After The Night

by LilyGhost

Stephanie loses another car but gains something far more valuable ... a new life with Ranger.

10. Chapter 10

I finally have a story with ten whole chapters! It probably would have happened a lot sooner if I edited some of my other stories more and forced myself to write shorter chapters for them, but I'm enjoying the fact that the story that wasn't supposed to be longer than one chapter made it all the way up to ten. So thank you to everyone who has stuck with After The Night from the very beginning and encouraged me to add to it. Anything familiar belongs to Janet. Any mistakes are mine.

Ranger's POV

"Do you think the guys were acting strange just now?" Steph asked me after we left Tank, Bobby, and Lester, downstairs and were back inside my apartment.

Stephanie's grandmother was secured for the night and I was looking forward to having Stephanie's body lying next to, under, and on top of, me for the remainder of it. I knew the men had gone to Shorty's and I have a feeling Stephanie and I were the main topic of conversation there, but I trusted Tank to make sure nothing or no one got out of hand. You couldn't tell by looking at him, but as I studied Tank while we talked in the garage, he seemed more subdued than he should have been after a night out. I'd ask tomorrow if something had gone on, because I didn't want to have beat anyone's ass tonight.

"You mean there's a difference, Babe?" I asked her.

She rolled her eyes at me. I don't think I'll ever get tired of seeing her do that, even if I was the target the eyeroll was aimed at.

"I'll admit that they are a unique group," she said,"but they seemed a little oddtonight."

"That's what alcohol and refined carbohydrates will do to you, Steph," I told her."Why do you think I'm always trying to keep you away from them?"

That earned me a second eyeroll.

"Keep me away from the men?" She asked."Or the carbs?"

"The carbs, Babe."

"I suppose the carb thing could be true for them, because their bodies aren't conditioned to process it since you won't let them eat anything that qualifies as real food," she said."But I know I perform better after pizza and beer."

"You're right, Babe, you do perform well," I said, watching with interest as her face flushed and a subtle shiver ran through her. Just seeing how responsive she was to only my words was enough to push my control to it's limit. I'm a man who prides himself on his control, but in this case I welcomed the thought of losing it.

"What?" She asked."You're staring at me."

"I was just thinking that since your grandmother had such an enjoyable evening at the expense of everyone else's piece of mind," I said to her,"it seems only fair that her granddaughter has one, too."

"Oh, yeah?" She asked, taking a step closer."And you're going to provide one for me?"

She looked up at me, curled her hand along my jaw, and traced my lips with her thumb. One small touch and I was ready to take her right there on the hall carpet.

"I can give you that and a lot more, Babe."

"You already have, Ranger. Every day that I've known you." And she kissed me.

I pulled her flat against me, but let her take the lead. Steph wasn't shy anymore about touching me in front of my men, or even other people. And it still amazed me when she made the first move like this. It's been a long time in the making.

She pulled back just far enough to speak."Time to put your money where your mouth is, Batman," she whispered against my mouth.

I slid my hands down her hips and cupped her ass."Don't worry, Steph," I said, using my new handhold to lift her up."You won't have any complaints about where I put my mouth."

She wrapped her legs around my waist."I never do."

I carried her to the bedroom and spent the next hour showing her just how many places on her body my mouth enjoyed.

Steph was lying with her head on my shoulder and her leg thrown over mine. Our hands were laced together on my chest. It was well after midnight, but neither one of us was ready for sleep. Now seemed like a good time to bring up what I've been thinking a lot more about lately.

"You're happy here right, Babe?"

She picked her head up and looked at me."Of course I am, Ranger," she said."You're here. Ella's here. And if I feel like bossing someone around, Lester's downstairs ready for anything I can dish out. Why? You thinking of kicking me out?"

"Just the opposite, Steph," I told her."What do you think about moving in here?"

"Didn't I already do that?" She asked me."Most of my clothes are here. Rex is in your kitchen. My hair products threaten to take over your bathroom daily."

