Love Unscripted (58 page)

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 picture to put in this beautiful frame.”

This was one photo I didn’t mind posing for.

The next morning, I hurried down the alley to get my car, much to Ryan’s dislike, but I wanted to move the car closer to the back door. I didn’t want to haul all our bags down the street and give the photographers even more fuel for their tabloid lies. It was bad enough that the paparazzi followed me down the alley.

We packed the trunk and Ryan smiled briefly when I handed him the keys. I knew that gripping the steering wheel and pressing the gas pedal in my car would make him happy. He got some sort of elation from driving; whether it was fleeing the photographers and fans or if it was simply the exhilaration of speed, I wasn’t sure.

“
White van just pulled behind us,” I informed Ryan while we waited at a red traffic light two blocks away from the pub.

“
Don’t worry, I’ll lose them.” He thoroughly enjoyed testing the limits of my car on the open highway.

Ryan’s driving got us to the cabin in an hour and a half. We had lost the pursuing photographers within the first ten minutes of our trip.

His parents were pleasantly shocked to see our final destination. His father kept patting him on the back and smiling although neither of us owned the property he was being congratulated for.

After everyone was situated, Ryan and I took the boat out of the garage so he and his father could go fishing. I rode on the back of the four-wheeler with him, nestling my nose into his neck that was no longer unfamiliar territory. This time our relationship was completely different from the last time we were here. I remembered wondering if we would ever be a couple and here we were, a couple.

“
Taryn, this place is magnificent!” Ellen said, wrapping her arm around my shoulder. We stood on the embankment overlooking the lake. The weather was chilly but sunny with perfect blue skies.

“
One day,” Ryan said happily. “Right, Honey?”

I shrugged my reply, hoping, but still not banking on anything. Not this soon, anyway. I wondered why Ryan felt so sure so soon. Is there really such a thing as love at first sight, or was he trying to convince himself that this was what he wanted? I didn’t want to second-guess my feelings though, for I was truly, madly in love with him.

“
One day what?” his mom asked.

“
Have a place like this.” Ryan beamed. “Bigger house, but on a lake.”

“
What bigger house?” Bill inquired, placing his hand on Ryan’s shoulder.

“
Just talking about having a house of my own one day, Dad. I can’t live in hotels forever.”

“
Good. You should buy a home of your own. Don’t throw your money away renting some place. A house is a good investment. After all, you certainly can afford it now, Son.”

“
I want to design it myself, though. Well, not completely on my own.” He wrapped his arm around my shoulder. “I know this talented woman - she designed an awesome kitchen and the most amazing rooftop patio I’ve ever seen. I think I’ll ask her how big of a closet she wants. Put in a whole art studio room just for making stained glass?”

I smiled at him but inside I was freaking out. We’d only been together for a month and already I was going to be designing a house with him? Was he serious? He looked serious. He surely sounded serious.

“
So, what are you ladies going to do today?” Ryan asked, hugging me from behind at the edge of the water. His mother walked away to speak to his father; they headed towards the dock. I really think she just wanted to give us a moment of privacy.

“
I think we’re going to the outlet mall today. I want to stop at the one antique store. I haven’t been there in years. Maybe we’ll do that tomorrow though.”

He partially released me to reach into his front pocket. Then I felt him stuff something into the right front pocket of my jeans.

“
That’s a thousand,” he whispered in my ear. “I want you to spend it on anything your heart desires.”

I slouched in his arms; my body language showing my displeasure of his gesture. “Ryan.”

“
Taryn, please. Go have fun with my mom. Enjoy yourself.”

“
Did your father shove a thousand dollars in your mom’s pocket, too?” I softly asked.

“
I honestly don’t know,” he admitted. “My parents have been married for thirty-four years and they share everything, money included.” He sighed in my ear. “And my father didn’t recently cash another five million dollar paycheck with another eight million coming.”

I pinched my eyes closed. “I don’t want your money, Ryan.” I felt horrible for allowing it.

“
I know,” he murmured on my neck, stopping my hand from leaving my pocket. “Consider this practice for the next thirty-four years.”

“
Well if or when the thirty-four years officially starts, we can have this conversation again,” I said gently. I pulled the money out of my pocket and tried to hand it back to him but he wouldn’t take it.

