Disclaimer: Still not mine.
Thank you to my amazing beta and Lou, Potterwench. Even when your life is hard, you still have time to help me with my craziness! Love ya girl!
I am blown away by your reviews! They do my wounded heart well so keep them coming. Now...without further ado, on with the story!
Chapter 3 - Start Spreading the News
Ranger returned to RangeMan in just enough time to grab his duffel from his seventh floor apartment and walk with his team up to the roof. The chopper was landing when they walked through the door so Ranger knew his time was limited. He needed to ask his second in command a favor before he left, though.
Ranger motioned Tank over to the side of the building, away from the other men. "Stephanie's going to come and talk to you later today about training. Anything she needs, see that's it's done." Tank's eyes widened at his bosses words.
"She's serious?" Ranger nodded and Tank's smile grew. "The only thing that would make her serious about training is you finally getting your head out of your ass and telling her how you feel. Is that where you were earlier?"
Tank caught the faint eye roll from the man in front of him. "That's exactly where I was and we're on the same page now. I love her, she loves me." The big man was happy for his friend and his smile reflected that happiness. He knew what was coming next and it didn't need to be said. "Take care of her, Tank. I just got her and I can't imagine my life without her."
"I'll watch out for your girl. I'll handle her training personally and by the time you get back, you won't recognize her." Ranger smiled and looked to the chopper waiting on him. He nodded to his friend and took off at a run toward the waiting helicopter. Tank waited until the helicopter was out of sight before heading back down to his office.
Hearing that Stephanie was coming in for training had made his day. The entire company had been waiting for her to take her safety seriously and to get the necessary training to do her job better. They were all fascinated with the blue-eyed beauty and each man loved her, probably more than they should. They would do anything to protect her and anything to help her. Tank knew that any man there would be happy to help train her.
Since it was still early, and he didn't expect Stephanie to come into the office until much later, Tank decided to call a meeting to ask the other guys their opinions on what she might need. Tank sent a company wide text and went to the conference room to wait.
At exactly 0700, every RangeMan who was left in Trenton was sitting in the conference room. Tank stood at the head of the table and called the meeting to order. "Men. I'm pleased to announce that last night our boss finally manned up and got his girl." The room erupted in cheers. Tank held up his hand to silence the crowd and continued. "Along with Ranger finally telling Stephanie the truth about how he feels, he also got her to agree to get training." Again the room erupted in cheers. They really did love Stephanie and only wanted her to be safe.
"Little Girl will be in later today to talk to me and I wanted to get your opinions about what she needs and what all of you can do to help." Tank motioned to Bobby, who was sitting beside him. "Can you handle the diet and exercise, Brown?"
Bobby smiled wide and nodded. Everyone knew of Stephanie's love for the sweet things in life. He was going to take pleasure limiting her sugar intake and the amount of fat she eats. "I'll take care of it. I've actually had a sample diet planned out for her for months. I knew this day was coming eventually. I've even already talked to Ella about making some sugar-free desserts to pacify Bomber. The exercise is going to be more difficult, but I can hopefully get her here most mornings to work on her endurance and her strength training." Tank smiled and nodded. He then turned to Ram, the company range master and an ex-sniper from the Rangers.
"What do you have planned for our girl on the range?" Ram smiled and got a twinkle in his eyes. He loved teaching people how to love their guns and he was looking forward to getting his hands on Stephanie Plum.
"I think if I make shooting fun for her, then she'll be more likely to do it and enjoy it. We all know that Stephanie hates her weapon and refuses to learn how to handle it properly in the past." Ram turned toward Bobby. "If you're arranging for her sweets, why don't we make getting to eat them a reward for doing well in the shooting range. We'll make a game of it."
The guys around the table all smiled in agreement to Ram's plans. "That sounds good. You'll be in charge of her range time. I want her using more than just the .38 she has. Pick her up a Glock 19 to carry also," Tank instructed and Ram nodded. Tank then turned his attention to the smallest man in the room. "Woody, with Hector gone, you're the one closest to Little Girls size. Can you teach her take-down techniques? I'll handle her self-defense training but I'll need you as her partner on that too. Are you cool with that?"
