Distraction Action

by LilyGhost

This is story two in a five part series that began with Come Someday. Stephanie helps Ranger out on a distraction job for Rangeman. This is an established Ranger/Stephanie relationship story.

This story is set not long after Come Someday. There are three stories left after this one that I've previously written. It seemed easier to post them seperately, since I can't seem to focus on fixing more than one of them at a time. And, although the stories are in sequence, there is a little time between them so, to me, I'd consider them seperate stories instead of chapters. I tried to stay true to Janet's books so anything that sounds familiar (phrases, names, places) belong to her. The mistakes are mine. Warnings for mild language and smut.

Ranger called me earlier, and asked me to meet him at his apartment around six. I was five minutes late by the time I pulled up to the Rangeman gate. I flashed my key fob to open the security gate, and parked in the underground garage next to Ranger's Cayenne. I headed for the elevator, bypassed the first six floors, and went straight to Ranger's seventh floor apartment.

"Ranger?" I called out.

"In my office, Babe," Ranger said.

I walked to his office doorway and peeked inside. Ranger was sitting at his desk, looking at the computer monitor.

"What's up?" I asked him.

He looked up at me and smiled."Come here."

"Why?" I asked him, feeling a little wary about the way he was looking at me.

"I want to talk to you."

"Yeah, right," I said to Ranger, walking into the room."I've seen that look before, and there wasn't a lot of talking going on after I saw it."

While I was putting my bag down on his desk, Ranger took advantage of the moment I wasn't paying attention and hooked his fingers into the waistband of my jeans, pulling me to him. It was a good thing I was wearing jeans, because I ended up straddling him, my knees on either side of him, my hands clutching his shoulders for support.

"I thought you said you wanted to talk?"

"I do," Ranger said, his hands resting low on my hips.

"Not too long ago," I said to Ranger,"you used to call me about working with you on a job. Now, it seems you only want to get me naked."

"Babe, I've always wanted to get you naked," Ranger said."But you weren't letting me. I'm just making up for lost time."

Sitting the way I was, I couldn't quite remember why I kept my distance from Ranger for so long. He felt great against me, and just having his hands on my hips was wreaking havoc with my concentration.

Ranger broke into my mental lusting."I do have a job for you," Ranger said, kissing my neck."And I did call you over here to discuss it," he said.

"Uh-huh," I said. I wasn't buying it. Unless this job had something to do with me, without clothes, wrapped around him.

"I'm serious," Ranger said."I need you as a decoy, so I can grab my guy without any problems."

"What kind of problems are we talking about here?"

"Let's just say that he doesn't hang out with the nicest group of people. And this group might not like the idea of us arresting him," Ranger said."I need you to get him alone outside of the building. That would give us time to grab him before anyone else notices what's going on."

"Who is this guy?" I asked Ranger.

"His name is Maurice Chavez. He's a big time dealer. And he's also friends with members of one of Trenton's more prominent gangs."

I felt my eyebrows shoot halfway up my forehead."You want me to go into a bar filled with gang guys and try to lure one of them outside? Are you freakin' crazy?" I yelled.

I tried moving off Ranger's lap, but he tightened his hold on me preventing me from getting up.

"Maurice is not as bad as he sounds on paper," Ranger said."He lost his wife in a car accident last year, and he now has two young kids to raise alone. I suspect that's the reason he's back to dealing. Fast money and flexible work hours."

"And the gang?" I asked Ranger.

"They grew up in the same neighborhood and have been friends since the second grade," Ranger said."There are no ties between Maurice and the gangs' activities. They meet every Saturday night for drinks at the Hole."

"Like a guy's night out?"

"Yeah."

"How am I supposed to get him alone?" Getting back to the problem at hand, now that my heart rate had almost returned to normal.

"You're smart," Ranger said to me."You'll figure something out. Tank and I will be waiting outside the bar. All you have to do is get Maurice out the door and we'll take over. Hal will be inside the bar keeping an eye on you so nothing goes wrong."

"Why can't you just stake out the place and grab him when he's on his way home?" I asked him.

"He doesn't usually go straight home," Ranger said."And he's not always alone when he does."

I blew out a sigh. "What time is this supposed to happen?"

"We want to be there for one," Ranger said."Tank and Hal will leave earlier to check things out. I'll be dropping you off before we reach the bar so no one will associate you with us."

Ranger's hands went from my hips, to my waist, then slid under my T-shirt.

"See, I knew it! You are trying to get me naked, aren't you?"

"Yeah," Ranger said. His hand now covering my lace clad breast, his thumb brushing back and forth across my nipple.

"Next time," I said to Ranger, trying to ignore the desire spreading through me,"I'm going to meet you downstairs."

Ranger lightly kissed my lips, then whispered against my ear."You think that's going to save you?"

"It's on camera. That has to help."

"Babe," Ranger said,"what I plan on doing to you, I don't think you'd want on camera."

My stomach dropped a good six inches, and my vision got fuzzy.

