Текст книги "Love Unscripted"

Автор книги: Tina Reber

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Текущая страница: 23 (всего у книги 40 страниц)

the point that Ellen stated she wanted to re-do their entire backyard to look like my roof.

I knew Ryan was starving; he was starting to pick at anything he could readily shove in his mouth when we returned to the kitchen. I turned the

oven on and pulled out the ingredients I had set aside to make Chicken Cordon Bleu. I pounded the chicken breasts flat while Ryan took down a

few layers of the sliced cheese. He was too hungry to be of any use.

“So what do you say, Son? Want to lose to your old man in a game of pool?” His father gave him a nudge.

While the men played downstairs, I prepared dinner. His mother watched over what I was doing.

“I never thought to put that in with the bread crumbs,” she stated. She helped coat the rolled chicken and was amazed by my deviations from the

normal recipe. I liked to be creative when I cooked.

Later that evening, we gathered at the oval wooden dining table that was off to the side of my main living room. I hadn’t sat at that table for a

meal in a very long time. It felt nice to eat as a family again.

“Taryn, this is fabulous,” Ellen complimented.

Ryan kicked his foot into mine under the table and winked at me. “I told you she was taking excellent care of me!” He grinned.

“So are you two going to tell us where we are going this weekend or are you going to keep your mother and me in suspense?”

Ryan looked at me and smirked. “Should we tell them or make them suffer like you made me suffer that day?”

I stabbed a few green beans on my plate. “I think we should tell them.”

“We are taking you to Taryn’s family cabin at the lake, where we are going fishing.” he motioned to his father with his fingers. “And you two

ladies can go shopping till your feet fall off.”

Our evening with his parents slowly came to a close. Ryan had to be back on set early in the morning and his parents were tired from their flight.

I quickly slipped into my bedroom to get my pillow and carried it out to the living room.

Ryan looked at me in utter confusion. He picked my pillow up and started to carry it away.

“Honey, I thought we were going to bed?” He yawned.

“No,” I whispered. “Please leave it here. I’m going to sleep out here on the couch.”

“Why?” he asked, completely perplexed.

“Your parents,” I whispered again.

“What about my parents?”

“Out of respect!” I quietly stated the obvious.

“What are you talking about?” I wished he would keep his voice down.

“Ryan, I’m not going to sleep with you in front of them,” I whispered.

“Are you kidding me?” Just as he spoke his mother stepped up behind him.

“What are you two whispering about?” she asked.

“I’m not quite sure, Mom. For some reason Taryn thinks she has to sleep on the couch.”

I was thoroughly embarrassed now and had to explain myself.

“I don’t want to disrespect you, that’s all. It’s fine,” I politely informed. “I don’t mind sleeping out here.” I tried to yank my pillow out of Ryan’s hand

but he wouldn’t let it go.

Ellen looked confused and then I saw the light of understanding turn on above her head.

“Oh, sweetie, that’s not necessary.” She walked over to me and gave me a big hug.

“I appreciate your consideration, but Bill and I are not that old-fashioned.” She gently laughed in my ear. “This is your home.”

Ellen touched Ryan’s cheek while she was rocking me. “You stay with Ryan in your room,” she said tenderly. “Oh how I would have loved to have

met your parents!” She kissed me on the cheek.

“Why did you think you had to sleep out on the couch?” Ryan asked privately in our bedroom. He pulled our comforter up over my shoulder.

I shrugged, slightly self-conscious. “I just don’t want your parents to have the wrong impression of me, that’s all. I wasn’t raised that way.”

“Oh, you don’t have to worry about that! You’ve already made a good impression on my parents today,” Ryan whispered, inching his way down

the bed until our eyes were level.

“My dad talked my ear off when we played pool. He was rambling on about how intelligent you are and how I could learn a thing or two about

money management from you.”

“I’m glad they like me; relieved actually. It’s very important that they approve.” I shifted to be closer to him, gently rubbing his neck while we

talked.

“Oh, they approve all right! You’ve won them over, that’s for sure.” He brushed my hair back. “Do you have any idea how much I love you?”

“No,” I whispered, egging him on. “How much?”

“Let me show you,” he whispered. He softly kissed my lips, once, twice, before his wet mouth moved with mine.

I was up and out of bed before everyone else so I could spend some extra time showering and getting ready. I was already nervous and slightly

jittery thinking about going on my first major motion picture movie set. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think about doing what I would be doing

today.

