JE owns the rights to anything familiar - all mistakes are mine.

Thanks to LilyGhost and highlandsgirl for collaborating with me again. I have so much fun writing with the two of you.

I'd stopped being surprised by late night visits from Ranger a long time ago so when he appeared in my bedroom doorway just as I was getting ready to go to sleep, I greeted him causally as I pulled back the blankets on my bed.

"Yo."

The wolf grin which followed was unexpected and I backed up a step as he stalked into my personal space with a dangerous glint in his eyes.

"What, ah, wh-what are you doing, Ranger?"

"If you have to ask then I must be doing it wrong."

Stripping is what he was doing and I watched with bated breath as he lifted his shirt and dragged it over his head. It fell to the floor next to his boots and socks, which I hadn't seen him remove, and I couldn't seem to tear my eyes away from his flexing pectoral muscles as he reached for the button on his cargos. I thought, certainly not for the first time, there should be some sort of law against looking that good. Seriously, how is a body like that even fair to the rest of the universe?

The button came undone and when he lowered the zipper, I remembered I was supposed to be protesting.

"But...but we aren't..."

"I warned you, Steph," he interrupted. "I warned you if the time-out with Morelli went on too long I would be back in your bed." His pants came off and holy crap, he was going commando!

"It's been too long."

Ranger was now standing before me completely naked and I knew from previous experience, when Ranger was naked, he preferred it if I was too. The tiny shorts and tank top I'd chosen to wear to bed didn't stand a chance. I should have worn layers. Lots and lots of layers.

"Way too long, Babe." He grabbed a fistful of my shirt and used it to pull me against his sinfully chiseled chest.

His coffee-colored eyes were dilated almost black as he stared down at my face. His intentions were clear - as if his bare body wasn't a big enough clue - and Ranger's mouth came down over mine. He proceeded to kiss me until I wanted to be naked too and then helped me out with that by sliding his hands under my shirt and pulling it off my body.

"You know, you also said being back in my bed wouldn't be good for either of us."

How the hell I remembered that statement while his mouth was covering my nipple would have to remain a mystery.

He lifted his head after my comment and with the smile that makes my heart race beneath my ribs, he said, "Oh, it will be good. Very, very good."

He was right and when I woke up the next morning and he was still in my bed, it was very, very good all over again. I lay there, sated and content, pressed next to him with his arm holding me close, and was just about to drift off again when he began nuzzling my shoulder before speaking softly into my ear. "I have to go but let's have dinner tonight."

Oh shit. Did Ranger just ask me out on a date…and on the holiest of all dating days? "But…today is Valentine's Day."

That stopped the gifting of tiny kisses he was trailing along the back of my neck.

"Do you have other plans?"

"Well no, but..."

"Good, I'll be back at seven. Be ready." And then he was gone.

What the hell just happened?

Normally I would have gone back to sleep until a decent hour but there was no way I would be able to after that. My brain wouldn't stop analyzing what this latest development meant. As far as I knew, Ranger didn't date. He had fun, the evidence of that was still tingling deliciously between my thighs, but he didn't date.

However, asking someone to dinner on Valentine's Day seemed very date like, didn't it? Why did I always overthink everything where Ranger was concerned? I was obviously reading into something that wasn't there and needed to stop stressing about it. I wasn't attached to anyone and neither was he – as far as I knew – so why not enjoy dinner with him…and then maybe some more fun after dinner? I smiled at the thought and shifted my legs under the sheets. Ranger was really excellent at the fun part.

I gave up on sleep and decided I needed a distraction so I didn't waste the rest of the day worrying about what a date with him may or may not mean. I knew what I wanted it to mean, but that wasn't a possibility for 'I don't do relationships' Ranger…right?

Shaking my head, I decided there were a couple of skips Vinnie had been on my ass about bringing in and that would definitely kill some hours. I called Lula to see if she wanted to ride shotgun.

"Hell yeah," she replied immediately. "But only if I can bring my gun and only if we get done early. It's Valentine's Day and I gotta get ready for my da...Oh sorry, that was probably insensitive on account of you not having anyone to take you out."

"What makes you think I don't have a date?" I regretted the question the second it left my mouth but it was too late to take it back. She'd been fishing for info on my love life, or lack thereof, for weeks and I'd resolutely kept that info to myself. Apparently fun with Ranger had scrambled my brain and I let my guard down.

"Did you and Officer Hottie finally kiss and make up?" She asked eagerly.

