Date: Tue, 21 Sep 1999 00:59:07 PDT
From: Justin's Boy <justins_boy@hotmail.com>
Subject: Ryan's Love 16

****This story is completely fictional. It is not meant to imply
anything about the sexuality of the real Ryan Phillippe or about any
of the other people mentioned. Nor is it meant to be representative
of the relationship of the real Ryan and Reese.


     "Action!" That one simple word brought the silent set to life as I
stood quietly in the shadows, watching as AJ and Kerri Russell vanished in
an instant and were replaced by Julie and Felicity, their characters.
     It had been a very hectic week and every person on the set was
unconsciously holding their breath, hoping that this would be the last take
needed on the final scene.
     "And Cut! Print. That's it ladies, very well done," The director
announced, genuine happiness in his voice at being finished. The soundstage
burst into mild applause and several voices suddenly talking at once. The
week's show was in the can.
     "I'm so tired," AJ sighed as she made her way towards me and laid her
head on my shoulder, pretending to fall asleep.
     "Tell me about it. I may fall asleep on the drive home," I smiled,
rocking her back and forth a little.
     "If you keep that up, I'm going to fall asleep right here," AJ laughed.
     "Good night guys, see you later," Kerri gave us a friendly wave as she
passed us, heading in the direction of her dressing room. We both smiled and
nodded back at her. Things had been tense around the set ever since Kerri's
well publicised walk out and her demand for a larger salary at the beginning
of shooting for the season, but everything was slowly getting back to normal
now.
     "Any plans for the rest of the evening? Romantic candle light dinner?
Stroll on the beach? Moonlight serenade?" AJ asked flippantly.
     "Just a date with my bed. I'm going to be dead to the world the minute
I hit the pillow," I smiled.
     "Won't Ryan be disappointed?"
     "We've both had full schedules lately. I doubt he's even home yet," I
sighed.
     "Trouble in paradise?" AJ asked, her voice half joking and half
concerned.
     "No. Nothing like that. We've both just been really busy. I think I've
seen him for a total of 10 minutes this week. But he's not shooting
tomorrow, so we're going to make a day of it," I smiled at the thought.
     "Uh huh. You probably won't even get out of bed," AJ grinned.
     "Such a dirty mind," I laughed. "Well, we do have a whole week to make
up for."
    "Spare me the details, lover boy. It's bad enough that you've got a
hottie like Ryan while I'm committed to the role of Ms. Lonely Heart," AJ
grinned again.
     "Somehow, I doubt you'll be alone long, AJ," I smiled, stifling a yawn
of pure exhaustion.
     "Thanks. I see I'm boring you so I'll say goodnight," AJ smiled. "Call
me tomorrow, okay? Provided you do manage to get out of bed."
     "You got it. Drive safely," I smiled, kissing her cheek. I watched her
walk away and sighed, feeling another little stab of sadness at the way
things had turned out.
      A month earlier, just before we'd begun shooting our second season, AJ
and Scott Speedman had decided that they were better suited as friends than
lovers. Their break up had been completely amicable and so far there hadn't
even been a trace of the usual 'oh God, we used to date so now it's all
awkward' syndrome.
     At least the two of them were still friends, though, and neither had
taken the break up too badly, unlike Scott Foley. Over two months had passed
since Scott's break up with Simon, but I'd still managed to make no progress
at finding out just what the cause had been. Scott had more or less become
the same person he'd always been, but there was a new sadness to him and I
knew that his heart was still very broken.
     Not that he'd ever talk about it with me, or anyone else for that
matter. It had quickly become an accepted fact that Simon Rex was a
non-subject where Scott Foley was concerned, something you just didn't even
mention around him.
     I made my way to the writers office slowly, my legs feeling almost too
heavy to move. There'd been an unbelievable number of difficulties with the
script this week and everyone involved with the show had been working on it
non stop.
     I checked the time and then picked up the phone. Reese answered on the
fifth ring, sounding out of breath.
     "Reese? Everything okay?" I asked, worried. Her due date wasn't all
that far off, after all.
     "Seth? Yeah, I'm fine. It's just a little hard to get off the sofa
sometimes," Reese laughed.
     "I'm on my way home. Do you need anything?" I asked, knowing that her
cravings always seemed to be worse at night. I certainly didn't feel like
having to go out again once I was home. All I wanted to do was sleep for the
next few years.
     "No, I'm fine. Hard day?" Reese asked.