I knew that if Ella wasn't vigilant in keeping all of Stephanie's things contained, the bathroom would resemble a crime scene photo by the end of the day.

"I mean completely moving in," I said to her."Giving up your apartment, changing your mailing address, and telling your mother that we're living together."

"Ranger, she knows we're living together," Steph said."Even my mother can only deny things for so long before she has to give up and accept them."

"Babe, your mother isn't the reason I'm asking."

"I know. I'm just surprised that you're bringing this up," she said."I didn't think you'd be the one to want to categorize our relationship."

"Does that mean you haven't thought about making Rangeman your home?" I asked.

"It's been my home for a while now."

"But you still have things in your apartment."

"Yeah," she said to me,"my crappy cast off furniture and the clothes I only wear when I have to do laundry. You have better furniture, and Ella always makes sure that I have clean clothes, so both of those things aren't important."

"Just give it some thought," I told her.

"Okay." She studied me for a long moment."You really want me here, don't you?"

"Yes," I said to her."Has there been any doubt?"

"Nope. But I like hearing you say it."

I eased her head back down on my shoulder."Come on, Babe, get some sleep and we can talk more about it later."

She stifled a yawn and pressed a kiss to the underside of my jaw."Go to sleep, too," she whispered. And three seconds later, I felt her breathing even out.

I smiled into the dark room. Combine multiple orgasms and a potentially serious conversation and Stephanie was dead to the world. I kissed the top of her head and allowed my body to start relaxing enough for sleep. I felt we'd made progress tonight and that I was one step closer to getting Stephanie into my building for both our sakes. I knew I'd like having her here, but I didn't realize how empty the place would feel when she wasn't in it. Or how empty I would feel when she wasn't in my arms at night. Business trips were getting shorter do to the fact that I had a harder time sleeping without her weight against me. Lack of sleep wasn't something I've had to worry about since I stopped taking jobs that no one else would touch for the government, spending more time overseas than I spent at home. I don't regret those years, but I have no desire to revisit, or repeat, them.

Steph shifted, drawing my attention back where it belonged, and I tightened my arm around her. I closed my eyes and finally let myself drift off to sleep thinking about how holding her as she slept was infinitely better than sitting in a chair in her apartment watching her do it from a distance.

I woke up to find that I had something besides the blanket covering my chest. Steph had moved in her sleep from my side to full length on top of me. I guess I got my wish, because she did end up next to, under, and on top of, me at various times during the night. I wrapped my arms around her and rolled us both to our sides. Steph muttered something I couldn't understand and her fingers clutched at my back, refusing to release me. If I didn't have to get up, I'd be enjoying this a lot more. As it was, I was having trouble remembering why I should be heading to the gym at all.

I brushed her hair back from her face and leaned forward to press a kiss to her mouth. I felt her lips smile against mine.

"Morning, Babe," I said to her."You have to let me go."

She smiled again."Never," she whispered in a voice that was still heavy with sleep.

I wasn't sure how awake she actually was, but it didn't make me any less pleased by her response.

"It's after five, Steph," I said to her."I have to go down to the gym before it gets too late."

"It's five o'clock, Ranger," she said."It would take three hours just to reach late."

I smiled down at her.

"Fine," she said to me."If you think an elliptical machine is better than what I can give you, then go ahead."

"I'll come back up here for a complete rubdown afterwards," I told her.

"No, you can go ahead down to the torture chamber. I'm going back to sleep now like a normal person," she said."You had your chance and now you can kiss it goodbye."

"I'd rather kiss you." And I lowered my head to hers again. When I ended the kiss, I could see that her eyes were a little unfocused. And sleep had nothing to do with it.

"Well that took care of my workout," she said. Steph held out her arm to me."I bet my pulse is racing and everything."

I curled my hand around hers and pressed my lips to the pulse point in her neck instead. She was right, it was fast.

"I guess I can let you off the hook for this morning," I said to her.

"Good, because I wasn't moving anyway."

"I gathered that, Babe. I'll see you when I get back."