Ranger lowered his head and kissed me. And when his tongue brushed against mine, I gave in. I mean, what was I supposed to do? Ranger was hard to resist on a normal day, never mind when he put some effort into seducing me. I wrapped my arms around his neck and gave back as good as I got. Ranger slid his hands down my back, grabbed hold of my butt, and stood up from the chair. I locked my legs around his waist to keep from falling, as Ranger made his way to the bedroom. He stopped next to his bed, and I reluctantly uncrossed my legs and let my feet touch the floor. Ranger wasted no time peeling my clothes off of me, and in getting himself undressed. I felt the coolness of his sheets at my back as Ranger lowered me onto the bed. Then his mouth was back on mine. The kiss was unhurried; like he had all the time in the world to spend making me crazy, and his hands were doing unbelievable things to my body. His mouth moved down my neck, and he spent a considerable amount of time on every section of skin he came across. I fisted my hands in Ranger's hair as he licked his way across my belly. And when Ranger's lips disappeared between my legs, I shattered. When I opened my eyes, Ranger was looking down at me with a slight smile on his lips, waiting for me to catch my breath. I reached out, and brought him close to me again, pressing my face into his neck. That was, apparently, what Ranger had been waiting for, because I felt him come inside me and the world slipped away again.

Ranger had some paperwork to go through before he left for the bar, so I told him I'd meet him back at Rangeman after I changed clothes. I made the ten minute drive back to my apartment. If there was a choice, I would rather spend any extra time on my hair, make-up, and clothes instead of wasting it on exercise, so I took the elevator to the second floor instead of taking the stairs. I unlocked my apartment door, dumped my bag on the counter, and said hello to Rex on my way to the bedroom. I stood in front of my closet trying to decide between dressing sexy, or dressing trashy. I didn't think, in this situation, being mistaken for a hooker would help me in any way so I went with sexy. I showered, dried my hair with a round brush to get softer curls, and went a little heavy on the mascara and liner. I added a soft red lipstick to complete the look, and went back to my closet for something to wear. After another ten minutes of looking, I settled on a pair of very low rise black jeans that fit me like skin. I didn't know if I credited the spandex that they now add to jeans, or the doughnuts that I can't stop eating, for the fit of them. I topped the jeans with a barely there red knit shirt with a low scoop neckline. The shirt normally wouldn't have been considered all that sexy, but thanks to Victoria's Secret half of my chest was on display. The shirt was on the short side, and didn't meet the the top of my jeans, so a good two-inch band of my stomach was also exposed. I slipped on my four-inch heels and checked myself out in the mirror. Over all, I looked pretty good if I do say so myself. The outfit was past sexy, but it wouldn't garner me my own street corner on Stark so I figured I'd done okay. I went back into the kitchen, gave Rex a peanut and a grape on my way out the door, and headed back to Rangeman.

As I drove into the underground garage I could see Ranger leaning against his truck, arms crossed over his chest, waiting for me. He was dressed in Rangeman black, as usual. He had a full utility belt around his waist, and an impatient look on his face. I blew out a sigh, and got out of my car. The impatient look disappeared, though, as I walked toward him. His eyes darkened, and the temperature went up a few degrees in the garage. I was sure of it.

"If we had enough time," Ranger said, looking me over,"I'd make you go home and change."

I looked down at myself. "What's wrong with what I have on?" I asked him.

"Babe, you're supposed to get Maurice's attention ... not start a bar fight."

"What do you mean?"

"You're going to have every man in that place hanging around you," Ranger said."You'll be lucky to have a moment alone with Maurice. And Hal will be no help at all to you. He'll probably fall out of his chair, and give himself a concussion, when he sees you in this."

"Now I know you're exaggerating," I said to him."I'm mostly covered."

"Yeah," Ranger said,"but, Babe, even the parts that are covered you can still clearly see."

"And here I was thinking you'd appreciate all the effort I put in to help you out."

"I appreciate the outfit," Ranger said."I just don't want a bar full of men also appreciating it."

"This was your idea," I said to Ranger."And there's no time for me to change, so you're just going to have to deal with sharing me tonight." Yeesh. You try to do a favor for someone and this is the thanks you get.

I turned to walk around to the passenger's side door, when Ranger curled his hand around the nape of my neck, stopping me from walking away. He spun me around, and pinned me against the truck with his body.

"Has anyone ever told you that you can be a real pain in the ass?" Ranger asked.

"I might have heard that from one or two people," I said to him. Probably half of Jersey thought I was a pain in the ass, but it didn't count unless they actually called me one to my face, right?

Ranger lowered his head so his face was inches from mine."Promise me you won't take any unnecessary chances tonight."

"That's why you're being such a jerk," I said, the reason suddenly dawning on me."You're worried about me."

"Of course, I'm worried about you," Ranger said."I'm always worried about you."

"I thought Maurice wasn't a bad guy."

"He's not," Ranger said,"but that doesn't mean he'll want to spend the night in jail."

"So your problem isn't with my clothes," I said to him."You're just afraid something might happen to me?"

