Love Unscripted

by Reber, Tina

  “Taryn! What the hell was I supposed to do? I had to let him in – he paid!”

  “Pete, we can’t let any more people in. We’re at max now. All I need is the Fire Marshall to show up – they’ll shut me down,” I yelled over the music.

  “Well then you have to tell all of them that I can’t let them in!” Pete pointed at the crowd that stretched all the way down the sidewalk.

  “Pete, just close the door and sit on your stool in front of it. I’ll get Dan to help you.” I stepped outside onto the sidewalk and raised my voice to speak to the waiting crowd.

  “I’m sorry everyone, but we are at maximum capacity. If you’d like to come in, you will have to wait until other customers leave.”

  I rushed back into the bar and quickly located Dan.

  “Oh, Dan, another thing...” I turned to take hold of his muscular arm. “If the crowd out there gets out of control, call the police, then come and get me immediately.”

  I hurried to get myself back behind the bar; in all the years we’d been in business we had never had a crowd this size before. Customers were two to three people deep at the bar. It was insane.

  I spotted a burly man standing at the opposite end with money sticking out of his hand. His stance was somewhat intimidating. Marie was still dazed from seeing Ryan; she was having a hard time waiting on customers and remembering drink orders.

  “Hi, what can I get you?” I asked the burly man. I figured he was personal security for the actors. He fit the look.

  “Hi there,” he said, smiling at me as he proceeded to rattle off a drink order.

  I glanced around looking for Ryan; I knew he was in here somewhere. Our eyes locked when I found him; he was leaning on the far brick wall by the poolroom with his arms folded across his chest – staring at me with a slight grin. There was already a swarm of girls around him, but he didn’t seem to be paying a lot of attention to them. He was talking to some guy instead.

  As I was mixing their drink order, I noticed that two of the famous actresses from his movie were also in my pub. A few male patrons were trying to break through the bodyguard force field that surrounded them.

  Ryan seemed to be having a good time. He had a big glass of beer in his hand and he was laughing and being quite social with his group, but not so much with the general public.

  I felt weird from thinking about our first encounter and my rejection when he asked for my number. I was so nervous from seeing him again that I tried to ignore him, but it was hard. I could feel his presence all around me.

  I was at the far end of the bar waiting on a customer when Marie nudged me with her elbow.

  “He’s sitting at the bar!” she squealed with excitement. She was squirming around so much I thought she was going to pee her pants.

  “I tried to wait on him, but he said he wants to talk to you!” she babbled as she pointed a finger at me.

  I flashed my eyes down the bar. He was sitting there casually with his arms folded, wearing a bit of a smirk, on the same stool he sat on the first time he was here. I continued to take care of my current customer before I made my approach. I wasn’t going to rush.

  I slowly walked towards him, taking care of several customers on my way, while my mind was flashing a million different thoughts. Do I say hi? Should I pretend not to know him? I wished I had another forty feet to walk, but I was out of floor.

  “Hi!” Pathetic as it was, that was about all I could get myself to say.

  “Hi back,” he said, flashing a sexy smile. “How are you?”

  “Surprised?” I shrugged. “And extremely busy thanks to you!” I tried to sound aloof.

  “That’s good, I guess.” His eyes flickered over to the stage. “You have some great entertainment here tonight.”

  “Thanks. These guys are great. They play here a lot.”

  I felt myself smiling at him as we spoke while my mind drifted over the memories of the last time he was here. No matter what, it was still easy to talk to him. That was until I became aware that people were staring at us.

  “So, can I get you a refill?” I asked, trying to be casual with him like he was just another customer. I snapped right back into business mode.

  Ryan quickly finished his beer and slid the empty glass towards me. As I walked over to the beer taps I glanced back at him; his eyes had followed me and he was smiling. I couldn’t help but to smirk back.

  “What do I owe you?” He shoved his hand in his front pocket.

  I shook my head again in disapproval. “Nothing, it’s on the house; I know the owner.” I shrugged. I was trying to be nonchalant.

