Only You, Babe
Part 9
"Happy Birthday, Ranger," Stephanie whispered in his ear. "I know you're not sleeping." Stephanie crawled back in bed cuddling up to her very own full length Cuban operated warming blanket. He was laying there with a very serene expression on his handsome features. She let Koda back in the bedroom door after Ranger let him out.
An eye brow and eye went up, "Babe. I was just enjoying lying here with you in my birthday present basking in the glow of wake-up birthday sex."
"Well," Stephanie traced his lips with a manicured finger telling him seductively, "I'm glad I could start your birthday just right."
"Only you, Babe."
She reached under the bed setting a small package wrapped in black shiny paper on his stomach..
"What's this?"
"Open it," she encouraged Ranger.
He read the small card attached to the top. "From Babe and Koda."
"Thank you, Babe." He sat up a little seeing their Sheltie happy across the bottom of the bed. "Thank you, Koda."
He pawed the bed, but stayed in his comfortable spot.
He ripped off the black paper and opened a box. He just stared. His fingers went around the edge of the double frame. One side was a picture of Ranger, Stephanie, and Koda sitting on the beach at Point Pleasant when he returned. The other frame was an old postcard of a Cuban resort called 'Rancho San Vincente, Vinales, Cuba. On the mat around the postcard, Stephanie had a variety of vintage Cuban stamps with native birds and plants.
"I didn't know what you get a man who has everything," she said quietly hoping he liked it.
His dark eyes were glued to the frame in his hand and he wiped a tear, "This area where this resort was is where my grandparents were born. I don't know how you knew. I love this and the photograph of us."
"I didn't, but when I saw it on EBAY, I knew I had to have the winning bid. It fit you. Ranger. You are very proud of your Cuban heritage."
His hand cupped her cheek, "I have everything now I could possibly want. I have you."
Koda picked his tri-color, thick haired head up looking at Ranger.
"And a lazy Sheltie," he chuckled when the dog sighed and went back to sleep. "This perfect lake house for us you decorated. I don't need anything else."
She pouted, "I planned on kidnapping you and bringing you here for your birthday, but you just had to be nosy," she told him playfully tapping his nose with a finger, "so all you get is a day at the Washington Crossing's Juice and Jazz Festival," she mocked him still pouting and holding up two tickets from under her bedside lamp.
Stephanie blinked and she was down deep in the mattress, "Sounds perfect," midst a shower of kisses.
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It was a morning of roaming around booths of food, wares, tasting wines, and Jazz music. They shared a fresh apple dumpling with homemade vanilla ice cream from one booth and sampled pizza made on the grill.
Ranger directed them over to a booth where a woman was selling quilts. "Look, Babe."
She began studying the handiwork of the soft quilts hanging up. "These are beautiful."
"Thank you," Alma told them as her name tag from her booth indicated along with 'Quilts', not that you couldn't tell what she was selling. "I do all my own quilting at home instead of sending out my work as a lot of quilters do. Aren't you a sweet little thing," she petted a very accepting Sheltie of the attention.
"Oh, this is my favorite. Look, Ranger," Stephanie said showing him one fabric masterpiece of pale peach, blue, cream, and teal forming a large flower in the center and a checkerboard border of patches of the fabric.
It reminded him of the fabric colors Stephanie used for the seat covers. "We'll take it," handing her the wondrous black credit card. "Can we pick this up later?"
"Sure," Alma told Ranger handing him his card and receipt to sign. "Just give me a name and I'll have this ready in a bag for you later on."
"Stephanie," he said kissing his Babe's hand.
"Ranger, that was a lot of money," Stephanie whispered as they were walking away.
He gave her a damn sexy Cuban smirk, "Babe, what if we get cold in my birthday present?"
"Cold? You're the hot blooded Cuban sex god; we have little chance at that."
"My heat is only for you, Babe."
Lunch was under a tree off from the stone patio where 'Herbie's Jazz Band' were playing very contemporary versions of some Frank Sinatra songs and eating Philly cheese steaks grilled from a food booth.