"No," Ranger said."I have a big problem with your clothes."

I pushed away from Ranger."I give up. First you want my help," I said to Ranger, getting into the truck."Then you're angry when I do. I'll never understand the way men think."

Ranger opened the driver's side door, and slid in behind the wheel."What's to understand?" he asked me."I don't like that you'll be attracting more attention than you need to. I asked for your help tonight. If something happens to you it'll be on me for involving you. I'd never be able forgive myself."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at that logic."I'm responsible for my own actions," I said to Ranger."This is what I do for a living, remember? And I agreed to do this. That was my decision, not yours."

We made the ten minute drive from Rangeman to the bar without any problems. And also without any more arguing. Of course, that had more to do with Ranger being in takedown mode. Ranger isn't a real talkative guy on the best day. And when it comes to a takedown, not only isn't Ranger talking, but I could swear sometimes he isn't even breathing. I would have had to argue with myself which, as I've found from past experience, isn't all that productive.

Ranger parked in front of an old warehouse two buildings down from the Hole. He cut the lights on the truck and turned to me.

"Your job is to get Maurice outside," Ranger said."That's it. You have a real bad habit of getting caught in the middle of dangerous situations."

"Yeah," I said,"but I usually manage to get myself out of them." Okay, so I may have been shot a couple of times. And I may have needed rescuing a time or two in the past when things got a little out of hand. But, for the most part, I've gotten myself out of any trouble I've been in.

Ranger reached across the seat, pulled me to him, and kissed me. Ranger's tongue was deep in my mouth, his hand was firm at the nape of my neck. I felt my fingers involuntarily curl into the front of his T-shirt, as liquid fire shot through my body."Be careful," he said. His lips barely touching mine when he spoke.

"Too late for that," I said, smoothing out the wrinkles my fingers had made.

I got out of Ranger's truck on shaky legs and walked the short distance to the bar. As I neared the front door, I spotted Tank standing in an unlit corner a couple feet away. Tank gave my outfit a once over, then quickly looked away. I'm guessing he didn't want to be caught looking too long by Ranger.

Heads turned when I entered the bar. I took a deep breath and did a quick scan of the room. There were about fifteen people total inside. That included Hal who I almost didn't recognize, since he was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans. No Rangeman uniform tonight. Hal's eyes widened when he saw me. Before he turned his head away I could see that his face had turned bright red, but he managed to stay in his chair.

Ranger had showed me a picture of Maurice before I left for my apartment earlier in the evening. He was about my height, give or take an inch. He had black hair that was slicked back off his face, and about five pounds of gold jewelry framed by his open shirt. What was scary was that he and Vinnie looked like they could pass for twins. I did an inward shudder. I told myself to concentrate on the job, and not waste time wondering if this guy also had a thing for ducks.

I spotted Maurice at the bar ordering a drink. And he was alone. I couldn't believe my luck. Maybe this wouldn't be as hard as I thought. I'll just go over there with some story about waiting for a cab, ask him to escort me outside, and then my job will be done. Now, if only I could believe that it would be that easy.

"What'll it be," the guy the bartender asked, when I got to the bar.

"A beer," I said, sliding onto the bar stool closest to Maurice."I really need a beer."

Maurice was giving my chest his complete attention, or so I thought."Bad night?" Maurice asked me.

The bartender brought over my beer and Maurice's drink, then went back to wiping glasses at the other end of the bar. Maurice didn't make any moves to go back to his table. He just sat there looking at me, patiently waiting for my answer.

I blew out a sigh. Okay Stephanie, it's showtime! Make it good!

"Where do I start?" I said."My boyfriend said he had something important to discuss with me. I thought he was going to pop the question, you know, since we've been seeing each other since forever. But the sonavabitch wanted to tell me that he was screwing my best friend. Then he kicked me out of his car."

"He kicked you out of the car after he told you about screwing your best friend?"

"Okay," I said."I might have been trying to choke him at that point in the conversation."

Maurice laughed."He sounds like a real asshole. You should be happy to be rid of him."

"Yeah," I said,"I guess. Problem is, I had to call a cab to get myself home, and it's going to take a little while to get here. I don't like the idea of standing out on the street waiting for it." I took another look around the room, and faced Maurice again."And this bar doesn't look like the best place to hang out either. No offense."

"None taken," Maurice said.

And at that moment, as if I had planned it, two guys came sauntering up to me. They were wearing oversized everything. Since it wasn't cold outside, I knew their jackets were worn for more than a fashion statement. I had a feeling I was meeting a couple of Maurice's friends.

The taller of the two nodded at Maurice and then turned his attention to me."Can we buy you a drink?" He didn't seem to notice that he was asking my breasts the question.

"I don't think so," I said to him.

"Why not?" he asked."We're nice guys," he said turning to the guy with him."Right Tony?"

"Right," Tony said."We can be real nice if you know what I mean." Tony said, staring at my legs.

I was starting to feel like a supermarket chicken the way these guys were looking over my parts.