I changed into sweats and left Stephanie asleep in my bed. It was times like these that I questioned my desire to own a company in the first place.

Tank came into the gym forty-five minutes later while I was putting the weights I had used away.

"Percy has been seen at his ex-girlfriend's house," Tank told me."He's been making himself scarce when the roommate's around, but as soon as she leaves, he shows up ten minutes later. Guess no one wants her to see him after the last fight they had led to an emergency room visit for her."

"What time does the roommate leave?" I asked him. Percy wasn't a high-priority skip but if there was a chance to grab him, then they'll be one less asshole on the street tonight.

"Roommate has a class this afternoon at two," Tank said."Our source says that he's planning on spending the afternoon there."

"We'll head there right after we check out the building for Dobrosky," I told him."We should have plenty of time to meet with Renesas at 0900 and take care of Dobrosky before we have to pick up Percy."

I picked up the towel I'd brought with me and draped it over my shoulders."Did something go on last night that I need to be aware of?" I asked Tank.

"No," Tank said, but he hesitated with his answer just long enough for me to know that whatever was bothering him was personal, and had nothing to do with the men or Rangeman.

I gave him a barely perceptible nod. If he didn't want to talk about it, I couldn't force him. Well, I could force him, but I'll choose not to right now."I'm going to hit the shower and then I'll meet you in the conference room."

"Tell Steph I said hi if she's up," Tank called out after me.

I raised my hand in acknowledgment. Everyone knew that Steph managed to get up before seven only two or three times a week. And usually only if I was with her. I unlocked the door and found Steph in the kitchen wearing my T-shirt and a guilty expression when she saw me standing there.

"Babe."

"What? I can't help it if Ella likes me better than you, and wants to make a special breakfast just for me," she said, while popping the last of what looked like a cinnamon roll into her mouth."I wouldn't want to hurt Ella's feelings by not eating what she brings me."

"Nice try, Steph," I said to her."You wouldn't get out of bed for me, but you'll do it for a cinnamon roll?" I couldn't get upset about it. I knew Stephanie's priorities long before I decided to get involved with her.

"It smelled good. And it tasted even better," she said, licking the last of the frosting off her fingers.

I walked over to her and lifted her fingers to my mouth. I swirled my tongue around her fingertip and heard her breath catch. I lowered her hand, bent my head, and kissed her.

"You taste better," I whispered to her when I raised my head.

"Don't even think about it," she said."You chose the gym over me and you can't take it back now."

"I'll make it up to you tonight," I told her. It was hard to believe that in such a short time, I went from barely living in my apartment to hurrying back to it just because I knew Stephanie would be here. If a couple skips got handled roughly in my haste to get the job done sooner, then so be it.

"Tonight?" She repeated."Busy day?"

"Meeting at nine. Tank and I are doing a security walk-through for a client on Center Street after that," I told her."And then we have a capture set for two."

"So I really won't see you until tonight."

"If everything goes well," I said to her,"I should be done by four."

"Okay."

"What are your plans?"

"I have a few things I was going to get taken care of today," she said.

Not exactly the straight-forward answer I was looking for, but I didn't push it.

"I have to go over a few things with Tank before the meeting so I'll grab something to eat down there," I told her."I'm going to jump in the shower, want to join me?"

"I've been in a shower with you, Ranger, and you won't make it to your meeting in time if I join you. Let alone eat breakfast and see Tank before it."

I didn't think she'd go for it once she heard that my day was booked, but it never hurt to try. I could have made up the time somewhere. I kissed her again and headed to the bathroom.

She was still in the kitchen when I came back out dressed in my Rangeman uniform. Mr. Renesas was going to have to settle for a casual meeting today. I wasn't coming back to change before Tank and I headed out. Stephanie was worth the time it would take, Mr. Renesas wasn't.

"Woody or Hal will be available if you need help with something here, or use my cell if you want me specifically."

"You can call me, too, if you need something, Ranger," she said to me."Don't forget that. I may not be a superhero, but there are some things that I can help you with."

