Disclaimer: I do not own or make money off of anything in the Stephanie Plum universe. I'm not JE, but I wish I was sometimes…

CUPCAKE WARNING: This is not a Cupcake story. Please don't read if it makes you unhappy.

A/N: THANK YOU to everybody who reviewed my last chapter and showed support. I really appreciate it. I was feeling a little discouraged, and it really helped boost me back up. Also I'd love to thank you for bearing with me now that my schedule is insane. Sorry that the chapters are taking longer. Now, on to Chapter 10.

Chapter 10

I must have passed out at the thought of being charged with murder. When I came to, I thought I was dreaming. At least, there were four gorgeous men staring at me in concern. Wait, definitely not a good dream. In a good dream they would be staring at me lustfully. I realized I was awake when one of the faces contorted in fury.

Gabe was definitely going to need to work on his blank face. Ranger however, was all cold blankness. He turned to Gunter and Redding with a dangerous glare. "Can either one of you give me a logical explanation as to why Ms. Plum's lawyer was misinformed on the place and time of your meeting?" He indicated Santos when he said 'lawyer'.

What? Santos was my attorney? Since when did Les have a law degree? Somehow by the grace of God, I hadn't blurted that thought out loud. The looks that the two Marshalls were giving me said that they would take any excuse to get me in a room alone. It probably had to do with the four men that were standing between them and their prey.

What the hell is going on here? I thought, beginning to get annoyed. And how long have Ram and Lester known about this stupid investigation? Why haven't they told me about it? Is it that bad?

"Gentlemen," Gabe growled, sounding much less calm than Ranger had. "I asked your boss last week to wait until my patient was more recovered before the Spanish Inquisition commenced. Actually, I asked that 'for the sake of Ms. Plum's speedy recovery' that she not be informed of the investigation at all. Mr. Jernigan assured me that it could wait until Ms. Plum was released from my hospital. I must insist that you leave at once before you distress my patient again!"

Ram chose that moment to stretch his arms up into the air as if he was tired. What Ram was really after was flashing the hilt of his glock at Gunter and Redding. Gunter put a hand on his hip, lightly brushing his jacket aside to reveal his government issued weapon. Redding shrugged his shoulders as if he was checking the status of the gun he had in his shoulder holster. Perfect. If one more ounce of testosterone walked into the room, this was going to go down like a showdown at the OK Corral.

"Dr. Manoso," I tried a distraction. I was careful to keep my voice respectful and distanced. There was no point in letting the agents know that Gabe was acting as my friend as much as my doctor right now. "Could you please check on my shoulder? I think I may have strained something." I faked a wince and rotated my shoulder.

The door opened again and Cal and Hal walked in, dressed in Hospital Security uniforms. Yes. Silver Oaks was prestigious enough to warrant security guards, and Hal and Cal were two of the men on rotation this week. That meant I was a lucky girl, and that Dumb and Dumber wouldn't be coming back without a warrant. Hal and Cal were a little overprotective. I wasn't really as close to them as I had become with Tank, Bobby, Les, Manuel, Hector, Mac, Caesar, and Ram, because Hal and Cal didn't talk very much. I was really only comfortable with the Rangemen that talked.

I held my breath, worrying that my prediction of one more ounce of testosterone would break the precarious impasse that we seemed to be hovering in. Cal and Hal were more like ten tons of testosterone. I ducked my head in anticipation of a gunfight. Fortunately, Hal and Cal were able to talk the two Marshalls into leaving without issue.

Once the idiots were gone, I sank back and breathed a sigh of relief, allowing my eyes to close wearily. I tensed when I sensed the four remaining men hovering over me. "For the sake of women everywhere, I am not going to kick all of you in the balls so hard that you will be qualified to sing soprano for ten years. Gabriel Manoso, what do you mean that you didn't want me informed? They're trying to pin a murder rap on me! And I was making it up when I said my shoulder was hurting, so could you please quit hovering! I'm fucking fine!" Gabe jumped back, possibly in terror, but he must have been learning from the constant stream of Merry Men that came in to keep me company. His blank face slammed into place.