"Leave the lady alone, Tony," Maurice said."She's had a rough night."

"I could make it better," Victor said with a wink.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Do men really think sex solves everything? Out of the corner of my eye I saw Hal shift in his seat, trying to decide if I needed his help or not. As subtly as I could, I shook my head at him hopefully conveying the fact that I didn't need him to intervene. It seemed to work. Hal settled back down, but he didn't look happy.

"Go back to your seat, Victor. And take Tony with you. She's not interested."

"Fine," he said to Maurice, then turned back to me."We'll be at the table in the back if you change your mind."

"Sorry about that," Maurice said, after Victor and Tony left."These guys think that they're God's gift to women."

Damn. I'm starting to like this guy. I didn't know much about Maurice, aside from what Ranger told me, but he was growing on me.

I finished my beer, and made a show of looking at my watch."My ride should be here soon," I said, trying my best to look nervous. I didn't have to try very hard. My knees were just shy of knocking."I wouldn't normally ask someone I've just met in a bar to escort me anywhere, but you've been so nice. Would you mind waiting outside with me until my cab gets here?"

I felt kind of bad that he was going to be arrested as soon as he stepped foot outside. Ranger never wasted any time slapping cuffs on someone. And since I'll be standing next to Maurice, I had a feeling the capture would go even faster.

"I'd be happy to," Maurice said, getting to his feet."My daughter is still young, but I know I'd have a heart attack if I ever heard she came anywhere near this place."

We were slowly making our way to the front door."How old is she?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"She's seven. And growing up too fast."

"Any other kids?"

"A four year old boy."

I kept reminding myself that he was the one who broke the law. And because of that he had to go back to jail, but he didn't seem like that bad of a guy. And hearing him talk about his kids was making this harder.

Maurice opened the door for me and followed me outside. The lights in the bar weren't all that bright, but I still had to wait for my eyes to adjust to the darkness of the street. I couldn't see Ranger or Tank, but I felt them watching us. There was a slight charge to the air that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. If I hadn't known it was Ranger and Tank out here, I would have wet my pants by now. Maurice didn't seem to notice anything unusual going on. Which was good. I didn't want anyone to get hurt here, especially me.

Maurice and I were standing there, alone, taking in the night sounds. Two seconds later, we were surrounded. Tank had his arm around me, moving me away from where Ranger was cuffing Maurice. Hal had somehow come out of the bar behind us, without me or Maurice knowing, and was standing next to Ranger. I stood there dumbstruck. Maurice had the same expression that I'm sure was on my face trying to figure what the heck just happened. I had been expecting a lot of shouting, possible gang involvement, and bullets flying everywhere. Now that it was over, the bust seemed a little anti-climatic.

I pulled away from Tank, and walked back to where Ranger and Hal were talking. As soon as I got close to Ranger he wrapped an arm around me, hugging me to him.

"Are you okay?" Ranger asked.

"Yes," I said, smiling at Maurice."Maurice was a perfect gentleman."

"Good to know," Ranger said."Now I won't have to shoot him."

I was pretty sure he was kidding, but with Ranger sometimes it was hard to tell.

Maurice was standing, cuffed, next to Hal watching us."I guess you were lying about the boyfriend," he said to me.

"Yeah." I said."Sorry about that."

"No problem," he said."I knew this was coming. I just didn't think it would be tonight."

"What about your kids?" I asked.

"They'll be okay. My sister's with them."

Tank and Hal loaded Maurice into their Rangeman SUV and motored off to the police station. Ranger walked me over to his truck, and opened the passenger's door for me.

"I feel real crappy about Maurice going to jail," I said to Ranger.

"He'll be back out on the streets by tomorrow afternoon at the latest," Ranger said, angling behind the wheel of the truck. Ranger plugged the key into the ignition, pulled away from the curb, and headed down Third Street.

"What boyfriend were you lying about?" Ranger asked.

I laughed."I needed a reason to be in the bar, so I told Maurice I had a fight with my boyfriend," I told Ranger."And, as a result, he kicked me out his car and left me stranded outside the bar."

"Nice," Ranger said.

I thought about the word boyfriend for a minute. I suppose in theory Ranger would be considered my boyfriend. But boyfriend seemed like too tame of a word to describe someone like Ranger.

Ranger stopped at a set of lights and looked over at me."Are we going back to my apartment? Or are we going to yours?"

"We?" I asked."I thought I'd just be picking up my car, and then going home to sleep."

Ranger reached out in the dark, and tucked a stray curl behind my ear."I don't think so," Ranger said. He brushed his thumb across my lips, giving me a rush that went from my toes to the roots of my hair.

When the light finally changed Ranger put the truck in gear and, having made the decision for me, headed toward Rangeman.

"You're not kidnapping me, are you?"

"I wouldn't have to kidnap you, Babe," Ranger said, looking over at me, his eyes dark."I can be very persuasive."

This was true. I was tingling in all the usual places and all he did was touch my lips. Ranger should come equipped with a warning label.