"There are a lot of things you can do for me, Babe," I told her."But as long as you're all right, I don't need anything else."

"Who knew there was a Sweet Ranger lurking under all the black clothes, scary expressions, and threats of bodily harm?"

I smiled at her. I've used all of those on her and they lasted about five minutes before she saw right through them.

"Don't knock it, Stephanie," I said to her."It works on everyone else I encounter. Just not on you."

"It did for a while," she said to me.

"Any chance the fear will return?" I asked. She knew I'd never hurt her, but it would make keeping her safe easier if she was worried at all about upsetting me.

"Nope," she said. And I could tell by her smile that whatever she was going to say next was going to be good. "If you make me at all nervous, I just use the old picture the person in their underwear trick and the nerves go away. Except I know you don't usually wear underwear, so I had to go with picturing you naked instead."

I gave her the smile that she claimed was dangerous and made her want me all the more.

"The fear goes away, Babe, but I bet it's quickly replaced with something else."

Her eyes narrowed, probably not liking that I turned the tables so easily on her."It's not nice to use a person's feelings for you against them," she said to me.

"I wouldn't, Babe, but it's one of the few advantages I have over you," I said."And I need all the help I can get."

She said something suspiciously like 'yeah right' under her breath and my smile grew.

"I've got to go," I told her, even though it was the last thing I wanted to do. Who knew playing with Stephanie was going to be one of my favorite things to do with her? But it makes sense since she's the only one I can do it with. No one but Tank and Stephanie know that I even have this side to my personality.

I kissed her until she plastered herself to me and then reluctantly let her go."You'll be here when I get back?" I asked before I could stop myself.

"Unless Connie needs a FTA picked up today," she said."And before you say anything, I promise to take Hal or Woody if I need to."

"That's all I ask, Babe." I picked up my gun and slid in into the shoulder holster my jacket would cover so I wouldn't scare off Renesas. I had another one at my ankle and a Glock hidden at the small of my back. I didn't expect to use any of them during the meeting, but you can never be too careful when you leave the building. Something I still remind Stephanie every day. But she's attracted less crazies since staying here. That was one more reason I wanted her out of her apartment. It was too easy to get to her there. Her locks could be picked by a child. And anybody could climb up her fire escape and straight into her bedroom. Not a thought I was comfortable with.

"Ranger?"

"Yeah, Babe?"

"You just got all quiet," she said."What's wrong?"

"Just trying to figure out a solution to a problem, Steph." Her being here wasn't a problem, but getting her to want to stay here was.

"Can I help?"

"Maybe," I told her."We'll discuss it when I get back."

"Sure," she said, walking up to me."Please don't get shot today."

"I'll try," I told her. It was a possibility, although a small one, and I wasn't going to lie to her.

"Try hard," she said to me, raised up on her tiptoes, and kissed my mouth. It was a kiss that would be considered tame compared to the ones we normally shared, but it was sexy as hell because Stephanie was the one doing it.

She followed me as far as the front door and I looked over my shoulder just in time to watch her bare legs disappear behind it, mentally cursing Tank for scheduling a meeting for this morning. Lucky I was Batman and not Superman otherwise Steph could be considered my kryptonite. My body stilled and I gave my head a disbelieving shake. I guess that proves just how much more time I've been spending with Steph lately. Her comic book characters were entering into my thoughts without my permission.

I punched the button for five and waited for the elevator. One of the concerns I had about Steph and I being together was that anyone who wanted to get to me could use her to do it, because it was clear to everyone that nothing mattered to me as much she did. But since I got my head out of my ass and thought it all the way through, she was now almost always in a secure building, had twenty bodyguards on call at any given time, and trackers on any car she chose, so the chances diminished substantially of her being grabbed. It's only when she leaves for longer periods of time do I start feeling uneasy.

