Текст книги "Love Unscripted"

Автор книги: Tina Reber

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Текущая страница: 17 (всего у книги 40 страниц)

“I know what I’d like to do this weekend.” His tone was mischievous.

“And what would that be?”

“I’d love to take my parents up to the lake.” He looked over at me and raised his eyebrows. “I’d love to take my dad out on the boat. Can we do

that?” He was so excited.

“Ryan, it’s Halloween. I have bands scheduled. It’s one of my biggest weekends of the year. Let me see if I can rearrange coverage for the pub

first, okay?”

We drove up the coast for almost a half-hour, then turned into a gated beachside community. I was relieved to see the security guard on duty

and a huge metal gate blocking the rest of the world from entering. I never knew we had gated communities so close.

The homes were typical three story beach houses, all placed very close together. The house that Cal and Kelly had rented was only three homes

away from the beach. “This must be really neat in the summertime.” I smiled over at Ryan.

“Yeah, too bad it’s October,” he said in agreement. I was glad to see that he was almost himself again.

He opened my car door and held my hand as we walked up the sidewalk to the front door.

“Hey guys, come on in!” Cal greeted us and took our coats.

Behind him, the most adorable little girl with long blond hair came running down the hallway. She hid behind her daddy’s legs.

I peeked behind Cal and smiled at the little cutie. “Hi,” I said softly, crouching down to her level. “You must be Cami!”

She giggled at me and hid her face. “Cami, are you being shy?” Cal asked, tickling her head.

“Hi!” Kelly said as she joined us at the door. “Glad you could make it!” She gave me a big hug.

“Thank you so much for inviting us.” I returned her hug.

“Whyin!” Cami pointed at Ryan. Slowly she came out from behind Cal’s legs.

“Come here you!” Ryan scooped her up and kissed her on her cheeks before spinning her around in his arms to tickle her belly. Her giggles

were precious. They obviously knew each other very well.

We walked through the front entryway and down the hall to the large family room that bordered the enormous kitchen. Something smelled

wonderful. The house was decorated in shades of white, blue, and beige with hints of seashells and starfish; typical for a beach rental home.

“How was your ride over?” Cal asked Ryan.

Ryan set Cami down and looked at me before answering. “It was a bit crazy, but we made it. Taryn’s car was covered with notes.” He looked at

me like he was guilty of something.

“You’re kidding?” Cal said. “How the…”

“The pop were waiting for us when we got back from the marina last night – they were at both doors. And then when we left to come here, the

fans were waiting as well. The paparazzi even chased us for a couple of miles.”

Cal inconspicuously looked over at me. “How’d she do?” he whispered to Ryan, but I could still hear him.

“She did great. I was the one who flipped out!”

Even though I was interested in their conversation, I was distracted by a pair of big blue eyes and a naked Barbie doll staring at me.

“Is that a Barbie doll?” I asked Cami.

“Uhuh, wanna see?” She held the doll out to me.

“Hello Barbie, my name is Taryn. It’s very nice to meet you!”

Cami giggled. “Her name not Barbie! Her name Dora!”

“Dora? What a pretty name! It’s nice to meet you, Dora. Dora, Dora, Dora, the Explorer.” I sang, making Cami giggle at me again.

“How do you know the Dora song?” Kelly asked as Cami ran back down the hallway.

“There’s not much else on at two o’clock in the afternoon. Sometimes I’d rather watch cartoons than the other choices.”

Two minutes later, Cami came running back with another naked Barbie in her other hand. “Here, you be Beauty and I’ll be Dora.”

I took the Barbie into my hands and danced her around on my leg.

“Cami, don’t be a pest!” Kelly announced from the kitchen.

“Come on Cami, let’s take our dollies on an adventure.” I danced the doll over to the kitchen counter where several large chairs were poised.

“So Beauty, does mommy need help in the kitchen?”

“No thank you, Beauty. Dinner is almost ready,” Kelly replied. “Does Taryn need a glass of wine yet?”

I answered with a wink and a nod.