  “You don’t have to do that, you know.” He scowled at me.

  I wrinkled my nose at him in response to his unhappy expression.

  He mimicked me, until a smile cracked on his lips. “Thanks… Taryn.” Those piercing blue eyes of his quickened my pulse.

  There were so many people at the bar, I had to tear myself away and wait on the next customer. People were shouting drink orders and waving money.

  No sooner did I turn my eyes away when three women descended on him. They were giggling, gushing, flirting, and trying to get him to pose with them so they could capture their celebrity moment on their camera phones.

  My lips curled in disgust. I was glad I made the decision that I did. There was too long of a line to get to that man. I attempted to ignore him again.

  “What can I get you?” I asked the somewhat good-looking guy who was waiting for a drink. He mumbled something unintelligible; the music mixed with the hum of people talking and yelling made it almost impossible to hear.

  I heard Ryan sneeze a couple of times in a row. My attention automatically shifted back to him. I wonder if he’s catching a cold? I slid a few white cocktail napkins in front of him in case he needed a tissue. I wasn’t looking as I set them down near his hand; I smiled when I felt his warm fingertips brush over mine.

  “Sorry, I didn’t get that.” I cupped my other hand around the back of my ear so my latest customer would get the point. “What would you like?” I asked again.

  “You’re beautiful!” he shouted at me.

  I grimaced at his words and his lame attempt to hit on me.

  “Thanks,” I replied flatly. “What can I get you?” I was getting impatient.

  “How about your phone number?” he yelled back to me as he was almost lifting his body onto the bar. I noticed that after he spoke he looked back at his buddies so they could acknowledge his bravery.

  I looked down and smiled as the embarrassment made me blush. My golden rule was not to date random customers, especially the ones who were assholes.

  “Thanks. I’m very flattered,” I replied with a half-hearted smile. “But sorry, the only thing you’re going to get from this side of the bar is alcohol.”

  My eyes flickered back to Ryan, who was sitting there staring at me with a smug grin on his face.

  “Oh, come on!” the young man pleaded with me. I just shook my head no.

  A few men sitting at the bar teased the poor guy. “Ooh, shot down in flames! Ouch!”

  I gave them a disapproving look.

  “What do you want to drink?” I asked again, trying to be more cordial. In reality, he had ten seconds to reply before I was going to move on to the next customer.

  “Three lagers,” he finally yelled back.

  Ten drink orders later, I was making a whiskey sour for a female customer when I noticed one of the actresses, Francesca LeRoux, descend upon Ryan. Francesca was young, leggy, super thin, with straight, long brown hair. She looked like a model. She was leaning on Ryan’s shoulder with her arm around him, whispering in his ear.

  I happened to be looking when she ran her fingers over Ryan’s hair. He winced and tilted his head away from her touch. I could tell it bothered him. Why does that bother me? There was something about the way she touched him that irritated me.

  A few moments later Ryan moved back to the table with her to rejoin their group. He sat
down in one of the side booths, but there were so many people around them that my view of him was obscured.

  “What did he say to you?” Marie asked. She was going out of her mind with curiosity.

  “I gave him a beer. He said thanks.” I shrugged. “That’s it.”

  “You had Ryan freakin’ Christensen at your bar and you didn’t talk to him?”

  “Marie, what was I supposed to say?” I was not into having this conversation with her, so I walked away.

  Ryan stayed at the table with his group, although I was trying not to keep tabs on his whereabouts. Three bulky security guards hovered around them, keeping the general population at bay. I saw a few women manage to squeak through and get an autograph, and I wished that they would just leave him alone.

  I wondered if the way he ran his finger back and forth underneath his nose to scratch was another nervous tick, but he started to sneeze again. He must be getting a cold.

  As I was filling another drink order, my mind contemplated over what the big deal was to get someone’s signature on a piece of paper. Was it simply the act of stopping him from whatever he was doing to make him acknowledge another human being’s presence?

