All familiar characters belong to Janet. The mistakes are mine alone.
"Are you doing okay?" Ranger asked me.
Once again, he let himself into my apartment, nicely saving me the schlep from the couch over to the door. He showed up ten minutes after I got home from a less than ideal capture of a particularly irritating skip. The day's dickhead had been mouthy, pushy, and uncooperative, but I got him cuffed and dropped off despite him calling me everything from a bitch, to a whore, to a fucking cunt. The last two produced an 'accidental' punch or two to his rounded gut, which I admit had me momentarily feeling better. I can be a bitch when I have to be, so I let that insult slide.
"Yeah," I finally answered.
"Are you lying to me?" He pushed.
"Uh-huh."
I'm about as far from okay as anyone can be. My life's in the toilet and I don't care anymore about saving it. I hate my job, my car sucks, and my people skills are clearly being wasted on people who barely qualify as human.
"Talk to me," he ordered.
I sighed. Where do I even start? At the beginning I guess.
"Today was pretty sucky, but it's more than that. I feel like I'm always making someone else's life better or easier because I butted into it, yet my own life stays stuck on bad. Everybody gets a happy ending except me. Instead of being 'always the bridesmaid, never the bride', I'm a case of 'always the helper, never the helped' unless you're around. Maybe a better saying for me would be 'always the fixer, but not able to be fixed myself'."
I was on a roll and couldn't seem to shut the hell up, so I continued before he could interrupt and say I'm not as screwed up as I feel I am.
"I got Lenny over his nerves so he'd finally ask Mary Lou out after school one day," I told Ranger, "and they've been happy and together ever since. I divorced Dickie before I actually killed him, so technically he owes his life to me. Same with Morelli, minus the brief fucked-up marriage and nasty divorce part. I tricked Valerie and Kloughn into tying the knot so she wouldn't be the Plum daughter the Burg kept gossiping about. And Grandma now has a ten minute drive between her and my mom, thanks to me getting her into that assisted living place so she can have her own life but still be safe."
I took a breath, which didn't help the sudden flood of emotion attempting to drown me.
"What do I have?" I asked the world in general. "I'm pretty much in the same place I was when I lost my job at E.E. Martin. I have a crappy apartment I share only with a hamster. My cupboards are bare from put-off store runs because I'm either too tired or too frustrated to deal with the people I'll have to make small talk with in aisle three. And I have a barely-tolerated relationship with my family. A happily-ever-after this is not."
"You're more than what you have, Babe."
"Sure ... you can say that. You're loaded, have a set path in life, and there are tons of people in this town alone who respect the hell out of you."
"Do you think I've always had that?"
I snorted. "Yeah ... well, maybe not the monetary part, but you completely turned your life around after you went to live with your Grandmother."
He ignored the praise, not being comfortable with it. He may be confident, but he's not cocky.
"I get respect because I give it. I have money because I knew I could make a difference in this country not just overseas and I wasn't afraid to put myself on the line to do it. I'd do my job for free if I had to ... have done so in certain situations."
"You think I'm scared?"
"You're incredibly brave when it comes to helping or defending other people, but you have trouble believing in your own abilities, Steph, which is the first thing you need to do in order to succeed in anything."
"Easy for you to say," I mumbled under my breath.
He's a freakin' real life superhero ... to me and just about everyone else who sees him in action.
"It is easy for me to say, because I know you. You're a force to be reckoned with in your own right ... and you don't even see it."
"It's hard to see anything when you're being smothered daily by 'You're crazy' ... 'Why do you keep doing stupid things like that?' ... 'Why me?' comments."
"Get your coat," he told me.
"Why?"
"I want you to understand just how valuable you are. You aren't the woman or daughter, Morelli and your mother try to force you into thinking you are."
"I appreciate the thought and all, but I was just getting ready for a sit down meeting with Ben and Jerry. Then I'm going to bed early once the ice cream men are gone. Don't worry, I promise I'll be back to 'normal' tomorrow."
He didn't argue with me. He just walked over to the hook by my door and pulled my coat and shoulder bag off it.
"Ooookay," I said. "I guess we're going out."
I moved past him and out the door he held open for me once my coat was in place.
He tugged me towards the elevator. "Why are we going to Dillon's?" I asked, watching him hit the button for Dillon's below-ground lair.
"You'll see."
Dillon answered the door with a smile when he saw me, but swallowed nervously when he spotted Ranger standing beside me.
"Hey, Dillon," I said to my building's super. "I don't know why we're here, but here we are."
"Tell Stephanie what we were discussing last week," Ranger ordered him.
"You threatened to shoot me if I said anything," Dillon replied, still looking unsure.
"Do you see a gun in my hand?"
"No."
