Текст книги "Love Unscripted"

Автор книги: Tina Reber

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and his friends, their demeanor turned to bubbling exuberance.

While the guys looked over my beer menu, the coyotes descended. Ryan was like a huge chick magnet, even though Shane and Cal were

equally as handsome. In no time at all, the brave ones in the crowd tried to cozy up to the actors.

I tapped a beer for each of them and with every second that I had to watch all the over-zealous girls flirting I became more and more irritated. I

placed the last beer on the bar when Ryan asked what he owed me.

I waved my hand. “Nothing. It’s on me.” I smiled.

My smile, however, quickly faded after seeing even more giggling women rush through my door. I hurried out from behind the bar; I was on a

mission to stop the invasion.

“Pete, no more people get in,” I inadvertently barked at him.

“Okay,” he replied a tad defensively. “Sorry – are there too many people in there now?”

“No, but we’ve filled our quota of obsessive fans,” I snapped as I eyed the girls who were waiting to pay the cover charge. “People need to get a

freaking life,” I mumbled to myself and stomped my way back to the bar.

Ryan and his friends were still standing by the bar but now women surrounded them on all sides. Tramp! Slut! shouted in my brain as I stormed

past them. Ryan’s gaze followed me but I didn’t look at him. I stepped back behind the bar and for a moment entertained the idea of smashing

some girls with my baseball bat.

I purposely relocated myself as far away as possible from him and the gaggle of women, which landed me directly in front of Mr. Baseball Hat. I

nudged Marie in Ryan’s direction.

Fortunately my pub was packed and I was hustling making one drink after another. I made a conscious effort not to look for him or in his

direction, even though it was hard. Occasionally I’d allow myself a quick peek, but I never let my eyes linger.

“Are you mad that he’s here?” Marie whispered in my ear.

I shook my head while I prepared two vodka tonics.

“Well you look mad,” she laughed at me. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m allergic to whores,” I mumbled under my breath.

“Oh, I see. Jealous, not mad,” she corrected.

I huffed out loud. “How am I supposed to compete with all of that?” I nodded at the crowd of women. “Ahh, it doesn’t matter.”

“You’re fucked up!” Marie snapped back at me while she was mixing a drink. “If you haven’t realized it yet, he’s in your bar. He’s being nice to

them, but he is far from flirting with any of them. He’s too busy watching you to notice them.”

I grimaced when she nudged me to speak privately.

“And another thing, if you’re going to be jealous, then that means you like him more than you’re willing to admit. This shit is a part of his life,” she

noted and waved her hands towards the wall of girls. “It comes with the territory so you need to decide whether you can deal with that or not.”

She stood right in front of me and grabbed my wrist.

“Taryn, you are so attractive and lovable. Everyone sees it. He sees it. But you are the only one who doesn’t. You’ve let lowlifes like Thomas

strip away your self-esteem. And it’s pretty apparent that Ryan likes you, because he’s not paying any attention to them.”

I looked away from her to notice he was watching me. Just then Mr. Baseball hat waved his money in the air.

“I’ve got to wait on someone.” I wiggled free from her grip.

“Do you need another one?” I asked.

“Hi. My name is Jesse. What’s yours?” Mr. Baseball Hat asked.

“Taryn,” I said with a forced smile.

“So Taryn, do you work here every weekend?”

“Um, yes.” Here we go again…standard lame approach.

“Do you know what the band’s name is that’s playing tonight?” he asked.

“They call themselves ‘Being Frank.’ Do you like them?” How presumptuous of me; he’s just trying to be friendly.

“Yeah, they are really good! But seriously, tell me that guy doesn’t look like Art Garfunkel!”

His comment made me laugh. We all teased Frank because he did look like Art Garfunkel.

“You see it too, don’t you?” Mr. Baseball Hat joked with me, laughing out loud. “It’s the hair!”

I nodded in agreement. My mind flashed back to Frank putting Pete in a head-lock one night for that comment.