Five minutes later, we pulled into the Rangeman garage. Ranger parked in his usual spot and we got out of the truck. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and led me to the elevator. I was starting to feel sleepy, the adrenaline having worn off by that point, so I rested my head against Ranger's chest as the elevator climbed to the seventh floor. I'd forgotten about the security camera that was installed in the elevator, and knew the guys in the control room were getting an eyeful. I gave the camera a small wave and forced myself to not think about the comments that were probably being made right now.

"I'll have to fire the control room in the morning," Ranger said, apparently thinking along the same lines as I was.

"You're kidding, right?"

Ranger didn't say anything. I looked up at him."Right?"

He gathered me closer."I'm kidding," Ranger said."Unless I hear them say something. Then they're fired."

"Boy," I said."You're tough."

"When I have to be."

The elevator opened at the seventh floor and Ranger unlocked his apartment door for me. He flipped the light switch on and followed me in. I loved Ranger's apartment. It was the complete opposite of mine. My apartment was small, the paint colors were awful, and it always smelled like whatever the neighbors were cooking. Ranger's apartment was an entire floor. The walls were painted in earth tones that were masculine, but not overbearing. And the whole apartment smelled like warm Ranger, and Bulgari shower gel. A dangerous combination for a woman who was still trying to keep her hormones in check.

Ranger relocked the door and turned to me."Are you hungry?"

"No," I said."I just want to go to bed."

Ranger smiled at me. I knew I was in trouble, because it was the full-on Ranger smile."Babe," Ranger said,"I'd be happy to take you to bed."

I rolled my eyes at him."I meant that I wanted to go to sleep."

"We can do some of that ...later," Ranger said."Much later."

Oh boy! I suddenly wasn't as tired as I had been a few minutes ago. And when Ranger scooped me up, and carried me to his bedroom, sleep was the last thing on my mind. As soon as Ranger let me down, I reached out and slid my hands under his T-shirt. I splayed my hands across Ranger's stomach before sliding them down to work on unbuckling his belt. Ranger somehow managed to get rid of my shirt and my bra, even though I was making it difficult by not keeping my hands to myself. Ranger took a step away from me and peeled his shirt off over his head. He caught the waistband of my jeans and pulled me back to him, then he kissed me. Ranger's tongue plunged into my mouth, and my hands returned to Ranger's cargo pants trying desperately to get him out of them. He broke from the kiss just long enough to push me down onto the bed and remove my jeans and underwear. Ranger's good, I thought. It took me a good five minutes, and almost a pair of pliers, to get into those jeans and Ranger had me out of them in a matter of seconds. He kicked his boots off and his pants soon followed.

I was never going to get tired of looking at Ranger. He was solid muscle from head to toe. Not to mention all that delicious smelling skin. I took a moment just to enjoy the sight of him standing there in front of me. When my eyes came back to his face, my breath caught in my throat. His eyes were dilated black and were fixed on me. I felt my whole body flush. It was hard to believe that I still wasn't used to being the center of Ranger's attention.

Ranger's mouth tipped up in an almost smile.

"What?" I asked him.

"You're staring," Ranger said.

"I like to look."

"And do you like what you see?" Ranger asked, joining me on the bed.

"Yeah." I mean, seriously. A naked Ranger. What's not to like?

Ranger pulled me close. He kissed my shoulder, licked the pulse point in my neck, probably checking to see just how much his mouth had affected me, and then his lips returned to mine. Ranger started off kissing me softly, but soon turned from gently coaxing a response from me, to demanding one. His hands slid down my body, paying particular attention to my legs before settling between them. When my brain decided to start working again, I thought a little payback was in order. Before Ranger could do anything else to me, I did a little body exploring of my own. I kissed Ranger's neck, then started to move lower. I kissed his chest, skimming my teeth over the muscles of his washboard stomach, and flicked my tongue over him. A beat later, I was flat on my back and Ranger was inside me. Needless to say, it was a long time before we got to the sleeping part of the night.

Ranger's alarm went off, jarring me out of a sound sleep. I squinted into the still dark room to look at the time. Five o'clock! I dropped my head back down on the pillow with a groan, while Ranger turned the alarm off.

"We only got back from the Hole a few hours ago," I said to Ranger,"and you still set your alarm for five?" If I hadn't worked for Ranger in the past, I never would have known you could set an alarm that early.

Ranger cuddled me into him, and kissed me lightly on the lips."You don't have to get up if you don't want to, Babe."

"Good," I said,"because that wasn't something I was considering."

He smiled at me. Ranger thought I was amusing. He kissed my forehead, got out of bed, and headed for the shower.

I enjoyed the view until Ranger disappeared into the bathroom. Even after the hours we had just spent together, I had to resist the urge to pounce on him and drag him back to bed. I gave myself a mental headsmack, settled my head deeper into Ranger's pillow, and closed my eyes. The next thing I knew, I heard sounds coming from the kitchen. I looked toward the bathroom. The door was open and the room was dark. I must have fallen asleep again as soon as my eyes closed. I blew out a sigh. I was awake now. I might as well get up and get on with my day.