"Steph, you need to calm down. This is exactly why I didn't want you informed. You've been so stressed about getting out of here that you are probably hindering your own progress just because of wanting to go home so badly. I made the decision that it would prolong your recovery time if you found out, so please give me a break. Unless you want to be here for two more months instead of two more weeks, you had better chill." I did something that apparently surprised everyone in the room. I shut up.

I looked around and noticed that Ram had managed to sneak out during my tirade. Gabe was to my right; Santos was to my left; and Ranger was at the foot of the bed. I hadn't seen Ranger since that night in my apartment, what seemed like ages ago. Was it stupid of me to think his hair had grown longer? I mean, it was technically only a month ago.

Maybe I really did need Gabe to give me a referral to the Mental Health floor. Wait, I do want to leave this hospital, so that would probably be a bad idea. They would probably commit me if they saw what went through my mind on a daily basis.

Santos squeezed my hand, and I glanced at him in thanks. He had been here every day for the past month. He was running low on the vacation time, and would have to get back to work soon, but I had no doubt that he would be here every day until the vacation time expired. He gave me a cheeky grin and nodded towards Gabe, who had apparently realized that I was ignoring him.

"That's it, Plum. Bed rest for the rest of the year." Gabe growled.

"What happened to ethics, Gabe?" I asked calmly. He stalked towards the door.

"Santos, a moment please." he asked, pointing to the hall. Santos gave my hand another squeeze before stepping outside with Gabe, giving me what was sure to be some uncomfortable alone time with Ranger.

I stared down at the bed and tried to make sense of the jumble of emotions I was feeling. I was still sad over the 'breakup' or whatever between Ranger and me a month ago. I could have lived with that though. What really ached was that I'd been in this hospital for almost a month and Ranger hadn't visited, or called, or sent a get well card. Didn't he even care? I shoved the thoughts out of my head, forcing myself to think of Santos and how good he had been to me in the last month. I finally had a shot at the real thing, and I realized that I really did love Santos, maybe not as much as I loved Ranger, not yet, but it could turn into that one day.

"Babe." Ranger said quietly. "You look wonderful. If I didn't know better, I wouldn't believe that you'd been shot." I glared at him. Why couldn't he just enjoy the moment of awkward silence? I looked him over, and felt myself thaw towards him unintentionally. He looked pretty rough. His eyes had bags under them, and he was thinner than before.

"You look like shit." I blurted out accidentally. "Sorry. I didn't mean that. I just meant you look like you haven't been taking care of yourself." I added in a whisper.

Ranger gave a low chuckle. "I haven't been. And you were right on the first count. I do look like shit." He strolled around the bed and sat down by my legs, lifting my chin up so that I was looking at him.

"I'm stupid, Babe." My head popped up in astonishment. I pinched my arm to see if I had heard correctly or if I was having one of those wacky nightmares that I seemed particularly prone to since my hospital visit began. "I've done so many stupid things, had so many stupid plans, tried so stupidly to push you away, and I'm tired of it."

Why did he always have to do this? Sometimes it seemed like he just enjoyed hopping in every few lunar cycles and tilting my world on its axis to see if I was shaken by it. Or I guess it could just be that he enjoyed watching me squirm. Wait. I was definitely being unfair again. It's not like he'd ever broken any promises to me. I shouldn't be acting like a little girl who gets talked out of her pants by a boy who says he loves her.

"What?" I breathed, hardly daring to entertain even the slightest hope that he was serious. I wasn't even sure that I wanted him to be serious. I mean, I had something nice going on with Lester. It wasn't quite like anything I'd ever experienced before. But I had loved Ranger for so long, and part of me still ached for him.

Ranger grasped my hands tightly, staring into my eyes. "I love you. I'm willing to give this a shot if you'll let me. I know I don't deserve it, and you may not want me, but I'm putting myself out there. I want you. I've tried to stay away from you, and it doesn't work. I can't sleep anymore, because I can't stand the thought of giving you away again without even trying to make it work first. I want a life with you. Will you give me a shot?"

"Ranger, I don't know." I squeaked. This was so completely out of character for him. What had brought this on? Had someone tied him up and made him watch Pride and Prejudice or Sense and Sensibility until he started empathizing with the characters? Or maybe it was Wuthering Heights? "What about Les? He loves me. I think I might love him. You know how I feel for you; I've made it abundantly clear, but he's a great guy, and he doesn't deserve to be dropped like that."

