The characters in this story are the property of Janet Evanovich, I have just taken them out to play. Monopoly is registered to Hasbro/ Parker Brothers/ Waddingtons.

Thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed. I love to hear your thoughts.

"I see you found the clothes I bought for you, I hope you like them."

I jumped at the unexpected sound then turned with a grin to see Ranger standing there, he was dressed in a dark green jumper and jeans that fitted him to a tee finished off with a pair of black leather loafers and he looked incredible. I found corporate Ranger and dark mysterious street Ranger, sexy but this was something else entirely, I wasn't sure that I wasn't drooling and discreetly tried to check.

"Ranger this place is incredible; you said we were coming to a cabin not a country house; why are there clothes here for me, how long have you had this place; can I stay here and never go home?"

"Babe!"

I realised that I was developing a case of verbal diarrhoea and stopped. I looked closely at Ranger and could see the tiredness in his eyes, and realised how selfish I was being. While I had been curled up in his bed sleeping like a log, he had been working and probably hadn't had a good night's sleep since before his last mission.

"Sorry Ranger, but this place is amazing" I said and smiled sheepishly at him.

Ranger pulled me into his arms and held me tight as he nuzzled his face in my hair, while I rested my face against his jumper that was as soft as the one I had just been holding. I could stay like this for hours feeling the hardness of his body, the softness of his jumper and the smell of his Bvlargi.

All too soon Ranger stepped away and gave me a small smile, "Come on Babe, there are four men downstairs waiting to plan bringing in your FTAs.

It turned out that they had given up waiting and were downstairs in the games room playing a game on the TV that seemed to have no purpose to me but to shoot as many things as possible. Boys and their toys, and my boys at that I thought with a smile. I gave a Cal a finger wave; I had forgotten he had driven up with Ranger and waited for them to finish the level they were on.

Due to the fact it was half way through the afternoon the decision was made to pick up George and Daniel in the morning. According to Lester the two of them hadn't shown any sign of going anywhere, and the trip back to Trenton would be less demanding during the day. Hopefully by that point they would have also sobered up a bit or passed out, either way it would make it simpler. With that decided, the guys got back to their game leaving Ranger and me to our own devices.

"Come on Babe, let's go and explore the rest of the house."

I told him that I had already seen it all and he just smiled.

"Are you sure about that?" he asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Well, I've seen the rooms down here and on the main floor; I didn't check out the other bedrooms because I reckoned they were the guys' private space, so yeah I'm pretty sure I've seen everything. "

"I think you missed something on the main floor, so you might want to look again."

I looked at him quizzically; he just raised an eyebrow at me and smiled. Well if there was something else then I was determined to find it and why was he being so mysterious? I ran up the stairs and looked around. There was the main room, with the dining room off it. I knew that there was another door in the dining room that led to the kitchen and I could see the doors to the office, bathroom and mudroom. There was also the big solid carved wood door that opened to the front of the house but I couldn't see anything else. Ranger put his hands on my shoulders and turned me to the corner of the room where there was an alcove between the doors to the kitchen and mudroom. I hadn't thought much of it but if that was where Ranger was pointing me then that is where I would look. As I got close I realised it wasn't an alcove but an opening to a short corridor that led to another room.

It turned out to be a large spa room with a sauna in the corner. The spa was big enough to hold half a dozen Rangemen in comfort and the views out were amazing. I had never seen snow this bright and in the last of the afternoon sun it was the most beautiful sight I had ever seen. I could only imagine what it would look like the rest of the year when the snow cleared. This had quickly become my second favourite room in the house. Between the bath upstairs and the spa I could see myself turning into a prune, but I was willing to live with that. I heard a chuckle from behind me,

"Babe, much as I love prunes I would prefer you not to look like one. But if you want to try it then there are a couple of bathing costumes in your room."

"Only if you join me" I said as my mouth engaged before my brain.

I turned bright red and turned away from Ranger in embarrassment. His arms came around me, and his mouth moved close to my ear,

"I'd love to join you Babe." He said in a husky voice.

That was it, another pair of underwear ruined. A little voice in the back of my head reminded me that this was Ranger and we still hadn't had the talk and that I needed to tell him what I had decided on the drive up here. Ranger could tell that I had mentally backed away from him and turned me round in his arms, he moved his hands up, held my face in them and looked deep into my eyes almost as if he was looking into my soul. Obviously he found what he was looking for because he gave me a small smile and a tender kiss on the forehead.