I took a shower and towel dried my hair. It was too early to have to deal with a hair dryer. I got dressed in the jeans from last night and one of Ranger's black T-shirts. It was big, but I thought it would be more appropriate than last night's choice. I slipped on my heels, and made my way to the kitchen.

Ranger was sitting at the breakfast bar when I walked in. He gave me a full body scan.

"As much as I like seeing you in my shirt," Ranger said,"I like last night's better."

"It seemed more suited for a barroom, not breakfast," I said.

"I thought it suited my bedroom better."

My body warmed, and my knees got weak, at the reminder of last night. I did a mental eye roll as I sat down next to him."Looks like Ella's been here," I said, looking at the breakfast tray on the counter.

"Yeah," Ranger said."You were in the shower when she came."

I helped myself to a bagel, and loaded it up with cream cheese, while Ranger poured each of us a cup of coffee.

"What are your plans for the day?" Ranger asked, taking a bagel.

He spread what had to be about a teaspoon of fat-free cream cheese onto his bagel. I knew it was a long shot, but I was really hoping some of my eating habits would have rubbed off on him by now. I should have known better."I have to go back to my apartment to check on Rex first thing," I said."Then I'll probably stop in at Vinnie's to see if anything new came in."

"I need finish up a few things here," Ranger said."Then I'll be dropping Maurice's body receipt off for Connie. I'll probably see you there."

"I don't know if that's such a good idea," I said to Ranger."Connie and Lula will torture us if we're in the office together."

"And you're scared of Connie and Lula?'' Ranger asked, finishing his bagel.

"I wouldn't say scared. More like uneasy."

Connie has some control, but Lula has absolutely no filter between what she's thinking, and what she says. When we're trying to capture a skip, sometimes, it works to our advantage. Most of the time, though, it's just embarrassing. It was one thing to have them discussing my sex life when it was just the three of us. It was a whole other thing to have Ranger standing next to me while they did it.

"Babe," Ranger said, getting to his feet,"I don't embarrass easy. I think I can manage a conversation with Connie and Lula."

"Hey," I said, palms up,"if you want to take your chances with them, that's up to you. Just don't expect any help from me when they start discussing your anatomy in front of you."

I cleaned up the kitchen while Ranger went to get his jacket and gun from the bedroom. Five minutes later, we were in the elevator. Ranger hit the button for the garage level.

"You don't have to come all the way down to the garage with me," I said to Ranger.

"I know I don't, Babe," Ranger said,"but I want to."

When the elevator doors opened we got out and Ranger walked me to my car. I opened the driver's door, dropped my bag on the passenger seat, and turned back to face him."I guess I'll see you at the office."

Ranger pulled me to him."Looking forward to it," he said. Then he kissed me. His hands were firm on my waist, holding me tight against him, and when our tongues touched, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer. Ranger broke the kiss a moment later.

"Jeez," I said. Trying to suck some air back into my lungs.

Ranger smiled at me."Later," he said.

Get a grip, Stephanie! I said to myself as I got into my car and headed out of the garage. I probably would have had an easier time cooling off if Ranger didn't make later sound like a promise.

I made a quick stop at the bakery to pick up coffee, and a dozen doughnuts. I was exhausted. I didn't get a lot of sleep last night, and I figured I was going to need all the sugar and caffeine I could get today. And my thinking was, that if I brought the doughnuts to the office I wouldn't run the risk of eating the whole dozen myself. I had to figure out a way of smuggling junk food into Ranger's apartment if I was going to be spending nights there.

Five minutes later, I was standing on the sidewalk outside of the bakery, doughnut box in hand, and I was face to face with Morelli. He was wearing jeans, a faded Gold's Gym T-shirt, and beat up motorcycle boots. After noticing my damp hair, and Ranger's T-shirt, he was also wearing a not so friendly expression.

"I guess it is true," Morelli said."I was hoping that it was just a rumor going around but ..." he said, his voice trailing away."He didn't waste any time, did he?"

"What are you talking about?" As if I didn't know.

"Ranger," Morelli said."The whole time we were together he was trying to get you into his bed. I guess he finally wore you down."

"You stopped just to lecture me about Ranger? We're not together anymore, Joe, remember?"

"Shit, Stephanie. What the hell are you thinking?" Morelli asked, hands on hips.

"I'm thinking that it's not your business."

"Against my better judgement, I love you," Morelli said, dragging his fingers through his hair."I don't want to see you get hurt. You don't know what you're getting yourself into with him. You know nothing about him."

"I appreciate your concern," I told him,"but I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself."

"I hope for your sake that's true," Morelli said, getting into his SUV. He looked at me for a long moment through the window. His eyes losing some of their hardness. And when he finally spoke the anger in his voice was replaced with concern."I know it's your life. And I know you're going to do what you want with it, but I'm asking you to be careful," he said quietly."If you need anything you know where to find me." He closed the car door, turned the key in the ignition, and took off down Hamilton.