“
So are you telling me we have to be married first before I can even attempt to spoil you and share what I have?” he groaned.

“
No. It’s just… that’s a lot of money, Ryan!”

He snickered in my ear. “No, that’s not a lot of money. That’s not even enough to buy a pair of shoes in Beverly Hills.”

I rolled my eyes, even though he didn’t see my reaction.

“
If you love me like you say you do, then what’s the problem? I want to make you happy.”

I knew exactly where he was going with this. His chest was pressed to my back, his arms held me in position, and next he was going to try and trip me up in words.

“
I do love you. I love that you want to take care of me. But this…” I held the money up, “does not equal happiness or love.” I knew he wanted to treat me well but part of me felt like he was trying to buy my affection.

He wrapped his left arm across my chest. “Taryn, I know you’re a self-sufficient, independent woman and I love that about you. And loving you means that
I want
to take care of you - physically, emotionally,
and
financially. If I wanted to piss you off today I would have shoved a hundred grand in your pocket,” he growled in my ear.

I slumped in his arm.

“
Yours, mine, ours…” He shoved the bills deeper into my pocket with his long fingers. “Didn’t you say once it was just details? That
this
is what matters?” He patted his right hand over my heart.

I leaned my head back on his shoulder and nodded reluctantly in defeat. I had to agree with him; after all, he did volley my own words back at me.

“
Your parents took care of each other. My parents take care of each other. You’ve been taking care of me – just let me try to take care of you.” He trailed the tip of his nose up and down my neck, knowing how much it makes my will crumble. “Please?”

His lips brushed my skin. “Go have fun with my mom. Buy yourself some new clothes or shoes or some fruity-soapy stuff. Whatever makes you happy,” he uttered persuasively in my ear. He released me, confidently knowing that he had just reduced me to a pile of rubble.

I drove to the outlet mall first; there were enough stores there to keep us busy for an entire day. The money Ryan shoved in my pocket felt like it weighed eighty pounds; maybe it was my guilt for accepting it that weighed that much.

I instantly felt better about spending his money when the first thing I bought was three new pairs of jeans for him. After seeing all the items that constituted his wardrobe, he needed some new pants. His mother shook her head at me when I pulled some of the cash out of my pocket.

She waited until we were out of the store to reprimand me.

“
I know Ryan wanted you to spend that money on yourself, not on him.” Her expression was tender and disapproving all at the same time.

“
He desperately needs new jeans. Believe it or not, he only has a few pair. A lot of his clothing was stolen from the hotel.” I quickly justified my actions.

“
You truly
are
as selfless as he said you are.” She pulled me by the elbow into a trendy clothing store.

I found a few articles of clothing that I liked. His mother was pleased that I had finally selected things for myself.

I didn’t think I had enough cash left in my pocket, so I grabbed my bankcard out of my wallet. The young girl behind the counter was looking at me strangely as she examined my card for a signature.

“
Taryn!” His mother’s reproachful tone caught me by surprise.

“
Holy cow!” the young girl behind the counter blurted. “You’re Taryn! Taryn Mitchell!”

“
Do I know you?”

“
You’re dating Ryan Christensen, right?”

I looked at his mother. I didn’t know where else to look.

“
It
is
you! Oh my God! Is
he
here too?” Her eyes wielded around the store.

“
No dear, he’s not.” His mother answered her question. “May I have that card please? We’re going to pay with cash instead.”

The cashier was smiling frantically at me. “You are so freaking lucky! He is so hot! I saw
Seaside
like thirty times already. Oh my God! Wait until I tell my friends that I met you!” She jumped around like someone was electrocuting her.

“
Wait, are you Ryan Christensen’s mom? Oh my God, Oh my God! Do you both mind if I take your picture? Please?” She was already pulling her cell phone out of her pocket.

“
You want to take our picture?” I asked, totally confused by her frantic behavior.
Why would she want our picture? We aren’t the ones who are famous.
Ellen wrapped her arm around my waist and we both quickly smiled for the picture. It was over in a second.

Ellen handed my bankcard back to me and tapped me in the pocket to use the cash instead. I shook my head no but she tapped me harder in the leg. It was like Ryan had his own private watchdog monitoring me. Reluctantly I used the cash.

I held the door open for her when we left the store. “That was weird.”