“What about G.I. Joe over there? Do you and Malibu Ken need drinks?” Kelly teased.

I pulled out one of the chairs and my little friend was right by my side. “Would you like to sit on my lap? We can play dollies up here!”

Cami just nodded her head at me like she was in a trance.

We played with the two dolls on the counter. “You know Cami, when I was your age I loved playing with Barbies too. I would sit in my room for

hours, building houses and taking my Barbie for a ride in her car.”

“You did?”

“Uhuh! But my Barbie had clothes. What happened to your clothes, Dora?”

“Dora gonna take a bath,” she told me, matter-of-factly. “And then, and then, and then, and then, she gonna brush her teef. See? Like dis. Open

wide.” Cami opened her mouth.

While the adorable little girl was showing me her teeth, a little squeaker of a toot slipped out of her bottom. “Oops!” she giggled.

“Did you sit on a mouse?” I asked her.

“No, I farted,” she announced to everyone.

I couldn’t stop laughing. Cal took her off of my lap.

“Say you’re sorry to Taryn!” he said in between laughing.

“Sorry,” she said in her beautiful little voice.

“That’s okay sweetie.”

“Come on. Let’s see if some little girl needs to go potty.” Cal led her down the hallway.

Ryan stood behind me, rubbing my shoulders and laughing that I got tooted on.

“She got me good once. You remember that Kelly? When we were filming the first movie, I had her sitting on my lap and I was tickling her and

she peed all over me.”

“Ryan, that was so funny, none of us could ever forget that. And believe me, it’s a rite of passage once you become a parent. I don’t think

there’s a mom or dad on the planet that hasn’t gotten peed, pooped, or puked on.”

“Well, your daughter peed on me, and my baby niece Sarah has power puked on me already… guess there’s only one more rite of passage

then for me, huh?” Ryan laughed.

“It’s not official until it’s your own child,” Kelly corrected Ryan’s assumption.

“You mean all these other times don’t count?” Ryan whined.

Cami came running down the hall and ran right to my leg. I lifted her up and sat her back on my lap. “Are you all better now?”

She nodded her head. “I pooped.”

“On the potty like a big girl?” I asked. Ryan stuck his head over my shoulder to get in on the conversation.

“Uhuh. And, and, and my daddy... he wiped my bottom.”

“He did? What a good daddy!” I said excitedly.

“Wanna see my toys?”

“We’re going to eat dinner first, Cami,” Kelly said as she took the little girl off my lap. “Sorry about this. I couldn’t find anyone to babysit her.”

I waved a hand and smiled. “Don’t worry about it,”

We all took our seats at the dinner table. Cami insisted on sitting next to me. She was my new best friend.

“We’ll have fun later, I promise,” I said to Cami. “But first we have to put some yummy food in our bellies. Then maybe you can show me your

toys.”

“Ooh, pwetty!” Cami had my new necklace in her hand. “Hearts! Can I have it?”

“Cami, no. That’s not yours,” Kelly reprimanded.

“I think it’s pretty too!” I whispered to Cami. “I like the way it sparkles!”

I looked over to Ryan and smiled. He was grinning at me again.

Cal and Kelly covered the table with a variety of gourmet foods that smelled divine. It was almost too pretty to eat.

“Kelly, everything is delicious,” I complimented while trying a taste of each selection.

“Thanks! Cal and I took some cooking lessons from a friend of ours who’s a chef. Usually we just have macaroni and cheese out of the box, but

it’s nice to cook like this every once and a while.”

Cami didn’t eat; she wanted a peanut butter sandwich instead, but she wasn’t going to get one.

I scooped up some food on her fork and pretended I was going to eat it. She opened her mouth for me and I got her to eat a fork full.

“That was a good bite! My turn!” I took a nice bite of food.

“Cami’s turn! My turn!” I didn’t care that the three other adults at the table were staring at me. My game was getting the little girl to eat her

supper.

“Taryn, I think we need to take you home with us. She hasn’t eaten like this in, well I can’t remember the last time she had such an appetite.”

Kelly looked astounded.

