Disclaimer: OK Janet. I'll make you a deal. You can have all our snow if I can have Ranger.

A/N For some reason I cannot get the song from The King and I out of my head, hence the title for this story.

A Night to Remember

Stephanie attempted to stretch. Her movements were restricted by a strong pair of arms that tightened around her. She purred in contentment. She opened her eyes and gazed into dark chocolate pools watching her. She smiled. It had been a very good night. Every muscle complained, but in a good way.

She tried to move and Ranger's arms tightened. "Ranger, I have to pee." He released her immediately and she dashed to the bathroom. Arriving back after looking after business, he was sitting up, leaning against the headboard. She knew what time it was and marvelled at his self control. It was almost 6 am and he was still in bed.

She stood at the foot of the bed, hands on her hip and smiled. "Got any workout clothes in that bag, mister? Time's a wasting, and I need to run today before I go to work."

Ranger looked at her. She had made so many changes in her year absence. He clamored out of bed and headed for the bathroom taking his duffle with him. Stephanie licked her lips. A year later and that ass still looked pretty good.

By the time she was dressed, he was coming out of the bathroom, also in his gear. Stephanie opened the door to Q glaring on the other side. As she moved down the stairs Q was berating her all the way down. It seemed to be a myriad of complaints.

Stephanie put some food in her bowl and petted her head. Q began to purr with a ragged sound as she ate. She had been fending for herself before she was adopted. Food was very precious to Q and she attacked her meal with gusto.

Swiftly they put on their running shoes and disabling the alarm, stepped outside. It was going to be a beautiful fall day. The sun was now up and the wind was light. They quickly stretched and headed out. Stephanie led the way. She had taken up running some time ago. When she ran, she could clear her head and plan her day.

Ranger kept stride with her. He admired her new determination . After all that she had been through, she was trying to put normal back in her life. He smiled at her eating habits yesterday. He remembered her steering away from all the desserts on the table at Rangeman. She had tasted a couple of Ella's marvels, but for the most part had stuck to vegetables. He was looking forward to seeing how else she had spent her time.

Heading back after a five mile run, they finished with a sprint to her door. Q was waiting. She looked at Ranger and commenced a new diatribe at her lot in life. Stephanie picked her up and rubbed her ears and under her chin. A loud purr came from deep in the recesses. Ranger laughed. He too pet Q on the way in.

They headed for the shower. It was big enough for two. Quickly divesting themselves of their sweat soaked garments they stepped inside the enclosure. The water cascaded over their backs. They did a slow dance under the steamy water and eventually turned off the water. It was not the fastest shower ever attempted but very satisfying.

Stephanie had a towel wrapped around herself and one around her hair. Ranger had a towel slung low over his hips. They moved to the bedroom and began to dress. Stephanie was still dressing and getting herself ready to face the day. Ranger had already left and was downstairs banging pots together. She soon joined him.

He had a coffee mug by the brew station. She chose a flavored coffee and watched as the cup slowly filled. The aroma permeated the room. Ranger had already brewed a green tea and it sat on the counter beside him. It looked like he was making omelets this morning. He slid a plate to her and turned to finish the second omelet.

She took a bite. The explosive flavors took her breath away. She had missed the Cuban influence. She moaned with every bite. Ranger sat and squirmed a few times as he listened to her. He watched as she polished off her helping and looked longingly at his. He grinned and pushed his portion closer. She smiled and took a bite. They finished all too soon.

Sitting with their mugs of refreshment, they both seemed deep in thought. Ranger broke the silence. "Babe, what are your plans for today?"

Stephanie sighed. She marshalled her thoughts.

"Ranger, I need to get my car from Rangeman. Today is going to be long and hard. I have clients I need to check up on.

I have a lot of office work to do today and I need to figure out my resources. Patricia dropped a bombshell on me. We have lost funding and she has taken herself off the payroll. I feel that I should take a pay cut so that we can keep all our staff but I will have to work that out."

Stephanie took another sip of coffee. "I need to contact my handler. Now that I have been found, I need to know their next move. I assume that I will be taken out of the program. Do I change my name back? Do I need to move to somewhere else and resurrect my old life? So many questions. No answers as yet."

Ranger watched her verbally argue with herself. He wanted to take her away and keep her for himself, but he realized that she wanted to feel needed.

They cleaned up the dishes and put them in the dishwasher. He grabbed his duffle and she grabbed her purse and briefcase. She alarmed the house and they climbed into the Porsche. The trip was made in silence. Ranger had captured her left hand and placed it on his thigh. He rubbed his thumb over the top of her hand all the way to Rangeman.

He fobbed the garage door open and drove in. He parked by her Civic. They climbed out of the car. He came around to stand beside her. He pulled her into his embrace and gave her a bone melting kiss. There came a wolf whistle from the back of the garage. He pulled back slightly from her and turned toward the sound.

Two men were just climbing out of their truck. He recognized them as Dan and Harry. They were new hires that Rangeman had brought in to replace some of the recently departed employees. Never releasing Stephanie, he looked at them both. "Matts, one hour," came a throaty growl. The men blanched and nodded. They plodded to the stairwell and disappeared.

Ranger looked back at Stephanie. "There is a key fob in your car. I'd like to take you out for supper tonight. You have my number. Call me." She moved out of his arms. Nodding, she opened the door to her car and slid in. He leaned down and gave her another kiss on the lips. "I will think of you all day."

She turned the key and the motor started. She waved and backed out of the spot. She headed out of the garage. Ranger watched her until her taillights disappeared from sight. He sighed and headed for the stairs.

Manny was in his office. He was looking a bit stressed. His desk was piled high with paper. He looked up as Ranger came in and sat down. Manny smiled. Ranger looked more relaxed than he had since Stephanie had been led away oh so long ago. Life was good.

They got down to work. There were reports to finalize. The payroll needed to be done and the rotation updated. Manny rubbed his hand over his face. He was working on a very steep learning curve here. He hoped that Ranger would stick around for awhile. It was a small office in Boston, barely half the size of Trenton, but the work was the same.

He threw down the papers in disgust. "Ranger, I hate to admit it man, but this is a bit much for me to learn all at once. I need help. "

Ranger tried to calm his new Manager. "It gets easier as you learn the system, Manny. You will not be left swinging in the breeze. "

Ranger spoke again. " I have some ideas to take some of the load off you. Stephanie mentioned that they were having to cut back where she works. Budget cut-backs. What do you think about asking her if she will take over the payroll and scheduling. She helped out Tank with that and she made it run really smoothly. Maybe she could do it on a part-time basis. She can help them and us. I would talk to her boss and take her off their payroll and put her full-time on ours."

Manny sighed. It would be a huge load off his shoulders. He was not business trained. Everything to do with money made him cringe. He was used to all the reporting and security details, but that end of the business was keeping him awake at night.

He nodded his head. It would be nice to have her around again. She brought such a spark of life anywhere she moved. He wondered how long she would remain. He suspected that now Ranger had found her, he would be keeping very close tabs on her for quite some time. Ranger had already arranged for trackers to be placed on her car. He wanted her to be safe.