Ranger was first in the shower since he had to get to work. That and the fact that my job pretty much starts when I want it to, so I was in no hurry. Choosing the hours that I work is one of the few perks of being a bounty hunter. Which means I didn't have to get up before the sun if I didn't want to. Ranger was still in the shower when I called Ella. I was wearing the robe again. If I kept this up, Ella was going to think I didn't have any clothes. I thought about it for a minute, and gave myself a mental headsmack. Ella would be right. I didn't have any clothes here. I was supposed to meet Ranger for supper last night, and I had planned on stopping off at my apartment after the mall trip to grab some things to bring over in case I spent the night. But I never got the chance. I was now faced with two choices. Wear the clothes that I had on yesterday, or get dressed in a clean Rangeman uniform that I'd left here from one of the times I'd worked for Ranger. Clean won out.

As I walked towards the closet I heard a knock at the front door. Ella. I ran a hand through my hair, and tightened the belt on the robe before leaving the bedroom. I unlocked the deadbolt and opened the door to Ella, and breakfast.

"Good morning," she said.

"Morning," I said to her, but I was distracted by the delicious aroma coming from the tray. Ella was a great cook. And everything she made tasted great. But she worked for Ranger. And Ranger liked healthy food. Whole-wheat bagels, non-fat cream cheese, egg white omelets. I'm not saying those foods are bad, but I think they're sort of a waste of Ella's talent. I'm betting she could make a mean batch of pancakes if Ranger ever allowed her to.

"What's for breakfast?" I asked Ella.

"I brought Ranger his usual breakfast," Ella said,"but I thought you might need some comfort food after what happened yesterday so I made you french toast this morning. I hope Ranger won't be upset with me."

I almost fainted from joy.

"Don't worry about Ranger," I told her."He won't mind."

"Would you like to eat in the dining room? I could set the table for you."

"You don't have to do that, the kitchen's fine."

We walked to the kitchen and Ella put the tray down on the bar."How are you this morning?" She asked me.

"I'm good," I said."Except for the fact that I have a busy day ahead of me."

Ella laughed."I can imagine."

I walked with her back to the front door."If you need anything else just let me know," she said to me.

I closed and relocked the door. Ranger was coming out of the bedroom when I stepped back into the kitchen. He was dressed in a lightweight black long-sleeved sweater pushed halfway up his forearms, and black dress pants. His hair was still damp from the shower. And he had a black holster with a black gun attached to his belt. My eye's glazed over, and I almost started drooling again. This time, Ella's french toast had nothing to do with it. It was hard to decide which one I wanted more, Ranger or the french toast.

I must have been staring a little too long, because Ranger's face creased into a smile."Babe," Ranger said,"you just looked me up and down like I was lunch."

And dinner. And dessert, I thought. I felt my face heat up from embarrassment at being caught staring. I blew out a sigh and turned away from him, sitting down hard on one of the barstools.

Ranger was still smiling. Not embarrassed at all. Probably he found my ability to blush amusing. After all, we spent the last two nights together naked.

He closed the distance between us and kissed me on the top of my head."I like the fact that I can still make you blush," Ranger said to me.

He could make me do a lot more than just blush. Great. Now my mind was full of naked and sweaty Ranger thoughts. That, for sure, wasn't going to help with the blushing problem.

Ranger poured us each a cup of coffee before sitting down next to me. He lifted the covers off the breakfast dishes and looked at the plates, then over at me, his eyebrow raised."French toast?"

"Ella thought I might need some sugar in my system to get through today," I told him."You're not allowed to be mad at her."

"Who says I'm going to be mad?"

"Ella. She was afraid you wouldn't understand the need for comfort food."

"First Hal. And now Ella," Ranger said, a hint of disbelief in his voice."You're corrupting my employees."

"I know," I said, smiling."It's fun. Do you think if I work on the men long enough they'll stop following me around when I tell them to?"

"For their sake, they'd better not," Ranger said."You should be happy that you don't have someone permanently watching over you."

"I do have someone permanent watching over me," I told him."You!If I'm not being followed by one of your men, you have me or my car bugged."

Ranger handed me my plate."I'm keeping you safe, Babe."

This was true. And although sometimes it felt a little invasive, the majority of the time I was happy to have Ranger looking out for me.

We both dug into our food. I wasn't paying attention to anything besides breakfast, and I realized I had missed something Ranger said.

"What were you saying?" I asked.

"I was saying that even with the GPS and transmitters you still had someone try to kill you. I'll have to find more effective ways of protecting you."

I didn't like the sound of that."You have a business to run," I said to him."You can't spend all your time, and money, tracking me."

"I don't know, Babe," Ranger said."Keeping you out of trouble seems to be a full time job."

"Keeping me out of trouble?" I repeated, narrowing my eyes at him."I don't need anyone to keep me out of trouble. I'm a grown woman, not a child. I can take care of myself."

"That's true. But I can take care of you better."

That was a fact, but I wasn't about to agree to anything else Ranger might have in store for me. Having a bodyguard once in a while is one thing. Being under surveillance 24/7 is a whole other matter entirely.

Neither of us spoke as we finished breakfast. Normal for Ranger. Not normal for me. I was still feeling grouchy. Everyone in my life kept trying to tell me what to do. They all have opinions about how I should live my life. And especially on how to do, or not do, my job. My mother, my cop friends, the cashier at the grocery store ... And the worst of them all is the men in my life. First Morelli. And now Ranger. Sure, I've had my share of problems since becoming a bond agent, but who wouldn't? I mean, I went from buying womens' underwear to catching criminals! Everything up until now has been on the job training for me, so I'm bound to screw up sometimes, right? And I've managed to fumble my way through most of my cases without injury. Mine or anyone else's. That should count for something. I wasn't completely inept at my job despite what the people around me might think.

Ranger was the first to speak."Earth to Steph," he said.

I looked over at Ranger."Huh?"

"It's not like you to be this quiet," Ranger said."Are you sure you're all right?"

"Yeah. My mind wandered for a minute, that's all," I told Ranger.