“Are you excited?” Ryan asked, pulling my heart necklace out from behind my shirt while we waited by the back door.

“Nervous.” I half-smiled. My stomach was in knots.

It was still dark outside when our car arrived. It was too early for the paparazzi to be up. Ryan’s day usually started before the sun came up. I was

relieved knowing that his parents would be with me throughout this experience.

We briefly paused at the security gate and then proceeded to drive further onto the lot. The limo wove through several rows of trailers and other

trucks before stopping by a long, white trailer.

“Here, you’ll need these.” Ryan handed us badges on long cotton cords to identify that we were permitted on set.

He had his blue papers rolled up in his hand.

“I have to go to makeup and get my face done. Tar, come with me.” Ryan took me by the hand. “Mom, Dad… I’ll see you over there.” He pointed

to the direction of where he’d be filming.

His bodyguard Mike and another man escorted us to a long trailer. Inside were several beautician chairs and a complete makeup counter with

mirrors. The second we were through the door, several people started to attend to Ryan. He had barely a moment to introduce me to the special

effects makeup team. The people I met were polite, but they had a job to do and little time to do it. Everyone was in a rush.

First Ryan had to change into his wardrobe; he had to wear dark pants and a white button down cotton shirt that was pre-speckled with what

looked like blood. Then he was covered in a cotton shawl and several makeup artists went right to work on him.

He just sat there while they covered him in creams and pigments, using sponges and brushes and all sorts of items I had never seen before.

The one makeup artist, an older Asian lady wearing red, thick-rimmed glasses with her long ebony hair pulled back into a ponytail, started brushing

purple pigment below Ryan’s left eye. By the time they were done with him, he looked like he was on the losing end of a fistfight, down to the dried

fake blood coming out of his nostril.

He smiled and winked at me. “I look pretty rough, huh?”

Even though I just watched them transform him into this bloodied mess, I almost wanted to cry seeing him looking so beat up. Instead, I smiled and

nodded in agreement.

“Pete said he’d do this to my face if I ever broke your heart. Guess I better not do that then.”

I was glad to know that he was totally unaware of my eavesdropping during his conversation with Pete. I rolled my eyes at his comment,

pretending to have heard it for the first time.

Another male assistant was chattering back and forth over a hand-held radio. “Ryan, they’re ready for you over on set nine.”

Moments later, we were whisked away on the back of an ordinary golf cart, his bodyguard Mike dutifully by his side. Once we stopped, Ryan

quickly spoke into my ear.

“You’re going to see some stunts today and, at the end of this scene I have to… kiss…” His face twisted in disgust. “Her.”

We walked onto the set; I had to blink several times to realize that this ornate castle hall was actually built inside an ordinary warehouse.

“Jake, please send someone for my parents. I want them here with Taryn,” Ryan requested. “You should be okay here. No heckling!” He kissed

my forehead before rushing away.

I was hiding off to the side of the one wall, trying to stay out of the way. Thick black electrical cords twisted and twined all over the floors. There

were bright lights, scaffolding, and all kinds of gadgets everywhere. I was petrified that I might accidentally bump something expensive or someone

important. People were hustling all around me. Some were wearing headphones or carrying a piece of technical equipment. Clipboards, cameras,

lighting adjustments, it was like random chaos all around.

I felt a hand touch my back and realized that Ryan’s mom was next to me now.

“Overwhelming, isn’t it?” she asked. I was in a daze watching it all unfold around me.

A woman wearing headphones around her neck approached us. “Hi! Welcome! You may want to move over there to get a better view. Come

with me.”

I looked around for Ryan; he was standing with several men and they were all moving their arms in the air, like they were discussing how Ryan

should throw his punch. It appeared to be a rehearsal before they filmed the scene. An older man, who was short, almost bald, wearing headphones

around his neck and carrying some device that looked like a small telescope stepped over to talk to Ryan.

“That’s the director,” his dad said.

Ryan spent a good amount of time nodding and discussing how he was supposed to move.

“I think that guy to Ryan’s left is the stunt coordinator.”

I was glad his father was standing behind me explaining things. I had no idea who any of these people were.

I heard someone yell “quiet on the set.” I tried not to breathe.

I watched a man hold the clapper board out in front of the camera.

Ryan took his position in the fake room. I could see his image on three small video screens near the director.

“Rolling,” someone else yelled.

“Action,” the director called out.

