They all belong to Janet Evanovich
A/N: Do you ever wonder what happens after 'happily ever after'? This story is just a peek at the day to day existence of Stephanie and Ranger when no maniacal madman is trying to abduct Stephanie or kill Ranger. It is set after "Another Forty-Eight".
Tank's Decision
"Move. Your. Foot."
"Alright, I'm sorry!" I slid my sneaker clad foot up the slope of Lula's breast to find purchase on her shoulder. "But you need to hold still," I hissed. I was standing on Lula's shoulders my arms extended and hands wrapped around a slender tree branch. She shifted her weight and my upper body fell forward slamming against the eight foot high privacy fence. The branch I had been using as a balancing pole broke off with a sharp crack, and I dropped it to the leaf covered ground, quickly grabbing hold of the top of the fence. I breathed a sigh of relief as I realized there was no razor wire shredding my fingers. Lula stepped forward, bringing her body in contact with the lower part of the fence, and for a second we were perfectly aligned. I pulled my body upward, momentarily taking some of the strain off Lula.
"Girl, you're gaining weight."
"No I'm not," I snapped. "I'm still five pounds down from that whole Costa Rica nightmare. Hold still, Lula!" She continued to shift back and forth trying to find good footing.
"This ain't as easy as those Chinese acrobats make it look," she groused. I looked over the top of the fence across the backyard and into the illuminated window at the back of the RangeMan safe house. The first part of our ridiculous plan was completed. Now all I had to do was stand on Lula's shoulders until I saw Tank. We knew he was in the house and Lula was convinced he was inside with another woman.
This whole mess was my fault and my guilt had motivated me to take part in this ill thought out scheme. Lula had been complaining that my husband had been unfair to his second-in-command. I broached the subject with Ranger. We were still very much newlyweds, but I didn't think Ranger would send any of his men to do his dirty work. I'd been right. Tank had asked Ranger for the opportunity to do some field work and Ranger readily obliged. In consequence, Tank had been in the wind on three separate occasions in the last six weeks.
Lula complained often about Tank's absences. On one of those occasions I'd thought out loud and told her Tank was gone by his own request. The hurt and sadness on her face filled me with guilt and led me directly to my present position, which was precarious.
"I can't balance up here if you keep moving," I complained.
"Well, you're compressin' my spine. I can't stand under you all night."
"Maybe this was a bad idea for us…wait!" I interrupted myself. "I see something, and I think it's a person." A shadow passed in front of the window partially obscuring the faint rectangle of light spilling out on the lawn. I was looking into a bedroom, the corner of the bed visible at the edge of the window. I shifted my upper body slightly and heard a grunt from Lula. The shadow was back and as my eyes focused what I was seeing caused them to open wide.
"It's Tank," I said, and he's looking this way." I saw a flash of white and realized he'd just dropped a towel on the bed.
"Don't worry," Lula said. "It's so dark out here he can't see us. Is he alone?"
"It seems he is, and he's…" I squeezed my eyes tightly closed, "…naked."
Lula jerked back, "Say what?" I lost my balance and fell, ass over tea kettle, banging my head against the fence to land with a whomp on the damp ground. I heard the rustling of leaves as the wind blew, ruffling my hair. I laid unmoving waiting for my lungs to suck back in the air I'd whooshed out when I landed. Clouds floated away from the moon and soft light illuminated my face. I sputtered and gasped as my lungs started working again. The chilly night air calmed my struggles as I inhaled deeply. I could smell the musty earth and another faint scent. Bulgari. Shadows blocked the moon again, but it wasn't the clouds. Ranger's hand came down and grabbed a fistful of my sweatshirt. He hauled me to my feet in one strong yank.
I turned to look at Lula, knowing that if I'd incurred the wrath of Ranger he wouldn't show it in her presence. She was gone, but in the distance I could see the reflective strips of her Nike's pumping up and down with a speed that was directly proportional to her desire to avoid Ranger. I heard a car door slam and an engine turn over and I knew I wasn't riding home with Lula.
"Well," I said, brushing leaves off my backside. "I guess Lula had to go. How'd you find us?"
"It's a safe house, babe. The entire back fence is under video surveillance. Parabolic microphones record any conversation in a hundred yard circumference."
"You mean someone at RangeMan was watching and listening to Lula and me?"
