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Steph's POV
After Ranger leaves and I'm ready, I get in my car and drive to the office. When I get in Raph wants to see me. I walk into his office.
"What's up?" I ask lounging in the chair with my feet on his desk. He glares and I smirk, but remove my feet.
"General Adams called and he needs you to do a job," he informs me, "tomorrow morning eight sharp." I nod. I'll be leaving around the same time as Carlos. Maybe we'll both be gone at the same time. Which means not much time to miss each other.
"What will I have to do?" I ask. He shrugs.
"I'm not sure. I'll still need you to do a distraction job tonight," he tells me. "Should be easy." I nod.
"Sure thing boss," I say. "Oh, and someone's picking me up for lunch." He raises an eyebrow in question.
"You'll find out. The guys already have...except for Seeley," I say with a smirk. He nods.
"You have files on your desk. I want them by eleven," he orders. I salute.
"Smart ass." I walk out to my cubicle and get started on the files.
Ranger's POV
At eleven thirty I leave to pick up Steph. I drive to Shep's building. I am let in and I park. Steph comes out to greet me. She has a smile on her face. I wrap my arms around her and give her a kiss.
"They have camera's too," she tells me with a smile. I nod and she grabs my hand. She leads me to the elevator. We get off at the fourth floor where a bunch of guys are. It reminds me of the first time the guys met Steph. She is beaming.
"Guys, this is Ranger," she tells them. I looked at Shep and he just smiles.
"Good for you Steph!" I see a brown haired, brown eyed guy says with a smile.
"Thanks Seeley," she replies giving him a hug. I'm a bit jealous but I knew that she loves me. Michael steps up and gives her a hug. I can just barely make out what he says to her.
"Against my better judgment I'll be happy if you're happy," he says.
"Thanks," she says with a smile as he pecks her on the cheek. Keep calm Manoso. She's yours.
Steph's POV
The guys are surprisingly okay with it. That might be because I told most of them a couple days ago. I know Michael still isn't too happy but he told me he'd be happy if I was.
"We're going to lunch. See you later guys," I tell them with a smile and a wave. They all wave back and we ride to ground floor. I look over at Carlos who sends me a smile. He pulls me to him and gives me a kiss.
"Let's get out of here," he says and we get in his car. We drive to Shorty's. We order pizza and I am a little surprised to see Carlos eat it. I know he likes to eat healthy.
"I have to go away for a little while. But, I don't leave until tomorrow," I inform him. He nods.
"Well, at least we'll both be away doing something. So, we'll be too occupied to think about each other," he says with a grin that makes my heart melt. I nod, that's my thinking. I have no idea what I'll be doing on this mission. I don't know if I will get out alive. I hope I will so I can come back and see him again. He's another reason for me to get home safely.
Grey blue eyes filled with pain pops up in my head. I suck in a breath. Carlos looks at me questioningly. I can only hope he gets back as well. He has no clue though. No one does. I'll have to make sure that Raph will tell Ranger if I don't make it back. I will make it back, just to see him.
"I can take the rest of the day off until I have to do the distraction later. What do you have to do?" I ask taking a bite of pizza. He smiles.
"Since I own the company, I can do whatever I want," he tells me eating his own piece.
"That's great. We can spend as much time as we want with each other before I have to leave for the distraction job," I reply with a smile. God, I'm going to miss this. Miss us. Even though we haven't been together very long, it seems like a lifetime to me.
The hours pass all too quickly. We end up going back to my house. We take a walk on the beach. Holding hands and enjoying the company. We talk about our families. Our dreams. Our fears. I know I should tell him about my past. And, I will. Just not today. Not before we're about to go on these missions. For now, we just walk.
He tells me of the entertainment Lester provided when they were in the army. Apparently, they used to get lemonade on occasion and this one guy would always drink it all. Lester was getting fed up with it so he peed in the pitcher. That guy never drank the lemonade again. There were other stories some funny, some sad. I told Carlos of my days in the army. Nothing quite like that. I told him about my almost marriage to The Dick. I told him about Joe. I didn't tell him about those grey blue eyes. Can't. Not yet.
I am getting ready all too soon for the distraction job. I am supposed to get some lawyer out of a bar. He likes to wind down after work. I dress in my sophisticated slut outfit. I'm getting ready for the job when the doorbell rings. I rush down stairs with my lips half covered in red lipstick. I always run to the door. I hate feeling like I leave the person down there too long. I look out the peep hole and see Carlos standing there with a smile on his face. I open the door and let him in. He looks me up and down.
"Babe." I smile. He's still scanning me. I shake my head while rolling my eyes. Men.