"As long as it always comes back."

"It's back now," I said."Here's the thing, I know I can't completely stop you from monitoring me, but there's a limit. I'm not going to be followed around like some criminal. I appreciate you wanting to keep me safe and all, but you're not responsible for every bad thing that might happen to me. I can't stop you from doingyourjob even though it's more dangerous than mine. And you can't stop me from doing mine."

"Babe," Ranger said."I don't really want you to give up your job. I just want you take more precautions while you're doing it."

"Hey! That's not fair!" I said to him."How was I to know that months after catching an FTA, he was going to shoot his girlfriend the same day I was at the mall? And that had nothing to do with my job. I was there shopping like everyone else."

"Why did this guy want to kill you?" Ranger asked me.

Shit. Harlo was pissed at me because I arrested him. Twice. Okay, so maybe it had a tiny bit to do with my job.

"I'm always careful," I told Ranger, trying to sound convincing."I've just had some unfortunate luck."

"That's an understatement."

I blew out a sigh."Point is, we both have jobs that are more risky than most. As long as we both agree to stay as safe as we possibly can, there shouldn't be any more discussions about it."

He locked eyes with me for a long moment.

"Deal," Ranger said."With a few exceptions."

"No exceptions," I told him.

"Babe, I warned you that if I think you're life is in danger," Ranger said,"I'm going to do something about it."

"How much danger are we talking about?"

Ranger gave his head a single almost imperceptible shake."Only you would ask that?"

"Fine," I said."Only if I'm in serious danger, though. Not the everyday kind of stuff." I mean, I'm not a total idiot. I've been kidnapped more times than I cared to admit. And knowing that Ranger can find me almost anywhere if it happened again is reassuring.

We cleaned up the kitchen and I followed Ranger to the front door, watching him as he pocketed his keys."I have a meeting this morning in the boardroom. After that I should be in my office for the rest of the day. I want you to call me throughout the day so I know where you are."

"My car's monitored," I said to him."You'll already know where I am."

Ranger just stared at me, not saying anything. I gave a defeated sigh."Okay, okay, I'll call."

"Thank you."

"You're such a bully," I said to him.

"Whatever works," Ranger said, with a small smile tugging at his lips.

"Men!"

He ran a fingertip along my hairline and tucked a stray curl behind my ear."Did I mention how cute you look when you make that face?"

"Oh no you don't," I said."I'm not falling for that again."

Ranger leaned in close, his lips lightly brushing my ear."Tired of me already?" He asked.

Yeah, right. Like it's at all possible to get tired of Ranger."You're late, remember?"

"Yeah," Ranger said."I rememember."

Then he kissed me. As soon as his tongue met mine, I felt myself go damp and thought, what the hell? What's another hour, or two? The police, my parents, Lula, they all could wait a little longer. After all, the police station is open all day, and my parents weren't going anywhere. As for Lula, this wasn't the first disaster of mine she'd been involved in so I knew she'd be fine. That meant I didn't need to hurry, right?

Ranger must have thought differently, because he lifted his head and looked down at me."I have to get to work," Ranger said."And you have to go to the police station."

"Now?" I asked, still feeling a little dazed.

Ranger's face creased into a smile."You want me bad, don't you, Babe?"

He was right. I wanted him bad."You wish," I said to him instead, and pushed against his chest."Go catch a bad guy, or something."

Ranger's smile widened."See you tonight," he said."And don't forget to check in. If I don't hear from you, I'm sending someone out after you."

"I said I'd call, and I'll call. You don't need to threaten me."

"It wasn't a threat," Ranger said.

I was feeling very mature at that moment so I made a face and stuck my tongue out at him."

Ranger laughed softly."Hold that thought till tonight," he said.

"Maybe I won't be here tonight," I said, starting to feel grouchy again."Did you ever consider that?"

"No," Ranger said."You'll be here," he said, sounding much too confident for my liking.

I had a good mind to go back to my apartment tonight, but we both knew I wouldn't go. I loved Ranger's apartment. Ranger had the worlds best bed, even when he wasn't in it with me. And he also had Ella. A peanut butter sandwich is good and all, but it didn't compare to a home-cooked meal. I suppose I could just go to my parents' house for dinner, but then I'd have to deal with my family. Not that I don't like my family. It's just that most of the time they drive me nuts.

"I think I lost you again," Ranger said, his thumb brushing back and forth across my lips.

"I was trying to decide if I should have dinner with my parents' or with Rex."

"We already decided that," Ranger said."You'll be having dinner here."

"No," I said to him,"you decided that. I don't remember agreeing to it."

Ranger pulled me closer and kissed me. As the kiss intensified, my legs quickly turned to jelly. It was a good thing Ranger had his arms around me holding me against him, because I didn't think I'd be able to stand on my own.

Ranger's lips swept along my jawline to my ear."I'll see you tonight," he whispered against it. And he left.

I took a moment to get my body settled down. And when I finally got air back into my lungs, I headed toward Ranger's bathroom.

I took a shower, blow-dried my hair, and spent a considerable amount of time putting makeup on. I knew that this was going to be a three-coats-of-mascara kind of day. I put on the Rangeman uniform and looked at myself in the bathroom mirror. I looked like a miniature Ranger. Too bad Ranger's skills didn't come with the uniform, I thought. I grabbed my shoulder bag, and car keys, off the sideboard and locked the apartment behind me. I got into the elevator and gave the guys in the control room a smile, and a wave, to show them that I was okay. The elevator opened at the garage level and I walked to my car.

I pulled out of the Rangeman lot and looked in my rearview mirror. I didn't see any shiny black SUV's following me. Good. Ranger listened to me. Yeah, right. Just because I couldn't see anyone behind me, didn't mean that there wasn't anyone there. Ranger's men had a way of making themselves disappear when the need arose. I pointed the CR-V in the direction of the Burg, drove through the maze of side streets, and parked in front of my parents' house.

My Grandma Mazur was on the little front porch waiting for me before I had even gotten out of the car. I assume that the phone's been ringing non-stop since yesterday afternoon.