  I signed my name several times a day – mostly on checks to pay the bills – but it wasn’t like the Power Company was on my doorstep flirting or screaming my name to get me to sign the check.

  I watched as he scribbled his name on the bottom of some girl’s shirt. What would possess these girls to want him to write on their clothes with permanent marker?

  I did notice one thing though; some of the girls that stepped up to bug him ranged from quite pretty to very attractive, but they all seemed to be forms without faces to him. He didn’t even really look at them. It was like he too was in business mode.

  “Hi!” shouted a male voice that snapped me out of my private thoughts.

  I looked up to see a nice looking man wearing a suit jacket over a nicely pressed button-down shirt. Thick, dark hair… slight dimples in his cheeks… no wedding ring on the hand that rested on the bar.

  “Hi. What can I get you?” My eyes adjusted to this new handsome man.

  “What do you have on tap?” he asked, flashing an alluring smile at me.

  I listed the ten different drafts that I had on tap and handed him a menu of available bottled beer just in case.

  “Hmm, you’ve given me too many options. What do you recommend?”

  “Well that depends,” I responded, “on whether you prefer a darker, full bodied beer or a lighter, pale ale.”

  He leaned further onto the bar. “You’re not making this easy for me. Why don’t you pick one? I’m sure I’ll like anything you choose.”

  I walked away smiling and grabbed a new glass along my way. I tapped one of the more popular ales and slid the glass across the bar to him.

  “Mmm, that’s good!” He grinned and winked at me. “You have excellent taste!”

  His compliment made me laugh. He wasn’t the first man to tell me that.

  “My name is Mark. What’s yours?”

  “Taryn,” I replied, wondering if he was going to pay for the beer I just served him.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Taryn.” Mark smiled and held out his hand to me.

  I didn’t want to be rude, so I shook his hand.

  “Your hand is soft,” Mark complimented.

  “Thanks,” I said warily, attempting to end our handshake.

  Before I knew it, the slick man clamped his hand around mine, trapping my hand in his. I tugged back against his grip, but he was stronger than I was. My smile quickly faded as I didn’t like the hold he had on me.

  “Did anyone ever tell you how beautiful you are?” he crooned. His free hand started petting my wrist and forearm in the same manner that you would pet a housecat. My stomach twisted in a knot.

  I tried to pull my hand free but he maintained his hold.

  “Let go of my hand,” I stated calmly, in an almost teasing fashion.

  “I can’t. Not until you tell me why I’m so drawn to you,” Mark pondered, like it was my fault that he couldn’t control himself.

  I tugged several times while he attempted to lamely flirt with me, but I could not break his grip.

  “Let. Go. Of. My. Hand.” I emphasized each word.

  I looked over his shoulder, surprised to see Ryan standing right behind him. His beer was in one hand and the fingers of his other hand were tucked in his pocket; his narrowed eyes were fixed on mine. Next to him was one of his bodyguards.

  “Oh Taryn,” Mark flashed his best smile at me, “I can’t let you go! Since you were so good at picking out a drink for me, I think you should pick out a restaurant for me to take you to.”

  “I don’t think so,” I replied coldly, tired of his game.

  “Oh, come on, sweetie. Don’t be like that!” His tone made me wince. He trailed his presumptuous finger over my wrist.

  Ryan looked at my new admirer and back at me; his face was showing his concern. I shook my head ever so slightly, hoping Ryan would heed my warning. I didn’t want any trouble.

  Two young women approached Ryan and attempted to get his attention. One of them grabbed his arm. Ryan immediately raised his elbow, obviously displeased with their forward behavior and intrusion. He almost spilled his beer. I could see he didn’t like people touching him either.

  I repeated myself, raising my annoyed voice at Mark. “Let go of my hand. That’s three dollars for the beer.”

  “Come on – you should go out with me! We’ll have a lot of fun, I promise.” His tone dripped with coercion, but he finally released my hand.

  “No. That will never happen. Three dollars, please.”

  Ryan held up his hand to the girls and I thought I heard him say, “please, not now” to them. His bodyguard immediately intervened.