“I can’t say that I disagree with you. Yes, he does look just like him.” I laughed. “But whatever you do, don’t make that comment to him!”

I was wiping the tear of laughter away from my eye when I noticed Ryan sit down three bar stools away from my new admirer. Standing dutifully

behind him was one of his bodyguards.

“So Taryn, I was wondering if you’d like to go out with me sometime. Go have some fun. What do you think?” Mr. Baseball Hat choked out.

Something about the nervous look on his face was funny to me. A small chuckle accidentally escaped my throat. The poor guy looked slightly

petrified but yet he found a moment of bravery, and here I was being rude.

I quickly flashed my eyes over to Ryan. Ryan’s body stiffened in his seat and I noticed his grip got tighter on his glass. It looked like he was

holding his breath.

“I’m very flattered, Jesse. But I’m going to have to say no. Sorry.” I was actually watching Ryan’s reaction out of the corner of my eye.

Ryan let out a big sigh as his lips twitched into a smirk. I think he actually wanted to smile but fought the emotion. I didn’t hide mine – I let the

smile come out on my face.

“I figured you had a boyfriend anyway but it couldn’t hurt to ask.” Jesse shrugged.

Ryan finished his beer and slid his empty glass forward on the bar. “Excuse me, miss, can I get another beer please?” he said with a confident

smile.

I grabbed his empty glass and tapped him a fresh beer in a clean, frosted mug.

I set the glass down and turned the handle of the mug so he’d be able to pick it right up in his hand. He slipped a ten-dollar bill on the bar and

winked at me.

I left his money lay next to his glass and walked away; I had to wait on another customer and I had no intentions of accepting his money. I was

wondering where Marie disappeared to when I noticed that she was over by the stage talking to Frank.

I watched as Ryan and his bodyguard walked back to the table to join his friends; a flock of women trailed behind him. I had to suppress my

anger.

When the band finished their song, Frank started talking in the microphone. “Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a very talented lady here with us

tonight, and if you give her some encouragement, maybe we can convince her to come up here and play for you.”

I looked up and scanned the crowd for the person he was talking about. I started to clap with everyone else.

“Taryn,” Frank called out as he looked at me. “Why don’t you come up here and play for these nice folks?”

My clapping hands stopped clapping. It felt like my hands were glued together.

“Oh, no.” My head spun as the shock set in. “No!”

“Come on, Taryn! One song!” Frank jeered. “Come on everyone, let’s give her a warm welcome!”

“No.” I was shaking my head so hard I was making myself dizzy. “No, I can’t.”

Marie grabbed my arm and forcefully pulled me out from behind the bar. “Go show ‘em how special you are,” she whispered in my ear then gave

me a shove towards the stage.

My heart was beating so hard in my chest I felt like I could pass out. “Remind me to fire you after this,” I griped at her.

The crowd clapped as I made my way to my piano. I was so embarrassed.

“What am I supposed to play?” I asked Frank.

“Whatever you want,” he answered. “We’ll try to back you.”

I took a deep breath and adjusted my piano bench. It had been quite a while since I played in front of people and now was not the best time for a

panic attack.

I ran through the songs that I knew by heart. My eyes glanced across the crowded pub and I saw Ryan standing and watching me. As I thought of

him, one particular song came to mind.

“Mmm, thank you.” I adjusted the microphone to my lips and blew out a heavy sigh to get my nerves in check.

“This song is one of my all time favorites and I hope you like it. Ahm, it’s called ‘You’ve got a friend.’ ”

I placed my fingers on the keys, took a deep breath, and started to play.

The music flowed and I miraculously remembered the lyrics and notes. I felt the strength and courage surge into me as my fingers danced over

the keys.

As I played, I felt that every word, every note was meant for Ryan and Ryan alone. I hoped that when he closed his eyes he did think of me, and if

he needed me all he had to do was call out my name. There was no explanation for my overwhelming feelings – I was drawn to him like a moth to a

flame.