He glanced towards the door and squeezed my hands again. "I know he deserves you more than I do, but I couldn't keep living knowing that I hadn't even given it a go. Think about it. Take all the time you need. Let me know what you decide." Ranger jerked his hand away, and the door swung open. Les and Gabe walked back in and took similar positions to the ones they had abandoned earlier. The only difference was that Gabe was at the foot of the bed, with Les and Ranger flanking me.

Les crawled up into the bed, into his normal position at my left side, his hand snaking into mine. Ranger either didn't notice or pretended not to. Gabe saved me from a potentially awkward situation, and spoke. "Sorry Steph, Lester. I know you haven't seen my brother in ages, but Mama said that if I didn't drag his sorry ass home for dinner that she'd disown me." Ranger rose with a grin at his brother.

"You may be older than me, Gabriel, but you couldn't drag me anywhere if you had me loaded with Morphine. I won't leave you hanging out to dry on this one though. Mom might actually follow through." Ranger replied, still with a smile on his face. He turned back to Les and me and nodded. "Lester. Babe." And they were gone.

Lester looked at me cautiously. "Are you okay, Beautiful?" He asked concernedly. "I'm sorry that this all came out this way. I knew I should have told you, but Gabe insisted that it would hinder your progress. And I'm sorry that we didn't know Ranger was coming. I never would have put you in an awkward situation on purpose."

Lester was babbling. This was unusual to say the least. I snuggled into his side, and faked an offended voice. "Maybe if you started from the beginning and explained what's going on…?" I let the sentence trail off, and Santos breathed a deep breath.

"About a week after the incident, Ranger got a call from one of his contacts in the U.S. Marshalls. He's worked with them over the years doing stuff that I don't know about, and frankly don't want to know about. Ranger has top clearance with everyone. The guy told Ranger that something big had gone down in Trenton. Apparently Anderson had been offered a clean slate and Witness Protection if he agreed to testify against a family friend. I guess I should say it was more of a Family connection.

"Anderson's family had been involved with some low level mob for years, but apparently Anderson had the evidence that could put away Jimmy Rizzoli. I don't have to tell you who he is right?" I shook my head. Everyone knew who J.R. was. Jimmy Rizzoli was the head of the Rizzoli Crime Family. No one managed to live very long if they wanted to testify against J.R. In fact, no one outside of the Family seemed to live when their lives became too close to Rizzoli's. Anger boiled up inside of me. The government had been willing to forget all about Anderson's fifteen rape counts and give him a new life, all for some evidence on the mob. That was disgusting.

"So what is going on now? Are they just looking for a scapegoat?" I asked Lester in frustration. "What would have happened if he would have succeeded in raping and killing me like he was planning? Would they have weaseled him out of that too?"

"It's something like that, Honey." Santos wrapped his arms around me and kissed my hairline. He sounded a little angry now. "If I think about the what-if's though, I might go hunt down one of those Marshalls and rip their throats out. The Marshalls think that the Rizzoli's paid you to take out Anderson when you brought him in. Apparently Harry the Hammer is connected somehow with Angela Rizzoli, Jimmy's daughter. That is probably why Vinnie bonded him out in the first place: pressure from Harry.

"Apparently, they're trying to look at things as if you are really close with your cousin Vinnie. Crazy, I know. They're not taking anyone's word for it. This investigation is really nothing to worry about, because you didn't do anything wrong. You weren't being paid off by the Rizzoli's and you weren't in on their planned hit. So let's just chill out and relax. You don't have anything to worry about. I'll take care of it when the time comes." Santos ran his hands through my hair again. He had made a habit of playing with my hair nearly every day during the last month, and it always helped me relax.

I closed my eyes and relaxed into Lester's arms. A few minutes later, I realized I had that tingly feeling that I usually had when he was staring at me. I glanced up and confirmed the suspicion. "What is it?" I mumbled sleepily. He trailed a finger down my cheek before cupping my face in his hands. He lowered his head and kissed me tenderly. My heart swelled in a way that I had only ever felt before when Ranger kissed me. It was almost confusing. I batted away the thoughts of what Ranger had told me earlier, and I lost myself in Santos' kiss.