"I'll be by in an hour to get you and if you insist on bringing your gun, no bullets." I hung up before she could respond. I'd have to be more vigilant because Lula had a way of wearing a person down so you'd answer whatever she asked just to get her to shut the hell up.

I opened my closet to find something I didn't care about getting messed up since I tended to end up covered in garbage often, especially with Lula as backup. Instead, I ended up wasting thirty minutes of the hour going through outfits to wear to dinner. There was the skin-tight red leather dress I'd purchased to wear on a distraction job with Rangeman. It wasn't easy to forget the way Ranger's eyes darkened when he saw me in it...but it also had a 'lady of the night' vibe to it so I passed it over and continued to peruse my options.

In the very back, where I keep the things I only bring out for special occasions or by request, my fingers brushed over the shimmery black dress with a short skirt and low-cut neck. I'd only worn it once and only for a minute before Morelli had me out of it. I frowned and pushed it aside. Anything that reminded me of Joe made me frown these days.

Sometimes I ponder what would have happened if I'd picked Ranger's name out of the bowl that night. It would have been amazing, of that I had no doubt. Letting out a sigh, I grabbed an old pair of jeans and got dressed.

Lula was waiting out front when I pulled up at the curb of the office. She slid into the passenger seat of my bright yellow Ford Explorer. It was hideous but it was relatively new and I'd gotten a great deal since nobody wanted an ugly yellow car. I was just hoping it didn't get blown up before I made the first payment.

"Hope we don't need to be incognito for this capture," Lula commented. That was an understatement, especially since her hair, her handbag and her skirt were all the same color as my car.

"Nope, it's not a stakeout."

"Oh good, then I don't have to ration my snacks." She opened her bag and pulled out a Slim Jim. "Want one?"

Four Slim Jims, two Tasty Kakes, a package of Oreos and a bag of Cheetos later we had a body receipt for one skip and were on our way to find the second. Lula talked me into going through the McDonald's drive thru for a milkshake but I declined the treat.

"Who turns down a milkshake?" She wanted to know before sucking up a mouthful.

"If I eat one more thing today, I'll never fit into my dress tonight," I answered rationally. I must have been in a sugar trance because it took her response for me to realize what I'd said.

"What dress? And is it Morelli? It's him, isn't it? I knew you couldn't freeze him out forever."

Crap. "Morelli is a rat bastard and I wouldn't go to dinner with him if I was literally starving." I hoped that would keep her occupied enough not to reach the next logical conclusion. I should have known better.

Lula's eyes reached saucer status and her body froze like the milkshake she was in the process of lifting to her mouth again. "Holy shit. You're going out with Ranger. Is this a date? Like a real date or just some hot monkey sex?"

I wasn't about to discuss sex with Lula, especially when it involved Ranger. There weren't any words to accurately describe what that was like anyway.

"It's just for fun. We're going to have something to eat and then…."

"Hell yeah AND THEN!" She interjected. "What are you going to wear? What about your hair? What about…forget this loser skip, we gotta get you ready!"

It didn't take much more to convince me. We hit the mall and I got the full works. Hair, manicure, pedicure, waxing. I was buffed and polished and waxed to the limits and then she managed to convince me the little black dress I'd dismissed earlier was the perfect choice for a night of fun with Ranger. When I voiced my concerns about it being tainted with Morelli memories, she pointed out I'd forget all about Joe when Ranger got a look at me in it.

She had me there. I felt a blush creep up my neck when I remembered the look on his face when I had first showed it to him and the pink extended to my cheeks when I recalled what he'd said…and he hadn't even seen me wearing it.

It was time to give that dress a new memory.

I got back to my apartment a little after six and did a quick rinse in the shower, being careful not to get my hair wet and then slathered my newly waxed skin with lotion, touched up my make-up, added a spritz of Dolce Vita to my wrists and behind my ears, slipped on the dress and slid my feet into the matching sexy ankle-strap heels. I was ready to go ten minutes before Ranger got there.

The knock on my door at precisely seven was a surprise. He didn't tend to announce his arrivals, but I was anxious to see him so I swung the door open and couldn't stop the shriek that escaped my lips.

He was leaning against the door jamb, dressed in black fatigues and his lips held the hint of a smile. "I was hoping you'd be wearing that dress. I'll just need to borrow your shower really quick and then we can go."

I don't know how long it took me to respond because the dark, wet stain on his shirt and the steadily dripping blood onto my doormat was holding my complete attention.