Ryan took a few steps and then was attacked by a man in a cloak. Ryan threw a right hook and a cord pulled the man he punched back onto a

pile of foam.

Was that it? Everyone was mingling around on the set again. I looked at his father. “Did they just film that?”

Bill smiled at me. “I think so.”

Ryan had to get back into position and then he fought the same man again. It took them almost an hour to film this one particular scene. They

shot it from so many different angles.

The only time I knew when they weren’t filming was when the makeup artist was touching up his face. I was constantly wondering how everyone

knew what was going on. Either you had a job where you had to run around and scramble or your job was to stand around and look important.

“Hey girl! I heard you were here.” Kat gave me a hug.

“Hey Kat! Oh, it’s good to see you!” I was relieved to see another familiar face in this chaos.

“Hi Ellen, Bill! Here to see your boy in action, huh? What’s he doing now?” Kat looked around to see where Ryan was. “Oh, great. Make way for

the queen.”

I saw Suzanne walk through another entrance. Of course she glanced over to see that I was standing there. Her eyes opened wider once she

saw me.

“You’re going to be cool with this, right?” Kat bumped my arm. “He has to, um, kiss her now. Yuk! You don’t have to look if you think it might

bother you.”

In reality I wanted to see this. I needed to have this experience of seeing him… act. “I’ll be all right,” I murmured.

Suzanne seemed unfazed that I was there; actually she seemed to be in a good mood. She was laughing and sort of carrying on with Ryan. He

laughed too at whatever she said. It was a relief to know that their relationship wasn’t totally ruined because of me.

After what seemed to be an extraordinary long time they finally got into their positions to film the scene. Ryan’s eyes locked on mine for a

moment; it was like he was trying to send me a message telepathically. I knew what was coming next.

I was too far away to hear the dialogue that they exchanged, but the scene involved Ryan to still appear bruised and bloodied. He grabbed the

upper part of her arms and they seemed to fight each other. She wasn’t supposed to like the grip he had on her. She reached up to slap him in the

face and he grabbed her by the wrist. I remembered when we played pool that very first day; how I tried to teasingly nudge him and he caught me

the same way in mid air around my wrist.

With his other hand he grabbed her around the back of her neck and forcefully pulled her in for a kiss. After a brief second of her fighting it, she

surrendered to his lips.

I took a deep breath through my nose while he kissed her. It was harder than I thought it would be to see the man I was in love with kiss another

woman. I knew it was pretend but the burn of jealousy still pulsed through me. I unconsciously curled my fingers into fists by my sides; my fingernails

dug into my palms. His mother placed her hand on my shoulder as reassurance that it was going to be all right.

When I couldn’t take it anymore, I looked down to the ground then turned my gaze to the opposite wall. Something struck me as odd – why is that

man over there taking pictures of Ryan kissing Suzanne? He didn’t use a flash on his camera.

“How are you doing?” Kat whispered to me. I could hear the tension and concern in her tone.

Suzanne really played it up; my presence was encouraging her Oscar-worthy performance for sure.

“I want to peel her off of him and set her on fire, but I’ll get through it.”

The director yelled, “Cut.”

Kat laughed, amused by my comment. “It will get easier with time. You at least have the satisfaction of knowing that he’s hating this part of his

job.”“

Is he really?” I wasn’t so sure by the looks of it.

“See, Ellen! Taryn wants to crack Suzanne in half. This girl is definitely in love with your son.” Kat wistfully danced in place.

“I don’t want to crack anyone,” I quickly replied. I didn’t want his parents to think I was obsessive or controlling.

Their kissing scene had halted and the director was talking to both of them. They nodded at him as he gave his direction. Apparently they had to

do it again. I watched as they ran through their dialogue again, he had her by the arms again, and once again he grabbed her by the back of the

neck. This time she fought him a little longer before surrendering.

The second time wasn’t as bad as the first, although it still bothered me to see him kissing someone else. My mind scanned over all the various

movies I had seen in my lifetime and all the kisses that were exchanged on film. All those kisses had to look believable to sell the feel of the movie. I

thought about one of my favorite actors and how he had to kiss the actress in one of his movies. But yet at night he went home to his lovely wife and

their children.

I can do this, I told myself. His lips belong to me – he even told me so. It’s just pretend; I’m his – he’s mine.

I was in mid discussion with Kat and his parents about some of the background story to this movie when Ryan slipped his hands around my

waist. I wasn’t expecting it, so I jumped slightly from his touch.

