JE created the characters below. I don't deserve credit for anything except the mess they're in right now.

Jenny (JenRar) thank you so much for your careful eye and helpful suggestions as the beta on this story.

Chapter 10 – Actions Speak Louder than Words

For a person that never enjoyed flying, I had to admit that being in the RangeMan plane took away nearly all of my usual fears. For one thing, the cabin was like being at Haywood – mostly decorated in dark wood and black leather. The seats were more comfortable than my bed, and there was a fully-stocked refrigerator at the front along with a small cabinet of snacks. Admittedly, all of them were healthy in nature, but still, knowing I wouldn't go hungry was a relief.

Finally, I think being able to walk up to the cockpit and kiss the spiky hair of the pilot helped me to trust that the guy flying the plane knew what he was doing. Of course, when Les offered to put the plane on auto pilot and then help me earn my own wings by initiating me into the mile high club, I realized that no matter how official he looked surrounded by buttons and knobs, he was still the fun loving playboy that had almost been put in handcuffs at the park eight days ago.

I took advantage of the wi-fi access to send another email to Ranger, taunting him about my desire to renegotiate the terms we'd originally settled on. I pointed out that Hector didn't really want more training; he just wanted to go clubbing with me again. And Hal didn't request additional time professionally; he was merely asking for help in planning a date. Since neither of those constituted additional work for RangeMan, I felt he had to agree that two-eighths of my work was completed. In light of that, he needed to share at least one credit card created with an alias for me.

By the time I was satisfied with my email and had sent it off, Lester's voice came through the speakers, announcing that we were making our descent and would be on the ground in a matter of moments. Then he suggested, "Everyone should now re-buckle your seat belt, unless a little curly-haired brunette wants to come up here and help me hold the steering column."

I shut down my laptop, surprised to see that the landing strips was within view, and I had yet to grip my arm rest even once. I didn't fool myself into thinking that flights on the small plane were always that smooth, but since I had enough to be stressed about already, I was glad a rough trip wasn't adding to my discomfort.

After we climbed down the six steps to the ground, I looked at Les and asked, "Now what?"

"You're in New York, Beautiful," he pointed out with a grin, "We take a cab."

I looked at the three large men in front of me and asked, "A cab?"

Bobby slung an arm around my shoulder and said, "Come with me, Bomber, and we'll show you how to enjoy this city."

I followed them blindly, not really having a choice since I didn't know where I was or where I was going. "Where are we going to stay?" I asked after Bobby and Lester squeezed in on either side of me, leaving Cal to sit up front with a rather frightened-looking taxi driver.

"Do they even know we're coming?" I added another thought before anyone had a chance to respond to my first worry. "What if there are no rooms available? We can't just all crash in Ranger's apartment, can we?"

"Slow down, Beautiful," Lester advised, putting his index finger over my lips to be sure I got the message and didn't start up with more rapid-fire concerns.

"In all the satellite offices, the seventh floor is always Ranger's penthouse apartment and the sixth floor has three one bedroom apartments for the rest of the core team to call home when we're there. Bobby and I have our own place, and Cal will be bunking in Tank's while we're here," Lester explained. "And should the unlikely event occur that the boss doesn't welcome you to seven, then consider yourself fully invited to share some Santos-style hospitality. I only have one bed, but I promise to do everything in my power to make you very comfortable in it."

As an alternative to smacking him like my instinct suggested, I turned my head and rested on his shoulder instead.

It took a few seconds before Lester relaxed with me leaning on him, and then he whispered, low enough that only I could hear, "Trust me, if the boss doesn't want you with him, there is a line of us a mile long that would love a chance to show you how much we want you."

I didn't respond, not sure if he was serious or not, or if there was even an appropriate thing to say to that. So I let it go and watched as we sped past buildings and buzzed around people out walking late at night. This truly was the city that never slept.