"It's about time," Grandma yelled to me when I got out of my car."I've got an appointment today to get my hair done, and I gotta know everything."

I walked up the sidewalk and slid past Grandma into the house. "You already know everything," I said."It was on television."

"Yeah," Grandma said."But we don't know how you got to be held hostage in the first place."

I saw my mother in the kitchen standing over the ironing board. Chances were good that she was re-ironing everything in the house. Her lips tightened when she saw me. I figured since she already had the iron out, I might as well get this over with.

"Lula and I had just finished lunch in the food court when we heard a gunshot," I said. I could see my mother out of the corner of my eye making the sign of the cross."We didn't know where the shot came from and before we could move, I saw the shooter. He was a guy I'd picked up a couple times for failing to appear. He recognized me, and decide I'd make his getaway easier. You know the rest."

"That's it?" Grandma asked."I need more than that. He was going to try to kill you, right?"

"Well," I said,"he did mention something along those lines."

"Holy Mary, Mother of God," my mother said."How can I sleep at night knowing there are people out there wanting to kill you? Why can't you be more like your sister Valerie? She's happily married with three beautiful children. No one ever tries to kill her."

Here we go again. My perfect sister Valerie. I wasn't going to admit this to my mother, but I've had more than one fantasy about killing my sister. Okay, so maybe actually killing Valerie wasn't part of my fantasy, but I had definitely thought about stun-gunning her more than once. All my life I've been compared to Valerie. And I've always come up short. Valerie was more popular than me in school. Valerie had better grades. And Valerie would never have climbed out the bathroom window after being grounded. Of course, Valerie had no reason to try climbing out of the bathroom window since she never got grounded in the first place. So you can see why I had the urge to stun her once in a while. After Valerie had moved back to Jersey, we had declared a truce of some sort. Either that, or we both just grew up.

Now seemed like a good time to make my exit before she started complaining about my job."Gotta go," I said to my mother."Things to do."

"You're not staying for lunch?" My mother asked.

"I have to go to the police station and give a statement."

My mother crossed herself again.

"I could go with you," Grandma said.

"Not necessary," I told Grandma Mazur."I don't know how long this will take. And I have to stop in at the bonds office when I'm done. You don't want to miss your appointment."

"That's true. It'll be standing room only today," Grandma said."Everyone knows I'm gonna be there. And they'll all want the scoop on the shooting. I'll be lucky to get my hair done at all."

I'm glad something good will have come out of this. Grandma Mazur will have celebrity status at all the local businesses for at least the week.

"I'll talk to you later," I told my mother and grandmother on my way out the door. That was fun, I said to myself, sliding back behind the wheel of my car.

I headed across town to the police station. Trenton cops were housed in a not-so-pretty building, in a not-so-nice neighborhood, but conveniently located if you were waiting for a crime to happen. The courthouse, with an armed guard at the door, and state-of-the-art metal detectors, was on one side of the building. The police station, decorated with bullet holes in the walls, and utilitarian flooring that could hold up to pepper-spray-induced snot, was on the other. I parked in the public lot across the street and stuffed my pepper spray, and stun gun, into the console before getting out. I gave my name to the cop who was sitting in the bulletproof cage in the lobby, and Morelli stepped out of the elevator a few minutes later.

Please God, don't let Morelli be the one to take my statement. He walked over to me, not looking surprised to see me standing there, as if he'd been waiting for me. I saw Morelli's mouth tighten when he noticed the Rangeman uniform I was wearing. Not a good sign, I thought.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him.

"I work here," he said.

"Very funny. I thought I'd see Eddie or Costanza." Or any other officer who happened to be in the building at that very moment.

"I wanted to know exactly what happened yesterday," Morelli said."And you have to give a statement about it so I offered my services to take it."

Oh crap, I thought. This was going to be uncomfortable. Well, it could be worse Stephanie, I said to myself. Ranger could have insisted on coming with you. I started sweating at the thought. I wasn't real good with confrontations. And having Morelli and Ranger in the same room as me, together, wasn't something I wanted to think too much about.

Morelli got me a cup of coffee, and ushered me into a depressing little room off the main hall. The room was empty except for a table and two chairs. I sat in one of the chairs and looked around. I felt guilty just sitting in here; like I should be confessing to something.Morelli plugged in a tape recorder and punched the record button.

"Okay, start at the beginning," Morelli said, being completely professional.

If Morelli could act like this was just part of his job description, than so could I. I'm an adult. I can do this. Just tell him what happened and then you can leave, I thought. No sweat. Yeah, right.

I didn't think the Trenton PD cared a whole lot about Lula's shoe emergency, so I started with Lula and I standing by the food court and hearing the gunshot nearby. Morelli asked me a couple of questions and I tried to give him as many details as possible, which wasn't hard considering I could still feel the cold metal of the gun pressed to my head. I couldn't read Morelli since he had his cop face on again, but when I got to the part where Harlo threatened to kill me, Morelli's eyes got hard and I felt the air pressure change in the room. Joe loved me. And he didn't like it when people tried to kill me. That hadn't changed. We might not be together now but time, or other people, couldn't erase the history that we have.

Twenty minutes later, Morelli turned the recorder off. I sat back in my chair, exhausted. Reliving the ordeal with Harlo had drained what little energy I had left. And I didn't have a whole lot to start with.

"Have you seen Lula this morning?" Morelli asked.

"No. I was going to stop in at the office after I was done here."

"Tell her she needs to come in and give her statement."

"I can tell her," I said,"but I don't think it'll do much good. She doesn't like police stations." That was an understatement. Lula hated police stations. Lula's previous career landed her in jail on more than one occasion. And now just looking at police station was enough to make Lula break into a cold sweat and head for the nearest fast food place.

"Have her call me when she's ready to come in," Morelli said."I'll meet her in the lobby. And I'll take her statement myself so she won't have to talk to any other cops."

I didn't know what I had been expecting, but it wasn't this. For Morelli to be this accommodating. To me or to Lula."What's going on?" I asked.

