Текст книги "Love Unscripted"

Автор книги: Tina Reber

сообщить о нарушении

Текущая страница: 5 (всего у книги 40 страниц)

with the top of my foot, causing his leg to fly forward and his foot to slap on the floor. He peered at me through the corner of his eye and gave me a

dirty look. His evil eye didn’t last too long before the sultry grin appeared on his face.

Finally Pete counted off four dollars in chips and threw them into the pile in the center of the table.

“Fold,” Tammy said, tossing her cards to the center of the table.

“Me too,” Marie huffed. “I’m keeping my chips.”

Pete laid out the Flop cards – another ten and two aces.

I had a beautiful Full House – Aces over Tens. I noticed Pete frowned slightly and he sat back a bit in his chair. Pete always sat forward when he

had a good hand. I could tell he had two lousy cards.

“I raise four,” I said nonchalantly, casually tossing my chips to the center of the table. I didn’t want to give away that I had an awesome hand.

Ryan was mangling a drink swizzle straw in his teeth. He glanced at me as he slid the straw around in his mouth. He played with his chips for a

moment, and then scratched his eyebrow with his thumb. He was stalling.

“I see your four and raise you four,” he replied.

“Fold,” Cal announced sadly. He tossed his cards and pressed back in his chair.

“Ah, I fold too,” Pete grumbled. I snickered to myself… I knew that was coming.

It was my turn again. I counted my chips; I had sixty dollars left and a strong Full House. I was thinking about how Ryan scratched his eyebrow –

was he nervous or bluffing?

“I’m all in.” I pushed all my chips towards the middle of the table.

Ryan’s eyes narrowed on me and he had a serious expression on his face. His lips pursed and twitched a bit around the straw that wiggled in

his mouth.

“How much was that?” he asked, nodding at my chips.

“Sixty,” I replied.

He picked fifty-six dollars off his pile of chips and tossed them into the center. He still had chips left.

“Let’s see what you got, sweetheart.” He grinned, raising his eyebrows at me.

I flipped my Ten and Ace over. Ryan had two Tens. We both had Full Houses, but my hand was higher. We looked at each other and smiled. It

wasn’t over yet.

Pete laid out the turn card. It was a useless Nine of spades. I breathed a sigh of relief. I was still winning.

The last card, the river card, was a Four of diamonds.

“Yes!” I said quietly.

Ryan chuckled, knowing that he just lost. He stretched back in his seat, and then ever so casually patted and rubbed my back as I pulled the chip

pile to my chest. The sensation of his touch sent a tinge of electricity through my body.

Ryan squeezed my shoulders when we stood up to walk away from the table. His grip felt amazing on my achy muscles. It had been a long time

since I let any man get close enough to touch me that way. I was starting to turn to putty under his fingers.

“Good play!” he whispered his private compliment in my ear. I felt the warmth that emanated from his lips caress my skin. His chest pressed

lightly into my back. A million tiny impulses fired through my body.

“I’m impressed. Remind me to take you to the casinos sometime,” Ryan joked with me.

Cal and Gary walked over to the pool table and everyone else followed them. We all needed a short break and a stretch from sitting.

I quickly stepped behind the bar and grabbed a metal mixing cup, which I spun across my palm. I hadn’t been in this good of a mood in a long

time.

I just started pouring the vodka when Ryan joined me at the bar.

“What are you making?” he asked.

“Mind Erasers.” I smiled. “It’s first break shot time.”

“Sounds good! I’ll take two,” Ryan said, winking at me.

Ryan walked aside of me as I carried a tray of shot glasses over to the poolroom.

“Don’t you dare try and trip me!” I joked with him after he gave me a nudge. I kicked the bottom of his foot as he was taking a step. He started

laughing.

“This is a beautiful pool table, Taryn,” Cal said. “Do you think we might be able to bring some people from the set here one night? I think

everyone could use a relaxing, fun night like this.” His eyes flashed over to Ryan. Ryan was nodding in agreement.