We were east of Manhattan, but not quite in Long Island. We'd flown into a general airfield to avoid the crowded conditions at the major airports. RangeMan had a hanger there so according to Les we were okay to park our transport vehicle and walk away. I knew that Bobby had some substantial looking boxes of medical gear in the cargo hold, which was why I was told we were taking the jet. Then during the flight, the guys had been talking about Ranger needing the plane to deliver a package in a few days if everything went according to plan. I had no idea what that meant, but I trusted the guys that if they suggested flying instead of driving, there had to be a good reason why.

Before too long, we came to an abrupt stop in front of a building that was covered in black reflective glass and was seven stories tall. I didn't need to seek out the logo on the front door to know this was the local RangeMan office. By the time I got out of the cab, Cal already had my duffle bag and his own, so I allowed him to lead me to the front door, with Bobby and Les flanking me. I stifled a grin at the image we must have produced. Here I was, a nobody from Trenton, being guarded like the president. That comparison did make me laugh, because based on the recent scandal with the secret service, I was probably being guarded more securely than the president.

We walked straight to the front desk, where Lester gave a nod to the guy at the front desk.

"Mr. Santos," the young man called out as we attempted to keep walking past.

Lester turned around without a smile, making me think that down here, the guys were held in higher esteem than they were in Jersey. I couldn't picture Binkie ever saying, "Mr. Santos." At least, not without cracking up all the guys around him.

Clearly the man at the front desk was nervous about addressing Lester, but he mustered up enough courage to say, "I need your guest to check in so I can log her presence while she's in the building."

I watched Lester's chest expand as he drew in a slow deep breath. "This is Stephanie Plum. She is a guest of the boss, myself, and Mr. Brown. She does not have to be logged in because she is an employee of RangeMan in Trenton, but she is to be treated with the utmost respect. Am I clear?"

"Sir, yes sir," the young man replied, sounding more like a recruit in the Army than what I referred to as my Merry Men.

Bobby indicated we should continue moving after that explanation, so I allowed myself to be pushed forward into the main foyer as we waited for the elevators. I figured the guys were humoring me, since they would have taken the steps if we'd been in Trenton.

After Les joined us, Cal asked, "What floor?"

"Let's start on five and see if he's still working," Bobby suggested.

I was grateful that the layout of the building was the same so that even if I was in a new place, it was unlikely I would get lost. When the elevator doors opened and we walked out, a hush fell over an already quiet office. It was only about fifteen minutes before eleven at night, but there were still about six guys on the main floor, and I knew in the control room, there would be at least two more with their eyes on the screens.

Even though no one stood up and stared at us, I could still feel eyes on me, and I struggled not to fidget uncomfortably.

Before it got unbearable enough for me to speak up, a young man came forward and looked at Bobby to ask, "Would you like me to escort your guest to a conference room, sir?"

Assuming I was the guest, I looked back to Bobby to see how he answered. There was no way I was going to be hidden away while the guys figured out how to tell Ranger I was here. It was too late now to back down, so they were just going to have to man up and spill the beans.

As my mind was spinning, I managed to pick up enough of Bobby's response to know that he'd dismissed the volunteer and informed him that I was a RangeMan employee. I made a mental note to ask why he and Les were saying that, because it wasn't true. At best, I was a contract worker, and even that wasn't completely accurate because I had no official contract that I was aware of.

While I was lost mulling over the various ways I could be classified, I heard a door slam against a wall, and instinct made my face turn toward the noise. The corner office, the one Tank used in Trenton, had the most beautiful sight standing in the doorway. Ranger had come out – with a flourish, it appeared, based on the new indentation the door knob made against the plaster when it crashed into it with force.

Even with his blank face secure, I thought he was beautiful. Of course, I'd never tell him that, because I could only imagine how he'd bristle at such a feminine description of his rugged good looks. His hair wasn't pulled in a tie at the back of his neck. Instead, it was down over his shoulders, and it was all I could do to fight the urge to move to him so that I could run my fingers through it. In all the time I'd known him, I'd never seen him work in the office with his hair loose.