I took the elevator down two floors, got a yogurt and some fruit from the kitchen, and walked into the conference room trying to push Steph to the back of my mind. I wasn't entirely successful, but I could at least get through this meeting without picturing her in my T-shirt. Tank and I went over what we had learned about Mr. Renesas, and details on Percy's capture while we waited for Renesas to arrive.

He showed up on time, something I appreciated in a client, and the meeting lasted a little over an hour. The contracts were signed shortly after. By eleven Tank and I were on the road. We met our client, looked over the place he was thinking about buying, and then spent the next thirty minutes giving him a list of security options if he decided to purchase it. At one, we stopped for a sandwich on the way to Percy's girlfriend's house.

When we arrived, everything had started out fine. Percy showed up like we were told he would. We even got to him before he made it to the relative safety of the house. But things went to hell quickly after that. The stupid fucker panicked and tried to run. I don't know how he thought he'd get away from me or Tank, but he was ready to try. Three seconds later, I was slapping the cuffs on him.

I heard someone yell 'NO!' from behind me and I instinctively stepped to the side, letting go of Percy. Tank had been on his way to the truck to open the back door for me and didn't reach the girlfriend in time to stop her. I felt pain in my shoulder and saw a dull blade continue on by me, finally landing in the upper part of Percy's back. Fuck. I saw a trip to Saint Francis in our near future. I knew I couldn't just drop him off at the cop shop in this condition, though it was tempting. Tank made it back to us in record time. He grabbed the woman's wrist and the knife dropped to the ground.

"Getting slow in your old age," I said to Tank, as I crouched down to where Percy had fallen, the knife still in his back.

"Whose the one that just got slashed by a knife anyone on our team would be embarrassed to own?" Tank said."Steph's gonna be pissed."

He didn't have to tell me that. Steph didn't like it when I had blood on me. Hated it even more when it was my own.

"Let's get these two locked up before she hears about it," I told him.

Tank got the first aid kit out of the truck and packed the wound around the knife to stem some of the blood flow. It wasn't life threatening, but Percy was acting like it was. Swearing and threatening to kill the girlfriend, whose name we learned was Amber, once he was patched up. Percy wasn't capable of running anywhere now, so while Tank was securing Amber in the backseat of the truck, I shrugged off my jacket and looked down at my arm. The gash was deeper than I would have liked, but it didn't look like I'd need stitches. I took out some of the gauze and tape from the kit and bandaged it as well as I could to stop the blood from flowing down my arm.

I helped Percy up and walked him to the back of the truck. Tank had shackled Amber so she wouldn't be able to move and we did the best we could with Percy. Tank drove us to Saint Francis, unloaded me and Percy, and continued on to the Trenton PD with Amber. I'd call the control room when I was closer to knowing when Percy would be discharged.

Over an hour later, my arm was cleaned and rebandaged and Percy was being looked at. When he was finally getting stitched up, I went outside to call the control room for a pickup. My phone buzzed just as I was about to dial. I looked at the screen and wasn't surprised to see who was calling. Stephanie.

"Babe."

"Are you okay?" She asked.

"I'm fine, Steph," I told her, not wanting her to worry more than I knew she already had.

"I was in the control room," she began,"and saw that your truck was parked at Saint Francis. You're sure you're all right?"

"I am," I said to her."The skip wasn't so lucky."

"Does he have you or Tank to thank for that?" She asked.

"Wasn't us this time, Babe. He's here courtesy of his girlfriend."

"Sounds like you have a good story to share when you get back," she said.

"One I think you'll enjoy," I told her.

"And where's the girlfriend now?" Steph asked."In a room next to his?"

"Tank took her to the station."

"And he left you there?"

"I didn't know how long this would take," I said."It was easier to take care of them one at a time."

"Do you want me to come get you?"

I wouldn't normally turn her down for any reason, but I didn't want her to see my arm until I was back at the apartment. Steph doesn't deal well with me being hurt, and I didn't want to have to re-admit Percy if Steph got to him, since she wouldn't be able to get her hands on Amber who was most likely behind bars now.