     "You could say that, yeah," I sighed. "Are you sure you don't need me
to stop and pick anything up?"
     "Positive. Just come home and crawl into bed and go to sleep. I know
what it's like to have a long day on the set," Reese said.
     "Okay. Ryan's not home yet, I suppose?" I asked.
     "Not yet, no. It's still pretty early, though. For him, I mean."
     "Yeah. All right, I'll be home shortly. Bye." I hung up, smiling
despite the intense feeling of weariness that had been building all day. It
was nice to have people to go home to, a family really. In the few months
that Ryan and Reese had been married the three of us had really developed
some sort of a close bond that could only ever exist in a place like
Hollywood.
     "Seth? What are you still doing here? Don't you think you've worked
hard enough for one day?" Scott Foley's voice broke into my thoughts and I
looked up to see him standing in the doorway, smiling.
     "One day? Scott, I've worked enough for a lifetime this week! We all
have," I grinned.
     "I know. You look exhausted, man. Go home and get some sleep," Scott
instructed me, his mouth smiling but his eyes never losing that look of
sadness that was with him constantly now, except when the cameras were
rolling.
     "Why are you still here? Didn't they shoot your last scene a few hours
ago?" I asked, watching his face closely. Ever since the night he'd shown up
at our house drunk, I'd found myself watching Scott whenever I was around
him, hoping that he'd give me some sign that he was ready to talk about what
had happened with Simon. The fact that he hadn't, that he was still carrying
everything around inside of him, worried me a lot.
     "Yeah. I had some calls to make and then I got engrossed in a movie
script my agent sent over," Scott explained. "I'm on my way out now, though.
Walk to me to my car?"
     Neither of us talked as we walked down the darkened hallway and out
into the studio parking lot, but as we made our way towards our cars, Scott
suddenly began to laugh.
     "What's so funny?"
     "I was just thinking of that night when I gave you a ride back to your
apartment. Do you remember? I kept going on and on about the hot date you'd
had, hoping you'd give me some clue as to whether it was with a guy or a
woman," Scott chuckled.
     "That's what you were doing? You looked so surprised, though, when you
heard the message on my machine from Ryan and realized I was gay! I had no
idea you suspected before that!"
     "Suspected, no. Hoped, yes," Scott grinned. For a moment, his eyes
matched his face and he looked happy, but it passed quickly.
     "You know, if one of us had just had the nerve to make a move on the
other before I met Ryan...." I smiled, letting my words trail off.
     "Yeah, I know. We'd be going back to my place right now, only it'd be
our place and it wouldn't be so damn empty there."
     "I'm sorry, Scott. That was a stupid thing for me to say. I-"
     "No, it wasn't! I'm sorry, Seth. It's just been a long week, that's
all," Scott tried to pass it off with a smile.
     "Yeah. Listen, I was thinking. Maybe you'd like to come over tomorrow
afternoon and we could do something. I'll call AJ and Scott, and Ryan and
Reese don't have anything going tomorrow either. We'll all have some fun.
We'll need it, after this week. What do you say?"
     "Thanks, but I don't think so. I've got to finish this script and I was
planning on hitting the gym tomorrow afternoon. You know how it is. Maybe
some other time, okay?" Scott said as we reached his car.
     "Are you sure? Come on, it'll be fun. We can just hang out around the
pool all day and if you really want to work out, we've got a gym right there
in the house," I said, trying to interest him.
     "Some other time, Seth. Good night." Scott opened the door to his car
and got in.
     "Scott, this isn't healthy. You're going to have to talk about all of
this sometime, you know. You can't go on closing that part of your life off
from everyone forever," I pleaded as he started to close the car door. He
stopped and looked up at me, his face unreadable. We stared at each other
for several moments, my words hanging between us in the warm night air.
     "Some things hurt too much to talk about, Seth. I'd really appreciate
it if you didn't bring it up again," Scott said. There was no anger in his
voice, just sadness, and he shut the door and started the engine before I
could reply. I raised my hand in a wave as I watched him drive to the gate,
feeling once again like I'd failed Scott as a friend. I was beginning to
think that he was never going to open up.
     I sighed and walked the short distance to my own car and left the
studio and it's problems behind me, for awhile, as I drove home through the
darkness.
                                      ******************
     I moaned, still half asleep, as I felt Ryan's soft lips kissing the
back of my neck. It was so wonderful to feel his warm body pressed against
mine as I drifted from dreamland back into reality, to feel his hot breath
tickling my cheek.
