These are not my characters. They belong to the author Janet Evanovich and thank you for letting us borrow them and run with our fantasies.
Takes place after JE's book 8 and after the deal.
This story begins with angst and then ramps up to mayhem and lots of laughs. Rangeman is flipped upside down and Ranger is slowly driven crazy. Lots of humor and crazy antics. Eventual HEA.
Zetharin thanks for the great feedback.
Mandyh is my regular beta and was not available for this one so I got some help from a friend that likes to edit my stories for fun.
Special thanks to alix33 who is also a beta for all her help. You are great!
Morelli friendly, but with some hurt feelings. Same with Frank and Helen just never gets it.
Crazy Love
Chapter 1
Another cold shower. Damned if I hadn't had my share the last few months. Some because I didn't have a choice and all of them because I couldn't stop the need between my legs. It was constant and it was slowly driving me insane. I got out and called Ella to bring breakfast and dressed and went to start the coffee pot Ella had already filled. I grabbed my newspaper from outside my door and sat down at the bar to read. I just couldn't focus on the articles.
I had woken from another dream about Stephanie. Sexy sapphire blue eyes gazing at me and her swollen pink lips yelling my name in passion as she responded to me mind, body and soul. Then the soft blue eyes with unshed tears swimming in them and a hint of pain as I said the stupid words that probably confused her and broke her heart. I came awake thrashing and rock hard and frustrated as hell again. This had been going on almost every night since the day I left her.
The mission I took immediately after that day had been one of worst. I had never been in such a state of mind as this. The determination to focus and not get my ass killed had been exhausting and I almost did get myself killed before I came to my senses and dealt with it and locked it up like I had done with all the other bad shit in my life."
My phone rang as Ella came through the door. "Yo."
"Manoso, do you know where Stephanie is?
"No, I haven't seen her since I've been back. She told Tank that she was taking a few days. Figured she was with you."
"I haven't heard from her. Her apartment is empty and her parents told me that Rex died. She said she was going on a vacation."
"What? Trouble in paradise?"
"No, asshole. There is no trouble in paradise. We're getting along fine."
"Did you fight?"
A long sigh. "No. That's why I'm worried. Can you check with Tank to see when she's expected back?"
"Pissed off because she didn't ask you to go with her?"
"Fuck you, man. She's not answering her phone at all. I thought you might be a little concerned."
"Yeah? Have you checked her favorite escapes."
"Called every hotel and B&B in Point Pleasant. Got nothing."
"I'll check with Tank." I disconnect.
Interesting. I figured she would be living with him by now. I called Tank. "Rangeman?"
"Yo, Stephanie say when she was coming back?"
"Said she'd be gone over the weekend and take a couple days. Should be back tomorrow. Why you asking?"
"Morelli called, looking for her. He was concerned because he couldn't reach her. Do we have a tracker on her car?"
"Just a minute. She's at the Shore, man. Probably takin' a vacation from his ass."
"Same thing I was thinking. We won't worry unless she doesn't show tomorrow."
"Copy that. Later." I disconnect again.
The next day came and went and Stephanie never showed. I wasn't terribly alarmed until Morelli called again.
"She didn't show for work, did she?"
"No."
"Her parents got a call from a motel in Wildwood at the Shore. She was supposed to check out yesterday. Her belongings including her bag are still in the room. I've contacted the Jersey Shore Police and they are just starting an investigation."
"What's the name of the Motel? We'll go now and start looking."
"King's Inn."
"I'll be in touch." I called Tank.
"I need a search team to go to Wildwood with me. Steph was supposed to check out of her motel yesterday. Her belongings are there, but she's not." Now I was getting concerned. Stephanie was pretty predictable and reliable. If she went to the Shore for a weekend vacation, she would relax and then check out and come home. If she told Tank she would be back to work, she would have showed. Something wasn't right.
We went to Wildwood and checked the motel and her car. We asked the motel staff questions and showed her picture in every establishment within a mile radius of the motel and then finally got a bite from a kid in a pharmacy. He had remembered her coming in late one night to buy some feminine products, a book and some junk food. I smiled. That was Stephanie. He said he thought that was the night when there was a lot of activity a couple blocks down the street with sirens and lights and emergency vehicles.
We began checking hospitals and it wasn't long before we got another bite at Shore Memorial Hospital. They had a still unidentified Jane Doe. She had been there for almost four days. This was not good news. We raced there. I phoned Morelli on the way to tell him we were going to see the Jane Doe.