“I guess so.” I looked over at Marie. “I suppose I can shut down one night for a private party.”

“We’ll cover your losses for a night if you’d be willing to do that for us,” Cal said.

“You’ll just have to let me know what night and we can arrange something,” I replied.

Cal and Gary played a game of pool and then Pete and Ryan played Cal and Gary as teams. Pete and Ryan dusted them. The guys got along

great together.

“Are we going to play another round of poker or what?” Ryan asked out loud as he was putting his pool stick back on the wall rack. “I’d like an

opportunity to win some of my money back,” he kidded me, giving me a finger poke in my stomach.

His eyes were absolutely mesmerizing as he looked at me.

“Good luck with that!” I teased him and tugged on the straw in his mouth. Ryan clamped his teeth down hard on his straw and playfully snarled at

me.

We all gathered back at the table to play the next round of poker. Everyone was concentrating on their cards; it was eerily quiet. Ryan and I had

already pushed and kicked each other under the table a few times and we were both smiling from our secret.

Pete broke the silence first. “You know what I could eat right now?” he asked out loud as he was stacking his chips.

“Pussy?” Gary answered immediately.

“Gary!” Marie yelped and smacked him in the arm.

Ryan was taking a sip from his glass; he just about spit his beer all over himself, breaking out in a laugh.

“What?” Gary flinched away from Marie. “He asked, I just answered. Sounds like a perfectly good thing to eat right now, right guys?”

“You’re driving him home!” I pointed at Marie while laughing.

“Although I have to agree with Gary, I was actually thinking about those juicy steaks Taryn grilled for us a couple of weeks ago. They were

delicious!” Pete ran his tongue over his lips.

“See? Pete has juicy meat on the brain,” Gary teased.

“No, I think you have juicy meat on the brain,” Marie groaned. She shot her elbow into his ribs.

I smiled and laughed with embarrassment. My friends were nuts.

“Ryan, do you like pus…steak?” Pete asked.

“Yeah.” Ryan nodded and smiled shyly.

“You almost asked him if he…!” Gary was laughing hysterically as he pointed at Pete. He couldn’t even finish his own sentence. He turned a few

shades of red while coughing and trying to catch his breath.

Ryan looked down in embarrassment, but he was still grinning when he rolled his gaze over at me.

Pete ignored Gary’s outburst. “Well this girl here grills one hell of a steak,” he stated proudly, pointing a finger at me.

“They were the best steaks I’ve ever had,” Tammy agreed.

“What can I say?” I shrugged. “It’s good that I get to use my college education.”

“Where did you go to college?” Ryan asked conversationally.

“Brown, in Providence. Economics/Business – sirloin steak major,” I declared.

“So are you going to grill me another steak soon, or what?” Pete wanted to get back to the point.

“Pete, you know I’ll grill for you any day of the week!” I love cooking for my friends.

“So where do you grill these wonderful steaks?” Ryan asked.

“On the roof.” I laughed.

“No really.” Ryan looked confused.

“On the roof!” I repeated with a giggle. “The top of my building is flat. I have a garden patio up there. We have excellent summer parties, right

guys?” My friends all confirmed. “You can see the ocean from up there too,” I continued.

“A steak does sound good right now,” Cal agreed.

“Okay, let me ask this. How many people were you thinking about having here for this private party?” I asked Cal.

“Maybe ten or twelve people?” he summed.

“And would you mind if my four friends here attend this gathering?” I asked.

“Sure, they’re welcome. Absolutely,” Cal confirmed.

“You tell me what night, and I’ll grill steaks. How does that sound? Then everyone will be relaxed, happy, and well-fed.”

Ryan slid his foot under my leg. Our legs were touching now under the table and I was hyper-aware of his presence.

“We’ll check everyone’s schedule and get back to you. Is that all right?” Cal asked.