     "Mmmm. I must still be dreaming, right?" I sighed happily.
     "If you are, you'd better be dreaming about me," Ryan whispered.
     "Oh, I am Matt," I whispered back, a smile on my face that I knew Ryan
couldn't see.
     "Matt? Who's Matt?" Ryan asked, playfully nibbling on my ear. I turned
around to face him and felt my heart skip a beat as I looked into his
crystal blue eyes.
     "Oh, Ryan, it's you," I sighed, pretending to be disappointed. "I was
having that really great dream about Matt Damon again."
     "Ewww! Matt Damon? I thought you had better taste," Ryan grinned, his
eyes sparkling.
     "Of course I do. I'm with you, aren't I?" I smiled, kissing him softly
on the lips.
     "Even in your dreams?" Ryan asked softly.
     "Especially in my dreams, lately. Do you know how long it's been since
we've woken up together like this?" I asked, running my fingers through his
curly hair and making it stand up even more than it usually did in the
morning.
     "Too long. We should just run away together, Seth. Just you and me on a
tropical island for the rest of our lives, sipping drinks from cocoanut
shells and watching the sunset. What do you think?" Ryan asked, his fingers
beginning to play with my chest.
     "I think that if I had you all to myself on a tropical island, we'd do
more than sip drinks and watch sunsets," I grinned, running my tongue across
his lips slowly.
     "Really? Like what?" Ryan asked, putting on a show of childlike
innocence.
     "Would you like me to demonstrate?" I asked, keeping my face serious.
     "You'd better. I don't want to sign up for this whole tropical island
thing until I know exactly what I'm getting into," Ryan replied, his eyes
flashing with humor but his face just as serious as mine.
     "That's very sensible of you, Mr. Phillippe. Well, first of all,
there'd be lots of this going on," I said as I brought my mouth to his and
slipped my tongue between his lips. We kissed for several seconds and then I
pulled away.
     "I like it so far," Ryan smiled.
     "Good. Let's see. There'd also be a great deal of this," I said as I
slowly slid underneath the blankets, kissing my way down Ryan's chest until
I reached his black silk boxer shorts. I smiled as I encountered the growing
bulge in the front of them and slowly began to work my mouth across it
through the silk.
     Ryan moaned and raised his hips off the bed as I pulled the shorts down
and wrapped my lips around the head of his cock. Stroking him with one hand,
I slowly took his cock down my throat, inch by inch, as he groaned. His hand
found it's way under the blanket and rested against the back of my head as I
continued to suck him slowly and sensuously, enjoying having Ryan in my
mouth again after what seemed an eternity.
     "Oh, God, Seth. I've missed you so much. Mmmm. Don't stop. It's been so
long," Ryan sighed in pleasure and I found myself wanting to see his face as
I made him happy.
     Ryan groaned again as I released him and worked my way back up until I
was laying on top of him, my face inches from his. I brought my mouth to his
again for a few moments and then pulled away.
     "Make love to me, Ryan. Please," I whispered. He smiled up at me and
raised his head a few inches off of the pillow so that he could kiss me
again.
     "You don't have to say please, Seth," he smiled. He wrapped his arms
around me and rolled me over, reversing our positions. I smiled up at him,
feeling incredibly safe and content in his arms.
     "I could hold you like this for the rest of my life and be perfectly
happy," Ryan smiled.
     "I love you so much, Ryan," I said softly. He brought his lips to mine
once again and then reached across the bed to the nightstand to get the
lubricant and then slipped his hand down to remove my boxer briefs.
     I  sighed as Ryan's fingers applied the lube, and then wrapped my legs
around him, pulling him forward. He looked into my eyes as he slid inside of
me and whispered,
     "I love you, too, Seth. Forever." We began to kiss again as he rocked
back and forth slowly, his cock moving in and out of me, sending sensations
tingling throughout my body.
     We made love to each other without haste, savoring every thrust and
every feeling as we slowly began to build towards our climaxes, the rhythm
of our bodies unbroken.
     "Seth... I'm....ohh," Ryan groaned as he began to cum. Feeling him
explode inside of me set off my own eruption, covering both of our stomachs
and chests.
     We laid there for several minutes, catching our breath and sharing a
few more kisses before Ryan finally pulled out of me and rolled over. He
leaned over and kissed my damp forehead.
     "That was fantastic. I wish I could wake up to this every day," Ryan
grinned.
