“Is that it?” I softly asked our lawyer.

“Yes. She’ll be incarcerated for a while,” he replied. “I will represent you when she is sentenced for the PFA violation. You don’t need to be present for that. I’m sure this was traumatic enough for you.”

Ryan and I received new copies of the permanent restraining order, and with that our day in court was over. Our last hurdle was still ahead of us… getting through the gauntlet of reporters and paparazzi that waited outside the courthouse doors.

Chapter 23 - Celebration

“Do we have to be quiet?” Ryan’s friend Scott asked out loud.

“No. He would be suspicious if the bar was quiet,” I said.

I was glad that we had a separate entrance from the back door to our apartment now. Ryan would never see everyone gathered in the pub until I brought him downstairs. He also would have no reason to look in the guestroom and accidentally see his friends’ suitcases.

Tammy had prepared a lavish buffet of food and desserts and everyone was snacking on the variety of hors d'oeuvres scattered all around the bar. All our friends were here, waiting for the guest of honor to arrive.

I went upstairs to wait for Ryan and was relieved when he finally came through the door. I called Marie quickly to let her know that Ryan was in the building.

“Hi Honey,” he said glumly, giving me an unenthusiastic kiss. I knew why he was sad but I couldn’t ruin the surprise.

“What’s wrong? Are you in a bad mood?” I asked, even though I knew he’d be like this.

“Sort of. Actually I’m pissed. I thought these people were my friends. Cal and Kelly are going to meet us at the restaurant but everyone else had plans or excuses. Even Kat blew me off!”

“I’m sorry.” I tried to be sympathetic.

“Yeah, but… ah, it doesn’t matter.” He threw his keys onto the kitchen the table. I could tell his feelings were hurt. “Tomorrow is our last day of filming. Everyone is going to be leaving. I just thought that we could all get together before…”

I stepped over to him and wrapped my arms around his waist. “I promise that you will have a good time tonight. When we get back from dinner, I have a special birthday surprise for you. You’ll just have to trust me.” I grinned at him.

“Come on… let’s go do a few shots before Mike comes back. I’m planning on getting you all liquored up on your birthday.”

He reluctantly followed me downstairs, grumbling the whole way about how his whacko fans were going to scream when they saw him in the pub. We no longer had our Ryan Christensen fan buffer working for us; Ryan had dismissed Kyle from being my bodyguard as soon as the court proceedings were over and Angelica was locked up.

I ignored his bellyaching and dialed Pete’s number. That was the signal that Ryan was on his way.

“Why do I smell food?” he asked when we stepped into the pub kitchen. I smiled, got behind him, and pushed his hips so he would go through the swing door into the pub.

“Surprise! Happy Birthday!” everyone yelled.

Ryan’s face lit up when he saw all his friends that he thought didn’t care about him were gathered and waiting. Most of the production crew was there as well.

“Okay! You got me!” Ryan admitted. “No wonder everyone had other plans tonight!” He went from person to person, giving out handshakes and hugs. Eventually he noticed his longtime friends, Matt and Scott, standing by the bar.

“Holy shit!” Ryan yelled, giving Matt a manly handshake and hug. “What the? When the hell did you guys get here?”

Ryan’s reaction was exactly how I hoped it would be. He was elated and totally taken by surprise.

“We got here this morning,” Matt informed. “Your lovely girlfriend over there picked us up at the airport.”

“Awe man, it’s good to see ya!” Ryan was hugging Scott now.

I stepped over to Ryan and he wrapped his arm around my shoulder.

“I can’t believe you did all of this!” He gave me a big kiss.

“Happy Birthday, Honey!” I beamed.

“How long are you guys going to be in town?” Ryan asked Matt.

“We leave on Sunday,” Matt stated.

“Awe man, this is too much! I can’t believe this! Where are you staying? Tar, where are they staying?”

“We’re staying with you.” Scott punched him in the arm. “That way we don’t have to drive anywhere to get loaded.”

Ryan looked at me, apparently to get confirmation that Scott was telling the truth.