  “Just take a chance! I know you felt something just now when I held your hand. There was a connection there. Don’t deny it!” Mark pressed.

  Ryan was glaring at him now. His anger was evident.

  “Sorry. I didn’t feel anything,” I stated flatly, keeping all emotions out of my tone. This guy was beyond being an asshole.

  “You hurt my feelings,” Mark pathetically pouted.

  Marie was watching me out of the corner of her eye too; we always looked out for each other. We had been friends since junior high, and we worked the bar together for so long, we had the creep signal down pat. I pulled the bar rag out of my back pocket and dropped it on the floor.

  “Who’s your new friend, Taryn?” Marie yelled over to me.

  “Oh, this is Mark,” I stated loudly as I pointed at him. “He wants to take me to dinner, but I just really want him to pay for his beer. It’s such a dilemma!”

  Ryan chuckled ever so subtly.

  My new admirer finally got the hint. He peeled three ones from his folded money, tossed it on the bar, and turned in a huff. He almost bumped into Ryan as he fled his spot at the bar.

  Ryan smiled at me before raising his glass to take a sip of his drink. I flashed my eyes between Ryan and the open seat, hoping that he would get the hint. He didn’t disappoint.

  “Can I refresh your drink for you, sir?” I said in a proper yet joking tone as I snatched his glass off the bar.

  He laughed slightly and nodded his head. I set his glass in the sink and tapped him a fresh beer in a new glass.

  “Can I also interest you in doing a shot of one of the smoothest tequilas you’ll ever have?” I set his new beer in front of him.

  “Definitely interested,” he stated directly, his piercing eyes locked on mine.

  I reached up to the top shelf behind the bar and wrapped my fingers around a clear bottle with a round, silver stopper.

  “What is that?” he asked, trying to read the bottle.

  “Gran Patrón Platinum tequila.” I poured two shots.

  “Here’s to… psychotic fans!” I cheered, raising my shot glass in the air.

  He tapped his glass into
mine and we both tossed the shots back into our mouths.

  Ryan reached in his pocket and pulled a wad of money out, but I shook my head at him.

  “No. Put your money away,” I whispered as I collected the empty shot glasses.

  He frowned at me. Instinctively I scowled back at him. Then, like a two-year-old, he stuck his tongue out at me! I casually rubbed my middle finger across my eyebrow. We both started laughing.

  When I glanced back up at him again, Suzanne Strass, the other actress who followed him into the bar, was hovering around him. She whispered something in his ear; whatever she said made him roll his eyes and purse his lips. He didn’t look happy with whatever she said.

  Without saying a word, he got up and moved back to the table with his original group, where he stayed for the rest of the night. They had several additional rounds of drinks and seemed to all have a good time. I noticed Suzanne trying to hide as she swayed back and forth to the music. Ryan sat facing in my direction, and every once and a while he’d stare at me until our eyes met.

  Ryan’s blue eyes were hypnotic and I couldn’t help but smile every time one of us was caught staring. He was extremely handsome, but there was something else. He didn’t hold himself in high regard; he just wanted to blend.

  Ryan’s eyes held mine for an extra moment. He smiled at me, tilted his head slightly, and then proceeded to unbutton his top shirt. I was curious as to why he was undressing in my pub. I couldn’t look away.

  He patted his hand on his chest and stretched back. That’s when I noticed he was wearing my blue T-shirt under everything else.

  I chuckled to myself; no longer could I contain my big grin. He raised his eyebrows a couple of times and winked at me.

  It was almost one o’clock in the morning when his group got up to leave. Ryan stood there staring at me while he put his jacket on. He left out a sigh then turned and headed for the door. And just like that, with no words, no goodbye, he was gone.

  Fortunately when the celebrities left so did most of the crowd. The pub was trashed. We went through most of the bottles of beer I had stocked in the coolers as well as most of my liquor reserves. Bottles, glasses, and empty pitchers covered most of the tables.