"Come on let's go and start dinner, I think the spa can wait for now."

As I watched Ranger move around the kitchen gathering ingredients I wondered if there was anywhere that he didn't fit in, well other than the Burg that was. But that was fine because I knew that I didn't fit in there either. He put a bowl and some vegetables in front of me and handed me a knife, "just chop these into diced pieces about an inch should do it and put them in the bowl." As I chopped, with some difficulty due to the restricted movement of my arm, I gave some more thought to the changes I wanted to make to my life and to the people in it. I was thinking about Joe when I realised Ranger was trying to get my attention.

"Babe, looking a bit dangerous there."

I realised that I had stopped chopping the potatoes and started stabbing them; obviously my subconscious had some issues with Joe that it was taking out on them. I gave Ranger a small smile and decided that now was as good a time as any to see if he could help.

"Ranger, I've been thinking and I want to make some changes, I'm not sure if you can help me, but maybe you'll have some ideas. Can I talk to you about it?"

"Sure Babe, This will have to cook for a couple of hours, we can go to my office. Do you want to involve the others?"

"Not at the moment. Maybe later after I've talked to you."

"This doesn't have anything to do with the way you were attacking that potato does it." He asked with a raised eyebrow

I gave him a small smile, "maybe a little."

Ranger pulled me to him and gave me a hug, "I hope you're not planning on bringing that knife for our talk."

"I don't think that will be necessary unless you're planning on inviting Joe."

Ranger held me at arm's length and looked at me with his blank face in place. I realised at that point I had ESP, the message was coming across loud and clear, even without visual clues, that there was no way that Joe would ever step foot within 200 feet of this house. I could also tell he was a bit intrigued by what I was going to talk to him about. This thought made me feel warm inside, I had a connection with Ranger that was strong enough for me to know what he was thinking. I had always had a physical connection to him and could sense when he was around but this was something deeper and I felt happier than I had in a long time. I knew we still hadn't had the talk, and even if he didn't love me like I loved him, I knew he would still be my closest friend. I saw the blank face lift as he obviously saw something in mine and my Ranger was back.

The sizzle from the pan drew Rangers attention and I finished chopping the vegetables and gave them to him. He added them to the meat and spices already in the pot, the rich spicy smell already making me feel hungry and I could only imagine what it would taste like when the flavors had a chance to blend.

"Come on Babe, I have something that will keep you going til dinner." Ranger laughed as I dragged myself away from the pot. He was holding a plate that contained three muffins and a couple of bottles of water, what more could a girl want a sexy guy and muffins.

"Babe!"

I could feel my cheeks go red, Oops, obviously I had said that aloud, oh well, I stand by it. I wandered out of the kitchen and across the main room with Ranger following me shaking his head. Once we got to his study I suddenly realised that this was his room, possibly his sanctuary from the world and I was invading it as though it was mine. I stopped and gnawed my bottom lip waiting for him to say something,

"It's OK Babe, you're welcome in here any time, how about I light the fire and we sit in the reading chairs."

There goes the ESP again, but I was happy to sit and watch Ranger start the fire. The way he moved highlighted his toned physique as his clothes pulled taut across his body and his jeans molded to him and reminded me yet again of that incredible night. Once he was happy that the fire was properly set, he stood and turned to face me, "Anything else you would like before I sit Babe?"

I grabbed my water from the table and shook my head, "I'm fine Ranger, I just have one thing to ask, can you wait to the end of what I need to say before you answer me, I've been practising what I want to say in my head and I'm afraid I won't get it out right otherwise?"

Ranger sat and leant over taking hold of my hands, "Sure Babe, this is obviously important to you so it's important to me."

Ranger's close proximity to me was starting to scramble my brain, so I slipped my hands out of his and sat back taking a deep breath. Ranger gave me a heart warming smile and sat back giving me space.

"I've been thinking that I need to make some changes in my life, I need to work out who I am and what I want to do with my life. I have everyone telling me who I am and how I should act, who I should talk to and what sort of job I should have. It's got to the point that I've lost my way, I know I enjoy bounty hunting and to do that I need to get training and be less impetuous but I'm not sure if you and the guys are the best people to train me."