"Percy will be released shortly and I'm going to have to take him to the station," I said to her."I was just about to call the control room, but since you called first you can send Hal down here for us. I'll fill you in when I get back to Rangeman."

"Hurry back," she told me.

"I just have to sign some forms for him," I told her,"and then we should be out of here."

"I'll be on seven," she said. And she disconnected.

Looks like she was picking up some of my habits after all. Just not the ones I would have liked.

I collected Percy and walked him out to where Hal was waiting for us by the ER doors. I loaded him up for what I hoped was the last time today and Hal drove us to the Trenton PD. Tank had already left by the time we got there, and I got Percy taken care of in record time. Now I just had to face Steph. She was not going to be happy that I didn't tell her about my wound on the phone, but I didn't want her imagining the worst in the time it took me to get back to her so she'd be able to see with her own eyes that I was fine.

Hal parked in the Rangeman lot and I took the elevator to the seventh floor.

The minute I stepped through the door, I knew Steph had learned something about what had happened.

"Tank?" I asked.

"Don't blame him," she told me."I knew something was off as soon as I got off the phone with you. But since I did talk to you and you sounded like yourself, not in a lot of pain or anything, I figured whatever happened couldn't have been that bad and decided to wait to hear what went on from you. That lasted about five minutes and Tank, unfortunately, walked in right about the time I got tired of waiting."

Tank probably wished it had been busier at the station today.

"He didn't stand a chance, did he?" I asked Steph.

"Nope. Now stop stalling," she said."What the hell happened?"

I took off my jacket and her eyes went immediately to the bulge on my shoulder. It was a good thing my shirt was black so she couldn't see the blood that had soaked into it.

"I got swiped by a knife, Babe." I knew I was going to piss her off with that, but I couldn't help myself. She was beautiful when she was angry.

I felt the punch on my good shoulder. But I use the word punch loosely. It was more of an attention getter.

I raised an eyebrow at her. Not a good move on my part, and I felt the smack again.

"Don't mess with me, Ranger," Steph warned.

I could see that she was upset about me not telling her about this sooner. And at the thought of me being injured. I knew that this was how Steph handled this kind of thing. She'd get angry about it first before she was ready to deal with what was really bothering her.

"I'm okay, Steph," I said to her."Look at me."

She pulled her eyes away from the bulge the bandage made under my shirt and looked up at me.

"I wasn't in any danger," I said to her.

"But you've got a hole in your shoulder."

"I got a whole hell of a lot more the day I turned seventeen," I told her.

She looked like she wanted to say something but stopped herself."No, forget it," she said."I don't want to know. How bad is it?"

"A small slice from a four-inch blade."

"Shit," she said.

"Didn't even need stitches," I said to her."Look on the bright side, Steph, you told me not to get shot today and I didn't."

Her eyes narrowed."You weren't supposed to get stabbed, either!" She said to me."Ricardo Carlos Manoso, you are not to get injured ever again."

"Promise, Babe," I said, knowing that she was acting purely on emotion and didn't expect a rational answer right now.

She took a deep breath and I could see that her feelings were now mostly under control.

"Okay," she said."I know you can't promise me that any more than I can promise you, but I need to know that you're going to do whatever you can to keep yourself in one piece."

"Babe," I said to her,"it's only a cut."

"What if I was the one with a knife wound?" She asked me."Would you say that it was only a cut?"

She had me. And she knew it.

"No. I'd make sure you were okay and then I'd go after whoever caused it. And he'd be lucky if I only killed him once."

She laughed."You can't kill someone more than once, Ranger," she said to me."And you already have the idiots in custody so I can't even take my anger out on them."

"So I'm the one who gets the pleasure?"

"I'm not angry at you, Ranger," she said, getting to where she'll start opening up a little more."I'm scared of losing you. I don't want you hurt, or shot, and definitely not dead, but I can't change who you are. And I don't want to. So you'll have to give me a minute to freak out and then you can tell me exactly what happened."

Stephanie continually surprises me. I knew she was worried about something happening to me, but I didn't think she'd be able to get control of herself so quickly when it did.