“What did you think?” he whispered in my ear.

“I think you looked pretty tough fighting that guy. I thought you actually punched him! It looked real from this angle.” I giggled as he held his hands

to my stomach.

“That’s movie magic!” he snickered.

“I think you have a cool job,” I murmured back to him.

“And what about the other part?” Ryan asked tentatively. He whispered his words on my neck.

I knew what he was referring to – kissing the… Suzanne.

“First time was very difficult but the second, um, take? That was slightly easier. She seemed to put more effort into it though, probably because

I’m here.”

“I have to agree. Her performance was definitely for your benefit,” he said. “Maybe you should be here every day? Did you see how nice she

was to me?”

We took a walk around the area and Ryan showed us his trailer. It was really nice inside; like a mini apartment on wheels. He made sure to

show me the large bed in the back where he naps sometimes when he isn’t needed on set. The bedroom in his trailer had a large television built

into the wall and his refrigerator was stocked with his favorite soda.

I was in Ryan’s trailer when Tammy called.

“Taryn, my brother called me. He has some information on that girl. You may want to go to the police. Taryn, she’s not well.”

Ryan was watching me; his eyebrows were pulled together in confusion, trying to figure out my conversation.

“Can you be more specific,” I asked her.

“You have to realize that Tony isn’t supposed to do this kind of stuff. You can’t tell anyone, especially when you talk to the police, okay?”

I had a lot of questions I wanted to ask her, but since I had an audience I had to be cryptic. I was instantly concerned when she said that.

“I understand. Please… go on.”

“I’m going to read you the report he gave me. Angelica Staunton, age 31, former addresses are Bridgeport, NJ, Brooklyn, NY, and there’s one

address on her in Los Angeles. She’s been arrested three times; once for prostitution in New York and twice for other offenses in California. Taryn,

ten years ago she had a restraining order put out on her. When she was in L.A. she was accused of stalking another celebrity. Her second was for

a violation of a court order. Her third arrest was for breaking and entering – she was found at three in the morning, bathing naked in the swimming

pool at the celebrity’s home. I can’t tell you the celebrity’s name because Tony wouldn’t give that to me.”

I took a deep breath through my nose and squeezed my eyes shut. This girl was now stalking my boyfriend.

I stepped into the bedroom area of Ryan’s trailer. “Has she ever done physical harm?” I whispered.

“There’s nothing in the report other than her making threats, but she’s definitely a stalker. I wouldn’t take my chances.”

“Thanks, Tammy. I owe you one.”

“What’s going on?” Ryan asked inquisitively.

“Nothing.” I half-heartily smiled. “I’ll tell you later.” I ran my finger down my nose so he would know I was lying.

After lunch we drove to another location offsite. Ryan had his face touched up; more purple pigment was added under his eye. He told me that

the entire movie was shot out of sequence. He explained to me why they did that. I never knew that movies were filmed that way. I always thought

that they were filmed as the movie progressed, just like a stage play.

We drove to an ordinary house by the beach, which would be his next location for filming. As we drove down the street, we were inundated with

scores of female fans of all ages, shapes, and sizes, all screaming for their favorite actor.

We were ushered inside quickly. Ryan waited behind. The minute he stepped out of the car, the fans screamed. I watched him from the

doorway; his bodyguards shielded him as they moved him from the car to the house. Ryan barely acknowledged the crowd. Somehow the

paparazzi knew where to find him and we were all photographed exiting the limo, but the cameras clicked double-time when he was in view. My

love was constantly under the microscope.

Ryan had some pretty intense lines that he had to say in the scenes that were filmed in the house. Each of his lines was expertly delivered. For

the first time since I met him, he was different. He wasn’t Ryan – he was Charles. He truly amazed me. I could see why his fans adored him. But

despite his professional demeanor and his superb acting skills, I adored him for different reasons.

I was actually tired from spending an entire day in his world. I think it was all the standing around and doing nothing but watching that tired me

out. I was used to running around and keeping active to do my job; his work was more mentally tiring than anything. I grinned at him as he joked with

the crew. Even though it was serious business to film, everyone was having fun and being very supportive.

On our way home down Mulberry Street I spotted her, Angelica, sitting in her blue Plymouth across the street from the parking lot where I park

my car.

I unconsciously gripped Ryan’s arm and gasped.