For a brief moment, our eyes met from across the room. Ryan was the only one I wanted to look at. He had the most glorious smile on his face

as he stood to watch me play. I pushed the keys with extra force, wishing that he could realize that this song was for him.

To my amazement, I received a standing ovation when I finished. I felt the heat rise to my cheeks as the embarrassment washed over me. I

briefly covered my face with my hands. I looked over at Ryan again; he was still standing and clapping with a huge smile on his face, his head slowly

shaking back and forth.

I politely thanked everyone and quickly turned the microphone off. There was no way I’d do another song. Pete was standing by the front door,

clapping frantically. His cheers were definitely the loudest.

“Miss Taryn Mitchell everyone!” Frank yelled into the microphone. I took a brief bow and quickly stepped off the stage.

It was hard to walk back to the bar through the thick crowd. Hands I didn’t know touched me and patted me on the back and people were in my

face complimenting me. It was a very uncomfortable feeling and for a moment I wondered if this was how Ryan felt all the time.

I walked right past Ryan, even though he was smiling from ear to ear. I tried to return the smile but I was too flustered to even look at him. He

reached for me but I didn’t stop. I was almost at a run when I ducked into my stairwell; I just needed a moment to calm down and get my nerves in

check.

I only made it up four steps before crashing down to put my head in my hands. My heart was about to burst out of my chest and it was hard to

breathe.

My eyes shot up when I heard my stairwell door open. Ryan slipped around the corner and shut the door quickly behind him. He was smiling and

laughing lightly to himself as he stood there staring at me.

“Is this what it’s like for you?” I asked, covering my heart with my hand to slow the pounding.

“Well, that depends,” he said. “Are you referring to the extreme embarrassment or the full out panic attacks?”

I just nodded and gasped in a few deep breaths of air.

“Either way… yeah!” He nodded.

“Hey, come here.” Ryan reached out to me, taking my hands in his. He pulled me into a nice hug, wrapping his strong arms gently around my

shoulders.

“You were absolutely breathtaking up there,” he whispered, reassuring me. “You have nothing to be embarrassed about.”

His hand held my head to his chest and he softly kissed my hair; it felt confusingly natural to hold him. I clasped my hands together around his

waist and pressed my face deeper into his chest. The soft scent of his skin was like an aphrodisiac, making me crave him even more.

I closed my eyes and felt my heart rate slowly coming down while he ran his hand over my back to sooth me.

“It’s okay, sweetheart. Just breathe with me,” he said softly.

Chapter 6 – Respite

“I have off on Sunday and Monday and I’d really like to see you… that is if you don’t already have plans with one of your admirers,” Ryan teased.

I noted the tone of sarcasm in his voice.

I smirked at him. Apparently I wasn’t the only one slightly jealous. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Me?” he sounded shocked.

“Yeah, you! Like you have any room to talk!”

He frowned at me.

“Well anyway…” He leaned up on the stairwell wall. “I was wondering if you and I can go do something together.”

I sat back down on the steps. As much as I wanted to refuse him and protect myself I no longer had the will to do so. I couldn’t deny this powerful

attraction to him any longer. “What did you have in mind?”

“Anything,” he breathed out desperately. “I just need to get away.” He lightly tapped his head back into the wall.

“I don’t have any plans,” I willingly admitted. “Monday night is poker, but you already know that.”

“Yeah, speaking of which, I’d like an opportunity to win some of my money back.”

“Sure. I’d be happy to take all of your chips this time!” I snickered.

A few moments of silence passed. I just stared at the scuff on my shoe, trying to calm myself and banish the confusion he was reaping in my

mind. Ryan appeared deep in thought.

“Huh,” he sighed. His eyes glanced up the stairs.

“What?” I looked over my shoulder to see what he was looking at.

“Nothing,” he said, shaking his head. “I was just thinking about the last time I was in this stairwell. I was in a lot worse shape than you were a few

minutes ago.”

