Disclaimer: The characters of the Stephanie Plum series belong to Janet Evanovich and are used here without permission. No copyright infringement is intended.

Challenge – Jeri's Week 10 – Toby Keith challenge – option 1) lines from the chorus of "You Shouldn't Kiss Me Like This" (set off in bold italics)

Warning: I believe I have accomplished DRIVEL! It's quite a momentous moment for me. If not drivel, I've at least managed fluff. :-)

Rating: Suitable for people over 13

Biding Time

By TT

Ranger tried opening his eyes once more and quickly slammed them shut as the world tilted and spun in new, unusual directions.

It would be a few more hours before the initial effects of his concussion would fade enough for him to carry out his plan of action.

In some ways, he found it almost embarrassing to be in this position, but, on the other hand, he knew it to be the best option and result.

He briefly wondered what Stephanie would say if she discovered his ability to judge the effects of a concussion on himself. Probably have a wise crack about taking one too many to the head. Or not. Maybe she would offer sympathy and comfort. He felt his blood begin to stir at the thought of her hands gently caressing him, her body holding him close…

Ranger commanded himself to stop thinking that way.

As always, such orders from his mind were blatantly ignored by the rest of his body, leaving him to wonder when his heart had taken over control of his life.

When you first met Stephanie Plum his heart whispered in response.

A sigh escaped Ranger as he acknowledged the truth. He's started losing control of the situation when she walked into that diner. The smile that he shot her had, he convinced himself at the time, been filled with amusement and maybe a hint of lust. Now he wondered if it had been more.

She'd never backed down, though. He idly wondered if he would have been so determined had their positions been reversed. Obviously he never would have been a lingerie buyer, but what if he had stuck with college?

Since he had nothing better to do, he decided to toy with that idea for a few minutes.

Of course, it proved nearly impossible for him to think of what his life would have been like without the army. Perhaps he would have ended up as middle-management somewhere in an accounting or financial firm.

What would he have done if he'd walked into that diner and met a leather-clad, ghetto-talking, gun-toting Stephanie?

A bark of laughter escaped.

He just couldn't do it. He couldn't imagine Stephanie being anything other than what she was. Yes, he knew she had killed a man, more than one to own the truth. She survived things that turned his stomach and continued on despite them, but through it all Stephanie remained Stephanie – somehow innocent, untouched, friendly, open and kind.

No, he couldn't reverse their positions. He just didn't have enough imagination. He also had the sneaking suspicion that he didn't have the drive to stick things out as she had. True, his Ranger's training had helped there, but the strength Stephanie displayed in the face of the chaos and evil that assaulted her came from deep within a person. Ranger knew there was no way to teach it, you either had it or you didn't.

Since trying to imagine his and Stephanie's positions reversed wouldn't work, he contemplated giving in to his favorite fantasy, one where he and Stephanie spent time together in the most intimate way a man and woman could.

A cough from his guard immediately quashed those thoughts. He knew how his body reacted to those fantasies and he really wasn't in any condition to experience that reaction, not to mention he didn't want his captors to see him in that condition.

Stephanie, however, would not leave his mind. She almost never did when he had quiet moments. She alone could be counted responsible for him continuing his work with the government. The jobs he took with them kept his mind occupied with something other than the gaping, Stephanie-sized hole in his life.

So fill it with her, his heart prodded.

In truth, Ranger desperately wanted to do that, but a combination of wariness and fear prevented him from acting upon those desires. At best, his life was regimented and demanding. At worst, his job completely consumed him. In a moment of clarity a few months ago, he realized that, other than work, he had nothing else in his life – no outside interests, no hobbies. At some point after Carlos became Ranger, Ranger became the job. Did he really believe Stephanie could maintain interest in a man whose stress relief involved working out, buying real estate and playing the stock market?

He didn't even watch sports, not that he ever had. He couldn't recall the last time he just hung out with friends rather than going out simply to pick up a woman and get laid.

Stephanie called him 'Batman', but even Bruce Wayne had more hobbies than he did. What could he offer her to keep her interested other than sex and work?

You'll find something you both enjoy his brain decided to inform him.

He took in a deep breath and let it out. She deserved more than he could offer, but even Ranger couldn't lie to himself. After almost four years of working together, depending on each other, looking after her, he needed her. The nebulous 'someday' he mentioned couldn't be put off much longer if at all. The time to make his move had finally come. The rest he would have to play by ear.

He almost laughed at himself when he realized it took a concussion and kidnapping to wake him up enough to realize he needed her.

Shaking his head at his thoughts, Ranger hissed in pain. Not a smart move, though his head hurt much less than it had before. Probably only another hour or two before h could act on his plan. That, of course, was provided his captors didn't move first.