I waited for a doctor and was finally shown to a room in the ICU unit. I heard the distinct sound and hiss of a breathing machine when I stepped inside the room, then I saw the other machines and tubes and then the curly brown hair. I felt like my heart was falling through my chest to the floor as I walked closer to the bed. Her body was so bruised. Her face almost unrecognizable. Her shoulder and arm casted. She was so sickly pale and small looking in the bed.
"You know this woman?"
"Yes. What happened?"
"She was struck by a drunk driver as she was crossing the street. Judging by the injuries, the impact was severe and the car was going fast. She never regained consciousness, brain activity is minimal, swelling has been borderline extreme. We relieved some pressure, yet we don't know how much it helped under the circumstances. You'll want to contact her family. It doesn't look good."
"I have power of attorney."
"Then you, Mr...?"
"Manoso."
"Mr. Manoso, you may have some hard decisions to make on her behalf. If brain activity goes much lower then she'll be declared brain dead. Regardless, she'll need a long term care facility if she does not wake up." I nodded and walked closer to the bed to touch her.
"Babe, I'm an idiot. Instead of pushing you away, why didn't I tell you that I wanted you to be mine that morning. You might now be in my bed instead of this one fighting for your life."
I walked out of the room and made the difficult phone calls I knew I had to make. Then I sent my men down to the motel to settle and collect her personal items and car. Then I went back into her room and sat down and just waited, holding her little pale hand and thinking about her smile and her laughter and her beautiful bright blue eyes when she looked at me.
Morelli arrived first and walked into the room and gasped when he saw her. I got up and let him have a few minutes and then he came out into the hallway. "Have you spoken to her doctor?"
"Yes."
"And?"
"It's not good. Her brain could still die, she may never wake up. She was hit by a car, drunk driver. Why did she come here alone? Didn't you get back together?"
"Yes and no. She was different. She didn't want to move in and didn't want to stay overnight at my house. It was like she wasn't even present. We weren't really arguing. Then she just up and left and didn't tell me. I backed off because I had been worried about her. Wanted to give her some space." I nodded.
Shit...I knew what was wrong. She was unhappy, because I'm an ass and I hurt her. She didn't want to go back to Morelli. Joe spoke and snapped me out of my reverie.
"Have you called her parents?"
"Yes. On their way and I've secured a few rooms near here at the Residence Inn under Rangeman. Feel free to take a room."
"I appreciate that. Thanks and thanks for calling as soon as you found her." I nodded.
The Plums arrived and were both devastated. Helen Plum was bawling and clinging to Morelli and rattling that same old tired shit about how they should be married by now and why hadn't they gotten engaged when they got back together and why was she here alone. Morelli's face was readable. It was saying, "Why me and somebody fucking help me."
I kind of felt sorry for him for once.
I sat down next to Frank Plum to have a serious conversation. "Mr. Plum, I am Stephanie's power of attorney. There may need to be some difficult decisions made on her behalf and I just wanted you to know that all of us will agree before those decisions are made." I could tell he was surprised. "How did that happen?"
"It's standard for all employees of Rangeman. We do dangerous work and decisions have to made quickly in the field. Our medic has this power as well. It's meant to save lives." He nodded his understanding. "Son, I pray that we won't have to make the ultimate decision."
"Yes sir, as do I." Then I told him also about the rooms I had reserved at the Inn and he thanked me.
"She has been here for two weeks, she made it past the critical period the first few hours and days, and her surgeries have gone well. She should be awake unless she has suffered brain damage. It's time to make a decision about a long term care facility for her."
"I'm not sure that there has been enough time since the accident."
"Mrs. Plum, she was a Jane Doe here for four days before she was found and identified, so it has actually been almost three weeks. She needs to begin physical therapy and needs long term support. This doesn't mean that she'll never wake up. Her brain activity never got any worse in that first five days and she can breathe on her own. We never know about damage until the patient wakes. The issue is if and when and this is the best move you can make for her right now because she needs special care."
The doctor had made his recommendation, the decision had been made and Stephanie had been moved to the best long term care facility we could find near Trenton. The dull ache had simmered to a numbness and when I arrived back at Rangeman I put Tank in charge and called my handler. I needed a workout, some punishment in the field. I couldn't stay here without Stephanie. Now I knew just how much she had filled my world and how much she meant to me. What a damned fool I am. In two days I was on a helicopter headed to Fort Bragg.
TBC-