Woody smiled brightly at Tank's question. "I can't wait to get my hands on her." Tank glared at the tone of Woody's voice. "Not like that, man. I mean I can't wait to get her comfortable in taking people down the correct way. I want her to be able to work without getting injured."
Tank relaxed slightly and looked around the room again. "Anyone else have anything they want to teach her?" He knew that every man here had skills that she would benefit from, but he didn't want to overwhelm her right off the bat.
It was Zero's turn to smile and offer his suggestion. "I think she needs to learn basic B & E. If she's ever captured again, then she could get out. I can teach her how to pick lock. We'll start with her apartment." The room erupted in laughter because Stephanie was the only person in Trenton not able to break into her apartment.
"I'll add that to the schedule. Cal, why don't you take her on the defensive driving course a couple of times? I don't think she'll need many lessons there since she's been driving the New Jersey Turnpike for years." Cal nodded and got an evil look on his face. He loved the driving course and couldn't wait to take his Angel there. "All right, if anyone has anything else, let me know. Ranger and the rest of the guys will be back in a couple of months and I want her more confident and stronger by that time." The guys in the room shouted in agreement and left to start their shifts.
Tank was sitting in his office later in the morning working on paperwork, when Stephanie walked in smiling brightly. Tank saw the happiness oozing out of her and it made him smile. "What can I do for you Little Girl?"
Stephanie sat in the chair in front of his desk got down to business. "Did Ranger talk to you before he left?" Tank smiled and nodded to her. "Then you know that I am in need of some training!"
"I've already got a schedule worked out for you and I've talked to the guys. Bobby will talk to you today about your diet and exercise plan. Ram will be in charge of your range time and Woody and I will be in charge of self-defense and take-down techniques. Zero wants to teach you some B & E and Cal will take you on the driving course. Any questions?"
Stephanie thought for a second then shook her head. "I think you guys have it all covered. I'm not looking forward to the diet and exercise, but they're necessary evils. I promised Ranger that I would train and I intend to keep that promise. I don't want to disappoint him."
Tank's booming laughter filled the small office. "There's no way you can disappoint that man. He's got it bad, Stephanie." A smile broke out on her face. "Are you working here today or are you headed to Vinnie's?" Tank was curious if Ranger had asked her to work for RangeMan full-time or not. The core team had discussed it and they were all for it. They knew she would make an excellent addition to the team.
"Well, here's the thing." Tank could tell that Stephanie was hesitant to talk. He was just about to say something to encourage her when she squared her shoulders and said, "I want to work here full-time. I decided before Ranger and I...well, before we..."
Tank put her out of her misery. "Before you both pulled your heads out of your asses." Stephanie laughed at Tank's words.
"I guess you could put it that way. Before last night, I decided that I needed to get better at my job. I'm tired of being the same stupid bumbling bounty hunter." Tank glared at her at the stupid remark, but Stephanie ignored it and kept on talking. "I want to get better, not just for Ranger, but for me too. I need training and I need to be here to get it and It's not fair to Vinnie to leave him high and dry."
"I agree totally with you, Little Girl. How about we handle all of Vinnie's skips from the office? That way you can still work your regulars along with a partner and if you're busy, we'll send some of the guys to pick them up." Tank hoped his suggestion worked for her. He wanted her to keep bounty hunting, but he wanted her protected.
"Really? You guys would do that for Vinnie?" Stephanie's voice was full of awe.
Tank chuckled and shook his head. "Hell no we wouldn't do that for the weasel, but we're doing it for you, Stephanie." He watched her eyes fill with tears and in a second she was around his desk hugging him tightly to her. Tank was shocked at first. He had never been a touchy-feely person, but there was something about having her body pressed tightly into his that just felt right.
Stephanie pulled away after a few minutes and wiped the stray tear from her eye before speaking again. "I think I'm going to run to Vinnie's and let him know the plan. I also need to talk to Lula and Connie. They're not going to be too happy with me about this."
Tank grimaced because he knew just how 'not happy' Lula was going to be. When the two of them were dating, Lula would constantly warn Tank not to take her 'skinny ass white girl' from her. Tank knew that Lula was going to put up a fight and decided that Stephanie could use some back-up. "Take Hal with you. He's not busy right now and you need to get used to having a partner with you." Stephanie rolled her eyes. She saw Tank's grimace and knew that he thought she needed protection from her large friend. "I think I'm safe from Lula, but I'll take Hal with me. I'll pick up the files while I'm there."