A wry smile appeared on his face as he thought of his captors.

He intended to only make a quick withdrawal at the bank before heading back to Trenton. Unfortunately, the gunmen had different ideas.

Though confident of his own abilities to take down the robbers, the women and young children in the bank with him proved enough of a deterrent to action that he hadn't moved.

His lack of action earned him a gun-but to the temple, knocking him unconscious for several moment.

He had no idea what happened while he was out, but when he awoke, he knew from the pain in his head, the dizziness, nausea, double vision and the feeling of weakness in his limbs that the robber had given him a mild to moderate concussion.

The masked men were headed out of the bank dragging a woman and a screaming child with them.

Ranger had somehow gathered enough words together to convince them to take him in the woman and child's stead. He even offered to pay them for his release once they got away, assuring the robbers that he had money enough to give them what they wanted.

After a moment's debate, the robbers had agreed.

Given his state at that point in time, he posed no threat to them, however, his training still worked and, despite the pain and confusion; his mind documented everything it could about his captors, noting any and all weaknesses he could exploit when the time came.

Now he sat in the room they had thrown him wondering if his head would clear enough for action before the men from the Boston office took out the robbers or not.

He knew such an activity would have made the news, he had heard the police sirens as they drove away. Ranger also knew the cameras on the nearby buildings would reveal his identity. His watch had a tracking device in it he turned on as soon as the robbers had taken him out of the bank.

Of course, they would need to get in touch with Tank in Trenton to get the tracking frequency so there might be some delay.

Ranger reviewed his plans once more before opening his eyes.

This time the room didn't spin.

Slowly he made his way to his feet, satisfied when the room stayed where it should and his legs no longer felt weak.

He knew any sort of exertion so soon after a concussion was never a good idea, but he had never been one to rely on others to rescue him. A smile lifted the corners of his mouth as he realized that was another trait he and Stephanie had in common.

Moving forward, he rested his ear against the door and listened to the sounds outside the room. There were none.

Ranger almost sighed at the ineptness of his captors. Even with the concussion, this wouldn't be much of a challenge.

Testing the knob, he found the door locked. Pulling a Swiss army knife out of his pocket, he quickly chose the blade he wanted. They may have taken his guns and knife, but leaving him the Swiss army knife had been equally foolish.

Moving to the other side of the door, he pried the pins out of the hinges and opened the door.

His footsteps, normally silent, fell more heavily than usual, but the thick carpeting in the hallway deadened any sound that might have resulted.

Checking each room as he passed it, Ranger noted that all were empty.

He paused at the top of the stairs, listening closely to the noises below.

With some patience, he managed to identify the voices of all his captors. They seemed to be congregating in the same room.

Ranger debated only a moment whether he should just escape or take down the quartet before leaving.

He could see the logic in escaping and coming back, but he knew his reputation on the street would only be increased by taking down his four kidnappers.

Taking a deep breath, he released it slowly, shutting out all extraneous thought and focusing on the task at hand.

With a stealth most cats would envy, he prowled forward until he reached the doorway to the kitchen.

As expected, all four of his captors were in the room. None were currently armed and all the guns were on the table. It was almost too easy.

Without warning, Ranger moved into the room and attacked his startled captors.

The fight quickly proved his assumption that they were not professionals by any means.

After knocking out the last of his captors, Ranger dragged them across the floor and into a line none too gently.

He stood and scanned the room for something to use as binding.

Spotting a roll of duct tape, he took one step toward the counter before the room began to spin and black dots danced before his eyes, blocking his vision.

He felt his legs weaken and begin to collapse as the front door burst open and darkness claimed him.

**** **** **** ****

Ranger felt his stomach twist slightly as he began to swim his way through the darkness that engulfed him.

He took several shallow breaths in the hopes of calming his stomach with no positive results. With the barest of conscious thoughts, his eyes flew open and he turned onto his side.

The contents of his stomach emptied themselves before he knew what was happening. When the heaving stopped and the throbbing pain in his head subsided enough, he registered the feel of a cool washcloth wiping his face. He heard it land with a damp plop on the bedside tray before he felt a straw being held to his lips.

"Sip and rinse," a gentle, familiar voice commanded.

Ranger did as instructed, not bothering to open his eyes, trusting that the nurse would have whatever she caught his sickness in nearby to catch his spit.

He then felt two small hands rolling him onto his back. His eyes flickered at the feeling of a cool, damp cloth against the back of his neck and he nearly sighed in relief as a second cloth covered his eyes.