We moved down the hall and into the living room. When Steph was settled against me on the couch, I filled her in on Percy's capture, Amber's reaction to it, and the trip to the emergency room. When I was finished, I could see Steph was trying to hold back a smile.

"So this moron tried to protect the boyfriend who beats the crap out of her by coming at you with a knife, only to stab the asshole herself."

"Yes," I told her.

"If it wasn't for the fact that you got hurt, I'd find this really funny."

"Knew you would, Babe."

She caught my hand in hers and looked at me.

"You can't let anything happen to you," she repeated."Especially not now, because while you were out getting stabbed with a machete ..."

"It's just a scratch, Steph," I told her."From a pathetically small knife, not a machete."

"Close enough," she said."As I was saying, while you were getting stabbed ..."

"Scratched."

She continued without correcting me."I decided that today would be a good day to tell Dillon that I was moving out so he could let the owners know that they'd need a new tenant soon," she said to me."Ever since you brought it up last night I've been thinking about it, and I think we're both ready to do this."

"Are you sure, Babe?" I asked her.

"I think so," she said."I'm here all the time anyway. It makes sense to have all my stuff here, too."

"And you want to make this change because it makes sense?" I asked her. I didn't want her to just shrug this off. Her answer meant more to me than I realized when I first brought it up.

"No," she said."I'm doing this because I want to. And because it's important to you. As long as I'm with you, the location doesn't matter to me. But if you're going to go out and get stabbed while picking up an unarmed skip, then maybe I should have kept my place."

"Stephanie," I said, my voice not reflecting any of the amusement hers had.

"I'm kidding."

"You'd better be," I told her.

She tipped her head back and looked directly into my eyes."All joking aside, Ranger," she said,"I want to be here with you. And I know what we have is going to last ..."

"Forever, Babe," I said to her."That's how long we're going to last."

"I think so, too, Batman," she said to me."So I won't need to keep my apartment as a safety net anymore."

I pulled her even closer and wrapped my arms around her."You won't regret it, Babe."

"I haven't regretted any of the time we've spent together. And I know this time won't be any different," she said."And besides, Rex likes your kitchen. I'd hate to have to move him out of it."

"Are you finished?" I asked her.

"Teasing you?" She asked me."Yes, I'm done doing that. But I am going to have to figure out what to do with my crap, though. Valerie could probably use some of it, and the rest, I guess, could be donated or something."

"Let me know what goes where," I told her,"and I'll have the guys take care of it."

"Is there anything you won't make them do?"

"Not really."

"So when do you think we should do this?" She asked me.

"I say the sooner the better," I told her.

"Afraid I'll change my mind?" she said, smiling.

"No, Babe. When you make up your mind about something, it's a done deal."

"And that doesn't scare you?"

"No," I said to her."I want you here with me and nothing will ever change that."

"Even when my mother starts calling here? And my grandmother wants to come over and scope the place out?"

"Even then," I told her."You're what this apartment has been missing to make it feel less like a place to crash when I'm in town, and I'm not going to let you out of it."

"Are you talking about my agreement to live here?" She asked."Or about not letting me out of the apartment itself?"

"At this moment ... both."

"I wish you were kidding."

"Me, too, Steph."

"Do you think we should tell our families first?" She said."Or wait until I'm all moved in?"

"Does it matter?" I asked her, wanting her to tell me it didn't. I knew she wouldn't let anyone change her mind about this, but I didn't want her to have to put up with anyone trying convince her that it wasn't a good idea.

"No, I guess not. We can start packing up tomorrow then," she said to me."It shouldn't take longer than a day if the guys are willing to help haul crap out for me. Not a lot of my stuff survived the last fire bombing."

"Trust me, Steph," I said to her,"they're willing."

"Oookay then. I guess it's official," she said."I'm living at Rangeman now."

"There's only one thing to say to that?"

"What?" She asked.

"Welcome home, Babe." And I leaned down and kissed her.