     "Me, too. You're such a great lover, Ryan. Do you know that? It doesn't
really seem fair, does it? You've got talent, looks, charm, a great sense of
humor, a kind heart, and you're great in bed. Someone up there sure likes
you," I smiled, resting my head against his chest.
     "You're a fine one to talk! You've got all of the same things going for
you!" Ryan laughed.
     "I've got a great man, I know that much," I replied.
     "A great finance," Ryan reminded me with a kiss. "Come on, let's hit
the showers. I don't think I've sweated this much since my last trip to the
steam room at my old gym."
     "I think I'll take that as a compliment," I laughed as I followed him
across the room to our bathroom.
                                         *******************
     "What do you want to do today?" Ryan asked a hour later. I was lying
back against Ryan on the sofa and Reese was sitting in the chair across from
us, looking through a parenting magazine.
     "Nothing. I want to sit around with absolutely nothing on my mind but
relaxation. And you, of course," I smiled.
     "Sounds good to me. Maybe we could go for a swim, though. It's going to
be hot today," Ryan replied, kissing the top of my head.
     His words reminded me of my conversation with Scott Foley the night
before and I sighed as I pictured his face and the loneliness and sadness
that I'd seen in his eyes.
     "Maybe we should have some friends over," Reese suggested, as if
reading my thoughts. "A sort of informal pool party."
     "That could be fun. I was just thinking about that, actually, and
whether or not I could convince Scott Foley to come," I smiled across at
Reese.
     "Ryan? What do you say? Pool party?" Reese asked.
     "I don't know. I kinda wanted to spend a nice quiet day with Seth.
We've barely seen each other this week," Ryan sighed.
     "We'll be together, Ryan. We'll just have a few friends around, too.
Come on, I've never really met your friends, you know. Are you ashamed of
me?" I joked, twisting around to look him in the face.
     "You've met some of my friends! And no, I'm not ashamed of you. That
could never happen," Ryan smiled.
     "I've met Jennifer Love Hewitt in a club for about sixty seconds and
Reese. That's really it, you know. What about Seth Green? And Breckin Meyer?
The three of you have your own production company, for crying out loud, and
I've never even met them," I pretended to pout.
     "He's got you there, Ryan!" Reese laughed. "Don't feel bad, Seth. It's
not just you. I hardly ever saw his friends when we were dating. Now that
we're married, forget it!"
     "All right, no fair ganging up on me! Are you sure you're up to it,
Reese?" Ryan asked.
     "Yes. Let's do it. It gets so boring around here now that I'm not
working. Who should we invite?" Reese asked.
     "Well, it's kind of last minute, so I guess we shouldn't be too picky,"
I laughed. "I'll call AJ, the Scotts, Tangi, and a few of my friends from
work."
     "I'll call Breck and Seth, see if they're up to it. Who else?" Ryan
asked.
     "Try Love, see if she can come. And Sarah Michelle, I guess. I'll get
my address book," Reese struggled out of the chair and went down the hall to
her room. I sat up and kissed Ryan's hand.
     "Thank you. If I can just get Scott here, it might be just what he
needs," I smiled.
     "You're too good to be true, Seth Barnes. Always thinking about other
people first," Ryan smiled.
     "Hardly! Think of it, Ryan. A pool party with Hollywood's finest young
studs. That's all I'm thinking of!" I grinned.
     "Hey, you're only supposed to have eyes for me!" Ryan laughed as I went
to the phone to make the calls.
                                   ******************
     "Well?" Reese looked up from the snack tray she was preparing in the
kitchen. "Did you invite everyone?"
     "Sorry, Ree. Love is working on her new show, Sarah Michelle and Seth
both have something going on with their show, and Breck's in New York for
the week," Ryan sighed.
     "Oh. I guess it was kind of last minute. What about you, Seth? Did you
get in touch with anyone?" Reese asked, looking very disappointed. I hadn't
realized until just that moment how lonely Reese must be feeling.
     "AJ's going to come over. Scott Speedman has some post production stuff
to do on that movie he made with La Paltrow, though, and no one else was in.
Well, I suspect that Scott Foley was in, but he didn't answer his phone."
     "Well, at least AJ's coming. I'll have someone to talk to while you two
play kissy face all day," Reese smiled.
     "Like this, you mean?" Ryan asked as he grabbed the front of my shirt
and pulled me into a brief kiss.
     "Yeah, yeah. Don't start again!" Reese smiled. Underneath the smile,
though, I could see a little of the loneliness still there. If only Scott
Foley were straight, they'd make a perfect couple, I reflected.