"Consider that permission to speak."
I raised my eyebrows at both men, wondering what these two had to talk about. It's been weeks since my apartment has been targeted or partially destroyed.
His eyes skittered to Ranger again, but they came back to me. "Umm, this building was bought by a company associated with Rangeman. I didn't know Ranger was the one behind it until he came to see me to discuss the renovations."
I shot a look at who I secretly call My Man in Black. "Talk," I demanded.
"I purchased this place so you and the neighbors you care about will finally receive above-code care."
"I was going to tell you this weekend that your apartment is the first one scheduled for a redo," Dillon informed me.
"Holy crap! My olive and gold nightmares are coming to an end?" I asked.
"If you don't discover a better option," Ranger said, "before the renovation is completed."
"Like a penthouse apartment in the Rangeman building?" I asked.
"You said it, Babe, I didn't."
"But you wouldn't mind it at all, would you?"
"No. Just the opposite, I'd prefer it."
Shit. Now there are even more things to think about. Living with Ranger would instantly improve my life ninety-eight-percent, but I'd be agreeing to a hundred-percent commitment that way ... which is sounding less scary by the second.
"Clearly you already had my living situation sorted out, but that's you being you and trying to make my life better, not me doing it for myself."
"Admitting that you need to change is a big step in the right direction. I'll be in touch," he told Dillon, and again he pulled me into the elevator.
"You really bought my apartment building?" I asked.
"It's my building now."
"And why is that?"
"Your apartment isn't a suitable habitat for Rex the rat, never mind you. You also seemed concerned that your neighbors need more than they're getting, so with me buying the property and my company overseeing how it's maintained, everyone wins."
"Yeah, but what do you win?" I asked.
"If I don't get you into my apartment out of this, at least I can be sure the building's security is up to my standards."
"Nothing is ever up to your standards."
"You are."
I felt my face get warm. I never react well to compliments, not having received many over the course of my life, but ones coming specifically from Ranger always cause major mental meltdowns. He doesn't waste his time on things he deems useless or pointless, yet he's always there for me. Nothing I've done shakes or disappoints him ... he continues to love me anyway.
"Thank you," was all I could manage.
"Don't thank me, Steph, believe me instead."
"I'm trying."
"Try harder," he demanded. "Come on."
"Where are we going now?"
"Your lot."
I had a really bad feeling, and I knew why when we made it out of the building's back exit. The shiny, black Range Rover parked next to his Turbo had me stopping mid-step.
"What?" Ranger asked.
"What do you mean 'what'? Unless the car fairy was visiting someone else in my building, you just gave me a brand-freaking-new SUV."
"I did. Now your vehicular-situation has been improved, along with your living space."
"You can't just wave a magic wand and make me or my life suck less," I pointed out.
"You suck only at the appropriate times."
Is he making sexual jokes at a time like this?
"Yes," he said, answering my mental question. "And this is the right time for everything."
"You have something else in mind, don't you?" I asked, recognizing that tone as the one he uses when he's being my Ranger rather than Trenton's Batman.
"Do you want to take my car or yours?"
"Do I get to drive?"
"No," was his answer.
I'm very familiar with this tone, too. I'd have better luck squeezing cake out of a carrot than convincing him to hand over the keys.
"I'll stick with your car anyway," I told him. "We can test out mine some other time. Where are we and your car heading?"
"Rangeman."
"That's as good as getting a new car. I bet Ella has a recipe she wants to try out on someone, and that someone is always me. My life does have two bright spots after all ... you and Ella."
"Ella isn't the reason I'm taking you there."
"Crap."
"I have something I want your opinion on."
"Is this another sex thing?" I asked him. "Because I'm sure you've noticed that my opinion of you doing anything in that area is a very favorable one."
"Sex wasn't the objective, but I'm never ruling it out with you."
He beeped his car unlocked and opened the passenger's door for me. Once I was buckled in, he closed the door, started the Porsche, and drove us to his building. He nodded to the guy at the desk, who has to be new because the black-haired, dark-eyed man isn't one Ranger has ever sent out after me.
Of course Ranger noticed my glance and explained. "That's my brother, Christian. He's waiting for word on a job, so he's filling in to give Gene some time off."
My curiosity is beyond piqued, but Ranger wasn't letting me linger. I was ushered into another elevator, this one at the back of the lobby. I wasn't able to do more than give his brother a finger-wave, which got me a playful wink in reply from who I'd guess is the younger of the two Manoso men.
"That's just plain mean," I complained, as we were brought up to the fifth-floor. "You tell me there's two Manosos in the building, yet you won't let me talk to the one I've never met?"
"You can interrogate him all you want later. He'll be here for a week, possibly two, but this is more important than watching him squirm right now."