The seconds ticked by, and the guys who had been attempting to hide their staring earlier were now standing to gawk at the scene in front of them. I guess it was rather strange looking. Who knew what Ranger was thinking, what with his stone face, but the image of three big guys in their RangeMan uniforms surrounding me in a blue shirt and jeans, just standing there looking at the boss, was probably confusing.

"Is there a threat I'm unaware of?" Ranger spoke first, looking at me, but I didn't think he expected me to answer.

Lester must have thought the same thing, as he responded, "No threat, but we did think it wise to escort Stephanie here for the continuation of the training you requested of her and for a renegotiation she mentioned."

I knew then he'd read my email, because his blank face slipped when one eyebrow raised and the left corner of his mouth tipped up marginally. To most people, there wasn't much change, but to me, it felt like a huge victory.

"Then I suggest you come into my office so that we get right to…renegotiating." The pause before the final word made it abundantly clear that Ranger wasn't the least bit interested in working out new terms for my work.

I took a hesitant step forward, thinking I needed to play this cool. The formal way everyone had acted in the few minutes I'd been here made me think this office was nothing like home. Since I knew Ranger didn't like to flaunt his emotions there, I had to assume he would be even more closed off here. When his smile grew and his hands lifted from his sides, it looked as though he were opening his arms subtly, inviting me to find my place between them. That small movement was all it took to help my feet decide I was thinking too much and I flew across the office and flung myself into his arms.

He pulled me up, allowing me to wrap myself around him with my arms tight on his shoulders, my legs hooked at his hips, and my ankles locked behind him. His hands were supporting my rear end, and even though I knew he'd never drop me, I couldn't make myself relax my grip on him. I needed to hold on to convince myself this was true. I was in his arms, and he'd invited me to come to him. This was real – he was real – and my heart was about to beat out of my chest from the excitement and the at last of it all.

Strangely, it would have been a perfect time for our lips to have crashed down on each other, but after I climbed up his frame, we seemed to freeze that way, just staring at each other, searching for evidence that everything we had shared via email was just as true in person. For my part, I found the way I felt when I'd thought of Ranger over the last seventy-two hours was intensifying now that I could see him in person.

It wasn't until a voice I didn't recognize said, "How long do you think it will take him to finally kiss her? Just looking at each other and not doing anything is hot, but kissing would be totally smoking."

The words made me blush, but it caused Ranger's blank face to come down, which pissed me off. I had lost myself in the emotion I could see in his eyes, and now some idiot had ruined that for me. I had no skills to speak of, but at the moment, I was ready to call somebody to the mats, and I was convinced I could take them down.

Ranger's mind must have been running in a similar direction as mine because he looked around and narrowed his eyes before saying, "Bertelli, mats 0500."

"You're getting up at five o'clock in the morning to teach him a lesson?" I asked, trying to be sure I understood.

"He's young. He has to learn somehow," Ranger explained, and then his eyebrows came together like he was considering something complicated. "Babe, why is Cal here?"

I glanced over my shoulder at the three men who'd brought me here and saw that they'd moved closer to where we were standing. "He's here to be my shadow while I'm in the city. If I go out, he comes with me to keep an eye on me. Apparently, I tend to get into trouble when I'm on my own."

"You brought your own bodyguard?" he asked, sounding both shocked and pleased. It wasn't something I could have gift wrapped, but I had a feeling I'd just given Ranger a great present.

"He did a good job when I took him on some training exercises, and he proved he can be both effective at catching the bad guys and subtle enough to not get in the way of my fun, so I figured if I needed a shadow, it should at least be someone I knew could do the job well," I explained my decision to bring Cal specifically. Well, maybe it wasn't my decision, but I did agree to it when Tank said I didn't have a choice.

Ranger then looked over my shoulder at the guys behind me. "You volunteered to watch her?"

Cal responded without hesitation. "Absolutely."

"No matter the cost?" Ranger pushed.