“Sure. Just so you know I have entertainment booked for Friday and Saturday, but we can do a weeknight or Sunday if that suites you. Just give

me enough notice so I can get the steaks.”

We played for another hour; Marie started to yawn. “Are you ready? It’s getting late.” She grabbed Gary’s arm and started to pull him up out of

his chair.

“Oh man, been sitting too long… my hip hurts,” Gary moaned. “Marie, you’re going to have to get on top tonight!” He grinned.

Ryan and I could not stop laughing.

Everyone started shaking hands and having those brief “it was nice to meet you – see you later” conversations. Cal used his cell phone to call

for their driver. I was sad to see the night come to an end; it seemed to fly by so fast with Ryan here.

I walked my friends to the door and locked up behind them. Ryan and Cal would leave by the back door. Cal departed for the bathroom, leaving

me all alone with Ryan. I started to clean up.

“I had a really great time tonight.” Ryan smiled and set a few empty glasses on the bar. “Your friends are great.”

“Thanks!” I smiled back. “I’m sorry about the questions though.”

Ryan shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t worry about it.”

“I’m glad everyone had fun,” I said, even though I truly meant I was glad that he had fun.

“I’ll call you when we figure out what night we can do this party gathering, okay? Um, so what number should I call?” Ryan asked.

I stopped in my tracks and smiled to myself.

“What number would you like to call?” I asked, knowing what he was truly getting at. I just wanted him to say it.

“I’d like the number that I asked for, but I’m not sure I’m going to get it,” he said. He grinned at me as he took a new Mitchell’s Pub napkin out of

the holder and turned it over.

I took a deep breath and picked up the pen next to the register. I questioned my own actions as I wrote my cell phone number down. My friends

were the only ones who had my cell number. I justified that he and I were becoming friends too.

Ryan’s smile was huge. “Thank you!” He quickly snatched up the napkin and shoved it in his pocket.

I walked both of them to the back door and Cal thanked me for an excellent evening. He gave me an awkward hug before putting his coat on.

Their car pulled up in the alley and Cal patted Ryan’s arm before heading out the door.

Ryan looked down at me and smiled as he took a step closer. He wrapped his arms around my shoulders and pulled me in to give me a nice

hug.S ensations, long suppressed, rocketed through me when our bodies touched. His body pressed into mine when he hugged me tighter. I allowed

myself a moment to appreciate his warmth, his scent, the feel of his back muscles on my hands, the enjoyment this hug gave me.

Ryan’s hand gently cradled the back of my head, his fingers slipped into my hair. He kissed me softly on my forehead; his lips lingered for an

extra second or two before he released our embrace.

“I’ll see you soon,” he whispered softly, took a few steps back, and slipped out the back door.

Chapter 5 – Connections

“So, did he try to kiss you last night?” Marie breathed in my ear.

“No.” I shook my head, annoyed that she even asked. “You promised!” I reminded her.

“Yeah, I know. I’m not pushing! I just wanted to know if that’s the reason you’re finally smiling. So he didn’t try to kiss you?”

I opened a new case of bottled beer. “No. He didn’t kiss me… on my lips.” I trailed the last part of my sentence hoping she wouldn’t catch it.

She started to jump up and down. “Come on! I’m dying here!”

“He gave me a hug, okay?” I quietly muttered. “And he sort of kissed my forehead.” I shrugged it off and continued to put more bottles into the

cooler.

“Remember, you can’t say anything to anyone about them being here. I’m not going to have my pub and my friends involved in any media circus.

Got that? Not one word!” I said to her privately.

She twisted her fingers over her lips and then cracked a cocky smile at me.

“I’m warning you! I’m pretty sure I can shove your entire body in this cooler. No one will find you in there!”

Marie ignored me and turned the TV channel in time to catch the seven o’clock entertainment news. Her excuse was to see if our pub made it to

the television version of celebrity gossip, but I knew better. My attention was diverted to the screen when I heard his name mentioned.

