Okay, so I'm a bad updater...Sorry for the very long wait. I thought about not posting this chapter and rewriting, but nothing ever came. So here's the chapter. It might be a little raw/ confusing and possibly changed after my awesome beta gets a chance to look at it (you're fantastic already for putting up with me, even if we didn't get to bounce ideas off each other for this chapter). I hope you guys like this chapter! In all honesty, this story is coming completely out of left field since I hadn't planned on writing more than the first part, but I'm proud of it. I hope you guys enjoy this and later chapters (hopefully the decision process won't take as long!) and if you don't, too bad. I love writing too much to stop.

Not mine. Thank God, it's too much pressure. But more power to the amazing Janet Evanovich

Six months later…

"Lula! NO GUNS!" Sheesh. She hasn't changed much.

It's been six months since I turned Ranger down. A few days later, I went back to Montana and my denial land. I realized that I went to Montana in the first place so I could live in denial land. In Montana, there was no constant reminder that Ranger was married, so he just didn't exist. But I didn't live in denial long. Two months later, my mother had a second attack, only this time, she barely made it. I quickly moved home to take care of my father and grandmother, knowing that neither would be able to handle anything.

Val was a wreck. Of course, that could've been the pregnancy hormones. Yep, my sister and Albert were pregnant…again. I think they should've cut them off a while ago, but hey, that's me.

Getting back to the present, Tank and Lula worked out their differences and finally got married. I was there. It was a nice quiet ceremony. Something to envy.

When I got back to Trenton, I took my old job back. Vinnie gladly gave it to me, saying that I was better than Joyce and Lula combined. I think he was trying to sell it, but he really didn't have to. I worried at first that I would run into Ranger and that it would be awkward now, considering that he was now a free man and we both knew that the other was in love with each other, but it wasn't.

That's because he moved to Miami. Permanently.

Tank said it had nothing to do with me, but I knew that he was a big fat liar. But I took the lie to make him happy.

"Sheesh, white girl, can't I just shoot the mother…"

"NO!"

"Okay, okay, we'll play by your rules."

"The skip had out ran us a long time ago anyway. What were you going to shoot?"

"Hunh."

"Come on, I'll take you back."

I dropped Lula back at the bonds office and went back to my apartment. I was surprised as you were when I found out that the lease was still in my name. Tank said that he was paying the rent, but again I knew he was lying. I smelled Bulgari on the fresh sheets. And since one man smells that good, I put two and two together.

I sighed as I plopped onto my bed. They still smelled like him. I cuddled into the sheets as a few tears slipped for the man that got away.

I was woken some time later by the phone ringing?

"Hello?"

"Stephanie?"

"Tank? What's wrong? Is Lula okay?"

"She's fine. Look, it's Ranger."

My heart stopped beating.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know. I'm picking you up and then we're meeting at the hospital."

"Which one?"

He paused. "Florida Hospital."

I almost fainted. They were ranked one of the best for Neurosurgery in America.

"I'm pulling up. Let's go."

I raced down and jumped into the car. Twenty minutes later, we were on the Rangeman plane.

"There's a bag of emergency clothes in the compartment above your head."

I looked. "They're in my size."

Hal blushed. Oops, I was holding underwear. More importantly, a thong.

"Ranger?"

"Made sure there was a bag for you. Just in case."

I nodded, my throat suddenly closed. I changed into the jeans and t-shirt, leaving the clean pair of undies for when I needed to change them. I didn't know how long I was going to be down there with Ranger. I fell asleep for the rest of the ride, praying that he was going to be okay.

Tank woke me when we landed and we drove off into the night in the Rangeman supplied SUV. Everything is a blur from there.

"You need to sign these."

"That's for next of kin." I said to the nurse, but she wasn't paying attention.

"That's you."

"He's got sisters, and a brother…and a mother…even his daughter."

She sighed. "Are you not Stephanie Manoso?"

I gaped at her then at Tank who nodded. "Yes." I said quietly.

"Then that's you." She shoved the papers at me.

"Sign them Manoso." Tank said quietly, when I started the 'P'.

"Right. I knew that." When I got through all of them, I handed them back to the huffy nurse.

Tank and I took seats where she directed us and I never moved. Tank got up to call Lula and others of the core team, as well as Ranger's family. Soon the waiting room started to fill up with Merry Men Miami and Atlanta along with Rachel and Julie. Julie came over and hugged me tightly.

"He'll make it, Stephanie. Ranger loves you too much to let you go now."

I almost cried, but hugged Julie closer to me.

Lester, Bobby and Maria came in a few hours later. She was clutching Lester's hand tightly. It made me smile that she wasn't as emotionally stunted as I was.

We were waiting almost twenty hours when the doctor came out. I was so slap happy I almost called him McDreamy, since he looked so much like Patrick Dempsey.

"Mrs. Manoso?" Holy crap, he sounds like him too! A giggle escaped as I stood up. Behind me, everyone else stood to hear the news.

"Mr. Manoso suffered a moderate intracranial injury. This is one step down from a mild concussion, but still risky. He's got some swelling and we're controlling that. He hasn't woken up yet, but that's common. We'll be monitoring your husband very closely. He's not out of the woods just yet, but we're expecting him to make a full recovery. You can go in and sit with him if you'd like."

I nodded and followed him in. When we reached his room, Ranger looked pale and had tubes and wires all over the place. I listened to the monitors telling me that his heart was still beating. It calmed me.

Dr. Shepherd…okay, Dr. Williams nudged me in and told me to talk to him. He shut the door behind him. I sighed and moved the chair closer to the bed and took his hand.

"Now I'm your wife? Make up your mind, will ya?" I joked. Or at least I tried to joke. "Ranger, it's Stephanie." I rolled my eyes at that. "Of course you know it's me. Right now, you'd say 'Babe' with a half smirk on your face tell me that I amused you."

I looked at his hand and stroked it. "I moved home. Did you know that? Of course you did. You're Batman.

"You know, if you wanted to see me, you could've called." I wiped a few tears away. "I know a phone works both ways, but, I just couldn't pick it up. I thought about it. A lot. It's pretty scary how many times I picked it up just to say hi."

I looked up at the monitors. Nothing changed. His heart rate was beating melodically.

I was silent for a moment, wondering what else to say. An hour later, I had to pee.

"I'll be back." I said, kissing him on the lips. The heart monitor jumped, but went back into its original pace.

I ran to the bathroom and came back to the room. He still looked peaceful and asleep.

"I've missed you so much. I never thought that I would miss anyone, but here I do. It was easier in Montana, but that's because every where I turned, there wasn't another reminder of you. Here, I can't stop thinking about you. I'm so sorry I pushed you away. This is all my fault. If I had said yes, then you wouldn't be here. So I'm thinking that maybe we should start over. Try again without all the doubt and boyfriends, and wives and baggage. But to do that, you need to wake up. Please wake up. I can't live without you. I'll do whatever you want." I started at him for a minute. "Oh, come on. I agree to anything and you say nothing?"

"Dinner. Have dinner with me."

I must have jumped five feet in the air. "You're awake!"

He smiled. "Babe."

"How long?"

"Since the kiss before you went to the bathroom."

I hit him gently on the shoulder. "You could've said something."

"I could've." His lips twitched. "I missed hearing your voice, Babe. I missed you."

We sat there, smiling goofily at each other.

"So, does the agreement go beyond dinner?" He asked, wolf grin in place.

"Hmm, we'll see how good you are."

"Babe," he groaned, "what you do to me."