"What do you mean?"

"You're being awfully nice," I said, as if that explained it.

"I'm a nice guy."

"You area nice guy, usually," I said,"but not when someone's tried to kill me. You yell. You also wave your arms around a lot. And you swear in Italian when someone tries to kill me. And if that wasn't enough, now you're being considerate of Lula's cop phobia. So ... what's going on?"

"I don't think you want me to answer that?"

"Why?"

Morelli looked at me for a moment before answering."Because if I tell you what's going on," Morelli said,"it's going to make you uncomfortable. And when you're uncomfortable, you run away. And then I won't see you again until you're involved in yet another catastrophe."

Uh-oh."This is about seeing me?" I asked, but I didn't really want the answer. I could feel myself inching towards the door even as I spoke.

Morelli shook his head at me."See," he said,"that's what I mean. You're already halfway out the door and I haven't even said, or done, anything yet."

"Yet?" I asked, my voice sounding a lot more Minnie Mouse than I would have liked.

"You don't need to freak out," Morelli said."All I meant to say was that ... I miss you."

"Uh-huh," I said. I could feel panic rising in my chest. I needed to get out of there. And quick, before Morelli said anything else."I should be going now. You know, things to do, people to see. I'll give Lula your message," I said, over my shoulder as I practically ran out of the room.

Breathe, Stephanie, I said to myself when I got back to my car. So, Morelli misses you, that doesn't change anything. I didn't buy it. Of course, it changes things. What if Morelli decided he wanted a relationship with me again? Just the thought of that was enough to make breathing difficult. Morelli wore a gun on his hip, and Ranger had guns hidden on multiple parts of his body. I didn't want to know what would happen if Morelli tried to restake a claim.

Wait a minute, I told myself. This was dumb. Talk about having a high opinion of yourself, Stephanie, I said to myself. Ranger and Morelli weren't likely to fight to the death over you. They were two grown men. And they would act like two grown men. They wouldn't do anything stupid and macho like try to kill each other, would they? Just in case, I was going to try to stay far away from Morelli. And I sure as heck wasn't going to mention this to Ranger. After all, Joe didn't say anything besides he missed me. He could have just meant he missed me as a friend.

My first rules concerning mental health were: ignore and deny. If you ignore the problem, or deny it's existence, long enough maybe the problem will just quietly go away. And you'll never have to deal with it at all.

I took another deep breath and hauled out my cell phone. I punched in Ranger number and he immediately came on the line.

"Babe."

"I'm finished at the police station," I said."I'm heading over to the office next."

"How did it go?" Ranger asked me.

"It went ... um ... great."

There was a slight pause."What aren't you telling me?"

Good going, Stephanie. Now he knows something's up. You're supposed to be such a good liar. Why can't you do it now?

"Nothing," I said."Everything's fine. I was just checking in."

There was a moment of phone silence. I was fairly certain Ranger was reading my mind long distance.

Thankfully, Ranger let it go."Call me when you leave the office," Ranger said.

"Do you really think that's necessary?"

Disconnect.

I blew a strand of hair off my forehead. I guess I'll take that as a yes. I turned the key in the ignition and pulled out of the lot.

Fifteen minutes later, I was parked at the bond's office. Connie looked around her computer at me when I walked into the office.

"I heard what happened," Connie said."How are you doing?"

"I'm good," I said."It was scary at the time, but nothing happened to me. His girlfriend wasn't so lucky."

"I heard she was going to be okay."

"Yeah. Good thing Harlo was a bad shot."

Connie looked me over, noticing the uniform for the first time. She smiled wide."Looks like you got lucky more than once yesterday."

"You could say that," I said to Connie. Now it was my turn to smile. I most definitely got lucky more than once yesterday.

"Go ahead," Connie said, noticing the smile."Rub it in."

"Have you seen Lula yet?"

"No. But she did call to say that she'd be late."

Lula was always late. What was surprising was that she called in the first place."Why would she call to tell you that? She usually just shows up for work whenever she wants to anyway."

"I think she was hoping I'd tell her that she could have the day off," Connie said.

"That makes sense," I said."Did you give her the day off?"

"No."

Connie looked through a stack of folders on her desk."If you feel up to it," Connie said to me,"I have four new FTA's for you."

"Four?"

"Busy day at court."

Connie was handing the files over to me when Lula burst through the door.

"I'm here. Are you happy now?" Lula said, not looking at all happy to be there.

"Yeah," Connie said,"I'm freakin' ecstatic."

"I don't think I should have had to come to work today. I had a real bad night," Lula said."I couldn't sleep. I just tossed and turned all night. I kept seeing that gun pointed at me everytime I closed my eyes. I even had to make a run to the store for an emergency chocolate bar." Lula turned to me."How about you? You sleep okay?" Lula asked."You don't look sleep deprived."

Connie was back to smiling."She had some help getting to sleep," Connie said.

Lula checked out my uniform."I see that," she said."Don't seem right somehow. Some idiot threatens to put a hole in me, and I got to make do with a candy bar. You get threatened, and you got Ranger tucking you in. I don't much care for people shooting at me, but I wouldn't mind swapping places with you in some other areas of your life."

I'll admit, my life did have a few bright spots."I just got back from the police station," I said to Lula."You have to go down and talk to them."

"No way. No can do. Uh-uh," Lula said."I can't go to no police station. I hate police stations. They have cops there. And I hate cops almost as much as I hate police stations. Except Morelli, he's okay for a cop. And he's got one fine ass on him."

I had to agree. Morelli did have one fine ass on him. Unfortunately, he also tended to act like one."Funny you should mention Morelli," I said,"he was the one who took my statement and ..."

Lula interrupted me."Morelli?"

"Yep."

"You were alone in a room with Morelli?" Lula asked me."What did you do?"

"I told him about Harlo."

"And then?"

I didn't really want to say anything about Morelli to Lula and Connie, but I knew from past experience Lula would keep after me until she got all the dirt.

"Then he sort of told me that he missed me." There, I said it. And now that I had said it out loud, it really didn't sound all that bad. I was overreacting to the whole Morelli thing, that's all.