“Sorry, can’t let you do that,” Ryan interjected. “We’re staying on the East Coast, where things are normal.”

The bite of food I had in my mouth suddenly became very hard to chew. Did I just hear that correctly? I wished I could spit the food into my napkin

so I could breathe, but I couldn’t be rude. I took a big sip of wine to wet the food in my mouth; hopefully that would help me swallow it. I really wanted

to gasp in a few deep breaths of air. We… are staying… East Coast…. We… Holy shit.

“More!” Cami shouted at me, snapping my attention back to the table. Her little mouth was opened wide, just like a baby bird. I shoveled

another pile into her mouth.

After that comment, I couldn’t eat anymore. I was in a freaking daze thinking about us… East Coast… children… rites of passages… little blueeyed

babies…

Once we were all finished eating, I helped Kelly clear the table while the men took Cami into the family room to keep her busy. I was scraping a

plate into the garbage can when Kelly asked me, “Are you okay?”

I blinked a few times, wrapping my thoughts around her words. “Yeah, why?”

“You just got real quiet. I was wondering if it was because of what Ryan said?”

I smiled. “Kelly, every time he says we…” I took a deep breath.

She smiled back at me and whispered, “feels good to be in love, doesn’t it!”

“Yes, it does!”

We all sat back at the dinner table and talked; Cami was sitting on my lap and we were both coloring in a book with crayons. I was having a

blast, trying to get the different shades of purple to blend on the petals of the flower I was coloring.

“Is that your masterpiece?” Ryan teased Cami.

“Whyin, don’t touch!” she scolded him.

“Another good thing about Pennsylvania – that’s where they make crayons,” Ryan stated.

“And Yuengling Lager too,” I added.

“Philly cheesesteaks,” Ryan continued.

“Will Smith is from Philadelphia,” Cal contributed.

“Pittsburgh Steelers and the Pens,” Ryan and I added together. We held our fists up and tapped our knuckles together.

“I’m taking you to a hockey game. I’ll check to see when the Pens are playing at home and we are going,” he said to me.

“Won’t have to twist my arm to get me to go!” I smiled at him.

“Hey.” Cami patted me on the cheek to get my attention.

“Taryn,” I said my name.

“Tawyn,” she repeated. “You color the gwass too. Use dis gween.”

“Can I color too?” Ryan asked.

“No,” Cami fired quickly. “Me and Tawyn coloring. You wait your turn.”

I started to laugh. Kids are so brutally honest.

Ryan pretended to sniff and he acted like he was starting to cry.

“I think you hurt Ryan’s feelings,” I whispered in her ear.

Cami looked up at Ryan and pouted. “Whyin, don’t cwy.” She set her crayon down. “I hold you.” She leaned over to him and he pulled her out of

my arms.

My heart melted watching him hug her, while my thoughts wandered to picture him holding our child one day. He would make a great father.

I slid the coloring book and crayons in front of him so he could have his turn. She plopped down on his lap and picked her red crayon back up in

her little hand. I couldn’t stop smiling.

It was almost nine o’clock and way past Cami’s bedtime when Kelly announced that she had to say goodnight to everyone. She was so quiet

sitting on Ryan’s lap, minding her own business and just coloring that you barely realized she was there.

She started to cry when Kelly picked her up. Ryan gave her a little kiss on the cheek. I had to give her a hug; she demanded it.

“Goodnight, sweet Princess. I’ll see you soon, I promise,” I whispered to her. She kissed me on my cheek.

“I think I’m going to have to call Mike tonight before we leave,” Ryan said to Cal. He rubbed his forehead. I knew it bothered him to think about

calling for personal security.

I placed my hand on his arm. “Why don’t we just do a drive-by to see how bad it is first? If the crowd is too large I’m calling the police. We have

laws about loitering and I’m far from happy that my place was vandalized.”

“I heard about that,” Cal said. “Sorry to hear your window was broken.”

“Thanks. Fortunately I was able to get the window replaced immediately. The logo will be added back on the glass this week. One thing is for

sure, no matter where I live my house is going to have a security system. Just knowing I have that makes it easier to sleep at night.”

