Sorry this one took a little longer, life got in the way. They're still not mine, I'm not making any money.

CHAPTER 8

"Here we are," said Hal, parking the Bronco in front of Trenton Memorial Hospital.

"I assume you know where we're going," I said, as we walked through the front doors.

"Yeah. Fourth floor, waiting room C."

"Alright then, lead the way."

Walking into the waiting room, I saw it was set up like most other waiting rooms except it was very pink. And it had lots of books on being pregnant and brochures with pictures of fetuses...which I must say, really aren't that attractive. Flicking through one, while Hal picked up the paperwork I needed to fill out, I found one of a 6 week old fetus.

"So, that's what you look like." I said softly.

"Here you are, Bombshell," said Hal, startling me.

"Oh, thanks Hal."

There were a bunch of pages, but most of it was pretty standard stuff. It only took me a few minutes to fill out my information, but I had no idea how to answer a few of the questions on Morelli. I didn't want to call him to get the information, but I had a feeling things like his medical history and blood type could come in handy.

"Hey, Hal?" I said in a singsong voice.

"Yeah, Bomber?"

"Could you call control for me and have them do a search on Morelli? I need his social security number, blood type, medical history, and current address."

"Sure thing," he said dialing. Moments later, he started spouting off the information, and I was done with my paperwork.

I took it up to the receptionist and rolled my eyes as she told me that the doctor would see me in a few minutes. Then, to my amazement, not ten minutes later, a nurse was poking her head through a door and calling my name.

"Here we go, kiddo," I muttered.

The nurse handed me one of those open-backed gowns they make you wear, so I changed quickly. I'd spent a few minutes in the flowery examining room before a petite red-headed woman walked in.

"Hi, I'm Dr. Emma Cooper." she said extending her hand.

"Stephanie Plum…call me Steph," I said.

"Alright, Steph, why don't we get started. Today, we're just going to do a routine physical to check things out and I'm going to prescribe some pre-natal vitamins."

That said, she started in on the poking and prodding, the whole time she was asking me questions about myself and my habits. She seemed a little concerned about my job and my history as the Bombshell Bounty Hunter, until I told her I'd be chained to a desk for about the next year. Half an hour later, she seemed satisfied with whatever she had been looking for or at.

"Well, Steph, you seem to be doing great. Since you're in good shape now and were doing some rather intense physical training before realizing you were pregnant, I'd advise that you continue with some form of exercise. Maybe, light jogging until you begin to show, then walking or swimming."

"Ungh, and here I thought pregnancy was my 'get out of exercise free' card," I complained.

"Trust me, staying physically fit will make your pregnancy and delivery much easier. That's about it for now, you'll need to schedule another appointment for next month some time and we'll check things out again and maybe do an ultrasound."

"Okay, thanks," I said as she left me to get dressed again.

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When I walked back into the waiting room, Hal looked at me expectantly, but I didn't say anything. We made it all the way back to the Rangeman building before he broke.

"So, how'd it go?" he asked, sounding like he thought this job had gone way too easily, and I guess it had considering I was involved.

"Great, the baby and I are healthy and Dr. Cooper's very nice. She said, so far, I've been doing great at being a mom, but I have to start doing light exercises to stay in shape."

"Awesome," he said, then saw my confused face and explained, "I can't wait to tell the guys that placed bets on something going wrong today. A successful trip had really low odds considering my 'Bombshell history'" he said, grinning as we parted ways. I just shook my head…again with the betting on my life.

Making my way to my cubicle, I saw it was about 4:30, so I had time to do a few quick searches before the day was over.

At quarter after five, I took the elevator to the 7th floor, thinking I'd change into something more comfortable and grab a nap before heading down to have dinner with Ella. Those plans disappeared as soon as I walked through the apartment door.

Someone had added 'homey' touches all over the apartment. There were books on the bookshelf, magazines on the coffee table, and fresh flowers. Exploring, I found things like funny magnets and a calendar on the fridge and cozy looking throw blankets on the couch and chairs in the sitting room. Everything combined to make the apartment look lived in, but that wasn't what stopped me short.