I didn't understand why he was pulling the inquisition routine with one of the men he obviously trusted, but my gut told me to stay out of this conversation because even though it involved me, it shouldn't include me.

"My life, Ranger," he said in all seriousness. "I'd give my life."

Then a smile, the size of which I'd not seen in a long time, came over Ranger's face. It was hard to draw in a deep breath when I saw how the expression changed his face. The features that had been hard and dangerous only moments before had transformed into hot and sexy.

"Then you have an appointment at 0500 to teach Bertelli how all RangeMan staff are expected to treat Stephanie," Ranger commanded, the smile providing evidence that he was still enjoying himself. "And since you brought Brown with you, I assume you can teach him thoroughly since you have backup to put him back together," he added.

"Don't hurt him too much," I jumped in, knowing I shouldn't get involved but not able to stand the idea of someone getting hurt because of me.

"No worries, Angel," Cal replied with a grin.

Feeling like I needed to say something that would prove I wasn't trying to interfere too much with how RangeMan disciplined their staff, I added, "Because I plan on going out tomorrow, and you promised to go with me."

That got me a few chuckles, but my eyes stayed on Ranger when I realized he was laughing at my comment.

"Don't worry, Babe. If you still feel up to going out tomorrow, I'll be sure you have sufficient coverage."

Just like that, the rest of the office didn't exist. One mildly suggestive comment, and all I could focus on was the man still holding me against his sculpted hard body. Sometimes, tunnel vision can screw with your depth perception, so I wasn't sure if it was wishful thinking or reality that it felt like Ranger's lips were coming closer to mine.

So when Lester's voice seemed only inches from my ear, practically shouting, "Ranger, damn it, man...at least take her in your office," I wasn't pleased about the interruption, but I couldn't deny that a little privacy sounded like a good idea.

Ranger's arms tightened around me, and he looked past me to the guys behind us. "You all bunking here for the night?"

Bobby answered, "Santos and I are here as long as you need us to be to finish cleaning up. Cal is here until Stephanie leaves."

A nod was all the response that got from the man clinging to me as though I was a prize he'd won and refused to share. Normally that kind of manhandling would cause my bristles to raise, but tonight, it was turning me on. "We'll meet after morning workouts."

"At 0500?" Lester asked with a smirk that was audible.

Ranger surprised me with his reaction because I would have thought he'd get uptight about being questioned in front of the men like that. Instead, he looked at my face and then back to Lester and said, "Better make it 0600."

I heard Lester laugh, but before he had a chance to say anything else, Ranger moved us into the room he'd appeared out of and then slammed the door shut with his boot. After shutting us off from the prying eyes of the rest of the office, we were still, recapturing that feeling of disbelief that the person we most wanted to see was right in front of us.

For once in my life, the silence was comfortable. If anything, I was afraid to speak, out of fear that it would break the spell between us and this totally out-of-character response would turn out to be a dream.

Apparently, he didn't share my fear, because he cleared his voice and then whispered, "You're here."

"Are you upset with me for just showing up?" I asked, thinking I already knew the answer but still feeling the need to clarify that point.

Slowly, his head moved from side to side, indicating the answer was no. "What made you decide to show up?"

I moved my legs, indicating he could set me down, but it only made him tighten his hold on me, so I gave up on being released and responded, "I didn't want to wait until you got back to Trenton to finish our email conversation, and then I realized that sometimes, if you want to show somebody how you feel, words don't speak as loud as actions do."

A sound like a cross between a growl and a grunt came from Ranger's chest before his eyes locked on my lips and he said, "Damn, I love that logic."

And then the time for words was obviously over because nothing else was said. I had no idea who moved first, but our lips ended up pressed together. I wasn't new to the experience of kissing Ranger. It was no secret that my back bore more than one set of scratches from being pressed against the brick wall behind the bonds office while he and I necked as though it were an Olympic sport and we were trying to qualify for gold medals. So the feeling of kissing him now shouldn't have taken my breath away, but it did.

