“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.