On the walls and different surfaces there were pictures! Looking carefully, I noticed they were a mixture of pictures of Ranger and the guys, Ranger and me, and me and the guys. Wandering through the apartment, I stopped to look at them all. It didn't take me long to see that they were taken from the security tapes from the building. Someone had gone through the tapes and frozen pictures. They all touched me, but the one I found on the bedside table was by far my favorite.

It was Ranger and I. I could tell it was from the morning he left, because we were in the parking garage and he was in all black combat gear and I was in an over sized black t-shirt, tied at my waist to show black boxers with a yellow batman logo on the butt. It must have been right after I had kissed him senseless, because we were holding onto one another and the emotion on our faces (yep, Ranger too) nearly took my breath away.

'Maybe, just maybe' my heart whispered to me, 'you still have a chance with him.'

Holding the frame, I gave myself a few moments to dwell on how much I missed him and how worried I was, before heading for the elevator to go find Ella and thank her. This had to be her handiwork.

After giving a quick knock on the door to the 6th floor apartment, I went in and it didn't take me long to find Ella in the kitchen making dinner. Walking over to her, I whispered a croaky 'thank-you' before wrapping her in a hug as a few tears escaped.

"Shush, now dear," Ella said, holding me to herself as she rocked us slightly. "You mentioned that the apartment was a little bare and the boys and I noticed how you've been missing Ranger, so we decided to do something to celebrate your first doctor's visit. How'd things go with the doctor?"

"Oh, Ella, it was great. The she's so nice, and she didn't make me feel at all bad about being a single mom and not having a clue about what to do with a baby. Mostly she told me it was still way too early in the game to worry about that."

"You see, dear. There was nothing to be nervous about. I'm glad to hear you and baby are doing well. Now why don't you set the table, while I finish up with dinner. It shouldn't be a minute."

"Okay."

Two hours later, I made it back upstairs and took another tour of the apartment, looking at all the pictures. The clock read eight o'clock, so I changed into sweats before browsing the titles that had been left on the bookshelf. Finding a sappy romance with a cover model that could pass for a Merry Man, I curled up on the couch to read.

Next thing I knew, something was pulling me from a deep sleep. Taking stock, I realized it was the all too familiar nausea, and I made a bee-line for the bathroom. Ella's a great cook, but experience had taught me her food definitely doesn't taste good going both directions. I really can't wait for this 'morning' sickness to be over!

After cleaning out my mouth, I curled up in bed and drifted off to sleep again.

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"Nope. Sorry Bombshell," Woody was saying four weeks later, but the look on his face told me he wasn't sorry at all.

"Are you sure?" I pleaded.

"I'll measure again, but your stomach hasn't grown. You're not showing, that means you gotta jog."

"I hate jogging," I grumbled, as I took off around the indoor track of the Rangeman gym. I hadn't realized what a slip of the tongue it would be telling Hal the doctor told me to get exercise. He had told the other guys, and they had taken it upon themselves to be my enforcers. Apparently, they thought if Ranger came home and found out they let me disregard the doctor's orders, that they'd be toast.

Once I had jogged a full mile (that's right, they make the pregnant woman jog a mile) Woody let me head upstairs to change before lunch and my nap. Luckily, the guys had noticed that jogging puts me in need of a nap…or maybe they had picked up on it making me tired and cranky, either way, we had a routine going. Work in the morning, jog, lunch, nap, work in the afternoon. On odd days, I still spent an hour with Hector in the gun range, and I could now hold 'mini-conversations' in Spanish.

Digging through the fridge after my shower, I found a container of left-over whole-wheat pasta from dinner the night before. Picking it up, I found a note from Ella, telling me to heat some up for lunch and that there was a fresh container of vanilla frozen yogurt in the freezer. That was my little indulgence since I found it was a sweet the baby and I could compromise on.