"What's the 'this' you're talking about?"
He didn't answer as the doors opened. Once again I didn't get to do more than wave to the guys manning the monitors. Ranger's arm was around me, propelling me towards his office. He pulled the Bat-Seat out from behind his desk and gestured for me to sit my ass in it.
"What's going on?" I tried again, glancing at the screen he'd flipped on.
"Look for a familiar name."
That didn't make a whole lot of sense until I scanned the monitor and saw my name.
"What the hell?" I said to myself, but Ranger decided to answer.
"You own a sizeable piece of every one of my business ventures. Technically, you're set for life if you're careful, but if you'd like to add to your considerable profits, you can tell Vinnie to go fuck himself - which I'm sure he's tried - and work for me full-time, effective immediately."
"But ..."
"Think about this before answering, Babe. You just admitted to hitting a wall figuratively, and possibly literally, in your bond enforcing career. If you were here, your mind and body would get a daily workout. You'd never be bored or feel inadequate. Your college years would be put to use, and you'd be safe with whoever you're partnered with, instead of me and you fearing Lula getting you killed one of these days. You'd have a steady and higher paycheck, and we could have breakfast, lunch, and dinner, together - here or out somewhere - on days that permit it."
"We can do that anyway no matter where I work or live," I told him, doing a little testing of my own.
"I want you safe, Steph, and with me."
"So this is primarily a safety measure?"
"Your safety is always on my mind, but that isn't the sole reason I want you to make a life for yourself here. You have good instincts, you're tenacious when it comes to solving a crime or finding someone who wants to remain hidden, and you never back down in a fight. Those are traits I look for in all of my employees. I know you're not one to sit back and live off what you'd be collecting, so I'm offering you a place not only in my apartment, but an active role in my company as well."
I rested my head on the back of the seat so I could look up at him. "You aren't just feeling sorry for me, are you?"
"You know me better than that. I love you, but I wouldn't put years of hard work in your hands unless I thought you'd help the company. Even the men I've hired that I'd served with in the past, wouldn't be here now if I didn't believe they're right for the job. I want you here for your mind, your gut instincts, and your unique blend of skills. That being said, I won't complain if your body wants to move itself in upstairs."
"Ranger ..."
He leaned down and put his mouth to mine. When I was feeling sufficiently turned-on, he pulled back.
"You've done more for me than you'll ever fully understand and I'd like to return the favor. Please let me."
His eyes are scarily intense and I swallowed in response. He never says 'please' unless it's something extremely important to him.
"You can't make my life perfect without my help, and I have to say ... you are motivating me to want more for myself."
"My intentions aren't to fix everything, I'm only providing you with an opportunity to help yourself. You have to be the one to accept it."
A few months ago, I would've refused on principle ... stating I could figure out my own life without using any form of 'training wheels'. But in one hour, he's presented me with everything I could want or need ... a reliable and highly sought-after job, access to tools and people who can help me get better at it, and close proximity to the guy who scares the crap out of me because he's the opposite of everything I've been told to love ... and I do love him despite needing to say it to him more often.
"You're sure about me being here?" I asked.
"Working for Rangeman? Or living on the seventh-floor with me?"
"Both."
"Yes."
"I know I don't have to ask this, but I'm going to anyway ... if Rex and I did move," I continued, "it wouldn't change my neighbors getting their apartments upgraded, right?"
"Those plans are already in motion and I have no thoughts on stopping them."
I looked around the office full of dark wood, glass, stainless-steel, and high-tech crap I only partially know how to use, and then back at him. His eyes, however, never left me.
"Today made me realize I'm beyond ready to make 'Stephanie Plum' a success, rather than two curse words," I told him, "so if you want to take me on, I'm yours."
It was subtle, but I saw his eyes widen slightly. "In work or play?"
"Both," I repeated. "I don't know why helping me is so important to you, but if you believe in me, I can meet you halfway and believe in me, too."
"All it takes is changing one person's life in order to change your own."
"What do you mean?" I asked him.
"You've given me a different view of my life ... and it's only fair I do the same for you."
"I hate to break it to you, but you have ... long before today. And I'm accepting everything you're handing me. Beware though, my immediate plans involve pumping your brother for info about you, having dinner with you tonight, and then telling Dillon tomorrow to start looking for a new tenant to inhabit my soon-to-be-ex apartment. I don't want to put any of the guys out, but is it possible to get Rex and my new ride picked up and brought back here?"
He was already on the phone. "Get Stephanie's rodent and the vehicle you dropped off and bring them both back here," he told whoever was on the other end of the line.
I have a real chance to make my life better, and I can't help but be excited about taking it. I want my own happily-ever-after and this feels like the road I need to be on to finally get it.