He made me laugh. “Perfect place for panic attacks then, huh?”

“I was actually thinking that it’s more of a gateway to peace. Insanity out there…” He motioned to the door. “Respite in here,” he stated firmly.

“Are you ready for more insanity yet?” He reached out his hand and pulled me up from my step. “You can’t hide in here forever.”

I groaned. “No, I like respite better.” A big sigh escaped my lungs. “I’m glad you came tonight.”

“Me too,” he said gently, looking me in my eyes. His fingers stroked my cheek. “Just think, I could have missed your stellar performance and

your private panic attack all in one night!”

“Don’t be an ass!” I attempted to poke him in the rib with my finger but he caught my hand in his. The touch of his hand on mine did strange

things to my heart.

“Come on, sweetheart.” He motioned with his head, leading me to the door. “Insanity is waiting.”

I slipped out the door first. Ryan stayed behind for a few minutes so we wouldn’t cause too much of a stir appearing from the same place

together.

One of his security team was standing guard right outside the stairwell door, doing a good job earning his keep.

I resumed my spot behind the bar and was greeted by Marie and Tammy, who were grinning from ear to ear at me.

“So am I fired or am I getting a raise?” Marie kidded.

“You were spectacular up there!” Tammy gushed. She gave me a quick hug.

I rolled my eyes, smiled at them both, and went back to business tending bar.

It was almost one thirty in the morning when my cell phone vibrated in my pocket; Ryan was texting me from the booth.

“too many eyes watching I will call u tomorrow”

“ok ru filming?” He was watching me type back to him.

“yeah all day n night too maybe til 1am?” He typed with a frown on his lips.

“I will b here” I typed.

“think about where to go Sunday please”

“I will”

“Promise?” He was staring at me now.

I looked over at him, smiled, and crossed my heart.

Ryan shoved his phone back into his coat.

I watched him head for the door; his security had him flanked. The second he stepped out into his personal rendition of insanity, I could hear

women screaming and see the flash of cameras illuminating the dark street.

I spent a good portion of Saturday morning trying to come up with ideas of where to go on Sunday. It wasn’t like I could take him anywhere in

public without causing a scene. I wondered what other celebrities did for fun. I’d seen plenty of pictures of famous stars out and about doing normal

things like trying to get a lousy cup of coffee or having lunch. The simple fact that I saw pictures of them doing those ordinary things made me

realize that there are few things they could do without being followed.

I remembered the words that Ryan had muttered under his breath that first day I met him: “the things we take for granted.” I knew now what he

meant. No longer could he simply walk out of a store or restaurant without being hounded for pictures or autographs.

Do celebrities ever get used to the insanity or do they just develop a way of tuning it out? Ryan’s fame was still fresh and I knew that he didn’t

like all the attention.

I wanted to take him somewhere that he could just be himself. I laughed at myself, thinking that the only idea I had so far was for us to hide in my

stairwell.

Hmm… someplace away from people; someplace where he could move around and yet remain unnoticed. Private… secluded… fun…

safe. Then the idea struck me.

“Hi Uncle Al, it’s Taryn. How are you?” After a few moments of pleasantries, I got down to business. “Is anyone using Pappy’s shack this

weekend? I have a friend visiting me from out of town and I thought it would be a nice place to go for a day trip.”

With my newfound brilliance, it was time to put the rest of the plan into action. There were supplies I would need to get and things to pack in the

car. I made a list so I wouldn’t forget anything and headed to the store.

Two hours later, I had all the items on my list and the trunk of my car packed with essentials. I was trying to get to the closet in the third bedroom

when Ryan called.

“Hey, how are you?” I asked, groaning as I pushed a few heavy boxes out of my way.

“What are you up to?” He started laughing at the grunting noises I was making in the phone.

“Digging out my cooler. It’s buried under some boxes.”

“Cooler? What do you need that for?”

“I need it for tomorrow. Shoot…” I yelled as the phone slipped out from under my ear. It landed on the floor. “Hello?” I asked in a hurry. I hoped I

didn’t hang up on him and I was relieved when I heard him laugh.