Stephanie walked out of Tank's office and found Hal sitting in his cubicle, bored out of his mind. His head was tipped back and he was staring at the ceiling. Steph knew she was about to make his day. "Hal, you're with me and we're headed to the bonds office." Hal's eyes lit up and a smile broke across his face. He was bored stiff sitting at the office and he knew spending time with Stephanie was better than anything going on here. He also got to see Connie at the office. He liked that feisty woman but didn't quite know how to approach her. She's outspoken and isn't one to hold her tongue and Hal didn't want to be hurt by her.
Hal and Stephanie rode the elevator to the garage. Hal helped Stephanie into the large SUV before climbing into the driver's side. As they were driving to the bonds office, Hal decided to say some things to the woman sitting beside him. "You know Steph, I'm really glad that you and Ranger finally got your shit together. We've all seen the way you two look at each other so we knew it was just a matter of time. I'm also glad that you've decide to let us train you. We all know that you have massive amounts of potential and now that you're getting trained, you can fine tune that potential and be unstoppable."
Stephanie smiled sweetly at Hal. "Thanks Hal. I'm hoping you guys can make me better. I really want to be good at my job." Stephanie really did want to be a better bounty hunter and knew the guys could get her where she wanted to be. Suddenly, insecure Stephanie made an appearance and she began to doubt herself. "Do you think this is going to be hard for me, Hal? I mean all the training. Can you see me finishing it?"
Hal raised an eyebrow and looked at her as they were stopped at a light. "I don't see you just finishing this, Bomber. I see you blowing this training out of the water! I think it might be hard at first, but trust in us and trust in yourself. We won't let you fail!" Stephanie immediately felt better at Hal's words and she squeezed his hand in a silent 'thanks'.
The rest of the drive to the office was silent. When Hal parked the SUV, Stephanie giggled at the sight waiting for her. Lula and Connie had their noses pressed to the front window. Stephanie wasn't sure which one they were more excited about. Finding out the truth about what happened between her and Morelli or finding out which RangeMan was gracing them with their presence today. With Connie, Stephanie guessed it was more about which RangeMan she was getting to ogle. Connie liked to look at the attractive men, especially the one joining Stephanie today.
Hal and Stephanie walked into the office together and smiled at the two women practically bouncing in anticipation. Lula wasted no time starting the inquisition. "Skinny-ass white-girl, what's this we're hearing about that fine-ass cop proposing to you? Let me see the ring!" Lula grabbed Stephanie's hand and then dropped her jaw when she didn't see the object on her finger.
Stephanie rolled her eyes at her enthusiastic friend. She was surprised that the Burg-vine failed to tell the whole story of what happened the previous night at Pino's between her and Joe. She knew her friends were going to be shocked at what she had to tell them. "Joe did propose, kind of, but then we decided to end our pseudo-relationship and just be friends."
Connie and Lula looked at her with incredulous looks. "What do you mean, you broke up with him? He's hot and he loves you. Why did you kick super-cop to the curb?" Connie's voice was shrill as she questioned Stephanie.
"I know he loves me, and I love him; but it's not enough for us. He wants me to be something that I'm not and I'm not willing to change for him. We'll always be friends, but we've both moved on." Stephanie shrugged and continued talking. "My relationship with Joe isn't why I'm here this morning. I have something to tell you."
Lula interrupted before Stephanie could say anything else. "Nu-uh! You best be telling us why you glowing like you had some hot sex if you and super-cop broke up. Did he give you one more roll in the sheets before leaving or did you finally get Batman in your bed?" Hal blushed sitting on the couch beside Stephanie. He was shy around women anyway but was even more so when sex was the topic being discussed. Connie noticed his blush and smiled. "Yeah Steph, I've never seen you look THAT happy after a night with Joe. Tell us! Just who put that smile on your face?" Connie chuckled as Hal's blush darkened.