Lula's eyes bugged out of her head."Morelli told you that he missed you?"

"Yeah," I told her.

"Does Ranger know about this?" Connie asked.

"I forgot to mention that part of the conversation to him," I said. I could feel the panic returning.

"Good call," Connie said.

"Yeah," Lula said."It's not like Ranger and Morelli are ordinary men. They got more testosterone between them than the rest of the country has combined. You wouldn't want a face-off between Morelli and Ranger. They'd kill each other."

"I'm sure Joe didn't mean anything," I said, trying out denial again."After all, he didn't say, or do, anything that would make me think that he'd want a relationship with me again."

"What did you do when he said he missed you?" Connie asked.

"I might have hurried out of the room."

"So you don't know what else he wanted, because you ran out before he got the chance tell you?" Lula asked.

"Uh-huh," I said.

"If I were you," Connie said,"I'd be real careful," Connie said."Both Ranger and Morelli have ways of making someone disappear."

"Connie's right," Lula added."And no one would finger them for it if they did."

"I'm not telling you, or Lula, anything ever again," I said to them."Ranger and Joe will not make anyone disappear." I figured that Morelli and Ranger were safe from each other, but I wasn't so certain about the criminal element in Trenton. It's rumored that Ranger kills people on a regular basis. And Morelli is a cop. There's no telling who he'd meet up with during a shift. So to say that they wouldn't make anyone disappear was sort of a fib.

"If you say so," Lula said."You have two of the hottest men in Trenton fighting over you. I tell you, it ain't fair."

"They are not fighting over me. As I was saying ..." I said to Lula,"Morelli said to call him when you're ready to come in. He'll meet you in the lobby, and take your statement himself."

"That's real comforting, but I still don't want to go."

"You have to."

"But I haven't even had lunch yet," Lula said."If I have to go to the police station, I'm gonna need something to calm my stomach."

I blew out a sigh."How about I treat for lunch? And in return, you go directly to the station."

"I guess that would be okay," Lula said."I'm feeling better about this already. I'm all ready to go, too. I didn't even put my purse down."

"What about the filing?" Connie asked.

"You heard Steph," Lula said."I got a duty to uphold as a citizen of this here great nation."

Connie and I both did an eyeroll."Go," Connie said."But you'd better come straight here when you're done."

"Boy, that hurts," Lula said."Coming back here was exactly what I was gonna do."

"Yeah, right," Connie said.

Vinnie was out of town on business and Connie didn't want to close up the office so I offered to bring something back for her. I took her order, and Lula and I climbed into my CR-V and headed down Hamilton.

"Where do you feel like going to eat?" I asked Lula.

"I don't know. I'm having a hard time narrowing it down. I got lots of cravings."

"You can't put this off all day," I told Lula."You're going to have to just suck it up and pick a place."

"You know what?" Lula said to me."You can be a real cranky-pants sometimes."

"I just want this whole thing over with."

"Yep, I'm sure that's what it is," Lula said."It has nothing at all to do with your love life."

"My love life is just fine," I said."And I'm not cranky. I'm just a little ... stressed."

"Sure. I knew that."

I gave Lula a sideways look."Where are we going?"

"Cluck-in-a-Bucket," Lula said."And then Tasty Pastry. I need a Clucky burger and a large side of fries. And some doughnuts for dessert. And maybe an eclair or two would help my nerves."

I knew what Lula was doing. She was going to drag out lunch as long as possible. But I had to agree with her, doughnuts did sound good.

I pulled into the Cluck-in-a-Bucket lot. It was just past noon, but the restaurant wasn't crowded. Lula ordered a burger and fries, and gallon-sized soda. I ordered a chocolate shake. I wasn't in a burger mood. I was holding out for the doughnuts.

Twenty-five minutes later, I was looking at the clock for the third time. I was right. Lula was stalling.

"Are you almost done?" I asked her.

"I heard one of them doctor's on TV say that eating fast is bad for digestion. I'm thinkin' about my health here."

"You're eating fried chicken and french fries. I don't think you're all that worried about your health."

"Your ass," Lula said.

Lula finished the last of her fries and washed them down with the rest of her soda. We dumped our trash and set out for Tastry Pastry.

A feeling of peace always came over me when I stepped through the bakery door. The sweet smell of powdered sugar and vanilla in the air. The colorful sprinkles on the cakes and cookies. My heart, and my mind, automatically slowed down when I was in the presence of massive quantities of sugar, butter, and lard. Who needs yoga when you can get the same feeling from stepping inside a bakery?

Marjorie Lando was behind the counter."What'll it be?" Marjorie asked.

"Two Boston creams. And two jelly doughnuts." I had every intention of bringing Connie two of the doughnuts, but depending on how long Lula was planning on dragging her feet, I just might eat all four.

I had my doughnuts bagged and paid for and Lula still hadn't made a decision on what to get."We still have to pick up Connie's lunch. Just take one of everything if you can't decide."

"That's a good idea," Lula said to me."Why didn't I think of that?"

"Because you're too busy trying to figure out ways of avoiding the police station. Just call Joe and get it over with."

"Fine," Lula said to me. Then she ordered half a dozen doughnuts and two eclairs for the road.

We hit the McDonald's drive-thru for Connie's lunch, and then made a circle back to the office. The whole trip took more than an hour. Lula called Morelli when she got into her Firebird, and told him she was on her way. I watched her drive off, and sent up a silent prayer that Lula wouldn't discuss anything other than Harlo with Morelli. I swung through the office door and handed over the McDonald's bag to Connie, along with two of the doughnuts. I picked up the four files I'd left on her desk, and stuck them in my shoulder bag.

"I have to go check on Rex. I'll do some phone work on these guys tonight and see what I come up with." Hopefully, when I woke up tomorrow morning, I'd want to be a bounty hunter again. Today, I couldn't seem to work up any enthusiasm for the job.