“We got Ryan Christensen arriving at LAX this afternoon...” some guy on TV said.

Ryan was filmed as he hurried through the airport. I was thankful that he had several security guards around him; the photographers and people

bugging him for his autograph were relentless. I wondered if those leeches did nothing all day but lurk around the airport waiting for celebrities.

“What’s he doing in L.A.?” Marie asked out loud. She seemed just as surprised as I was.

“Shh, I want to hear this,” I whispered.

Ryan’s face toggled between a blank stare and moments of annoyance as the cameramen who chased him asked him stupid questions. To

me, he looked tired. They managed to film him signing an autograph or two before he jumped into an awaiting car at the curb.

I was surprised that he was on the West Coast. He didn’t mention anything last night about getting on a plane today – but then again why would

he.

It was soon after that when my phone buzzed in my pocket. My thumb hit the buttons to retrieve a new text message. To my amazement,

someone sent me a beautiful picture of red and white flowers. I immediately smiled. I had never received virtual flowers before.

The text message read: “Greetings from LA”

Butterflies instantly fluttered into my stomach.

I texted him back. “Who is this?”

I didn’t want to let on that I knew where he was, even though I had only found out a few minutes ago.

I read his reply. “Knight who says Ni?”

I laughed out loud from Ryan’s movie reference. “You are funny. Why ru in LA?”

“Interview n meeting with my agent n producer b back thurs”

“R u having fun?” I sent back.

A few moments later, he sent another message: “not really”

“Sorry to hear that” I replied, adding a sad face emoticon.

“Can I call u later tonight?”

“Sure” I quickly typed.

It was almost three in the morning when I crawled into bed. Since Ryan and his friends had been in the pub on Saturday my customer count

seemed to rise. I laughed to myself considering most of the new crowd was female. As I lay there, I became quite absorbed in my thoughts of how

pathetic some of his fans were. One girl was even wearing a T-shirt with Ryan’s face on it tonight.

I wondered how Ryan felt about that. Most men would probably love the attention and get huge egos from it, but I couldn’t see Ryan being into

that at all. He was much too modest. I guessed things like that probably made him very uncomfortable.

Marie and I hustled again tonight, and it was only a Tuesday. I was thinking about asking Tammy if she wanted to work weekends to help out

while the celebrities were still in town. Once they were gone, things would go back to normal. But there were too many customers for just Marie and

me to handle on our own. Maybe I should hire some additional help? I could use a third bartender.

I started to yawn; my eyelids were very heavy. I pulled my comforter higher over my shoulder, snuggling even deeper. I felt myself drifting when I

was startled by my cell phone rattling on my nightstand. I looked at the number, but the screen showed “NO NUMBER.”

“Hello?” I whispered. My voice definitely sounded groggy when I spoke.

“Hi. Sorry to call so late. Were you sleeping?” Ryan whispered.

“No… almost. How are you?” Another big yawn slipped out from my chest.

“I’m tired too. It’s been a long day,” he said glumly.

“What time is it there?” I glanced over at my alarm clock but I was too out of it to do time zone math.

“It’s almost midnight,” he breathed out with a sigh.

“Thank you for the flowers!” I whispered. “That was cute. You definitely took me by surprise.”

He quietly laughed. “Good,” he uttered. Considering he called me, his response was oddly brief.

“So what are you doing?” I could only imagine the glamorous movie star stuff he must be up to.

“I’m in my hotel room. I just got back.” By the way his cell phone crackled, it sounded like he was busy getting settled in.

“Hmm. Did you have a good day?” I murmured, trying to make conversation. I snuggled deeper into my blanket.

“It was all right, I guess. I’m glad it’s over.” Despite his response, the tone of his voice was off – way off. I could tell he was troubled.

“Ryan, what’s wrong? Are you okay?” My eyes popped open and I sat up in bed, overwhelmed with concern about his well-being. “Something is

wrong.”