I hadn't made love to Santos since that night before Diesel showed up. I guessed that the only reason we were able to control ourselves was the fact that it was almost impossible for me to do anything of the x-rated nature.

I wasn't suffering so much from sex withdrawals seeing as the guys brought me tons of donuts and Godiva chocolate covered strawberries. I had definitely given up my sugar fast so that I wouldn't put unnecessary strain on myself, as Gabe so subtly put it. When I say he said it subtly, that doesn't include his eyes. Gabe had waggled his eyebrows at me and said that I couldn't participate in any strenuous activity unless cleared with a doctor. Of course, he had felt compelled to add that activity with a doctor would be fine, because the doctor would know my physical limitations. Santos had splattered Gabe's face with one of the donuts.

What had begun as a tentative, gentle kiss was turning into something raw and passionate. I don't know exactly what I was feeling, but I think it must have had to do with the fact that I was in love with him. Don't get me wrong. I was still stinging from Ranger's rejection last month. The hope that Ranger actually loved me, that I had only just managed to quench, had fluttered back into my chest was beating frantically. But no matter what I still felt for Ranger, Santos had somehow burrowed himself a spot in my heart during the last seven months.

Santos reluctantly broke the kiss and put his forehead on mine. "Did Big Dog and Costanza make it out to see you yesterday?" He asked after pulling me back into our sleeping position and starting to play with my hair again. Apparently, he didn't want to talk about Ranger's sudden appearance, or he was the uncrowned King of Denial Land. "I forgot to ask you about it."

"Yeah." I laughed. "They brought an X-box and made Zero and me play Halo against them. It was terrible. I'm not even sure what was going on in the game. I think it was something to do with aliens. You probably would have liked it. You get to choose between a bunch of different guns to shoot the aliens with." I added with a grin.

"I'm sure Zero was thrilled to have you on his team." Les answered sarcastically.

"Actually," I said, faking outrage. "Zero and I won every game. It's a lot easier to shoot with an X-box controller than it is with a real gun. Carl and Big Dog had to pay for the pizza when they lost. I didn't have to know what was going on to win. I just did what Zero told me to do."

Lester laughed and kissed my forehead. "Okay, Beautiful." He hesitated, staring into my eyes for a few moments before speaking again. "He's changed his mind hasn't he?" Les asked finally. Les didn't say what 'he' was meant by that question. I wondered if he would fall for it if I played dumb, but decided it would just upset him.

"Yeah." I answered. Elaborate, I know. I am not only Queen of Denial Land, but also Grand Duchess of Elaboration.

"Should I be worried?" Santos replied after he realized I wasn't planning on saying more. His voice was low and controlled, but I detected a worried tenor to his voice that was very rare when it came to Lester.

I could have lied, but I didn't. "I don't know." I answered. "I don't really know what to think right now. I do love you, though." Somehow, after I said it the first time, it became a little easier to say.

"I love you, too," he answered. "But you already knew that." Lester let the subject rest after that, thank God. We fell asleep in one another's arms, just as we had every night for the past three weeks.

XXX

I woke to manly giggles and a disorienting heaviness on my face. I licked my lips and tasted whipped cream? My eyes shot open and I saw Bobby, Manuel, and Ram, all hovering around my bed with hands behind their backs. Les wasn't there; I assumed he'd gone to work on the case with Ranger. I cocked an eyebrow at Bobby, and all three men burst into gales of the man-giggles. My hand crept to my face and I groaned. My entire face was covered in whipped cream.

"Is this how Ranger and Les want you to keep me occupied? Or was this your idea, Bobby?" I asked with an amused smile. Bobby laughed. I knew that Ranger would never tell them to keep me occupied like this. He might rip out their tongues for thinking of it. Les would rather do this himself so that he could lick it off.

"Actually, it was Zero's idea. He just couldn't be here today, he's on duty." I laughed at that. Zero would have been my second guess.

"I'll keep that in mind for next time I see him." I had sudden inspiration. "Who wants to help me get to the ladies room? I'm feeling a bit sore this morning." I groaned.