     "Ryan, I'm worried about Scott. He's just not coming out of this the
way he should be. He's got to talk to someone."
     "Well, you've been patient with him. Maybe he needs someone to make him
talk about it, after all. Getting it off his chest is the only way he's
going to get over it," Ryan said.
     "He's not going to talk about it, though. Not with me or anyone else,"
I sighed. "If I just knew what had happened with him and Simon, maybe I
could help him open up somehow."
     "Have you ever thought of asking Simon?" Reese asked.
     "Yeah. But that would be like going behind Scott's back. I don't want
to put our friendship in danger."
     "Seth, maybe he doesn't want to talk to you because of the feelings he
has for you. Maybe he needs someone who's more neutral," Reese suggested.
     "He doesn't have feelings for AJ, but he won't open up to her either,"
I pointed out.
     "Maybe AJ's just too close to him. Some people have a hard time opening
up to friends. They need a stranger to feel comfortable talking about
themselves to. That's why so many people go to therapists," Reese said.
     "So you think Seth should get Scott to go see a shrink?" Ryan asked.
     "No. I don't think he would go. But maybe he'd open up to me," Reese
suggested. "He doesn't really know me at all. And what's less threatening
than a very pregnant woman?"
     I stared at Reese for a few moments, thinking about what she'd said.
"Wow. That makes a lot of sense, Reese. I wonder if he'd go for it?"
     "There's only one way to find out, right? We've got to get him to come
over here. Why don't you call AJ and have her stop by his place on her way
here. I think she could convince him to join us."
     "Ree, you're scaring me here. You're like Dear Abby all of a sudden.
How long have you had all the answers?" Ryan asked, smiling.
     "What can I say? I guess it's just a mother's intuition kicking in a
little early."
                               ***************************
     "Stop pacing! You're making me nervous. Not to mention the fact that
you keep blocking my sun!" AJ laughed, looking up at me from the deck chair
she was lying in next to the pool.
     "Sorry. I just wish I knew what was going on in there!" I said, sitting
down in the chair next to AJ's with a thud.
     "Well, he hasn't run screaming from the house yet and she hasn't come
flying through the window, so I think everything is probably okay," AJ
smiled.
     "I'm still amazed you got him to come with you. I thought it was a long
shot," I said, keeping my eyes on the patio door. Reese and Scott were
inside somewhere, talking.
     "It wasn't easy, let me tell you," AJ sighed. At the same moment, Ryan
pulled himself out of the pool, where he'd been swimming laps, with a
splash. AJ and I both turned our eyes towards him.
     "Life is so unfair!," AJ grinned as she looked at him in his tight
swimming trunks.
     "Speak for yourself!" I laughed as Ryan ran over and sat down on my
lap.
     "Mind if I get you wet?" he asked, grinning.
     "It's a little late to ask that now," I smiled.
     "Oh, I'm sorry," Ryan said sarcastically as he leaned in and kissed me
again.
     "Is that all you two do?" AJ demanded as she rolled her eyes.
     "No, but I don't think it would be polite to demonstrate what else we
do in front of guests," Ryan smiled.
     "Ryan!" I blushed a little. Before anyone could say anything else, the
patio door opened and Reese came out, followed closely by Scott Foley. I
looked anxiously at Reese, who nodded her head slightly and smiled.
     "Ryan, could you help me bring out the food I made?" Reese asked. "If
you could tear yourself away from Seth for a minute, I mean."
     "I guess I could manage to be away from him for that long," Ryan sighed
dramatically. "I'll miss you, Seth. Promise you won't forget me while I'm
gone?"
     "Okay, okay, you made you point, lover boy. Come on!" Reese smiled as
Ryan pulled me into another kiss and then followed her into the house. Scott
watched them, smiling, and then pulled up a chair next to me.
     "I know you two have been pretty worried about me since Simon dumped
me. I'm sorry I've been so weird about it all. I guess I should have opened
up to you guys. You're the best friends I've ever had, but I didn't even
want to think about it, let alone talk about what happened," Scott sighed.
     "You don't have to now, either, if you don't want to. As long as you
talked to someone about it, that's all that matters," AJ assured him.
     "Reese is great," Scott smiled. "She's a great listener. I didn't even
realize how much I wanted to talk until she got me alone. But now that I've
told her, it doesn't seem as awful any more. I think I'm ready to just let
it go."
     "Thank God. I was so worried that you'd been hurt beyond repair, Scott.