He sighed. “How can you tell?” He sounded surprised that I could read him like that.

“I just can. I can hear it in your voice.”

“I’ll be all right. Sometimes my life gets freaking insane. Today was one of those days.” His voice trembled and he sniffed a few times. I could

tell he was lying. He wasn’t all right.

I took a deep breath, picturing him huddled up with his head between his arms again like that first day in my stairwell.

“Do you want to talk about it?” I offered.

I listened as he blew air into his phone. “Ah, I don’t know if talking about it will make a difference,” he muttered.

He and I were so much alike. Now it was his turn to sit there feeling sorry for himself.

“Hmm. I have an idea. Why don’t you crawl under your blanket and tell me all about it.” For a moment I wished I could climb through the phone to

comfort him.

He chuckled lightly. “Can you hold on a minute? I need to set the phone down.”

“Sure,” I whispered. I could hear that he was shifting around. I imagined him getting undressed… the light hairs on his stomach peeking above

an elastic band. I wonder what he looks like naked?

He let out a big sigh, disrupting my thought.

“Are you better?” I asked.

“Much,” he replied, but I didn’t believe him.

I took in a deep breath and exhaled roughly. “You don’t sound very convincing.”

He laughed softly. I could just tell by his lack of answers that he was upset.

“Are you under your blanket yet?” I whispered seductively, hoping that might cheer him up.

“Yes,” he snickered.

“Close your eyes… and relax. Just listen to my voice. Take a deep breath... Let it out... Just breathe.” I wanted so desperately to take his

worries away. The feelings were overpowering.

“You’re lying on a soft blanket on a white sand beach. The sky above is a deep and cloudless blue...” I paused to let him soak the imagery in.

“The sun feels warm on your face... you can hear the sound of the ocean as the waves slowly roll in. You can feel the gentle breeze glide over

your skin as it rustles through the trees… feel the stress leave your body… through your fingers… through your toes.”

A soft “Mmm” slipped from his throat. “This is nice.”

“Mmm, what’s nice?” I breathed out.

“This... Feeling at peace… You.”

“Hmm,” I softly sighed into the phone, happy to know my words helped him relax.

“I wish I was there with you,” he whispered.

“I wish you were here too,” I whispered softly.

After the words came out of my mouth, there was no taking them back but it didn’t matter, I didn’t want to take them back. My words came from

my heart and not my head. Part of me hoped he really meant what he said.

Ryan called me three times on Wednesday just to say hello and ask me how my day was going. I was completely floored that he called me so

many times.

He had talked to Cal and the plan was that the private gathering would be held next Sunday at the pub. The entire cast had been invited, but not

everyone was expected to attend. The last head count was eight.

The third time Ryan called, it was midnight in L.A. and his obligations there were completed. He would be departing at noon out of LAX to

Detroit and then Detroit to Providence. He’d be back in town Thursday evening. I laughed to myself that he felt the need to keep me up-to-date on

his itinerary. I didn’t even have to ask; he volunteered the information first. It was kind of cute.

We were both snuggled in our beds as he filled me in on his day. He had an interview on a talk show and then a late meeting with some

producer and his agent and manager about an upcoming movie project they want him to star in. Although Ryan wouldn’t directly admit it, I got the

impression that some of his career decisions were being made for him and that he was just supposed to agree with what they said.

Ryan’s fame and popularity were so new and fresh that he was being swept away with it all. These movie moguls were all going to strike while

the iron was hot. I didn’t need to be part of his world to recognize that. Ryan was a new toy for them; his movie made millions of dollars and it was

easy to visualize the greed in Hollywood taking over like an evil succubus.

While I listened to his voice I allowed my imagination to run free as I pictured what it would be like to have him lying next to me – so close that I

could touch him, soothe him, protect him from the insanity. Ugh! What am I thinking? I had to stop myself from thinking those thoughts.