I promised Connie I'd be in tomorrow and climbed back into my car. I locked myself in and called Ranger. I felt stupid calling, but making a phone call was better than the alternative. And I knew the only reason why Ranger was being so unreasonable was because he was scared of losing me. If the positions were reversed, I wouldn't hesitate to shadow Ranger wherever he went. Not that I would be much good as a bodyguard since I hated anything to do with guns. Especially using them. And after thinking back on the Ramos case, and when Scrog was hunting Ranger, if I had been involved with Ranger at the time, I would have insisted he not go anywhere without back up. So I couldn't get too mad at him. If I was still shook up thinking about Ranger almost dying that long ago, I didn't want to guess as to what he was thinking about what could have happened to me yesterday.

I took Hamilton, cut through a few side streets, and turned into my lot. I let myself into my apartment and I could here Rex running on his wheel. I gave him fresh water and food. And I also gave him a corn chip and a green bean as an apology for not coming home last night. I didn't think Rex cared a whole lot about whether or not I came home, but I felt guilty anyway.

I thought about the four FTA's I had in my bag, but I wasn't interested in looking for them. Tomorrow, I said to myself. I'll start looking for them first thing tomorrow morning. Maybe. And since Ranger was right in thinking that I'd be going back to Rangeman, I packed a small overnight bag to take with me. Packing a bag didn't take up nearly enough time. There was still a couple hours left to kill before Ranger got off work. What could I do? Clean my bathroom? Nope. Do my laundry? Uh-uh. Go back to my parents' house? Not likely. Take a nap? Now we're talking. After all, I didn't get that much sleep last night. And if I went back to Rangeman, chances were good that I wouldn't get much sleep tonight, either. I kicked off my shoes and slid under the comforter.

The ringing of my cell phone woke me. I stumbled out of bed and hurried to the kitchen where I'd left it.

"Yeah?" I said, still half asleep.

It was my mother."Are you coming over for dinner tonight?"

"No," I told her."I already made plans with Ranger."

"You can bring him along. He hasn't been over for dinner in weeks."

If it was up to Ranger, it would be years.

"No can do," I told my mother."He's working late."

"He can't take the time to have dinner? Who doesn't have time to sit down at a table and have a decent meal?"

"He has some things to finish up. He was sort of busy yesterday." Busy worrying about someone putting a bullet in my head.

There was a moment of phone silence, and I could tell my mother was crossing herself again. I was a trial to my mother.

"Well, you make sure to tell Ranger that he's welcome anytime."

"I will," I said. And I disconnected.

I looked at the clock on my microwave. Four-thirty. I took a moment to wake up, and then called Lula.

"How did it go?" I asked when she answered.

"I got all worked up for nothing," she said."I just told Morelli everything that happened. He didn't seem to understand how important finding the right shoes are, though."

Nothing new there. Morelli had never fully understood the importance of shoes.

"You didn't talk about anything else, did you?" I asked, holding my breath, waiting for her answer.

"You mean about you and Ranger? Or about what Morelli wants with you?"

"Yeah."

"Nope," Lula said."I didn't say nothin' about that. Though, I should have. I think you're gonna need some help here."

"No," I said."I don't need any help."

"You sure? Cause I wouldn't mind taking one of those men off your hands."

"Thanks for the offer," I said."But I'll figure something out."

"Let me know if you change your mind. I'm good at this relationship shit."

"You're not even in a relationship," I told Lula, feeling the need to point out the obvious.

"That's only because I don't want to be in one right now," Lula said."I could be in a relationship if I wanted. And I was engaged once, remember that?"

"That doesn't count. You tricked Tank. He went to sleep and woke up engaged. You even bought yourself the ring."

"I knew he was gonna pop the question," Lula said."He was just a little slow askin', so I helped him out a bit."

"Uh-huh," I said. That's why Tank had broken out in a cold sweat everytime the subject of marriage came up.

"I didn't really want to get married, anyway," Lula said."I just got caught up in the moment. There's too many men out there to settle on just one."

I couldn't handle two men in my life, nevermind any more than that. Just the thought of it made me break out in a cold sweat.

I said goodbye to Lula and stuffed my phone back into my bag. I tapped on the glass of Rex's cage and said goodbye before going back to the bedroom to get my shoes and overnight bag.

When I stepped out of the elevator in the lobby, I bumped into Mr. Kleinschmidt.

"Way to go, chicky," Mr. Kleinschmidt said."You were the top story on all the news channels."

"Lucky me."

"This building was real dull before you moved here," Mr Kleinschmidt said."Now the tenants don't have to make stupid small talk about weather, and the amount of fiber in their diets. We just talk about what trouble you've gotten yourself into that day. It's a good conversation starter."

"I'm glad I can help," I said, walking toward the lobby door.

That's nice, I thought. I'm bringing people together. I thought it would be even nicer if I could do it without almost dying in the process. I unlocked my car and dumped my bags onto the passenger seat. I slid behind the wheel and plugged the key into the ignition.

The drive to Rangeman was quiet, giving me the chance to think about my life if I wanted to. I didn't want to. My life had a couple problems. And I didn't want to deal with any of them. I pulled up to the Rangeman gate, flashed my key, and parked in one of Ranger's spaces. I waved to the guys in the control room, and pulled the folders Connie gave me from my bag while I waited for the doors to open. I let myself into Ranger's apartment and walked straight to the kitchen. I pulled a beer out of the fridge and sat down at the kitchen table to start reading through the files.

The front door opened and closed ten minutes later. I heard Ranger's keys hit the silver tray on the sideboard and Ranger appeared in the kitchen.

"I thought you'd still be working," I said to Ranger.

Ranger walked to the table and kissed me on my forehead."I have a few calls to make, but they can wait until after we've had dinner."

"Boy, you were late going in this morning," I said to him."And now you're leaving work early? I'm starting to think I'm a bad influence."

"Rangeman would benefit from you staying out of trouble," Ranger said.

I made a face at him. Ranger smiled, and sat down next to me.

He gestured to the stack of files in front of me."Looks like you're going to be busy."

"Yeah," I said."I got four new guys to catch."