“Oh, yes, it’s a must,” Cal stated. “We have an intricate system wired in our new place in Malibu. Motion sensors and yard sensors; we have so

many sensors that I don’t even know what half of them do. Ryan, you’re going to need that and a bunch of mean rottweilers around your house.”

“I have to get the house first,” Ryan admitted. “I’ve been living out of a suitcase for so long now, I don’t know what it’s like to be home.”

“You should think about getting a place. You’re not going to be on the go forever,” Cal advised.

I noticed Ryan’s eyes flicker up to me and then he looked back at the coloring book, spinning it under his fingers. “I’ve been thinking about it a

lot, but I’m not sure where I want to settle just yet.”

“By a lake,” I murmured, putting the crayons back into the box.

“With a boat dock.” He smiled to himself.

“Surrounded by woods,” I added.

“Maybe grow some grapes.” I felt his foot tap mine under the table.

“Watch the leaves change colors from the deck.” I tapped him back.

“Big farm house… or maybe a really cool log home?” he mused, raising an eyebrow at me.

I shrugged. Either style suited me. “Stone fireplace in the living room.” I slid the coloring book out from under his fingers and paged through it

like a magazine.

“Maybe one in the master bedroom too?” he questioned, chewing on his thumb. “By the enormous tiled shower?”

“With the non-slip bathroom countertop?” I couldn’t hide my smile any longer.

Ryan grinned from ear to ear. “Big glass doors that open to the patio.”

“With another fireplace?”

“Right next to the gas grill outdoor kitchen,” he affirmed.

Cal looked like he was watching a tennis match. “Sounds like you two have all the details worked out. Now you just need to pick the colors and

the location!” He laughed.

“Cami is in bed.” Kelly sat back down at the table; her eyes glanced over all our faces. “Why is everyone smiling?”

“Ryan and Taryn just designed their dream home, I think. And it sounds like they have most of the details covered, which is good.” He tapped

Ryan in the arm. “It will save you a lot of arguments down the line, believe me.”

“What was that supposed to mean? We didn’t argue that much when we built our house.”

Cal countered her comment with a few eye rolls.

As much as I wanted to fantasize about it, in reality Ryan and I didn’t know each other long enough to talk about this kind of stuff. The last thing I

wanted to do was get my hopes up. Protect self, my subconscious told me. Think about something else… but what? Need a new topic. Please

someone think of something else to say.

I started to count backwards from one hundred in my mind, hoping that would help. Visions of waking up in Ryan’s arms every morning in our

beautiful lakeside home broke right through my number counting.

I felt the chain of my new necklace catch on my hair, sending a pinch of pain down my neck. I adjusted the chain to untangle it, ripping a few hairs

from my head in the process. I picked the pendant up in my hand and looked at it again; two beautiful hearts twined into one.

“That’s a very beautiful necklace you’re wearing,” Kelly stated.

“Thank you!” My smile quickly flashed over to Ryan.

“Are those real diamonds?” she asked upon closer inspection.

I looked at Ryan, perplexed. I never asked if they were diamonds; I just assumed.

Kelly noticed my gaze over at Ryan. A smile cracked on her face. “A gift?”

Ryan’s lips twitched and he nodded in confirmation.

“You have very good taste, Ryan!”

“Thank you. I was glad she liked it.”

“I love it!” I corrected.

“I got her diamond earrings too, but she won’t wear them.”

I sighed. “One very expensive present was more than enough.” My eyes locked on the coloring book; I wasn’t used to having a man buy me

jewelry, or anything else for that matter.

I heard Ryan scoff. “Get used to it,” he stated directly.

Kelly patted me on the arm. I think for a moment she understood.

“No, I’ll never get used to it,” I whispered out. “I will always appreciate your kindness and generosity, and never take it for granted.” I hoped he

could see the truth of my words in my eyes.

“Do you have a sister, Taryn? Because I have a brother that’s single,” Cal joked.