"Here, let me Jose." Ram said, rushing to pick me up. He cradled me in his arms like a baby doll. I leaned up and rubbed my whipped cream covered face all over his neck. "Steph!" Ram shrieked. Yes, that's right. Macho man Ram shrieked like a girl. Bobby and Manuel tried unsuccessfully to hold in their guffaws. Bobby actually had to lean onto a chair for support. Ram glared at me and put me back down.

"See if I help you now." Ram growled playfully as he wiped the whipped cream off of his neck. "You'll have to pee in your bed." I reached for my crutches and managed to make it to the bathroom, slowly, but I made it. I showered and pulled on yet another pair of terry cloth shorts and a tank top. This time it was a black tank and bright blue shorts. I stared into the mirror, arranging my curls to satisfaction, and applied the basic makeup. I finally finished, and hobbled back into the suite.

The three stooges were huddled around my table with cards in their hands. Poker, the cornerstone of healthy Merry Men interactions. I plopped down into a seat opposite Bobby. Ram was to my right, and he lifted my right leg into his lap. The boys seemed to believe that I should still keep my leg elevated. For God's sakes, they let me walk on the damn thing, I think I can sit with it. I didn't say anything though.

These guys had been here almost every day since I'd been hospitalized. Most of the Merry Men had been content to visit only once or twice, but Bobby, Ram, Manuel, and Zero had been here nearly every day. They were only missing when they were on duty or sleeping. And I guessed Bobby was absent more than the rest because he needed to, uh 'feed the beast', and that wasn't going to happen with me.

I told them to deal me in the next hand. Luckily, I had been getting pretty good at poker since I always had a Merry Man for a bodyguard. I actually liked Blackjack better, but the guys said I counted cards. It wasn't true, of course, I was just lucky with blackjack. We played poker (with pennies) for hours before finally giving up to Manuel, who had all of our pennies. As usual, we put all of the pennies back into the coffee can that sat by the couch, and marked another X by Manuel's name on our notebook 'scoreboard' as Zero called it.

At the end of the day, Gabe came in for our daily checkup. He shooed the boys out and checked me over and grinned. "Since you already know about the investigation, I actually think it would be good for you to move back in to your apartment. You should definitely think about some counseling for trauma, and you will still have to come to therapy once every two weeks until you are completely recovered. Do you think you can handle that?"

"Why have I had to stay in here so long anyway? Ranger didn't stay here half as long as me, and he was shot in the chest!" I asked accusingly.

"Ranger's orders." Oh no, he didn't. "You were to stay at the hospital until your main bouts of physical therapy were complete." Gabe stepped back at my glare.

"And how is my length of stay in this hospital any of Ranger's business?" I asked angrily.

"Since you signed over your next of kin and medical power of attorney to him when you started working at Rangeman." Damn Ranger and his damn stupid forms that I had skipped reading and signed without thought. I was furious with Ranger, but it really wasn't Gabe's fault. Maybe not. I could spare him the drama and drop it just in case.

"Fine. When is Santos picking me up?" I asked grouchily.

"He's not. He wanted to help Ella with some things to get your apartment ready before you came home. He asked me to drive you when my shift is over since Bobby, Manuel, and Ram have shifts tonight. Is that alright?" I shifted uncomfortably, and then changed my attitude. It was very nice of Gabe to offer. He wasn't trying to move in on Santos, and we had become friends.

"Yeah, thanks Gabe, I'd really appreciate it." I answered with a smile.

XXX

A couple of hours later, all my stuff had been loaded into whatever it was that Gabe drove, and he was ready to get me out of there. He easily picked me up like Ram had this morning, and carried me out to the parking Garage. He had the best spot in the entire lot. I was almost surprised when he pressed a button on his keys and the H3's lights blinked. It was apple red and screamed sexy. I hadn't pictured Gabe driving an H-3. He had always seemed like the BMW type. Like his brother.

Gabe carefully placed me in the passenger seat before climbing into his own seat. "I've already thrown your crutches in the backseat. When we get to Rangeman, it'll be safer to use those." He grinned. Gabe was almost an enigma to me. He flirted, then backed off, flirted, then backed off. It was confusing and a little bit infuriating. Right now it was easy to shake off though.