“Sorry, phone slipped. Okay, you can stop laughing at me now!”

“So where are you going tomorrow?” he asked. I loved his sarcastic sense of humor.

“Oh, that’s a secret. You’ll see when we get there,” I teased.

“Secret? You’re really not going to tell me where we’re going?”

“Nope. It’s a surprise. I’m pretty sure you’ll like it though.” I laughed. “You’ll just have to trust me.”

“Uh oh. Now I’m worried!”

“Worried?” I tsked. “No worries. You’ll be well hidden from the public. The place we are going to is… private. But we’ll have to drive a few hours

to get there.”

“Now I’m intrigued!” The excitement in his voice was noticeable.

“Oh, and you’ll need warm, comfy clothes because we’ll be spending some time outside. Pack some extra clothes too, just in case.” Visions of

one of us falling in the lake crossed my mind.

“Now I’m really intrigued!”

“Good. You’ll have to tell me how, when, and where I can pick you up tomorrow.”

“I was thinking about that,” he sighed. “You know I can’t just hop in your car at the hotel. Maybe you can pick me up at the set, but…” I could hear

him breathe pretty hard.

“What?” I asked.

“I’m going to have to hide so I can get off the lot unnoticed.” His voice was troubled.

“Hide? How? You want to hide in the trunk?” I joked, trying to lighten the concern in his tone.

“Ah, just bring a blanket. Damn, I hate this,” he huffed.

“Ryan, it’s all right. I understand. We’ll do what we have to. It’s no big deal.”

He explained how to get in the catering entrance and that he’d leave my name with the gate security. It was the easiest way to get to him, but it

was still tricky. Rumors were being leaked off the set all the time, and he was concerned that the paparazzi would follow us. His plan gave me

another idea. There was one more phone call I had to make.

“Tammy, hey. I need a favor…”

Early Sunday morning I pulled up to the gate on the enclosed lot; it was a few minutes before nine o’clock. The entire location was penned in

ten-foot privacy fence and cement block. It was very intimidating. The guard that greeted me had a pistol strapped to his hip.

“Hi. Taryn Mitchell. I have a delivery,” I said to the guard. He looked over his clipboard of names. I had to show him my driver’s license as proof

of identity and he made me open the back so he could look inside before letting me proceed.

“Go on.” He waved and motioned to another security guard to move the barricade.

I parked next to a line of catering vehicles and noticed Ryan hanging out by one of the tents. There were people mingling all around so I tried to

blend.

“Good morning, Mr. Christensen,” I greeted him with a tip of my hat. A few people walked past us.

“Good morning,” he said, flinching with confusion.

“Are you ready?” I mouthed to him.

He grabbed his bag and followed me along the rows of trucks and vans. I hit the key fob to unlock the doors, which made the lights flash.

“Nice van, Ms. Mitchell,” he murmured at me.

“Bond, Taryn Bond,” I muttered back to him.

Ryan jumped into the back of the van and I shut the door quickly behind him. The guards moved the barricades and I drove right past the waiting

paparazzi completely unnoticed. Ryan laughed hysterically as we drove down the road.

“Where the hell did you get a catering van?” he asked, climbing into the front passenger seat.

“It’s Tammy’s.” I removed the T&P Catering baseball cap off my head and shook out my hair. “She owns a catering business. Don’t touch the

pastries back there or she’ll shoot you!”

“Ms. Bond, you are truly amazing!” He laughed.

I drove back to Pete and Tammy’s house. Tammy and I exchanged car keys and Ryan thanked them both. “You two are the best,” Ryan said.

“Have fun!” Pete tapped him in the arm. “Go enjoy yourself!”

“Are you going to tell me where we’re going or is it still a secret?” Ryan nudged me with his elbow as I drove us out onto the highway.

I looked over at him and smiled. He was reading the road signs trying to figure it out.