I paused at this point to see how Ranger had taken that last comment and was confused; he had an enigmatic look that I couldn't read but at least it wasn't the blank face he normally used if he didn't like something.

"I know all the Rangemen would do anything for me, but they don't want to do anything to provoke you and if I got hurt they know there would be repercussions. I need to be able to learn about me and what I can do with someone that doesn't have preconceived ideas about me, I want to be someone you can be proud of Ranger. I will understand if you can't or don't want to help."

I couldn't look at Ranger, would he think I wasn't worth the effort and that he wouldn't help me. I was rolling my water bottle in my hands and staring at the floor when one hand took my bottle from me and a finger hooked my chin and lifted my face so that I was looking at him. I was surprised at the look on his face, he was smiling and there was something more.

"I'm proud of you babe, proud that you know what you want and proud to be the one that you asked for help. As much as it pains me I know you are right, that I am probably not the person to help."

My face fell at the thought he wasn't going to help me.

"Babe let me finish, I may not be the right person but I think I know someone who would be, let me make a couple of calls and I'll tell you more. For the time being I think we should keep this to ourselves."

Ranger stood pulling me up with him, he pulled me tightly to him and we stood not saying anything, just enjoying the moment. Ranger broke the contact to move back a fraction and placed a gentle kiss on my lips. "How about you stay here and have a muffin while I go and check on the dinner?"

My reply was a roar from my stomach as it made its feelings heard. Ranger laughed a great laugh that vibrated through him and gave my body ideas it shouldn't have. I moved away and grabbed a muffin deciding that it was the safest option for the time being. I knew it was healthy but Ella had managed to make it taste as though it was full of fat and sugar. I watched as the back of Ranger moved out of my sight enjoying it to the last moment. I turned my thoughts back to the muffin in my hand and the conversation with Ranger. I wondered who he had in mind. I knew that he would tell me soon enough and whoever he chose would be the best.

My stomach reminded me that it was waiting for the muffin in my hand and who was I to ignore my stomach. The first muffin went down so well I followed it with a second and then the last on the plate. With that important task out of the way I took a closer look at the books Ranger had in his office. A lot of the books involved war or military strategy and biographies of great soldiers which I skipped over but there were also great classics like Lord of the Rings and Charles Dickens. Tucked in a corner I found a book of Sherlock Holmes stories. I got comfortable in the chair and was soon engrossed; not realising what time it was until Ranger came to tell me dinner was ready.

The stew was incredible and I struggled not to moan too much. I could tell from the looks on the guys faces that I wasn't having much luck. There was even dessert, tres leches cake, I thought I loved pineapple upside down cake but this was even better. Everyone but Ranger excused themselves, I don't think they could cope with my moaning; Ranger just shook his head at me. I shrugged my shoulders, hey I was too busy eating to talk, and started on my second piece. Once I finished I helped Ranger put everything in the dishwasher and joined the guys downstairs.

Ranger had said that he had some calls to make so Lester decided we should play Monopoly. They decided to take pity on me as the last time I had played a war game with them I had been annihilated before I realized we had started much to Lester's amusement. This turned out to be a bad idea, it started off alright and then the guys started making up their own rules. First they paired up and combined properties, so that I had to pay both of them when I landed on one of their squares, then they decided that more than one hotel was allowed and just multiplied the amount owed by the number of hotels they had on the square. This was followed by trying to knock hotels off squares with the dice; if you succeeded you got the hotel. Before long I was broke and the game had turned into battle for the board. Tank and Cal finally won when Bobby landed on Boardwalk where Tank and Cal had managed to stack ten hotels. I added it to the list of games that I wouldn't play with them. I was tired and my arm was starting to hurt, so I said goodnight. Bobby asked if I needed pain relief which I declined as I still had some upstairs in the kitchen. I was getting a drink of water to take my tablets with when Ranger came in.

"Babe, I've talked to someone who I know, they're willing to help you and I think the two of you will get on well. They are coming to Rangeman tomorrow afternoon so you can meet them. I can't tell you much more at the moment. "

"Thank you for helping me Ranger; I wasn't sure who else to ask."

"Any time Babe, remember there's no price."