We talked for almost three hours; the birds were already starting to wake up and chirp outside my window. We started opening up to each other

and our conversation became more personal. He told me that he grew up in a small town in western Pennsylvania and that his parents still lived in

the same house to this day. How he once had a Jack Russell Terrier named Bailey who used to dig holes in the yard.

I told him about the job offer I had accepted at a large brokerage firm in Manhattan, and why I had to turn it down when my father died suddenly. I

was a week away from moving.

Ryan told me about the lead actress that he has to work with on these movies and how she sometimes behaved like a spoiled brat. He called

her “BB,” as all the tabloids referred to her as the British Bombshell, but she was better known as Suzanne Strass. She was a former child actress

from London who recently turned twenty-one.

Even though they were friends, she sometimes annoyed the heck out of him, and it ticked him off that all the gossip magazines were spreading

lies about them being romantically linked. She had tagged along with him the night he came into my pub.

Throughout our conversation, we laughed and teased. He was so easy to talk to. But he always seemed hesitant to talk about what was truly

bothering him. I could sense there were underlying issues, however he never went into details and I didn’t want to pry. I could hear it in his voice that

there were things that he wasn’t sharing.

It was Thursday, early evening, when Marie flipped through the channels on the pub television. Ryan had given a brief interview with one of the

evening entertainment news shows and it was being broadcasted today.

It was strange watching him on television. Even though the voice was the same, the celebrity image on the screen was disconnected from the

man I was trying so desperately not to fall for over the telephone. But some things were the same; he was charming and shy and slightly

uncomfortable with all the attention during the interview. I noticed his nervous twitches and mannerisms when they asked questions that he was

uncomfortable with. Still, he was humble and very adorable.

And then my heart lodged into my throat when I saw the additional footage of him being swept through a hysterical crowd by six bulky security

guards. At one point I wasn’t sure if he was even walking on his own or if the security team was just carrying him.

The fans were reaching for him – holding cameras over their heads for just the random chance that they might get his photo. Others were

holding pictures of him hoping to get his autograph. A few women were crying and hyperventilating just from getting a glimpse of him.

The security team practically hurled him into the awaiting car; his fans were screaming and blocking his car in the road. Mobs of paparazzi were

everywhere. I gripped the edge of the bar as my knees started to buckle. He was the prey being stalked by the wolves.

At that moment, I realized the magnitude of what he was sparing me from. It wasn’t that he was the superstar adored by millions that made me

weak. It was the feeling that I wanted to throw myself in their path to protect him that was most powerful.

An hour later my cell phone buzzed in my pocket. Ryan was texting me:

“Hi I’m back”

I quickly sent him a reply: “Hi r u ok?”

“Yeah why u ask?”

“Nothing glad to hear ur back safe” I couldn’t tell him why I was worried.

“We r shootn night scenes gonna b a late one”

I smiled when I saw the sad smiley face. “dont work too hard have fun”

“I’ll try to call u soon ok?”

“Ok”

I was relieved to know he was back in Rhode Island, away from that California craziness, although it appeared that some of that craziness

followed him wherever he went.

We were very busy for a weeknight. It seemed that his huge female fan base that swarmed my pub had attracted a new selection of male

customers – everyone was on the hunt – and the odds were better if you were a man.

“It’s like freaking mating season!” I yelled over to Marie.

She snorted at me. “I know! It’s sick, isn’t it?”

“I don’t know if I should be appalled or thankful,” I laughed back to her.

“I’m extremely thankful!” She bobbed her head back and forth and stuffed a few more dollars into our tip jar. “Go! Find a mate!” she teased me.

I wasn’t opposed to finding someone and having love be a part of my life again, but every guy I came across was oddly the same. Lame

approaches, cheap comments, scary aggressive behavior, or just not what I was longing for. At this point in my life I didn’t feel the need to settle nor

have to make due with half of nothing.

