Chapter 9

The first thing Ryan did after waking up in the morning and getting dressed was to load up his SUV with the packages he need to take to the ranch. When Trish was ready to go they stopped for breakfast at the nearby diner. After they were done eating and Ryan signed a few autographs they were on the way to the ranch.

During the drive, Ryan explained why he purchased the ranch which was to diversify his investments and to see what it was like to live in the country. He wasn’t sure if he would do anything more with this property, but it was that he just had the urge to make this purchase. She said she could understand as it happens to her when she sees a purse she doesn’t need but she purchases it anyway. The both of them laughed after she said that.

In pulling up to the lodge they were met by Jim and Sandi along with Major, their German Shepard dog. Jim said he was almost on a first-name basis with the Amazon driver who delivered all these packages. The new furniture he said was also delivered and was in the lodge. He gave Ryan the name of Norman Clifford who was a contractor and did work in the area.

Ryan phoned Norman who said he would be out later this afternoon. The packages in the SUV were unloaded and put away. Trish gave the lodge a good look-see and said there were a lot of possibilities with this building and gave some suggestions as to what could be done. The both of them also went outside and looked at the other buildings.

She commented on the three-acre pond and asked if it was stocked with fish. He said he didn’t know but that was something he would put on his to-do list to find out. He mentioned that he talked with a salesman about having two wind turbine electric generators installed. He said the turbines would provide the electricity and then some which would result in a credit from the power company. That along with what he receives from leasing out the land for farming will contribute in part to paying the expenses of owning the ranch.

Norman did come over later that afternoon. After greeting him Ryan showed him inside and pointed out what work he wanted to be done. He wanted the wall separating the kitchen from the dining area to be removed and the kitchen changed to a family type of look rather than the commercial look that it presently had. That meant new cabinets, a granite countertop, an island, a sink, a range with a double oven, a dishwasher, a microwave, and a refrigerator. He wanted the cabinets to be off-white and the appliances to have a chrome look.

Norm said he could do that but suggested that only three-quarters of this large kitchen area be done that way and the remainder be walled off. He said doing it this way would in his opinion be a better way to go and would give needed storage space.

Ryan agreed to the suggestion and said that this work was all he wanted to be done for now but there might be more work to do in the future. Norm said he would draw up a diagram along with an estimate which he would email to him. He was reluctant to give an eyeball estimate till he checked out prices.

While Ryan was engaged with Norm, Trish had taken the sheets and blankets and made the bed.

They headed into town to purchase a few provisions and have dinner at the restaurant that was there. After the meal since there was no television set at the ranch, they went across the street to “Bubbles” and had a few drinks. There was a decent crowd there and no one recognized Ryan or if they did, he wasn’t approached for an autograph.

After having a little bit of a rosy glow because of the drinks, they were back at the ranch and went to bed. Trish was the usual excellent lover and gave him considerable pleasure. He did his best to reciprocate and by what she said he thought he accomplished that.

The next day they went to town and had breakfast and purchased more food and other kitchen essentials. Trish helped Ryan add to his list of items he needed to purchase for the lodge. He in turn helped her with what she needed to do to prepare to pitch the motion picture she wanted to produce. Ryan thought it was a productive day. In the early evening, they headed back to Austin.

When they were back at that building and were going to his unit they passed by Lynn who gave both Ryan and Trish a good look. He did say hello to her but nothing more. As he had come to expect his making love that night to Trish was very satisfying.

Trish was anxious to get back to LA to pitch the movie. She caught an afternoon flight. He was sorry to see her leave and it wasn’t just because of the sex. Trish was all-around good company.

Furnishing the lodge and knocking items off his list was what Ryan now concentrated his efforts on doing. He received from Norm the estimate for the remodeling Ryan wanted to have done. Ryan agreed to the estimate and diagram. He emailed Norm saying that and said he would send him a check for one-half the cost now and would give him the remainder when the work was done.

About a week after Trish had to return to LA, she phoned Ryan and he could hear the excitement in her voice. She said she had pitched a major studio and they seemed to like what she said and were considering doing the film. Trish said that it was the synopsis of the plot and the low cost of production with Ryan playing the role of the “Dirty Harry” type of CWO that impressed them. They said they would let her know.

If the studio decides to make the film she said she will make up a list of prospective cast members and then find the locations to do the filming. Fort Polk has been receptive to having movies made in the past so long as they portrayed the Army in a positive light. Since this movie does that, she felt they would be agreeable to having the necessary Army location filming done there. Finding a small town where most of this filming will be done should not be difficult.

Ryan was concentrating his time on furnishing the lodge. He was also starting to question the need for him to have two residences in the Austin area. Did he need to have two residences in Texas was the question he was asking himself?

Trish phoned him about a week later and said the movie studio had decided to go with the project. The studio also did a few things she didn’t expect. They increased the budget for the film along with suggesting who the screenwriter and director of the film should be. They will also furnish a production team when it was time to do the filming. She had already contacted the author’s book agent and reached an agreement with him on the fee and was sending him the contract to sign.

She said she was in contact with a location manager who suggested three small towns where the filming could be done. Trish first wanted to line up the cast members before she visited these towns. She thought that Shelly Crowley, the actress should be cast to play the female police officer in the movie.

Ryan told Trish it seems she has things well in hand and to send him the finished script. Let him know when the filming is scheduled to start.

Close to four weeks later, Ryan received the completed script and was told that the filming would start the following week. He phoned Norm and told him when he could start doing the remodeling. It seemed to him that Trish had all the bases covered but that was only an assumption on his part, but he hoped that was the case.

It turned out that except for some minor problems, she did have all the bases covered. It took just over five weeks from when the filming started for this film to be completed. A few members of the production crew said this was record time in making a movie. In looking at some of the takes in the evening, Ryan and Trish were pleased by what they were seeing. Doing the film editing after the filming was completed would take more time but that was to be expected.