“What?” He looked to see my expression of terror. “Tar, Honey?”

“Nothing. I’ll tell you later.” Instinctively I slumped down in the seat to get my head below window level.

Pete was still inside the pub kitchen, hammering away. The old counter was gone and he had the new wall partially built already. I was shocked

to see how far he had gotten.

Ryan and his parents started talking with Pete about construction stuff; I was a little distraught so I headed upstairs. It didn’t take me long to

crawl onto the bed.

“Tar, are you tired?” Ryan asked, finding me in the bedroom. He shoved his pillow under his arm. “So what was that all about in the car earlier?

Why did you grab my arm like that?”

She was sitting in her freaking car again,” I muttered into my pillow.

“Who? What are you talking about?”

“Angel. Or Angelica Staunton as she’s really known.” I looked at him with fear in my eyes. “Curly-haired, gap-toothed girl? I think she’s been

following you… and me. She followed me to CostMart the other day. She was in the bar that day you signed autographs, and now once again she’s

just sitting in her car on Mulberry Street. Honey, she scares the hell out of me.”

Two seconds later he pulled his phone out and made a call. “My manager says we should go to the police and file a complaint.”

Ryan sat back down on the bed. “Taryn, I’m not mad, but you have to promise me that you’ll tell me immediately if anyone is following you or

scaring you. You know that these girls are… well – you know. Just promise you’ll tell me right away,” he insisted.

I nodded. “I promise.”

Ryan looked handsome in his black pants and white button down shirt. I put on my new black cocktail dress and adjusted the empire waist satin

sash.

He took the little black box off of my dresser and held it open, reminding me of the diamond earrings I’d been avoiding.

“Please. Humor me,” he insisted.

I hesitated and took a deep breath. I was holding the twined hearts pendant in my fingers as it rested on my neck.

“I’m not taking them back, so you might as well wear them!” He put the box in my hand. “Listen, they are a gift, from my heart to you. You do nice

and thoughtful things for me; I do nice and thoughtful things for you. Equal partners,” he stressed.

I couldn’t argue, even though I felt awkward for accepting them.

The restaurant was very accommodating, even blocking off an entire room for us to dine in private. Several customers gasped when Ryan

walked through the main dining area, and I noticed it was the ladies who immediately recognized him. Mike and our driver, who was also a

bodyguard, blocked the entrance to our section of the restaurant so no one would bother us during our dinner.

“Mom.” Ryan raised his glass to offer a toast. “To the best mother in the world! Happy Birthday!” He leaned over to her and gave her a hug and

kiss. “We have gifts for you, but I thought it best to save those until later when you can open them in private.” He looked around the restaurant.

I knew that people were watching; any of them capable of reporting the details of our evening to the tabloids. I was catching on to Ryan’s

hesitations and reasons behind each of his actions. We could not help but be paranoid.

“Taryn made you a birthday cake. After dinner we’ll go back to our place.”

A wave of elation surged through me when he said ‘our place’ to his parents.

“I hope you like chocolate,” I said in happy response.

We were about an hour into our dinner when a new wave of female patrons entered the restaurant. We could hear their giggling and commotion

in our private room.

“Guess the word’s out.” Ryan smirked. I couldn’t tell if he was bothered by it or in some way liked the attention.

“That’s something your mother and I wanted to talk to you about, Son. We’re very concerned about all these fans and their behavior.”

Ryan opened his mouth to speak but his father cut him off.

“Now before you start reassuring me that you have it all under control, I saw some of those letters that these girls are leaving for you in Taryn’s

door and I must say that their forward behavior is alarming.” Bill rubbed his forehead, just like Ryan does when he’s stressed.

“You know your mother and I will support you in your decisions but when your decisions put you and your family in danger, well I have to speak

my mind about that.”

“Anyone who is in the public eye has fans, Dad.” Ryan tried to dismiss his father’s concern. “I don’t think you and mom are in any danger.”

“I realize that, Son, but these fans of yours are leaving their perverted notes for you in this young lady’s front door.” Bill motioned his hand in my

direction. “I see how much you care for her so I’m including her in our family when I speak.”

“I know.” Ryan rubbed his forehead now. “I’m having extra alarms put on her apartment and I’m thinking about hiring personal security to watch

over her when I can’t.” He looked at me; his expression waited for my reaction. I sighed and held my tongue.