Movement in the people caught his eye for what could have been Moses parting the crowds and flustered expressions on some women. Both Stephanie and Ranger stopped in a mid-chew as Lester in a navy sport coat, white sailing cap and pants with a red scarf tied at his neck and Bobby is wearing khaki pants with a blue and white striped button shirt with a white sweater draped over his broad shoulders stepped through the people.
"What are you?" Ranger could barely choke out the words. Koda was hiding partially behind Ranger.
"We're going yachting, My Good Man," Lester said with a bad Boston accent and tight jaws. He took a pipe out of his pocket posing with it between his lips.
Sailor Bobby added, "We may start our own yachting club."
Ranger gave Stephanie a bewildered expression and glanced down at Koda hiding his head under his paws turning back to 'Popeye' and his first mate, "You look gay."
"We're yachtsman," Lester replied from his stiff posture, "but we need the key to the yacht that is docked in the harbor."
"It's a pontoon boat in a lake!"
Stephanie dug a key out of her purse. She couldn't help the case of giggles her friends were giving her. "The boat key is inside the cupboard near the refrigerator on the first shelf."
"Got it," Lester said taking it. "Well, First Mate Robert, let's head to the schooner and chart a course."
"Where are we sailing to, Captain Lester?" Bobby asked ready for their voyage.
"Hmmmm, let's see," the Rangeman looked around. "Where can we go?" He spotted some horses in a field. "Let's sail to the Kentucky Derby. If Jack Nicholas can win the Masters at age 46, I can win the Kentucky Derby at 54."
Bobby corrected him, "You're 32, Captain."
"I know but that sounded better." He and Bobby turned tightly on their heels giving a "Ta Ta, My Good Man."
Stephanie called after them, "Happy sailing."
Ranger was shaking his head chuckling, "Do you think we should have let them know the Kentucky Derby was three months ago and they basically can't sail from here to there unless the make it to the Delaware River, sail down the Atlantic Ocean around Florida, up the Mississippi River, and into the Ohio River in a slow pontoon boat."
"Ranger, why burst their bubble," Stephanie giggled. "I'm hoping they weren't thinking of entering the boat in the race against the horses."
Wiping his eyes, "Maybe Santos got it confused and meant the 'America's Cup' sailing race."
They looked at each other saying at the same time, "More wine."
They watched the two sailor attired men disappear in the festival crowd going the way they came. "Babe, I think I need to change the employee benefits. Along with the required annual physical, I may require a mental health evaluation. I think those two have lost it."
"Ranger, do you really want to know what goes on in the minds of Bobby and Lester?" Stephanie questioned.
It sunk in and he shook his head, "No, come to think of it. I don't want to know because the professionals may discover there is nothing up there. This is a case of 'I don't need to know' for my mental health."
Stephanie was still laughing, "Think of it like this, Ranger, people take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they are not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost. Bobby and Lester just have detoured from reality."
"Babe, they qualify for your friend Mooner's Space Academy," he smirked shaking his loose hair. "Idiots."
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Coming through the small lake house, Stephanie, Ranger, and Koda found no evidence of the two sailors. He unlocked the back door holding it open for Stephanie. The black loungers, unopened cases of beer, duffels, and other things from Ranger's Bad Ass pick-up truck were sitting on the deck to come inside. Koda ran out before her and gave a 'Woof!' The blue and white pontoon was going across the lake. Music was blaring and there was a sign on the top of the awning over the steering wheel and seats 'RANGEMAN PARTY BOAT'. Dead astern in a big inner tube was Captain Lester with his white cap skimming the water as fast as the leisure boat would go. From the sound it stopped and a moment later started again coming across basically the same course, but now Bobby was lounging in the inner tube.
Ranger and Stephanie were cracking up.
"Maybe in their minds, Ranger, they're going faster."
"Or," he said bent over laughing, "at the Kentucky Derby. I wonder who came in first."
The pontoon boat came cruising back over the water with Bobby at the helm again and they watched Lester lose his balance off the inner tube and fall in the lake.
"Ranger, those are your foster children and they aren't even drinking yet," she teased.
His eyebrow was up looking at her, "How could I be so lucky?"
"Only you, Ranger."