“No, I’m sorry Cal, I don’t.” I didn’t understand why he said that. Were all women perceived as gold diggers?

I jumped slightly when I felt someone touch my rear. I looked behind me to see Cami in her pajamas with a stuffed bunny under her arm.

“I thought you were sleeping?” I said to her, pulling her onto my lap.

“Cami! It’s bedtime, young lady!” Kelly was upset.

“Tawyn, you weed to me?” She rubbed her eye with her little hand. Her soft plea warmed my heart.

“Sure.” I stood up but Kelly tried to relieve me of her. “It’s okay. Can I put her to bed?”

Although she was four, she was so light to carry – such a petite little thing. I could see why she had a hard time staying asleep; her bedroom was

obviously not her bedroom. There were nets, shells, and seahorses hanging from the corner. This was nothing more than a strange guest room in a

rental beach house, not a room for a little princess.

I read The Little Mermaid book under the soft light of her nightlight, using my best voices to pretend to be the different characters. She liked my

Ariel voice the best. I watched as her little mouth formed into gentle O’s when she yawned. Her big blue eyes were getting heavy. I closed the book

and softly stroked her long, blond ringlets while quietly singing a few lullabies.

Ryan popped his head around the door, watching me as I sat on the floor singing to the little girl. Her eyes closed, and in an instant she was

sound asleep. I stared at her for a few moments; she was absolutely adorable.

Ryan was blocking the space in the doorway; his body was backlit by the little nightlight in the wall outside Cami’s room. I looked at him and

smiled.

He stepped in front of me and slid his hand around my waist, drawing me into his chest. His other hand slowly slipped across my jaw and

stopped at the back of my neck; with the slightest bit of force he pulled me in to kiss me.

This kissing was different. Maybe it was my perception, but it wasn’t the ‘slide my tongue around in your mouth I’m so hot for you’ kind of kiss. It

was more tender, personal, and loving.

Kelly was leaning over the dining table, slicing some kind of chocolate dessert coated with a white whipped topping. “Is our daughter finally

sleeping?”

“Yes, she’s sound asleep.”

“Taryn sang to her.” Ryan took my hand in his under the table.

“Well, I think you two are going to make wonderful parents one day – when you’re ready. Cami really surprised me tonight. She never goes off

with people she’s unfamiliar with. But you,” Kelly mused and slid a piece of pie in front of me, “she loved you instantly.”

Her comment made me smile. I was quite taken with the little girl myself. I felt Ryan’s hand squeeze mine.

“She’s absolutely adorable, Kelly. One day, perhaps.” Change the subject, Taryn.

“Kelly, I’ve been meaning to ask you a question. When you were on Just Neighbors there was a character – his name was Kip?”

“Yes, Kip. That was Jesse Oberly who played him.”

“What ever happened to him? I was surprised when he was killed off. I’m sorry for bringing it up, but when I see you, I think of him and wonder

why he died on the show. Did he make someone angry and get fired?”

“No, Jesse left on his own. Actually I just spoke to him and his wife a couple of weeks ago. He has a ranch in Tennessee now where he breeds

and trains racehorses. He’s never been happier. One day he had a meeting with the producer and said he wanted out. He only signed on for one

season, and when his contract was fulfilled, the writers had his character die. More drama that way.”

“Why did he want to leave? His character was so popular,” I asked, sampling my slice of pie.

“He wasn’t happy. He was a brilliant actor; very natural in front of the cameras. But he didn’t like all the attention or the invasion of his privacy.

Kind of reminds me of someone else we know?” She looked at Ryan.

“Kelly, they post on the Internet where I’m having dinner for God’s sake. The attention I can handle; the obsessive crap is something altogether

different,” Ryan defended.

“No, I understand. When my show first aired, our cast went through something similar. We were followed and reported on, and of course we

were all sleeping with each other too! I think in one week it was reported that I slept with four different actors from the show. While I was in the

makeup trailer, supposedly I was getting lucky at the same time! One of the magazines reported that I had a weeklong affair with this one actor

when in reality I was at home with the flu. Cal knows. We had just started seeing each other.”