I blew out a breath I wasn't aware I was holding."That went well," I said, as I watched him drive away. I got into my car and cruised to my apartment building.

I was walking toward the building's front door, when my cell rang.

"Yeah," I said, when I answered.

"What did Morelli want with you?" Ranger asked me.

I looked around my parking lot for any shiny, black vehicles. I didn't see any. "How did you know I was talking to Morelli?" I asked."You're not having me followed are you?"

"No," Ranger said."Hal was driving by and saw you outside Tasty Pastry."

"So, he ratted me out?" I said."I know you're against junk food, but buying doughnuts doesn't warrant making a phone call to you."

"He was worried about you."

"I was standing outside a public building, next to a busy street, in the daytime," I said."What's to worry about? And besides, Morelli may have had the urge to strangle me in the past, but he would never actually hurt me."

"What did he have to say?" Ranger asked.

"Same ol', same ol'," I said.

"Warning you about me?" Ranger guessed.

"Yeah," I said."That about sums it up."

"And your response?"

"I told him that although I appreciated his concern, I could take care of myself."

"Bet that went over big," Ranger said.

"He wasn't happy," I admitted,"but he also wasn't yelling at me."

"Maybe he's working a new angle," Ranger said.

"What do you mean?"

"If you and Morelli aren't fighting, he'll be in better position to try to get you back."

"I don't think so," I said."In any case, I'm not interested."

"That's good to here," Ranger said,"but if he gets to be a problem, I'm going to have to talk to him."

"No! " I said, a little too loud even to my own ears. The last thing I needed was a face-off between Morelli and Ranger. They both qualify as the alpha male type. They both carry guns. And they're both used to getting their own way. A confrontation between these two would be vicious."That's not necessary."

"Babe," Ranger said, laughing softly."I'm not going to do anything to him."

"I know," I said,"but just in case, I think it would be better for everyone if the two of you stay far away from each other."

"We'll do things your way for now," Ranger said,"but if tries to interfere, I'm going to stop him." And he disconnected.

Yeesh. Is this a relationship or what?

I put my phone back in my bag, and walked up to my apartment. As soon as I walked in I said hello to Rex, gave him fresh water, filled his food dish, and since I felt guilty for leaving him alone last night, I added a corn chip and a carrot to his dish. I changed clothes and fifteen minutes later I was walking into the bonds office.

Connie was at her desk pulling files, and Lula was sitting on the fake leather couch reading a Star magazine. In any other office this would appear strange, since Lula was hired to do the filing for the office. Now everyone just accepts the fact that Lula gets paid mostly to do whatever she wants.

"Are those doughnuts?" Connie asked, eyeing the box in my hand.

"Yeah, I stopped at the bakery on the way over."

"Have a late night?" Lula asked me.

"I helped capture Maurice Chavez last night." I said to Lula.

"You know what I'm saying," Lula said."That's not a 'I'm tired 'cause I spent the night capturing a skip' look. You're wearing an 'I'm tired 'cause I spent the night rolling around with a hot guy' look.

"I did that too," I said.

Lula was shaking her head at me."Girl, I don't know how you do it," Lula said,"but it ain't fair. You got the market cornered on hot men. You managed to have your way with both Morelli and Ranger. You ought to write a how-to book, or something, and help out the rest of us."

"I'd buy a copy," Connie said."Especially if you had naked pictures of Morelli and Ranger in it."

"Do you have pictures?" Lula asked."You know, all the best books have pictures in them."

And to think Ranger was giving me a hard time about dealing with them.

"I don't even know what I'm doing, so I couldn't write a book even if I wanted to. Which I don't," I told them."And I don't have any pictures."

"That's a shame," Lula said."You should get some while you have the chance."

"Yeah," Connie said."How long do you think you're going to be this lucky?"

"I'm not talking about this anymore," I told them."Anything new come in for me?" I asked, poking at the files on Connie's desk.

"Nothing big," Connie said."A shoplifter. And a public tinkler."

I looked through the files Connie handed to me. Unfortunately, being a bounty hunter means your paycheck depends on the severity of the crime that was committed. The uglier the crime, the higher the bond, and the bigger the capture check. This, of course, is a double-edged sword. Because a guy shoplifting condoms from a drugstore is less likely to shoot at me, but the amount of money I'd receive for bringing him in won't keep me from getting kicked out of my apartment.

Lula shifted her eyes from me to the front window."We got company," Lula said."Mr. Big, Buff, and Built is here."

Here we go, I thought."You're not going to give us a hard time, are you?" I asked Lula.

"Now that's just plain insulting. When have I ever given you a hard time?"

"You give me a hard time everyday," I told her.

"Hunh."

The front door opened, and Ranger walked in. I saw him only a few hours ago, but that didn't lessen the impact. And judging by the way Lula's eyes widened, and Connie's face flushed, I was guessing their thoughts ran close to mine. He crossed the room to me, and kissed me lightly on the lips before turning to Connie.