"See something you like Batman?" I ask him playfully. He comes over to me in three long strides and has his arms around my waist.
"You have to go out looking like that?" he growls sexily. I nod. He presses his lips to mine.
"You're going to mess up my lipstick," I say with a grin. "I have to leave soon and I need to finish getting ready." I wipe the lipstick off his lips. He grins as I walk up the stairs. I go into the bathroom and finish my lipstick. I do my hair and put on my shoes. Once I am ready I find Ranger laying on my bed with his hands behind his head. His eyes are closed and it looks like he's sleeping. When he cracks open his eyes I know he was just resting. I grin and do a slow modeling twirl.
"Time to say farewell. I'll be back later," I tell him leaning over and giving him a quick kiss. He pulls me closer and really kisses me making a burning start low in my stomach. I pull back. He now has lipstick to match mine.
"I really have to go," I tell him. He sighs and nods. I grab my purse and reapply my lipstick before heading out the door. Carlos follows behind and goes to his house.
I get in my car and drive to the bar that is close to Sam Reynolds work. Sam Reynolds is the guy I'm supposed to distract. I park and set up my wire. I walk in and I see Michael as the bartender and Hank in one of the seats. They flash me smiles as I sit down and order a drink. The door opens and in walks Reynolds. He scans the bar and his eyes linger on me. It's always good if the skip will walk up to me. He walks over toward me and orders what I am drinking. A gin and tonic but without the gin. He gets the real stuff.
"This seat taken?" he asks with a smile that is supposed to be charming. He's average height, a little over weight, thinning hair and light icy blue eyes. It's a bit unnerving.
"No," I say batting my lashes. He grins and takes the seat beside me. Good boy. Maybe this will be quick. I want to spend as much time with Carlos as I can before being sent out.
"Amy," I tell him sticking out my hand. He takes it and brings it to his lips. I smile, blush and fake a tiny giggle. This makes him grin. Does he think this really works?
"Sam," he says sipping his drink.
"Do you come here often?" I ask. I knew it was a pretty dumb question to ask considering I knew he came here all the time, but I have a cover to uphold.
"Everyday. I'm a lawyer," he says swirling the liquid in his cup.
"That's impressive. I'm a secretary and I just dumped my boyfriend," I tell him taking another drink. "Found him cheating in the brand new sheets I bought. Saw this place on my way home from work and said, 'I deserve a drink.'"
"I don't have a girlfriend," he informs me putting his hand on my thigh. Ick! I wouldn't willingly touch this guy with a ten foot pole.
"Want to get out of here?" he asks grabbing my hand with his slimy one. I hide a grimace.
"I wouldn't mind," I say with a smile as phony as Dolly Parton's improvements. He slips a couple bills on the bar. He is pulling me out the door and he shoves me up against the wall. I knee him in the nuts and he goes down like a sack of bricks. The van comes by and picks him up. Micah looks at the poor schmuck.
"Did you have to nail him in the gonads?" Micah asks with a grimace. I shrug.
"Gotta do what you gotta do. See ya later Micah," I say with a smile. I get in my car and drive home where I know Ranger will be waiting.
Carlos' POV
An hour later Steph comes back. She lets herself into my house and finds me upstairs. She smiles at me and I pull her on to the bed. She gives me a kiss and tells me she'll be right back.
"Let me go slip into something a little more comfortable," she says with a seductive smile. She goes into the bathroom and she steps out a couple minutes later with a red teddy on. I grin and get off the bed. I wrap my hands around her and kiss her. She melts in my hands and we spend the hours we have together. Damn, I'm going to miss this. Hopefully, this mission won't take too long.
Steph's POV
In the morning we both get up at seven. I walk over to my house and get ready. I pack my bag light. I wonder what I will be doing on this mission. After I have my duffel packed I tuck my dog tags in my shirt. I sling my duffel over my shoulder and lock up the house. I get in my car and drive to the airfield where we all meet before a mission. There is an army helicopter waiting. General Adams is standing on the outside. I park my car and get out. I walk up to him.
"General Adams, sir, it's good to see you. Am I getting briefed on this mission?" I asked with a smile. He just chuckles.
"Iran, you are going on a retrieval and elimination mission. We have some good soldiers in there and we need them out. Most of the team is already inside. Stack of folders on the side. Read it and memorize it," he tells me. I salute but not in the smart ass way. I walk in and deposit my duffel where all the duffels go. I pick up a file and walk over to a seat. I sit down, cross my legs and open the file. I start reading. I feel a tingling on my neck. I look up but everyone has their heads in the files. I shake my head and go back to reading. A few minutes later the General comes on board with two men following him.