I yawned as another wave of tiredness hit me.

"Come on Babe, it's time for bed," Ranger announced as he swung me up in his arms and carried me to the stairs.

"Ranger, I can walk."

"I know Babe, but I like to hold you, would you like some company tonight, just sleeping nothing more?" His gravelly tone sent shivers down my spine and I held on a bit tighter.

"I'm sure I can find room in my bed for you." I murmured back.

Ranger carefully placed me on the bed in my room, "I'll be back shortly Babe, I just need to change."

While he was gone I changed into one of his shirts that I had 'borrowed' and did what I needed in the bathroom. When I came out Ranger was lying on top of the bed wearing a pair of grey track pants.

I slipped between the sheets, "you're going to get a bit cold if you don't join me." I yawned.

In one fluid movement he had stood, pulled back the sheet and slid in next to me. "We can't have that" he whispered as his arm went round me and pulled me to him. I wrapped myself around him, gave him a kiss on his chest and went to sleep feeling that for once all was right with the world.

I woke to the feeling of fingers running up and down my arm just above the plaster and tilted my eyes up to look into a pair of dark brown almost black eyes. Ranger tilted my chin up and gave me a gentle kiss that was rapidly turning into something more when we were interrupted by banging on the door.

Lester's voice came from the other side of the door he obviously hadn't realized that Ranger was with me, "Come on sleeping beauty, are you awake or do you need Prince Lester to give you a wake up kiss?"

"Santos, mats at 0500 tomorrow" shouted Ranger.

I heard an "Oh Shit" from Lester and laughter from Bobby, Cal and Tank. I smiled at Ranger. "I think the mob is restless. We better go settle them down."

I looked at the clock, it was half past seven and Ranger was still in bed. Then I remembered that this was the first good night's sleep he had been able to have in a while and I was glad he wanted to spend it with me. He slid out of bed, and with a quick kiss and "I'll see you down stairs shortly, Babe" he was gone. I took my time in the shower, it was a good as it looked, and got dressed ready to help the guys pick up George and Daniel.

When I got downstairs, everyone was in the kitchen eating breakfast. Ranger had made sure the seat next door to him was empty and that Lester was sat at the other end of the table. There was a covered plate and when I lifted the lid I gave a happy smile. There was a pile of pancakes, Ok they didn't have syrup on them but there was stewed berries and cream, so I was happy.

"How come we don't get pancakes?" whined Lester.

"Cause I'm special and you're not" I said with a mouth full of food.

Lester stuck his tongue out at me and the others laughed. We cleaned up the breakfast things and got ready to move out. I was having a last look wishing we could have stayed for longer when Ranger came up behind me with a bag.

"Don't worry Babe, we can come back here again and stay for longer."

I turned and gave him a hug and then I realized what the bag he had in his hand was. With all the food that I had eaten I hadn't needed to raid my secret stash. He just shook his head and muttered something about me having Ella wrapped around my little finger. I grinned, waved my little finger at him and headed to the garage. This time Tank and Cal were sharing a vehicle, leaving me to travel with Ranger. I made sure that on the way out I looked at the outside of the house. It looked beautiful sitting in the snow and I could imagine it when the snow had cleared. I knew I had to come back.

Half an hour later we were sitting just down the road from George and Daniel. Earlier reconnaissance had told the guys there was a back door so Tank and Bobby were going to head there while Cal, Lester and Ranger were going in the front. I was staying in the vehicle because the guys decided I needed to protect my arm and they didn't want me slipping in the snow. They had given me an earpiece so I could hear what was going on.

It turned out that George and Daniel were outside the back of the cabin getting ready to go hunting. When they had seen Tank and Bobby and realized what they were there for they had decided to make a run for it. In their hurry to get away George had tripped while holding his gun, breaking his ankle and having forgotten to put the safety on had discharged the gun. The resulting shot had hit Daniel grazing his arm.

After they had both been treated by Bobby they were loaded in the SUVs and taken to the local hospital for further care while Ranger and I drove back to Trenton. Ranger was in his zone and I peered out of the window wondering about the person that he thought could help me. I was sure that who ever this guy was they probably ate grass and exercised at some ridiculous time of the morning but Ranger had never been wrong before so I knew I had to trust him.