You have so much to give, I couldn't bear to see that happen," I said.
     "I don't know how soon I'll be giving anything, Seth. I can't see
myself getting involved with anyone again. Not for awhile anyway. I guess I
should explain what happened, though.
      "When Simon and I got together, I was on top of the world. It was the
most amazing thing that had ever happened to me. I'd never been in love with
someone who returned my feelings. I'd never really been in a serious
relationship at all.
     "It was going really well, too. Then he got the word that the WB picked
up his pilot for this season, Jack & Jill," Scott sighed and shook his head
with a sad smile on his face. "I was going to make us a romantic dinner to
celebrate. But he came back from a meeting with his manager and that was it.
It was over."
     "Why?" AJ asked, echoing the question in my own mind.
     "Because he made those videos. You know about them. The solo videos he
did when he was 18, catering to a gay audience," Scott explained.
     "But what-"
     "If he was going to be a leading man," Scott interrupted my question,
"he couldn't take the risk of dating me. With you and Ryan, Seth, there's
always a risk of being found out, but there's also no basis for serious
suspicion that Ryan's gay. With Simon, he has a history in gay porn. His
managers been promoting the story that Simon was  young and naive and just
did the videos because he was offered money. If the pilot really takes off,
they'll be more scrutiny into his private life and that story has to hold
up. He has to distance himself absolutely with anything and everything that
could be considered part of the gay lifestyle even more than most actors who
are in the closet. A boyfriend is certainly part of the gay lifestyle, don't
you think?"
     "He dumped you because his manager told him to?" I asked, incredulous.
     "Yeah. The worst part wasn't so much being dumped, as being suddenly
faced with the shame he felt. Like what we had was a dirty secret that he
didn't want found out by anyone. I've always had a difficult time accepting
who and what I am. With Simon, it suddenly seemed so right. And then there
he was, basically saying that it was a dirty secret and had to end. It made
me doubt everything again and hate who I am."
     "That prick," AJ was seething with anger towards Simon.
     "Scott, not everyone out there is like Simon. You're going to find
someone who loves you as much as you love him. Someone who appreciates what
he has in you. Simon was a fool," I said.
     "Maybe. It just hurt a lot, losing him. I'm not stupid, I didn't expect
us to flaunt our relationship. I knew we both had careers to protect. I just
didn't realize that his career meant even more to him than I did."
     "Anyone hungry?" Reese called out cautiously from the patio door. The
three of us looked up and saw Reese and Ryan both standing there, each with
a platter of food in their hands.
     "I'm starving. I feel like I just woke up from a really bad dream that
lasted for months and I haven't' eaten since before I fell asleep," Scott
smiled. His eyes were smiling, too, even though there was still sadness in
them. For the first time in months, I felt like Scott was going to be okay.
     Ryan and Reese set the food down on the table near the pool and while
Scott and AJ were both filling plates for themselves I pulled Reese aside
and kissed her on the cheek.
     "You're my hero," I smiled.
     "Just try and remember how much you like me at this moment the next
time I wake you up at 2 am to get me something I'm craving, okay?" Reese
laughed.
     "Hey, you two, I'm starting to get a little jealous," Ryan called out.
I turned and walked over to him.
     "Ryan, you have nothing to be jealous about. You're my life," I smiled.
     "I know that. I meant I was getting jealous seeing someone kiss my wife
like that," Ryan flashed me his devilish little grin.
     "Oh, really. Can I ask you a question?"
     "Anything," Ryan smiled.
     "Mind if I get you wet?" I asked as I pushed him backwards into the
pool and felt myself falling with him as he grabbed my arm on his way down.
     "Backfired, didn't it?" Ryan laughed as we both surfaced in the pool.
     "Not really. I like my men wet," I smiled as I brought my mouth to his.
     "Not again!" AJ groaned. "Get a room!"

****** There it is, part 16. I know it took nearly two months, and I'm
sorry. I'll try to get the next one out faster. Sorry if there are any
glaring grammar errors, Hotmail is acting up again.
  I'd like to thank the few loyal people who write me about Ryan's Love,
especially Tom! I don't think this would have gotten done at all if you
hadn't been there to let me know that someone was still interested in
reading it!
And congratulations to the real life Ryan and Reese, who welcomed their
daughter on September 9th. No word yet on her name, but you know she's going
to be a beauty with them for parents!
Let me know what you think at justins_boy@hotmail.com or
justinsboy@yahoo.com!