First kisses could never be duplicated, and my lips had been introduced to his on numerous occasions, but this time was different. The tingles were there, as was the moist heat when he opened his lips and gently nudged me to follow suit by tracing my mouth with his tongue. But the burning in my chest and the way my heart wasn't just beating faster but beating with such force I thought it was trying to climb out of my chest and into Ranger's was all new. The way I felt like I was a part of this kiss, not just holding on for dear life but actively exploring his mouth and pulling him to me, was also something I hadn't done before. For the first time ever, I didn't feel like he was kissing me but like we were kissing each other.

We pulled back only long enough to gulp in deep breaths and reverse the angle of our faces before we were connected again, hungrily, nearly forcefully thrusting tongues, grazing teeth, and even occasionally nipping at each other.

As a little girl, my mother lectured me about waiting to find the right boy to give myself to after we were married. She told me to do this to protect my virtue so that I wouldn't go to hell and so that I could get a decent husband. But she also said it was because the things a husband and wife shared were unique because of the love between them. Trying to share the same experience with anyone else wouldn't be the same and would end with tears and heartbreak, no matter how good the moment might have felt. I remembered pushing her for more information, battering her with questions that she refused to answer, and feeling like the subject was closed. At the time, I'd thought it was all a crock of shit. Now, for the first time in my life, I think she might have been onto something. Not with the fires of hell lecture but with the part about love making the experience totally different.

We hadn't had a conversation, we hadn't spelled out any of what we were feeling, but I knew from what he'd said in his last note to me and he knew from my sudden appearance in his office that things were different. Even without a formal understanding, there was no going back to just friends or friends with benefits. Our hearts were involved, and there was no turning that off. I didn't think it would be possible, plus I couldn't imagine wanting to shut it off after feeling how different it made this experience.

The feeling of Ranger under my fingers was the same, and there was comfort in the fact that I knew his body. I knew the dip between his collarbones was the perfect size to rest my thumb in. I knew I could reach around his broad arms and run my fingertips down his spine but not quite reach his waist if I tried to keep my fingers in the middle of his back. I knew that the divot between his collarbone and shoulder on his right side was ticklish, but for some reason, it wasn't on the left side. All of that was reassuring, because even with my eyes shut, I knew who I was with by the feel of him alone.

But the experience of being pressed again that familiar body was unnervingly different. I was afraid I was hurting him because I was gripping him so hard, unwilling or unable to let him go. My hips were rocking against him of their own volition, and even when I tried to make myself stop, the burning between my legs overrode my weak attempt at controlling myself.

The taste of him on my tongue was better than anything my mother or Ella had ever cooked for me. Honestly, why had I never noticed Ranger had a taste before? I couldn't classify him as either salty or sweet, but I knew I had a new favorite thing to crave in my mouth. Of course, thinking that way only let my mind float to other ways of tasting him, which gave me the strength to pull back and say, "Put me down."

"No," he replied, as though I'd just asked if he wanted fries with his dinner. Then he attached his mouth to the skin at the edge of my shirt's collar, close to the juncture of my shoulder and neck. Just before I could demand he do it anyway, his teeth bore down and the suction he generated pulled the skin there into his mouth, no doubt leaving a bright mark visible to anyone would see me for the next two to five days.

"Why?" I was proud of myself for forming any words and hoped he knew I was asking why he refused to put me down.

He did move us so that my back was now flush against the wall. I wasn't sure if this was an improvement or not until I realized it gave him the ability to increase the pressure against my hips. Suddenly, I wasn't as interested in being set down as I was in having him keep pressing that impressive bulge in his cargoes against me. Another minute or two of this, and I'd be witnessing a mental fireworks display still fully clothed.

"Go away!" Ranger growled, causing the fog I'd been in to blow away quickly. Surely he wasn't about to drop me now. My self-esteem wasn't the greatest, but his body had already proven he was enjoying what we were doing.

I didn't have time to second guess myself again before there was a knock at the door.