It was after three a.m. again when I crawled into bed. My hands hurt from washing so many dirty glasses and empty beer pitchers tonight and it

bothered me that I couldn’t curl them underneath my chin like I normally did to sleep.

I never tried to buy into the fairytales that most girls fell for, but for a moment I felt like I could really relate to Cinderella, being forced to clean up

after all of the wicked and ungrateful.

I was still thinking about Cinderella periodically throughout the next day. I wondered why she never just snapped and told her evil stepmother and

stepsisters to go to hell. Would things have been different for her if she had a baseball bat tucked up under her apron and didn’t need Prince

Charming to come and rescue her? Why won’t this sticky stuff come up off the bar? How hard do I need to scrub?

“Hey, kiddo! How you doing tonight?” Pete asked, drumming his hands on the bar.

I was so lost in my own thoughts while scouring the top of the bar that his drumming startled me. My eyes focused in on his beaming face as I

tried to shake my brain back into reality.

“I’m doing all right,” I answered, forcing myself to smile.

“We should have a good Friday night crowd tonight,” he said enthusiastically. I smiled wider when he raised his eyebrows up and down at me.

“Frank and the guys just pulled up. I’m going to see if they need a hand unloading,” Pete informed.

Customers were filtering in while tonight’s band set up their equipment. My head was slowly getting back into the game as my earlier

distractions became replaced with juggling a multitude of drink orders.

As the evening progressed, the crowd grew thicker and the music became louder, and I found myself flowing and dancing behind the bar again.

Tammy had agreed to work a few weekends, so I had her covering tables.

There were two men sitting at the bar that Marie felt I should be interested in. She kept nudging me in their direction but I couldn’t stop

envisioning them having giant springs attached to their necks from the way their heads kept nodding at me.

“What’s wrong with you?” Marie said as she put her arm around my shoulders. “That one in the baseball hat is cute! Go flirt with him!”

I half-heartily smiled and made a choking sound.

“Don’t give me that shit!” she snapped. “You need to be brave and get back on the damn horse!” Her hand cracked me on my backside.

Mr. Baseball Hat had just waved his empty glass at me when my phone vibrated in my pocket. My heart flipped in my chest.

“Hello?” I answered, very much knowing whose voice was going to respond. I had to cover my ear to hear him.

“Hi – how are you?” Ryan asked.

“I’m great! How are you?” I was genuinely happy to hear from him. Ryan was momentarily distracted by a side conversation. I heard him and

another man exchanging words.

“Hey man, how’s it going?”

Why does that voice sound so familiar to me?

“It’s going great,” Ryan replied with a light chuckle.

“Good to see ya. Nah, just go on in,” the male voice stated.

“Thanks! Hey I’ll see you later,” Ryan said.

“I’m thirsty,” Ryan informed, answering my original question. “I’d really like a beer please.”

I looked up to see that he was twenty feet in front of me, walking towards the bar. He had a big, sexy grin on his face as he slipped his phone

into his jacket pocket.

Ryan was the center man in a pack of four other guys. I recognized Cal right away. One of the other men looked familiar – like I’d seen him in a

movie or something before but I didn’t know who he was. The other two had to be private security – they looked like they could hurt someone.

“Hey you!” Ryan greeted me with that smile that made my knees weak.

“Hi!” My tone was unintentionally a mixture of surprise and annoyance. I was very glad to see him but now I’d have to deal with crowd control and

his psychotic fans invading my pub. I looked behind him and sure enough half a dozen giggling girls traipsed through the door.

Cal moved into the space next to Ryan. Obviously it was boys’ night out.

“Taryn, this is Shane Richards,” Ryan said as he waved his hand in Shane’s direction. Shane was tall and overly thin, with unkempt brown hair.

He looked like he should be in a rock band instead of being a movie star. Regardless, his smile was dazzling.

“What would you gentlemen like to drink this evening?” I tried to be cordial as more overly excited women came in. The second they saw Ryan