk.”

“I know. I wish they would leave all of you alone, especially him.” Ryan and I were looking at each other from across the room. I wanted to run to

him and wrap my arms around him in a protective embrace.

“I told him I would help.” She smiled, noticing his glance. “I want to see him happy, and you seem to make him very happy.” She patted me on

the back.

Ryan made his way over to me; he was smiling that sexy grin the whole way.

“Hey,” he whispered out. “How are you ladies doing?”

“Oh, you know. We’re just standing here talking about you.” Kelly laughed lightly. She was fearless.

“I sort of figured!” Ryan retorted, running his free hand over my upper arm.

I looked at him, amused. I had been so paranoid, avoiding saying things about him to my friends, but here he’d been talking about me to his

friends all along. I surmised that he had shared his thoughts about me with a few people in this room.

“You have anything good to say?” he asked me.

I just smiled and shook my head to indicate my answer. “I’m sorry. I don’t think we’ve ever met. Who are you?”

My words made Kelly laugh out loud. Ryan, on the other hand, pulled me in for a teasing headlock.

“I think I’ll have to refresh your memory later,” he growled in my ear.

“Promise?” I laughed.

“Cross my heart!” He grinned.

I heard his stomach groan while he was wrestling with me. “I think I need to get those steaks on the grill,” I said between laughing.

“Yes. I’m starving,” Ryan agreed.

“Kelly, would you excuse me please. I look forward to talking more with you, but…” I patted Ryan’s stomach. “Right now I need to prepare your

meal.”

Ryan followed me to my kitchen and, as promised, he helped me carry all the steaks up to the patio. I opened one of the stainless steel drawers

by the grill and retrieved my utensils and my large cast iron kettle.

“See the hook over there in the fireplace? Would you hang this kettle there for me, please?”

“Sure, but you have to kiss me first.” He smiled as he leaned over. His kiss was brief but persuasive.

When he stepped back to me, he wrapped his arms around my waist.

“What’s the timer for?” he whispered on my neck.

It was going to be difficult to grill fifteen steaks with his body pressed into my back like that. He swept my hair to one side, seductively kissing

the nape of my neck.

“Grilling is a precision art,” I giggled. Ryan’s warm lips had found my earlobe.

“You know you’re driving me insane,” I whispered.

“No, I believe you are driving me insane,” he uttered seductively.

“Are you here to learn or to distract me?” I grumbled.

“Sorry, sorry. Here to help.” His hands let go of my hips.

I turned quickly to face him and wrapped my arms around his neck, kissing him passionately. He responded immediately, holding me tightly.

Apparently he was hungrier for me more than the steak.

I had just slipped my hands into his back pockets when I heard the rooftop door slam and a female voice groan out loud. Ryan released me and