"Everyone at RangeMan was watching you, and now they're probably watching us." He looped his arm through mine and we walked silently down a shallow ravine and through a wooded area which opened to a small park. The Cayenne sat under the glow of a streetlight in an otherwise empty parking lot. Ranger beeped the locks and I reached to open the door. His hand on my arm stopped me and I turned to look at him. He wrapped his arms around me lowering his mouth to mine. My arms went up around his neck and I thought maybe he wasn't as upset as I'd first suspected. I pressed my body against his and felt his response. I pressed my advantage by running my fingertips down the sides of his neck. Flattening my palms against his chest, I made small circles over his sculpted abs and then moved higher. I felt his shiver as my hands found his nipples through his shirt. I may have been a newlywed, but I knew how to distract my husband and this was definitely the time for distraction. He pulled away from me and opened the passenger door.
"We'll talk at home, babe." Dang.
As I fastened my seat belt Ranger pulled out his phone, punched a number and was quickly connected.
"Your security has been breached," he said. He shot a sideways glance at me as he listened to a response.
"The back boundary," he continued. "Lula and Stephanie." He listened for a few seconds longer and then disconnected. He pulled out onto the street quickly falling into his zone as I worried about the conversation we were going to have at home.
When we entered the apartment a half hour later I dropped my pocketbook by the credenza and attempted to make a get-a-way. Head down, I started down the hallway with my goal being the bedroom. Ranger put his hands on my shoulders and turned me toward the living room. I sighed and headed in that direction. I guessed we were going to talk after all. Ranger crossed the hall and went into the kitchen.
I plopped on the leather sofa and toed off my sneakers letting them drop randomly. I brushed my fingers through my tangle of curls and came away with a handful of crumbled leaf which I deposited on the end table. Ranger came into the room carrying two bottles of beer. He handed me one and I took a long swallow before setting the bottle down.
Ranger sat across from me in the armchair. This wasn't good. If I was in touching distance I had a chance at controlling the direction of the conversation, but it looked as if Ranger intended to get the information he was after.
"Tank is on his way over," he said. "He wants to talk to you, but before he gets here I want to know how you discovered his location."
"He told Lula that he was going to be spending a couple of days in a RangeMan safe house," I said. "She was out looking for a skip and she saw Tank with a woman going into Romano's jewelry store. She called him and he told her that he was providing security for the woman. She thought they looked pretty friendly for being client and employer and she put two and two together and came up with…"
"…The wrong answer," Ranger cut in.
"Well, she thought he was cheating on her," I said. "She thinks Tank and that woman are spending social time at the safe house."
"The woman is a client and a long time friend of Tank's. Her brother owns Romano's jewelry store. Tank was at the safe house alone," Ranger said. "I'll let him explain why when he gets here. What I want is an answer to my question, Stephanie. How did you learn the location of the safe house?"
"I asked Binkie," I said. "He was on monitor duty and I asked him which safe house Tank was staying in. He's not in trouble is he? Am I in trouble?"
"Babe," Ranger sighed and rubbed a hand over his brow. "It's still a new situation for the guys to deal with you as my wife. You have the same security clearance around here as any of the men, and that's the way I want it. If anyone else would have asked the question they'd been given the same information. There is a level of trust that exists between all of us. If I limit the information available to you it will change the way my men regard you. Is that what you want?"
"No!"
"Then you need to think before you act. If Tank had been protecting a client in the safe house you and Lula could have jeopardized the entire operation. You would have compromised the safety of an innocent individual. As it was, Tank was there on his own personal business which I'm thinking he will talk about with you."
Now I was curious, my mind racing in a hundred different directions, all coming back to the same thought. Tank went to a jewelry store. I looked at Ranger who was staring at me. I got up from the sofa, crossed the room and plopped myself in his lap. His arms went around me and we sat in comfortable silence. I thought about trying to wheedle Tank's story out of him. I was sure he knew, but I knew Ranger didn't give up secrets. I decided to pass the time waiting for Tank by taking advantage of my husband. I wiggled my butt against his lap and felt the familiar response.
"Tank will be coming up here soon babe," he warned.
I lowered my voice and tried for seductive. "I'd like to come soon too," I whispered against his ear. I felt, rather than heard, his laughter. I pulled back and looked at his face to see the full on smile. He reached up and pulled another leaf from my hair and with usual deftness began rearranging my clothing. In a few short minutes he made my wish come true and I was getting ready to bestow a similar kindness on him when the door bell rang.
"Oh," I said softly. "Bad timing."
"Yeah," Ranger murmured, "but I'm patient, babe. Tank won't be here all night." I made a quick trip to the bathroom to compose myself before facing Tank. I pulled a brush through my tangles, dislodging yet more leaf debris, and quickly subdued the mess into a ponytail. The mirror showed that all my clothing was back in place, covering parts still tingling in little aftershocks.
When I entered the living room I blushed to see Tank sitting in the chair of my recent bliss. I shot a look at Ranger whose face was inscrutable waiting for Tank or me to begin.