Stephanie rolled her eyes again at her friends and smiled remembering the reason for her smile. "Not that I'm willing to discuss my sex life with you two, but Ranger stopped by my apartment before he left to go 'in the wind'. We decided to give a relationship a chance between the two of us." Stephanie didn't say what she and Ranger did, but she thought her friends could use their imaginations.
"'Bout damn time!" Lula shouted at the same time Connie yelled, "Congratulations!" The girls continued firing personal questions at Stephanie of which she had no intention to answer. Hal sat beside her, laughing at her obvious discomfort. Stephanie leaned into him to whisper in his ear, "Keep it up Chuckles and I'll let it slip to Connie just how much you like her." Hal stopped laughing immediately and turned his wide eyes toward Stephanie. His look of fear made Stephanie laugh out loud. Her two friends stopped the questions when they heard her laugh.
"I'm sorry guys! Hal and I were having a little conversation. Now, back to your questions that I'm not going to answer, I plead the fifth. You guys don't need to know that much information about what I do with Ranger. Hal and I came here to get the files and let you know that I'm going to be working for RangeMan full-time now."
Stephanie could tell that Lula was approaching rhino mode in 5, 4, 3, 2..."What the hell you mean you're working for RangeMan? What about us? You ain't gonna have no time to see us! And what am I gonna do? You ain't gonna need me to help you so I'm gonna be stuck here filing! Who wants to file?" Lula's hands were on her hips and she was screaming at Stephanie and Hal.
"I'll still come by and just because I have a RangeMan partner, doesn't mean that I won't need your help. You can still go out with me sometimes." Stephanie's words seemed to pacify her large friend. Connie, on the other hand, still didn't look happy. "What about your files? Who's taking care of them? Vinnie's going to hire someone if you go work full-time with Ranger."
"Tank said RangeMan would take care of all the files. I'll have him call Vinnie later to work out all of the details." At that, Vinnie opened the door to his inner office and stalked out to put his two cents into the conversation. "What the hell Stephanie? I gave you this job because you needed it and now you're just going to leave me high and dry?" Stephanie looked at Hal and rolled her eyes.
"First, you didn't GIVE me this job; I had to BLACKMAIL you for it. Second, I'm not leaving you high and dry! RangeMan will be picking up my files so you should be happy because they ALWAYS get their man!" Stephanie was annoyed and her voice rose in volume as she spoke to her slimy cousin. "If you have a problem with this arrangement, then why don't you call Tank and talk to him?" She knew that Vinnie would never call Tank and complain. Vinnie was scared of the men in black, especially the boss. "Or better yet, why don't you wait until Ranger comes back and talk to him? I'm sure he'd love to sit and have a conversation with you." Stephanie smirked as Vinnie paled and his eyes got wide.
With a huff, Vinnie turned back into his office and slammed the door. Stephanie giggled to herself before focusing her attention back to Connie. "So now that you both know everything, can I have the files? Hal and I need to get back to RangeMan. My training starts tomorrow and I want to spend today relaxing before that happens." Stephanie saw Connie checking out her couch companion and had an idea.
"Hey, why don't we plan on going out tonight? We can go to Pino's for dinner and then out dancing for a bit. Tonight is my last night of freedom. I'll invite the guys to come too." Connie smiled at Hal, who blushed in response.
"I'm always up for a night out. Count me in." Lula bounced excitedly in her tight spandex outfit, testing the strength of the seams. "Are you going to be there, Hal?" Connie asked from behind her desk. Hal looked at Stephanie with a panicked look in his eye before he nodded quickly. Connie smiled sweetly at his nod. "Then I'll be there too."
"It sounds like we've got a plan! I'll go back and talk to the guys and text you all with the information." The girls nodded and Connie handed Stephanie a stack of files from her desk. When she had everything she needed, Stephanie turned to Hal and motioned him out the door. When they were tucked back into the SUV, Stephanie decided to approach Hal about Connie. "You know, Hal, Connie is a great girl. I think you two would make a great couple! She obviously likes you and I know you like her." Hal blushed and focused his attention back to the road. Stephanie smiled and turned to look out the window. She would leave it alone, for now. Tonight, however, was a whole different story.
A/N - Alright...keep the reviews coming! Good, bad or ugly...I don't care. We'll hear from Ranger and the other guys in the next chapter.