“Northwest,” I answered, unperturbed.

He looked at me and just kept shaking his head. He was dying to know where we were going and I was holding out.

“And how long do we drive northwest?” he pried.

I glanced at the time on the dashboard. “Another hour and forty minutes.”

Ryan spent a good portion of the trip chewing on his fingers. I noticed he was a fingernail biter.

“I like this car,” he said as he closed his eyes. “Seats are really comfortable. Infiniti, right?”

“Yep. M45.”

“Wake me up when we get there,” he said brusquely.

“Oh, hell no!” I poked him in his side. He jumped and flinched away from me, laughing. “You have to stay awake!”

We were about fifteen minutes away from our final destination when I pulled off into the parking lot of the local convenience store and gas

station. This was the place where my family would stop before every trip to the cabin. I backed my car up to the tree line on the far end of the lot so

Ryan would remain unnoticed.

“I want to get some coffee,” I replied, answering the question on Ryan’s face. “You want anything?”

“Yeah, would you get me a twenty-ouncer?” he asked, reaching in his pocket for money. I grimaced at his actions and ignored the money in his

hand.

“Do you want anything in it? Cream, sugar?” I asked. I already had one leg out of the car.

“Yeah, make it a shade light and three sugars. Here, take this,” he insisted, handing a twenty dollar bill to me.

“Nah, I got it.”

“Would you at least let me buy you a damn cup of coffee?” he pleaded. I could tell he was a little upset.

“Fine,” I whispered and made a face at him. I didn’t want to argue. I slipped the money from his fingers.

While I was paying for the coffees I noticed that his picture was on the front of one of the gossip magazines. In the picture, behind him, was the

front door to my pub. I grabbed the magazine and thumbed through it quickly to read what they had printed. Amongst the worthless drivel

surrounding his pictures was a photo of him and the two actresses exiting my pub. I read the caption:

Suzanne is growing closer to Ryan. The two have been spending a lot of alone time on and off the set, although they both deny that they are

secretly dating. The two were spotted keeping each other company October 4 as they were caught leaving a local club after a late night of

partying in downtown Seaport. "Ryan and Suzanne were very close all night and seemed happy," says an eyewitness.

I slapped the magazine shut and put it back on the rack. I knew the truth; he didn’t pay much attention to Suzanne that night at all – he was too

busy watching me, wearing my T-shirt, in my pub. I smiled widely; he was sitting in my car waiting for me that very moment.

“I got two sausage, egg and cheese muffins,” I said, handing his change and the bag over to him.

“Excellent! I’m hungry.”

“I figured you might be. Hey, you need to share!” I leered at him. He was already unwrapping the second sandwich while still eating the first.

“Here, take a bite,” he snickered, even though he took another big bite of the muffin before holding it to my mouth.

I made the final turn on the last leg of our trip. The last few miles of road were bordered on both sides by tall pines and thick trees; the air was

scented with the fresh perfume of the woods. The leaves were just starting to turn with fall’s colors and they made beautiful hues on the windshield.

I turned onto the obscure drive to my grandfather’s cabin and stopped to unlock the metal pipe gate that blocked cars from driving further onto

the property. Ryan slipped his sunglasses off his face; his eyes were wide with wonder.

“Welcome to my grandfather’s fishing shack.” I smiled at him as we drove up to the house.

“Shack? That isn’t a shack!” he declared, pointing to the house. He smiled in amazement.

Nestled comfortably in the woods was a log sided A-frame with a wooden deck that wrapped around the sides and past an enormous stone

chimney. The front of the house was all windows that reflected the sunrays breaking through the trees. Off the back of the house was a raised,

screened-in porch that overlooked the lake.

“It’s not that big. It only has two bedrooms,” I answered his gaze. I parked the car in the stone-covered car pad right next to the stairs that led to

the deck.

Ryan helped me carry the cooler up the steps to the front door. I gave him a quick tour of the house while I turned the power and water on.