Ranger picked up one of the folders and flipped through the pages."Quentin Cortiz," Ranger read out loud."I know him. I picked up his older brother, Marcus, last year for assault. And once before that for possession. He's a heroin dealer. And he gets a little touchy when someone moves into his territory."

"What about this Quentin guy? Is he involved in selling heroin?"

"No," Ranger said."The younger brother is only a recreational user. He doesn't have the stomach for dealing."

"That's good to know."

Ranger locked eyes with me."That doesn't mean he's going to be an easy catch. And if the brother is around, he'll try to stop you by any means necessary."

A knot of fear formed in my stomach.

"Let me know when you're ready to go after him," Ranger said."I'll go with you."

If this was any other time, I would have dug in my heels and went on a rant about how I didn't need help to catch a skip. But Ranger did know where to look for this guy. And if I was being totally honest, I didn't really want to go off alone to apprehend someone who might try to kill me. The Harlo thing was still fresh in my mind, and I didn't want a repeat performance.

"Thanks," I told Ranger."I'd appreciate the help."

Ranger looked at me."That was too easy," Ranger said.

"What?"

"You're not going to argue about me going with you?"

"Nope."

"What's the deal here?"

"There's no deal," I told Ranger."You know where my skip hangs out so it makes sense for you to help me with the bust." I didn't want Ranger to know that I was still a little freaked.

Ranger just stared at me. I think he was doing that mind-reading thing again. Ranger knew that nothing was ever that simple with me. And he didn't buy my answer. And why would he? My reason sounded rational. And maybe that was the problem. I'm not known for thinking rationally. Lucky for me, Ella knocked at the door and I was let off the hook. Ranger unlocked the door, took the tray from Ella, and walked back to the kitchen. He set the plates out onto the breakfast bar and uncorked a bottle of red wine, pouring us each a glass. Ella had brought us pork tenderloin, roasted red potatoes, and steamed vegetables. I blew out a sigh. No dessert. I guess comfort food was a one time thing.

We didn't speak much during dinner, and I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Unless Ranger was instructing me on bounty hunter etiquette, was angry with me over something stupid I've done, or had his tongue down my throat, I hadn't a clue what Ranger was thinking. Maybe it was better that I didn't know.

I put the leftover food away, and the dishes in the dishwasher, while Ranger made the rest of his phone calls. I was tired but not enough to go to sleep so I took my time getting ready for bed, and slipping on my pj's. Usually when I stay at Ranger's apartment I just use one of his T-shirts to sleep in. Having my own clothes here to change into was a little odd; like we were one step closer to cohabitation. I wasn't sure how I felt about that. I loved Ranger's apartment, but it wasn't home. Yet.

I stood in the doorway to Ranger's office and looked in at him. He was sitting at his desk. And he was still on the phone. The second I stepped into the doorway his eyes fixed on me. I sent him a small smile, and waited quietly until he ended his call. Ranger was answering the person on the other end of the phone, but his attention was focused on me. Or should I say his focus was on my pj's. Ranger's eyes were on my chest, then slowly moved to my little cotton boxers, then back up again. And it was clear that he was really enjoying the tank top. A lot. He wrapped up the call, still looking at me. Ranger's gaze could be compaired to a laser beam. You couldn't look away even knowing that you could come away burned. And my body reacted the way it always does when Ranger was close by. Nipples tingled, knees went weak, and private places warmed.

I got a grip on my hormones."Are you coming to bed?" I asked him.

"I have to call Tank, and then I'll be in."

"Okay," I said slightly disappointed. After watching Ranger, I was having some nonsleeping thoughts. I slid under the covers of Ranger's fabulous bed, and wondered how I was going to fall asleep. My mind was tired, but my body was now wide awake thanks to Ranger. I closed my eyes and told myself to go to sleep. I didn't think it was possible, but I did.

I don't know how long I slept, but when I opened my eyes the room was dark, and I felt the heat of the man curled around me. Ranger. I turned my head slightly to look over at him. He was awake. And he was watching me.

I turned so that I was facing him."What time is it?" I asked.

Ranger gathered me closer, and brushed my tangled hair away from my face."Almost ten o'clock," Ranger said.

I'd slept about two hours. Not a lot of sleep, but I felt surprisingly rested. I also felt Ranger's body against mine. And I was thinking how good I would feel if he was even closer. I snuggled into him and pressed a kiss to his chest.

"Aren't you tired?" Ranger asked me, the corners of his mouth tipped up in the almost smile.

"Nope," I said."How about you? Are you tired?"

Ranger slid the strap of my tank top off my shoulder."No," Ranger whispered against my ear.

"What are we going to do if neither one of us can sleep?"

"Don't worry, Babe," Ranger said,"I have plenty of ideas on what we can do."

"I guess you've spent some time thinking about this?"

"More than I should," Ranger admitted.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him lightly on the lips."Maybe you'd like to tell me some of your ideas."

"I'd rather show you, Babe," Ranger said. His hands were under my knit top, and instantly my tank top was lifted over my head and tossed onto the floor. The cotton boxers soon followed. After carrying out a good portion of his ideas, both Ranger and I were exhausted and finally ready for sleep.

We were sitting at the dining room table the following morning. Ella had brought breakfast up and we were halfway through eating when Ranger brought up the subject I was hoping to avoid.

"What happened yesterday at the police station?" Ranger asked me.

"You know what happened," I said."I gave them my statement."

"There's something you're not saying. I want to know what it is?"

I did some mental deep breathing, and tried to find the least upsetting way to mention Morelli.

"If I tell you, you aren't going to do anything, right?"

"That depends on what it is," Ranger said.

That wasn't the answer I was hoping for. I was trying to figure out what exactly to tell Ranger and I must have taken too long deciding, because Ranger's voice broke into my thoughts.

"Babe."

"Okay," I said."Morelli was the one I talked to when I was at the station."

"His choice?" Ranger asked."Or yours?"

"His," I said."He was ... um ... waiting for me."

Ranger's expression didn't change, but the air suddenly seemed to crackle around him."Why was he waiting for you?"