Taking a deep breath and squaring my shoulders I decided to get it over with. "I never should have let Lula talk me into this Tank. I know better. I'm really, really sorry I saw you naked."
"You saw him naked?" Ranger asked.
"You saw me naked?" Tank asked. "No one has ever apologized for seeing me naked before."
"Oh, well, I, uh, I'm not sorry I saw you naked," I stammered as one of Ranger's eyebrows rose so high it disappeared into his hairline. "Well, I mean, I am sorry…what I'm trying to say is I shouldn't have violated your privacy."
"No," Tank said quietly, "you shouldn't have. Lula thinks I'm cheating on her?"
"I don't know," I hesitated. "I think she is really just curious about the time you've been spending away from her. You know,… trying to figure out what is changing between the two of you."
"I've made a decision," Tank said. "I'm going to ask Lula to marry me. Lula is the love of my life, but she can be a little overpowering. I needed some time away to make sure this was what I wanted and not just what she wanted for me." He looked at Ranger and then back at me.
"The two of you have almost as many differences as Lula and I do. You seem to be making things work. That's what gave me the idea that Lula and I could manage a happy married life."
I was astounded. He had compared the roller coaster, loop the loop, twists and turns of his relationship with Lula to Ranger and me! Was there something I was not seeing about me and Ranger? Distractedly I realized Tank was still talking.
"I was planning on taking her to the safe house tomorrow. I was going to ask her to be my wife. If she really thinks I'm seeing someone else maybe she doesn't realize the depth of my feeling for her."
"Lula needs a lot of reassurance," I said. Tank nodded his head in agreement. "Maybe tomorrow you need to let actions speak louder than words. I think if she sees you're serious with your proposal her fears will be laid to rest. Do you have a ring?" Again, he nodded his head.
"I'm going to explain that I'll never be unfaithful, but there are times when I'm going to need my space. She might decide she needs space sometimes too. The thing is, when I'm away from her I just want to be with her, and that's what made me decide to propose."
I went to stand in front of Tank and reached out taking his huge hands in mine I pulled, meaning to bring him out of the chair. Nothing happened. I tugged leaning backward to use my weight. He took pity and stood. I wrapped my arms around his mid section and hugged him tightly.
"I'm happy for you. Put Lula out of her misery, and take her to the safe house tomorrow." His big hand gave my ponytail a soft tug.
"Thanks, Stephanie." He looked back at Ranger and said, "I'm offline all of tomorrow, boss. I guess life as I know it is about to be over."
Ranger looked at me and said, "Yeah, but that will be a good thing." He and Tank moved into the hallway and continued talking.
I was aware of the conversation, but wasn't really listening. My mind was focused on Ranger's last comment and on Tank's assumption that Ranger and I had differences. I suddenly saw my shoes lying where I'd carelessly kicked them off. I looked at the crumpled leaf I'd pulled from my hair earlier. Quickly I ran into the bathroom. The vanity was cluttered with my grooming paraphernalia. Ranger's stuff was neatly placed on a shelf or out of sight in a drawer. The toothpaste tube was v-shaped from me squeezing it in the middle. And it got worse. Earlier in the day I'd unthinkingly broken an unspoken promise of trust by getting the safe house location from Binkie. All these things could easily be more than just irritating to Ranger.
I heard the apartment door close and realized Tank had left. I went back to the living room and took a good long look at my husband. He was wearing his usual work day outfit of black cargos, back boots and a black RangeMan t-shirt. There was not a wrinkle to be seen. I looked down over my rumpled sweat shirt, and dirt streaked jeans to see a red painted toenail poking through a small hole in my sock. The differences Tank had alluded to were all at once clearly obvious and without warning I burst into tears.
"Babe?" Ranger looked puzzled and I swung around and headed for the privacy of the bedroom. I dove onto the bed lying face down wallowing in my new realization that Ranger and I were not well suited.
I felt a depression of the mattress and rolled over to see Ranger sitting on the edge of the bed. I wiped a tear from my cheek and saw the mascara on my hand reminding me I didn't cry well. He was quiet, apparently waiting for me to tell him what had caused my outburst.
"Am I overpowering?" I asked repeating Tank's words. "Do you need space?" He reached out and pulled me into a sitting position. He pulled the elastic from my ponytail and my hair sprung wildly around my face. His hands caught the edge of my sweatshirt and pulled it over my head.
"Let me show you how much space I need, babe."
The next morning I awoke in the middle of the bed, sheets tangled around me. I turned to see a note lying on Ranger's pillow.
Lunch, Pino's at noon. C.