"Okay, baby, you ready for some lunch? We're gonna have a really quick cooking lesson. I know you've been listening when Aunt Ella has been trying to teach me to cook, but this is how cooking was really meant to be done."

With that I scooped a blob of pasta onto a plate and popped it into the microwave. When the timer went off, I gave the temperature a quick test and dug in.

"And that is how you do it," I said, giving my tummy a satisfied rub, when I was done. "Lets just pop the plate in the dishwasher and then it's nap time!"

Climbing into bed, I scolded myself as I felt a sigh escape my lips. I was making an effort to be cheery while at work, but the truth was I'm still missing Ranger, though I didn't often give myself the luxury of admitting it. Steeling my mind against hopes for his return and worry for his and the guys' safety, I forced myself to relax until I drifted to sleep.

An hour later I was back at my desk, digging through the past of one Willie Gunns. He had changed identity so many times, putting the pieces together was turning out to be a challenge. It seems he's a career criminal having done a little bit of everything and I was just tracking down the info Vinnie can't be bothered with before bonding someone out.

"Dammit," I cursed softly as I hit another wall concerning this guy's prison time.

"Having some trouble, Bomber?" asked Hal chuckling, causing me to look up from my screen.

"Nothing I can't handle," I reassured him. "What's up?"

"Just wanted to remind you, your next doctor's appointment is early next week."

"Thanks. You taking me again?"

"Yeah, the guys said since I did so well last time I get another turn. Not that I don't want to go or anything," he covered quickly, "but their offering heavy odds that something will happen this trip since the last one went so well."

"I could go by myself, you know."

"Uh huh," he said, giving me a look that clearly told me how likely that was to happen.

I had sort of gotten the feeling that, not only had Ranger and the guys told me to be careful and take care of the baby, but they had impressed the importance of doing the same on the rest of the Rangemen. They can be over-bearing, but mostly I try to be glad to have so many self-appointed 'big brothers' watching out for me.

"Okay, thanks for reminding me," I said.

Once Hal was gone, I went back to my searches, loosing track of time until my stomach rumbling caused me to look at the clock. Quarter of six, guess I better stop for the evening. A quick perusal of some news sites and I shut down my computer. There was still nothing that screamed 'Ranger was here' so my mind was laid slightly to ease for another day. No news is good news, right?

Making my way to the elevator, I pushed the button for six. I'd stop in and see Ella before going upstairs, then out for the night. The girls and I were having a 'girls night in' since Lenny took the boys fishing and Mare had the weekend off. Normally, we would go clubbing, but I wasn't sure how that would mix with pregnancy so we were having a sleep-over at Connie's.

"Helllloooo," I sang out as I walked into Ella's apartment.

"In the kitchen, dear," I heard.

Walking through the living room in to the kitchen, I found Ella mixing and stirring and doing other cooking stuff that I couldn't identify. I gave her a quick squeeze, then got out of her way, plopping myself in a kitchen chair to watch while we visited.

"How's your nephew doing?" I asked when I noticed a lull in the cooking activity. After seeing ET, her nephew had tried to fly his bike, but ended up with a broken leg and cracked ribs.

"Oh, much better," she replied, chuckling. "My dear baby sister thought she was in the clear since he's off bed rest, but she didn't consider the difficulty of making a 9 year old boy use crutches."

"At least he's free," I said, sympathizing with the kid, having experienced bed rest and broken bones after the garage roof incident.

"I suppose so," Ella conceded, turning back to a pot that suddenly started making a somewhat frightening bubbling noise. "Are you still on with the girls for tonight?"

"Yep and I can't wait. It feels like forever since I've seen them."