My checkups with Gabe had always been slow and thorough. I guess I assumed that his personality was like that as well. I'm still not sure about his personality, but the man sure as hell didn't drive slowly. He had his H3 across Trenton and at the Rangeman offices in five minutes. I had closed my eyes and dug my hands into the seat within five seconds of leaving the parking garage. I didn't even realize that we were finally at Rangeman until my car door was opened and I was pulled into familiar arms.

"Are you alright, Beautiful?" Lester asked softly.

"Gabe drives like a fucking maniac." I answered, prying my eyes open. "I'm never riding with him again."

"Well, baby, if you change your mind, you can always try another ride with me." Gabe joked from behind Santos. At least, I hoped he was joking. Lester would probably beat the crap out of him if he wasn't.

Lester was the one who carried me from the garage to my apartment, despite my vehement protests. He insisted that a good guy would always carry an injured woman when needed. We were giggling by the time we got to my apartment. When he opened the door, I was met with a huge round of "Surprise!" All the off-duty Rangemen were there. A large 'welcome home' sign was hanging across my living room, and all my favorite Rangemen were there. When I saw the huge birthday cake, I squealed in delight. These guys were so wonderful.

I did a double take when I saw Ram. "Where is your hair?" I asked, shocked. Ram had never shaved his head since I had met him. I had become so used to his braids and how much fun it was to tug them when he pissed me off that I had never even imagined him without them. In all honesty, he looked damn good. Good for him. I hoped he'd find a good woman to take care of him.

"Shaved it." He replied.

"Wow, Les. You didn't tell me Nancy Drew would be waiting in my apartment. Did you bring the Hardy Boys too, Nancy?" Ram cracked a smile and mussed my hair.

"Ha, ha, ha." Ram replied. Les and the rest of the guys cracked up.

I had a great time at the party, even if I was starting to wonder who was doing cleanup, and Gabe even stayed for the fun. We all played poker and watched movies and ate cake until midnight, when Gabe insisted that I get to bed. A couple of the guys groaned about me having a bed time, but Les kicked them out anyway.

The only ones who remained were Les, Manuel, Zero, Bobby, Hector, and Ram. I was curious for a few minutes as to why they were still around, until they pulled out brooms and garbage bags. Hector pulled out Tupperware. They cleaned up the mess in record speed, making me joke that if they ever lost their current jobs, they could always run a cleaning service. When they were done, they all kissed me on the cheek and headed out. It was just me and Les.

"So sexy," I drawled at him. "Are you going to take me to bed or what? Gabe cleared me for 'physical activity' as long as it isn't too strenuous." His eyes darkened and I shuddered at the promise in them. He picked me up again and rushed to the bedroom. His mouth was on mine before my back hit the sheets. This kiss was more like the Les I was used to, the one ruled mainly by his passions. In all honesty, I kept opening my eyes to make sure the fire we were kindling wasn't a tangible one.

Les kissed my lips, my neck, and my collarbones. I tried to unbutton his shirt, but he stopped me. "What…" I began, but he answered before I finished the question.

"Nothing is wrong, Beautiful. I just want to worship you tonight." His hand trailed from my thigh to my ankles, and I shuddered again. "Are you sure we are ready for this?" he asked. "I don't want to move too fast. I don't want to make the same mistake twice." I pulled him close to me so that I could whisper in his ear.

"I love you, and I want you to make love to me, Lester." I said carefully. I don't know why exactly, but some small part of me was worried that he would reject me. I mean, it was stupid. I knew he wanted me, but part of me was sure that he would run in the other direction and leave me to rot. He didn't refuse me though. He leaned back to admire me, in all my tank, shorts, and tube socks, and looked so pleased with what he found that I thought the blush that suffused my cheeks must be lighting up the room.

He did make love to me. He worshipped my body until I was exhausted, and then he wrapped his arms around me. I have never felt as comfortable as in that moment. Who would have ever thought that Lester could make me feel so safe, so content…so whole? It was only later, on the brink of sleep, that I realized that the party had been missing one key feature: Ranger.