“So how do the magazines get away with printing all the lies? Can’t you sue or something?” I asked.

“I wish. It’s the lies that sell the magazines,” Kelly uttered sadly. “The bigger the lie, the more money they make. And if they get some racy

pictures too – that could turn a hefty profit for the photographer.”

“We had our picture taken a lot tonight,” I murmured. Ryan squeezed my hand again.

“Just be prepared, Sweetheart. Those pictures of us are going to be all over the tabloids, Internet, you name it. There’s going to be outlandish

captions under those pictures too, like when we both cleared off your windshield? If you moved your arm too fast to sweep one of the papers off,

they’ll print that you were having a jealous fit.” He rubbed his forehead. “Just don’t read them.”

He looked me in the eyes. “Remember what I told you when we were fishing? You can’t believe anything you hear, read, or see. If something

needs to be clarified for the public, I have a Publicist.”

“Can I ask a stupid question? Are you even allowed to have a girlfriend while doing these Seaside movies?” I felt dumb just for asking, but after

what Suzanne said I wanted to know.

Ryan looked at me like I was crazy. “What?” he asked.

“Are you under some contract or anything that says you’re not allowed to be seen in public with a girlfriend?”

“No.” He shook his head and squinted at me. “Where would you get an idea like that?”

“Something Suzanne said.” I shrugged.

“What did she say?”

“She said that the studio executives will be upset once they discover you’re seeing me – that they wouldn’t allow it.”

Ryan abruptly sat forward; the legs of his chair squeaked on the tiled floor. “She said what?” His eyes were wide.

“She said exactly what I just said, and also that if you stay single, your fan base will be higher and your movies will make more money. But if the

public knows you’re involved with someone, you may lose fans, your movies won’t make as much money, and the studio executives won’t allow that

to happen.”

“Is this another reason why you were so upset last Sunday? Because of these lies?” Ryan asked.

“Well, it was part of it. Suzanne made it seem like some studio executive was going to break us up first.”

Kelly gasped.

“That’s completely absurd!” he muttered. “They can’t do that.” He looked at Cal for reassurance. Cal didn’t say a word; his head was swaying

back and forth in disbelief.

“So what other lies did she tell you?” Ryan’s look frightened me. I could tell he was angry.

I looked down at the table, hoping to dismiss this entire conversation, but Ryan squeezed my hand again.

“Taryn, what else did she say?”

I took a deep breath and looked at Cal and Kelly. I didn’t want to say the rest of what she said to me in front of them. “I’ll tell you later,” I said

quietly to Ryan.

“No, I want to know now!” he urged.

“I always said that girl was trouble,” Kelly interjected.

“She basically called you a womanizer, but in many more words,” I whispered.

“What? She called me what?” His eyes scrunched up in confusion. “What is that supposed to mean?”

I stared at my dessert plate. “She said that you sleep with different women in every town. You tell them what they want to hear so you can get

some, and you leave a trail of broken hearts behind you.”

I locked my eyes on his. “She also said that you lie to women to make them feel like they’re your perfect match – that you’re a talented actor and

a gifted liar and I was just another fool to fall for it. Stupid American girls… Then she said that once you leave to do your next movie and find your

next conquest, you’ll forget all about me.”

Cal started to laugh. Apparently my comment was amusing to him.

“Oh my God! No way!” Kelly shouted. “Taryn, that’s such a lie! Ryan is the complete opposite of that!”

Ryan’s face turned red. “She’s a fucking piece of work, that girl. Why didn’t you tell me all of this before?” He was definitely angry.

“Because I was scared and I didn’t want to cause problems for you.” I hid my eyes under my hand. “I even thought that if I let you go, then you

wouldn’t feel obligated and somehow you’d be better off. You have enough stress to deal with without me ruining your career. The last thing I want is

to be another name on your stress list.”

“No wonder you were crying so hard. I went downstairs for fifteen minutes; when I left you with Marie everything was fine, and when I came back,

you were falling to pieces and breaking up with me. It all makes sense now.”