“Son, this is exactly what I’m talking about! Your brother, your mother and me, we don’t need bodyguards to go to work every day. There’s a

reason why you have these men surrounding you, protecting you. If there was no danger, then you wouldn’t need protection! You know we are proud

of you and we want you to be successful but not if it’s going to put you in harms way.” Bill shook his head fiercely.

My mind immediately flashed to Angelica sitting in her car, watching our every move. Waiting for… what? An opportunity? To find a weak spot in

our armor?

“Dad, no one is going to hurt us,” Ryan said quite confidently. Funny how two hours ago he made phone calls about our gap-toothed stalker. I

squeezed his thigh with my hand. I didn’t care for him lying like that to his parents either.

“I won’t let anything happen to you.” He patted my hand to reassure me.

“I just wish you would give some thought to what else you could do with your life that doesn’t affect your safety. We’d be just as proud of you if

you did something else,” Bill informed.

“I know. I’ve been thinking about it, actually. Taryn’s been giving me some good ideas.” He winked at me.

I had no idea what he was referring to.

“But that will have to wait. You know I’ve signed a few contracts to do other movies. I can’t back out now.”

I wasn’t so sure that Ryan wanted to back out of anything even if he could. He really loved being an actor and he was really good at it! He was

able to slip into a completely different persona and actually convince the outside world that he was someone else.

“And what are your thoughts on of all of this, Taryn?” his father asked.

I took a moment to gather my thoughts. “I think that Ryan is truly passionate about being an actor, and it’s what he wants to do for a career. I’ve

seen today with my own eyes that he is a brilliant actor. If, one day, he doesn’t want to do this anymore, well then, it will have to be his decision. I’ll

support him with whatever choices he makes.”

My eyes shifted from addressing his father to looking at Ryan. There were too many people roaming around the restaurant so I kept my voice

low. “You know how I feel about you. I want you to be happy no matter what you do for a living. We’ll deal with whatever life throws our way.”

He smiled, squeezing my hand privately under the table.

Leaving the restaurant reminded me of seeing the red carpet interviews on television.

Mike flanked Ryan; Ryan had his hand in the small of my back, guiding me along.

Word had obviously gotten out that Ryan was in the restaurant. His fans were lined up on both sides of the walkway outside. A few young girls

who looked like they had yet to reach puberty were mixed in with all the other teenagers and women who were there to get a glimpse of Ryan

Christensen. Oh how they screamed for him.

Fear struck me once again as our car turned the final corner to deliver us home. Angelica’s car was still parked on the side street, just a short

distance from my car. I squeezed Ryan’s hand tightly several times to get his attention. When he looked at me I nodded in the direction of the old

blue Plymouth. His lips curled, ready to utter the “F” word. He held his anger inside.

“When we come back from the cabin, I’ll take care of that,” he muttered privately in my ear so his parents wouldn’t hear.

“I think she’s sleeping in her car,” I whispered back to him.

The paparazzi were lined up in the alley behind my bar; I guess they realized by now that this was his main entry/exit point. I stepped out of the

car first with Mike and immediately the cameras started to flash. It was hard to get the key in the door while being blinded by the flashes.

Once we were upstairs, we gave his mom her birthday gifts.

“This one is from Ryan.” I handed her the bag with the jewelry in it. Ryan frowned at me, apparently for saying that it was just from him.

She opened the bag and removed a small, black box. Inside were gold and diamond earrings in a channel setting. Elegant and tasteful, just as I

would have expected for his mother. She too, stated that they were too much.

I looked at Ryan and smirked. Obviously I wasn’t the only one who thought his gifts to be a bit extravagant.

I handed her a larger gift bag. “This one is from both of us. Careful, it’s heavy.”

“What did you two buy?” she questioned, feeling the weight of the bag.

“We didn’t buy anything, Mom. We made that!”

I smiled, remembering that day fondly. She removed the tissue paper that surrounded the frame.

“Oh my! This is absolutely beautiful!” Her face lit up, looking at the frame in the light. “You made this?”

“Ryan cut and ground all of the glass and even did most of the soldering,” I stated proudly, wrapping my arm around his waist.

He put his arm around my shoulder. “I had an excellent teacher!”

“I can’t believe you made this!” Ellen rose from the couch and hugged us both. “Thank you!” she said as she kissed us one at a time. “I love it! I

absolutely love it! Now maybe I could get you two to pose so I can take a picture of you while you’re all dressed up. That way I’ll have the perfect