We chatted for a while longer, then I headed upstairs to pack the stuff I would need. It was 6:30, so I had to hurry, Lula would be here to pick me up at 7 and I definitely didn't need her storming the building if she was kept waiting. That in mind, I threw clothes, toothbrush, hairbrush, makeup, etc in my bag then dashed into the living room to grab some movies. Thinking of Ranger's extensive collection I'd offered to bring a few along. Browsing over the shelf I grabbed Die Hard, Saving Private Ryan, The Patriot, and S.W.A.T. when I noticed some movies that definitely weren't Ranger's.

"Aunt Ella strikes again," I said to the baby, while grabbing some of the DVD's Ella had clearly picked up for me. Love Actually and The Princess Bride would do if the girls and I needed a 'chick flick'

Looking at the clock, I saw it was ten after seven, so I grabbed my bags and made a dash for the elevator. Considering Lula was chronically 15 minutes late, I had five minutes to make it to the garage. Any longer and she'd be near-Rhino Mode at being kept waiting.

At exactly 7:14 I heard the distant thumping of the base on Lula's stereo system and a full minute later her Firebird pulled up to the gate. I pressed the button to remote the gate open and waited for her to turn around in the garage.

"Girl-friend, get your still-skinny white ass in this car right now!" Lula yelled as I was walking towards the car. "We're gonna have some fun tonight!"

"Oh, God," I said in mock horror as I climbed in. Lula peeled out of the garage and I cranked the stereo up the last notch it could go before we started screaming along. I was really looking forward to tonight.

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Four hours later, we were taking a break from our action movie marathon and fixing some more snacks when the subject I had been dreading was brought up.

"Soooo," started Connie, "have you talked to Joe since 'The Talk'?" she said referring to my last disastrous discussion with Joe nearly five weeks ago. I really didn't want to talk about it, especially since it had taking about two weeks for the girls to stop turning into a pack of raging banshees at the slightest mention of Joe's name once I told them about our little chat.

"Nope," I said. Short and sweet, keep it short and sweet.

"Steph," said Mare, in a patient voice, "whether he wants to admit it or not, it's his baby too. Make him take some responsibility."

"It's not his baby."

"I knew it!" shouted Lula. "It is a BatBaby!"

"Okay, okay…technically, genetically it is Joe's child also, but it's my baby and I want him to have as little to do with it as possible. If he never admits its existence I'll be perfectly happy."

"What are you gonna do when Angie Morelli and Bella find out?" asked Connie. "You know they aren't gonna dismiss a grandbaby like that."

"I'm not so sure about that Connie. Joe's married to a nice, Catholic girl and they're producing their own 'grandbaby.' I'm wondering how the Morelli women are going to take Joe's illegitimate child by the ex-girlfriend they put so much effort into praying would never become a part of their family."

"It is the perfect set up for one of those 'Burg scandals' that will be whispered of for years and never talked about," sighed Mare. "I always knew you had it in you."

"Huh?" asked Lula, who wasn't familiar with the ways of the Burg.

"Steph refuses to act Burg, and Morelli's decided to settle down and have a nice Burg family," explained Connie. "By now all the dirt on their breakup and Steph's pregnancy is common knowledge, but no one is going to call Steph, Joe, or either of their families on it. Mrs. Morelli'll ignore it and hold her head up, daring anyone to bring up her Joseph's wild past and 'love child.' Steph's mom will either accept it or cut Steph off, and do like Mrs. Morelli, daring anyone to bring it up."

"Sheeeiit," said Lula, once Connie was done.

"Yep," agreed Mare. "Speaking of which, Steph, how's your mom doing?"

"Well, I still haven't been invited back for Sunday dinners, but I called Val the other day on her cell while she was grocery shopping with Mom and I saw a glimmer of hope. She told Val to ask me how I'm feeling and suggested I drink fruit juice to get my sugar levels up when she heard I was feeling tired."

"That's great, Honey!" said Mare. "She's coming around, just give her some more time."

And on that cheery note, we all picked up our snack of choice (mine being the only one involving vegetables) and headed back into the living room to resume our movies.

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A/N: Hope everyone's enjoying the story, I'm having fun writing it. Review and tell me what you think!