“You tried to break up with him at the party?” Kelly shrieked in horror.

Ryan nodded at her and then glanced back to me.

“I’m going to rip her throat out when I see her,” he spit through his teeth.

Thoughts of his career and his movie being jeopardized because of me flashed through my mind.

“That’s why I didn’t tell you,” I muttered, feeling guilty.

“Taryn!” he started.

“Ryan, you have a multi-million dollar movie riding on the fact that you have to get along with her. And there’s a third movie which you are under

contract to finish. I don’t want to be the catalyst to dissension.”

“She’s right, Ryan,” Kelly agreed. “As much as I despise that girl, you do have contractual obligations. And having you blow up at her in front of

everyone would not be a good idea.”

“Why is she doing this to me?” His fingers clenched his hair. “We used to get along so well.”

“She obviously wants to keep other women away from you, so either she’s in love with you or…” Then it dawned on me. “Or she’s fending off the

competition for a friend.”

He looked at me and it clicked. “Francesca,” he murmured.

His eyes flashed over to Cal and Kelly, who were both staring back in surprise.

“She knows about my slip with Francesca. I’m not keeping any secrets from Taryn. And just so you believe me…” He looked over at Cal. “Cal,

would you please tell Taryn when, where, and why.”

“That’s not necessary,” I interjected.

Cal cleared his throat. “Well, I don’t know about the why, Ryan, only you can answer that one. But it’s been over a year now since…then.”

Cal focused on me. “We were in Maine filming the first movie. I remember it clearly like it was yesterday.” Something he recalled seemed to

trouble him.

“Ryan had his first traumatic fan encounter. I believe you were completely overwhelmed,” he stated directly. “Fans were everywhere screaming.

We went into a club and some girl grabbed him around the neck. Her boyfriend either tried to remove her off of Ryan or he took a swing at him – I’m

not sure, but Ryan ended up getting punched in the face.” The thought made his lips curl in disgust.

“Anyway, we tried to calm him down; he spent a few hours in the corner tossing back shots of whiskey.”

“Fran was always sniffing around his trailer; it was no secret that she had a crush on him,” Kelly added.

“But for the longest time, he just ignored her. Personally I think you were home-sick and freaked out,” Cal said.

“A lot of both actually.” Ryan grimaced.

The way Ryan spoke, I imagined he was quite lonely when he gave in to Francesca.

“After that one time, Fran started to act even stranger. Things have been weird ever since. And since we’ve gotten back to filming the second

movie, the two girls have been inseparable,” Cal told me.

“Who was the girl that sold the story to the tabloid?” Kelly asked.

“That was the girl I was seeing from the theatre back home. You met her once when we shot the scenes in Acadia, remember? She came to

Maine that one time. Who knows, maybe the bitch sisters got to her too? Ah, it doesn’t matter. She was more concerned about hooking up with my

agent and getting me to make calls for her than she was about our relationship.” He shrugged the thought from his mind.

“I’m going to have to deal with this,” Ryan muttered. He chewed his lip – pondering again.

“Ryan, just let it go,” I advised. “Anything you do is going to make things worse. Just do your movies, play your part. A few years from now this

will all be behind you.”

“Yeah, you’re right.” He gave me a brief smile and squeezed my hand.

I was glad he agreed. Suzanne seemed to have more than enough reasons to despise me.

Chapter 16 – Fused

Ryan held my hand as he drove us home; our arms rested on the center console.

“I really like driving this car,” he commented. “It handles great.”

“You look like you enjoy driving this car. And I’m enjoying getting driven around for once. I’m so used to driving that I never get to really look at

the scenery.”

“We need to get the windows tinted darker though. That way the photographers can’t get too many daytime driving shots of you,” he grumbled.

I never gave any consideration to thoughts like that, although I never had to worry about having my picture taken either. Still, I loved hearing him

say ‘we.’

He adjusted his grip on the steering wheel. “I never get to drive. I’m always jumping in the back seat of cars instead.”