A series of sounds next to his bed caught his attention and he realized the nurse must be cleaning up. Deciding he wanted to at least see what his nurse looked like, he opened his eyes to see Stephanie holding what appeared to be a plastic ice-bucket at arm's length headed toward the bathroom.

Ranger closed his eyes and felt his cheeks heat in embarrassment as he realized Stephanie had not only seen him being sick, but had taken care of him as well. Having a nurse do it was bad enough, but his Babe didn't need to see him like this.

After a few minutes he heard the toilet flush and the water in the sink run into the ice bucket. He decided she must be cleaning it out.

Several minutes later, he heard Stephanie crossing the room once more.

He started slightly and reached up to remove the cool, damp washcloth covering his eyes.

"Leave it there," Stephanie instructed, taking his hand in her own before placing a gentle kiss on his cheek. "What am I going to do with you, Batman?" she asked, amusement in her voice. "Can't even let you out of Trenton without you causing a ruckus."

Ranger felt his lips twitch upward into a smile. "Got bored without you around," he replied softly. His smile broadened as he heard her snort before laughing. Reaching out a hand, he tried to find her, to touch her. Instead, she took his hand in her own and squeezed it before returning it to the bed beside him. This time she didn't release it, though.

"I think you need some more sleep," she informed him. "Apparently your head got hit pretty hard. It must have shaken something up there loose."

"Babe," Ranger protested, amused. But he could feel the pull of sleep dragging him once more into the darkness. It didn't seem so important, this time, though, because Stephanie was here with him.

**** **** **** ****

Twenty-four hours later, Ranger had convinced his doctors, Tank and Stephanie he should leave the hospital and recover at home.

They eventually agreed.

The time in the hospital had allowed Ranger more time for thought. Oddly, even with the worst of his headache gone, the idea of having Stephanie in his life permanently didn't seem outrageous. She and Morelli had been apart for several months and showed no sign of getting back together. The fact that Morelli was currently openly dating another woman was a positive sign in Ranger's book.

The first thing Ranger planned to do would be to convince Stephanie to stay with him. Then, he would let her know that 'someday' could be today if she wanted.

Everything seemed to be going as planned. Despite sleeping almost the entire way, the three of them – Tank, Stephanie and Ranger – made it safely back to Trenton.

Ranger had used the drive to convince Stephanie to stay with him for the next few days.

Now that he had her alone in his apartment, Ranger wanted nothing more than to convince her to try living life together with him. Unfortunately, the words wouldn't come no matter how hard he thought about it.

Sitting on the couch in the living area, he heard her moving around in the bedroom. The sound of something falling and a soft curse from Stephanie piqued his curiosity enough to have him chance standing up and moving.

When he arrived in the room, he saw Stephanie standing in the closet with a pile of clothes around her, hands on her hips and toe tapping in frustration.

A wide smile spread across his face as he took in the sight. What he wouldn't give for a lifetime of sights like this.

Moving forward, he carefully avoided stepping on any of the clothes and wrapped is arms around her. "Babe," he said softly, drawing her close. He chuckled silently as he watched her angry look turn into a pout.

"It's not my fault," she protested.

"I know," he assured, pulling her closer still. With her so close, her scent filling him the feel of her in his arms, he couldn't resist. Leaning forward, he captured her lips with his and kissed her with all the love, passion and devotion he felt at that moment. His heart and soul rejoiced when he felt his emotions returned in equal measure.

When they finally broke apart, he rested his forehead against Stephanie's.

A few minutes later she spoke. "You can't kiss me like that, Ranger," she said a moment before he captured her lips once more.

"Like what?" he asked, his lips brushing against hers with each word.

Stephanie's eyes opened and met his and he placed a gentle kiss on her lips. "Like today is 'someday'. Like your life does lend itself to a relationship." Her voice was nearly a whisper as she added, "Like you love me, want me the way I do you."

Her words stirred Ranger's heart and he brought her to him once more, claiming her lips, her heart, her soul with his kiss.

When they finally broke apart, Stephanie was panting, but repeated, "When you kiss me like this, I think you mean it like that. Don't play with me Ranger. My heart can't take it."

Ranger reached up and caressed her cheek. "I do mean it like that, Babe. Someday is today if you want it. Forever is yours if you'll take it. I can't deny it or hide from it any more, Stephanie. I love you. I need you. I'm yours if you'll have me."

Stephanie looked deeply into his eyes, feeling tears of joy and relief filling her eyes as she leaned closer. "Yes. Yes to someday, to everyday, to forever. I love you," she admitted, her lips brushing his. "I need you," she assured, her voice a whisper. "I'm yours," she confirmed, as she kissed him.

End.