"We brought in Maurice Chavez last night," Ranger said, handing the file and body receipt over to Connie.

"Yeah, we heard about that."

"That ain't all we heard about. Right, Steph?" Lula said.

I looked at Ranger."See, I warned you."

Connie handed Ranger his capture check."Warned him about what?"

"You and Lula."

Ranger wasn't saying anything, but the corners of his mouth were turned up in the almost smile. He was enjoying himself. Why do people find my discomfort so amusing?

"We're just having a little fun," Connie said."We're harmless."

"Speak for yourself," Lula said.

"Are you guys done?"

"For now," Lula said."I was hoping for more than just a peck on the lips, though. You're ruining my fantasies. No tongue. No groping hands. I'm disappointed."

I narrowed my eyes at Ranger."Were you planning on helping me out here?"

"I thought you said you didn't want me to interfere."

"I didn't want you talking to Morelli," I said."I didn't say anything about Connie and Lula."

"My mistake," Ranger said.

I did more eye narrowing, and Ranger smiled. He crooked an arm around my neck, pulled me to him, and dropped a kiss on the top of my head.

"Uh-oh," Lula said."Morelli knows?"

"Yep," I said.

"Did you talk to him?" Connie asked.

"Yeah. He was waiting for me when I was came out of the bakery this morning."

"How'd it go?" Lula asked.

I saw Lula glance at Ranger before she asked. Like she wasn't sure if we should be discussing this particular topic in front of Ranger.

"Ranger already knows," I told Lula."One of his informers spotted us and tattled. And Joe wasn't as upset as I thought he would be."

"He's okay with the two of you together?" Connie asked, clearly not believing me.

"I wouldn't say he was okay with it, but he stayed relatively calm for most of the conversation."

"Probably he's waiting for the right time to make his move." Lula said.

That's what Ranger had said. I refused to give him the satisfaction of admitting that he might be right about Morelli, so I ignored Lula's comment and became engrossed in the design on the floor tiles. As usual, I didn't have to say anything for Ranger to know what I was thinking. I could feel him smile next to me. With a sigh I looked up. Yep, he was smiling. I glared at him for a moment before giving Lula the same answer I gave Ranger.

"I don't think so," I said. But now I was starting to have doubts.

"This is gonna be interesting," Lula said.

I hoped she was wrong. I still had my mother to deal with. And I had a feeling she wasn't going to be happy at first. I didn't want the added stress of worrying that Morelli might want to get friendly again. My mother would get over it once she saw Ranger and I were serious about being together. I knew Morelli wouldn't.

Ranger pulled me closer."Babe," Ranger said,"I can smell smoke. You're thinking too hard, again."

I rested my head against his chest."I can't help it. There's a lot to think about."

"I need to get back to work. You're going to stay out of trouble today, right?"

"Yeah," I said."I should get moving, too." I grabbed the two files off Connie's desk, told her and Lula that I'd be working at home for the rest of the day, and followed Ranger outside.

Lula said something to Connie, but I couldn't hear what it was. Probably that was a good thing, since she was looking in my direction when she said it.

I walked with Ranger to the curb where his Turbo was parked."Do you have plans for tonight?" Ranger asked.

"Not that I know of."

"Do you want to have dinner at Rangeman?"

"Sure," I said, smiling."Unless something better comes along."

"Babe," Ranger said,"you better hope nothing better comes along. I'm not good with sharing."

"Was that a warning?" I asked.

"Do I need to warn you?"

"No."

"Then it wasn't a warning."

"Jeez," I said."Someone's feeling territorial today."

"Not just today," Ranger said.

"Another warning?"

"More like a heads-up."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Ranger smiled at me. He wrapped both arms around my waist, lifted me off the ground, and kissed me. When I opened my mouth to his, I forgot about the fact that we were standing on a public sidewalk. His tongue was deep in my mouth, and his arms were hard around my waist. I squirmed against him trying to get closer, and Ranger tightened his hold on me. After a few moments Ranger broke from the kiss, and set me back down. His control was obviously way better than mine, because ending that kiss was the last thing on my mind.

"Whew," I said, when I was back on my feet. I looked down at myself to make sure my clothes hadn't come off. Nope, they were still there, but some of them may have gotten a little damp in the process."What was that about?"

"I didn't want you, or Lula, to be disappointed."

Hard to believe a woman could be disappointed with Ranger.

I looked toward the office. Sure enough, Lula was standing with her nose pressed to the large front window. She smiled wide, and gave us a thumb's up. I shook my head at her before turning back to Ranger.

"You got a thumb's up from Lula," I said."That's impressive."

"That's not all I've got that's impressive," Ranger said.

No kidding!

"What time will you be done working."

"I should be done by six," Ranger said pulling me closer."But you can come over any time."

He kissed me goodbye. Lightly this time. Then he was gone. No doubt he was off to make the world a safer place one scumbag at a time.

It's good being me, I thought to myself.Well ... sometimes. And this was definiteIy one of those times. I got into my car and pointed it toward my apartment.