"He said he wanted to know, beginning to end, what had happened with Harlo."

"And?"

"And what?" I asked him.

"You wouldn't be worried about my reaction unless Morelli did, or said, something while you were with him."

Damn."He might have sort of said that he missed me," I told Ranger."But I'm sure he didn't mean anything by it." I figured that if I said it enough times, it might actually become true.

"Do you believe that?"

"Yeah." Maybe.

"What did you do?" Ranger asked me.

"I told him everything that happened at Quaker Bridge. And then I left."

I think Ranger was resisting the urge to bang his head against the table or choke me. I was deliberately being difficult. I've always considered Ranger to be a fair man. And, in my mind, it would be hard for Ranger to do something to Morelli without a legitimate reason. And I wasn't about to give him one.

"Morelli cares about me," I said to Ranger, choosing my words carefully."So it's only natural that he'd be upset that someone tried to kill me. That doesn't mean he wants to get back together with me."

"How do you know he doesn't want to get back together with you?"

"I don't ... for sure," I said."And I didn't stay long enough to find out. It wouldn't matter if he did."

"I hope that's true," Ranger said."Because if he keeps this up, I'm going to have to convince him to move on."

I narrowed my eyes at him."I'm not a bone for you guys to fight over."

"Babe," Ranger said,"you're worth fighting over."

"Thank you, I think. But there will be no fighting. I have no intention of getting back with Morelli, so you have nothing to worry about. For now, I'm going to keep my distance from Morelli. And so are you."

The corner's of Ranger's mouth tipped up ever so slightly."Are you telling me what to do?"

"Yes."

"I don't ordinarily let people tell me what to do," Ranger said.

"But you'll make an exception in this case, right?"

"For the time being," Ranger said."Morelli's starting to remind me of a stray puppy. Once you think he's finally gone off and found a new home, the next day he's back on your doorstep. He needs to learn that you're off limits. And I'm the guy to teach him."

"You're overreacting," I said to Ranger."This is why I didn't want to say anything about Morelli in the first place. You start feeling territorial and then you won't listen to anything I say."

"I've listened to everything that you've said, Steph," Ranger said."I just don't agree with it."

"Fine. Can we talk about something else now?"

"Like what?"

"My mother wants to know when you'll be coming over for dinner," I said to Ranger.

Ranger looked like he was trying not to grimace."Maybe we should talk about Morelli some more."

That got a smile out of me."If I didn't know better," I said,"I'd think you were afraid of going to my parents' house."

"Babe," Ranger said,"it's not your parents' house that frightens me. It's your grandmother."

"Grandma's harmless," I said. Well, harmless as long as she isn't behind the wheel of a car, or carrying her .45 long barrel.

"She manages to work in a comment about wanting to see me naked into every conversation."

"You should be used to women picturing you naked by now," I know I've spent a fair amount of my time imaging Ranger naked. Of course, I didn't have to imagine anymore. Ranger's naked body was burned into my brain.

"Not seventy-something-year-old grandmothers."

"A lot you know. They're the worst," I said."If you're that worried, I promise I'll protect you from Grandma."

"There's no protection from you're grandmother. Even God doesn't want that kind of trouble."

I laughed. Grandma Mazur definitely lives her life on her own terms.

"Have you heard anything about Harlo?" I asked Ranger.

"He'll be in court tomorrow," Ranger said."He's proven to be a flight risk so he won't be let out on bail."

I hated to admit it, but I was relieved to hear that. I knew that if he did get out on bail, he would most likely skip town. And probably he wouldn't waste any time coming after me, but there was still a small part of me that was afraid he would.

Ranger looked at me. Serious."If Harlo had been let out," Ranger said to me,"I would have had two men on him at all times. He wouldn't have been able to come anywhere near you."

Having a boyfriend who owns a security firm has it's perks. Sometimes.

"Thanks," I said."I was a little worried there for a second."

"You thought I wouldn't protect you?" Ranger asked.

"That's not it," I said."I just had a slight panic attack at the thought of Harlo being free. I have no doubts that you would protect me. After all, you have men following me around on a normal day."

"Babe, I don't think you've had a normal day since I've known you."

I did an eyeroll. He was right. I was a lingerie buyer before working for Vinnie. And my days as a buyer would be considered boring.Backthen, I would never have had the need for a bodyguard. Now ... bodyguards are the norm.

"Normal is overrated," I said to Ranger.

When we were done cleaning up after breakfast, Ranger went back to his bedroom to get his jacket and gun. He was attaching the gun to his belt when he came back into the kitchen. Ranger shrugged into his jacket, and I followed him down the hall to the front door.

He grabbed the keys for the Turbo and turned to me."Are you staying here today?" He asked me.

"For a little while," I said."I have three other skips, besides Cortiz, that I'd like to catch. Hopefully, I'll get a line on one of them."

"I'll be heading out to check on a couple commercial accounts today so I won't be in the office," Ranger said."You can reach me on my cell. And Tank will be here at Rangeman if you need him."

I stood on tiptoes and kissed him on the nose."I am capable of being on my own for a few hours," I said, smiling."You don't have to schedule the babysitters."

Ranger gave me the smallest of smiles."You don't need babysitters, Babe. You need Army commandos."

"That would be funny if I thought you were joking." I looked at Ranger."You were joking, right?" With Ranger you never knew.

He wrapped his arms around me, and nuzzled my neck."For now," Ranger said.

His lips kissed my ear, my cheek, and found my mouth. The contact sent desire rushing through all parts of my body. The kiss ended and our eyes held.

"If you keep doing that," I said,"you're going to be late again."

Ranger kissed me lightly on the lips before releasing me."It's tempting," Ranger said."But I can't be late today."

"Your loss," I said to him.

"I know. But I'll recoup my losses when I get home."

That sounded promising. Ranger grabbed me, kissed me again, then was gone.

I went back to the kitchen and gathered together the files Connie had given me. I had my phone, an empty apartment, and a full day of bounty-huntering ahead of me. I might as well get started.