“This is excellent!” he said with an exulted grin on his face. I watched him wander around the room, touching and looking at everything.

“That right there is why I didn’t want to ruin the surprise.” I pointed at his smile.

“After we get the car unpacked, I thought we might take the boat out on the lake… do a little fishing?” I waved the cup of night-crawlers in the air.

“We’re going fishing?” he asked, completely astonished. “You? You… fish?”

“Sure,” I quipped. “That’s why I brought you here. I thought we’d take the boat out on the lake.”

We walked down the stone-covered drive to the one car garage where the boat was stored. The boat was painted gunmetal silver with black

and red detail stripes and a dark gray interior.

“Nice!” Ryan said as he pushed the garage door up. “17 footer?”

“It belongs to my Uncle Al.” I nodded. “It was my dad’s and his, but… well… it was big enough for the two of them.”

I climbed onto the big ATV that we needed to use to tow the boat down to the lake, but when I tried to start it the battery was obviously dead.

“Go get your car. We can jumpstart it,” he said confidently.

Ryan was enjoying himself, tinkering around with jumper cables and twisting the throttle on the ATV. He was like a kid in a candy store, so happy

and relaxed. I loved how he was able to fix things. He reminded me of my father.

He backed the ATV up and I helped him hook the hitch to the boat trailer. I held his shoulders to steady myself as I climbed on the four-wheeler

behind him. I took the liberty to give him a few extra squeezes to massage his tense muscles. I took his moaning as confirmation that he enjoyed my

touch.

“Hold on tight!” He patted and squeezed my thigh before twisting the throttle to set us in motion.

I rested my chin on his shoulder while the light breeze blew his hair onto my cheek. I nestled my frosty nose near his warm neck to add another

delicious scent of him to my memory. I wished we had further to drive so I could enjoy holding on to him like this longer, but it was a short distance

between the garage and the lake.

The noontime sun was bright overhead. He backed the boat trailer into the water and helped me push the boat into the lake. We worked well as

a team.

Ryan gave me a few teasing bumps when we walked back up the driveway to get our things. He just kept grinning and smiling and shaking his

head at me.

We loaded up the boat with all the essentials – fishing gear, beer, and sandwiches – and Ryan started the little trolling motor to get us out on the

water.

The air was still and it wasn’t as cold as it had been the last few days. The lake was calm and reflected the trees and sky like a gigantic mirror. I

tipped my sunglasses down to take in the sight of Ryan driving the boat. He was looking so good in his blue jeans, and white thermal shirt with a

brown coat. The grin on his face was one of heavenly bliss. I was thrilled that he was enjoying this mini-vacation.

“Head over towards those trees.” I pointed. “That’s my dad’s lucky spot. He caught lots of fish over there.”

“So how did you come up with the fishing idea?” he asked, casting his line out into the water.

“From you.” I laughed lightly. I opted to put a lure on my line instead of one of the worms.

“Me? When did I ever tell you I love to fish?”

“The first day I met you. You showed me the scar where your brother hooked you in the arm.”

He looked over at me and smiled. “You have a good memory for detail. I forgot about that. This was your dad’s favorite spot? I can see why. It’s

beautiful out here.”

I inhaled deeply, enjoying the soft scent of pine and fallen leaves. It was much different from the smell that emanated off the Atlantic.

Ryan stared at me for a moment, chewing on his lip. “Can I ask what happened?” he said hesitantly. “Your dad?”

I gasped slightly; just thinking about it hurt.

“The doctors told me he had a massive heart attack.” I sniffed. “It was right after Labor Day last year. We weren’t busy for some reason so dad

told me to take the night off – said he’d lock up the bar for once.” I grimaced from hearing his voice in my head. “When I came home I found him on

the floor. I tried to do CPR on him until the ambulance came, but I was too late.”

“I’m so sorry.” Ryan looked at me apologetically.

“Thanks,” I replied. “It was really hard at first but I’ve been dealing with it. I just try to remember all the good times.”