I looked at the clock and hurried from bed. I was manning the bonds office this morning as Connie had taken a couple of days off. I stretched feeling a little residual soreness from the night before. It was a good soreness. Ranger and I had an amazing physical relationship. I'd known that since the moment we first kissed. I wondered if our very mutually satisfactory sex life was enough to keep our other differences from causing a rift in our relationship. Ranger was very tolerant of me. He never complained about the messes I made even thought I knew having me live in what had been his space must have been an adjustment for him.
Before I left for work I made an unscheduled stop in the control room. I found Binkie and apologized for using the information he'd given me in a less than ethical way. He blushed and mumbled "Not a problem."
As I hurried toward the elevator I literally bumped into Ranger. He caught my arm and pulled me down the hall into his office. He kicked the door shut and drew me into his arms lowering his head to mine. It was a nice kiss that was prevented from going farther by the loud rumbling of my stomach.
"Leave without breakfast, babe?" he asked.
"Yes," I replied. "I was in a hurry. I wanted to talk to Binkie and now that I'm here would you have a little time?"
He looked at his watch, "Five minutes, babe."
I took a deep breath. "Ranger, are we too different?"
"Too different for what, babe?"
"Are we like Tank and Lula?"
"No."
I sighed I didn't think he was taking me seriously. "Do you ever feel like you need to have some space, like Tank?"
"Never."
"Ricardo Carlos Manoso! I'm being serious. I want to be a good wife to you and I don't want to make you so crazy you need to take time out away from me."
"Stephanie, have I ever given you indication that I was unhappy with you?"
"No, but…"
"Then don't worry about problems that don't exist. Sorry, babe, I've got to run. I'll see you at lunch." He left me standing in his office rethinking our brief conversation.
I continued my introspection throughout the morning. Lula came bursting in around ten with a large Tasty Pastry bag. "I brought donuts," she announced. "I thought you might need them on account of Ranger finding us last night."
"About that," I said, "You deserted me. I've never seen you run so fast."
"Well, I didn't want to come between you and Batman." She reached in the bag and handed me a Boston Crème. Her hand went back into the bag and came out with a chocolate glazed which she made short work of. We sat in silence and munched for awhile.
"Tank called," Lula said casually. "He said he was gonna take me to that safe house tonight and tell me what's going on. You think he's gonna break up with me?"
"No," I said carefully. "Ranger told me Tank was attending to business." I tried not to show any excitement, but I was excited for Lula. She deserved the life Tank would give her. I didn't tell her I'd talked to Tank last night. This was one secret I was going to keep.
"Monkey business, most likely," Lula said. "I saw him with that woman and it didn't look like business to me."
"Ranger said she's an old friend and a client," I told her. "Nothing more. You don't really think Tank would cheat on you, do you?"
Lula was quiet for a moment. "Nah, I don't think so. But that don't mean other women won't go after him. He's the whole package. Looks, brains and personality." At the mention of 'the whole package' I had a flashback to the night before when I'd seen Tank drop the towel. Shaking my head I reached for a donut to clear my thoughts.
The morning passed uneventfully. Lula was out doing my former job and probably wouldn't be back until later in the afternoon. I locked up and headed for Pino's where I found my husband sitting, back to the wall, in the far corner booth. I slid in across from him and decided to talk to him about what was on my mind.
I knew that at some point our differences would cause conflict and I was going to make an effort to avoid that conflict. It would be good for me if I became more 'Ranger' like. I didn't roll in garbage much anymore. I could learn to be neater and maybe I could exercise.
"I'm going to learn to compromise," I said.
"Compromise what?" Ranger asked.
"I'm going to try being more of a partner to you. I'm going to change my habits."
"Babe, you are worrying about nothing."
"You say that now Ranger but things could change. You might get tired of living with a slob."
"You're hardly a slob, Stephanie."
"I am! And I'm undisciplined. I'm going to change. I'm going to exercise regularly and start eating healthy for a start." I saw the beginnings of a smile on Ranger's face. I was amusing him, but when he saw how serious I was he'd be impressed.
I would change my food habits, starting now. Unfortunately it was at that moment the waitress stopped by to announce a cheeseburger and fries as the special of the day.
Ranger ordered a salad with dressing on the side and a turkey sandwich.
I looked at the waitress, "I'll have the same." I turned to Ranger, "I've just made a decision to eat healthier. I'm changing behaviors, it will be a compromise."
Ranger turned to the waitress. "She'll have a cheeseburger and fries and slice of chocolate cake for dessert. Add a piece of cake for me too." He looked across the table at the surprised look on my face.
"Compromise goes both ways, babe." Then he gave me the full on two hundred watt smile.
"Hold the onion" I called to the departing waitress. I returned his smile.
The End