Ranger rested his forehead against mine, breathing nearly as fast as I was. "What?"

"Sir," a small voice came through the door. "I have that report you asked for."

"Leave it," Ranger replied, his voice much rougher than usual.

"But it has all the information you wanted," he pushed once more. I didn't know who was talking, but I knew he had to be one brave individual to keep pressing when it was obvious Ranger was trying to dismiss him.

Ranger took a slow deep breath and pulled his head back to look me in the eye. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I have to look at this report. It's time sensitive, and if it's complete, it would help me wrap things up here much more quickly."

I nodded that I understood, and even though I certainly didn't like it, I pulled my legs back and Ranger lowered me to the floor.

"Where are you going to be?" he asked, not letting me go so that I couldn't put any distance between us.

"Les said I could bunk with him if there wasn't an open apartment on four," I teased him.

That rumbling in his chest occurred again at the mention of me spending the night with Santos.

"Cousin or not, if you stay in his bed, he won't live to see the sun rise," Ranger threatened. I elected to believe he was teasing, but there was no smile or softening of his expression to prove that. "Do you have your keys?" he asked, trailing a finger along my hairline and then tucking a curl behind my ear.

"Sure," I replied, knowing they were in my purse somewhere.

"The fob from Haywood will get you in the penthouse here, as well. Go make yourself at home upstairs, and I'll try to get through this as quickly as possible to join you," he said, still not moving away from me.

I waited for a moment before pointing out the obvious. "I can't move until you step back."

He placed a series of soft kisses along my brow and then said, "Fuck it. The report can wait until tomorrow."

I put my hand on his chest to stop him from sweeping me back into his arms. As much as I wanted him to do that – and I really wanted him to do it – my goal in coming to New York wasn't to pull him away from his work and ruin his focus. "What's in the report?"

"If it's complete, it's a full background check on the man I think was paying Manuel to throw accounts here so that he could pick them up, destroying my business and reputation while building his," Ranger answered, surprising me with his candor.

"Why were you so focused on getting the information tonight?" I wondered, figuring despite his focus on getting to the bottom of this, that sounded like something that could have waited another eight hours.

"He's hard to locate, and I hoped to plan a little hunting trip based on the info to capture him when his guard was down. He and I have a history, and it's time for him to realize that he has yet to learn from our run-ins, so each time our paths cross, I have to remind him that he can't win."

I should have been surprised by the hard sound of his voice at the last part, but I knew Ranger well enough to know that whatever history they had must have been bad, and bloody, for him to be so intent on putting an end to this tonight.

I raised my other hand so that I was effectively pushing both palms against his chest, keeping him from moving forward to be as close as he had been. "Get that report, see if it has what you need, and if it does, then you take that son of a bitch down tonight."

Ranger's eyes got huge at my foul language. "Babe?"

I didn't think it was the right time to pick on him for resorting back to the one word communication. "What?" I pretended to be unaware of why he would be surprised. "You didn't think I'd just accept somebody trying to hurt what's mine, did you?"

"So, I'm yours?" Ranger asked with a smirk that told me he was more than happy with that title.

"Just as much as I'm yours," I replied, turning the tables on him.

The smirk shifted to a smile then, and he easily captured my wrists to move my hands off of him, allowing him to move back so that our bodies were touching from toes to lips. "I like the sound of that."

"Sir?" the poor sap in the hall called out, letting us know that while we were about to shift back into our own world, he was still out there holding the requested report.

"I'll be just as much yours in the morning as I am right now," I promised. "Go take care of this so we can concentrate on more pleasant things."

Ranger leaned in and gave me one more kiss, reminding me that what he was promising was a hell of a lot more than just pleasant, and then he walked away and opened the door before either of us lost the ability to pull away. Tomorrow, I told myself, not as disappointed as I figured I would be about the interruption.

We hadn't actually discussed anything, yet I was completely confident in what we were to each other. For once, actions had spoken louder than words, and I was looking forward to us doing a lot more silent communicating.