A/N not mine, I own nothing but the plot.
We'll, we made it! Irma did some damage including no power for four days, and we're still fighting with our internet provider for WiFi. I'm hoping this comes through if not, I will repost when I have everything back up and running. Phoenix went back to school on Monday, they are having issues with internet as well, which is really not a great thing for them, since his school is one of the public schools that uses Google Classroom. I am just grateful that we are safe. ~Lynda
What the Heart Wants
Arriving at Hobbs Private Investigation Associates she called the owner from her car. He was going to meet her there in twenty minutes. She was surprised when a man who looked identical to Cal, minus the flaming skull on his forehead, appeared in front of the office. She gave him a slightly confused look before stepping out of her car and approaching him.
"Kevin?" She queried, as she reached out her hand to shake his. "I'm Stephanie Plum."
"Nice to meet you in person, Ms. Plum. Let me show you up to the apartment and I'll help you get settled in," he said, shaking her hand.
"Please, call me Stephanie, or Steph if you prefer."
He nodded and motioned for her to follow him. They walked up to the second floor, where she found out the the apartment encompassed the entire thing, there were two more apartments on the top floor. They were currently unoccupied. Hers, however, had three bedrooms, two baths, and more space than she had ever imagined having. Her jaw dropped at the sight of the walk-in closet that the master suite held. He handed her the keys and they both went down to begin bringing things up.
"Well, Steph, would you like to get settled in more, or would you like to join my family for dinner tonight?" he asked.
She thought about it for a few moments before answering. "Maybe another time, tonight I think I'll just run to the store and get comfortable here for the night. I have a few people I need to check in with as well."
"Why don't you come over next Sunday? My wife and I are hosting a family dinner. You get to meet the rest of the staff, most of my family, and the staff from the bail bonds office we do most of our research for. Plus, my twin is finally moving home, so it's almost like a welcome home party as well."
"I'm not sure if that's a good idea. I don't want to intrude on your family time," she tried to politely refuse. She just wasn't comfortable meeting so many new people at one time, it felt like a recipe for disaster.
"Nonsense! Be at this address by noon," he said. Handing her a piece of paper. "I insist that you come."
She nodded and they said their goodbyes. When he was out the door she set about putting her belongings away. When she found her photo albums, she sat and got lost in the memories. They were bittersweet. All of times when she thought she had been happy, a few of the stolen moments with Ranger and his Merry Men, some of her with her friends and family, and pictures of the nieces that she would miss growing up. Even the few pictures she had left from Dickie were of better times in her life. She didn't even realize it had gotten to be so late in the day until her stomach began to demand food. Chuckling sadly, she put the albums away and stood.
She made out a quick list and was heading out the door, remembering to call Vinnie on her way. He was glad that she was safe and made her promise to call if there was anything he could do for her, or even if she just wanted to hear from home. It honestly surprised her with how he was behaving, but she was grateful for it.
Pulling up Google on her smartphone, she found the nearest superstore. She wanted to get groceries and a few things to make the apartment more homey. She could have easily done it online, but she wanted to get it done this evening. She made a stop at a fast food joint to grab something quick to eat before heading to what seemed to be a central shopping area.
She quickly found the store she was looking for and parked. Once inside she made a beeline for the home goods area. She found a bed set, towels, bath accessories, and all the kitchen items she wanted. She even made a side stop in the pharmacy area to stock up on everything she needed there. She was beginning to feel confident that this was the right decision to make. She was comfortable here, and no one knew her. The sense of anonymity was relaxing.
She finished up her shopping and loaded everything into her car. Once she made her way home she was surprised to find someone sitting outside of the building. He looked vaguely familiar. When he looked up and smiled she instantly knew who it was and felt slightly angry.
"Hector! Did you follow me?! Why are you here?! I specifically asked that I be left alone!" She ranted. "Why the hell am I even talking to you? You don't speak English and I don't speak Spanish."
He wrapped her up in his arms and made soothing sounds until she calmed down before talking. "Angel, I speak English, and I am waiting on my new landlord to show up. I start work Monday at the bonds office next door"
"Please tell me that you didn't follow me here?"
"No, they offered me a job and apartment. I don't like working for Rangeman any more. The heart of the company wasn't there anymore."
"Ranger doesn't leave until the end of the month," she stated confused.
He reached out and stroked her cheek. "Not Ranger, you Angel, you," he said gently.
A full bloom blossomed on her face. Hector always thought it was one of her more endearing traits, despite her finding it annoying. He took her hand when she looked like she was getting teary eyed.
"I've been watching you and want to be your friend," He told her.
"You don't want that. No one does. I'm not worth the burden."
He was going to speak again when his new boss, Marc, came up to them. Marc was pleased to find that they already knew each other and were on good terms. He helped settle Hector into his apartment and Stephanie bring things up from the store before he left.
Stephanie got things put away and made the lone phone call that she had promised to make to let Vinnie know she was settled in for the night. The only thing he asked was that he kept her in the loop with how she was doing. She was surprised when she ended the call to hear a knock at her door.
Checking the peep hole she smiled little when she realized that Hector had come over. Opening the door and letting him in she offered him a drink. He grinned and held up a bottle of wine.
"I could definitely use that tonight," she stated with a wistful sigh.
"Me too, Angel."
They sat together on the sofa that came with the apartment, drinking straight from the bottle. She told him the entire story from the beginning and why she was working on her karma. He didn't laugh at her, just looked at her sadly. He told her about his past and how he had lost his entire family in a turf war.
They fell asleep together on the sofa, only waking when the sun began to make it's climb into the sky. She began to giggle and wipe drool from her chin and he was trying to get his hair back into place. There was a knock on the door and they both looked at each other. Hector grabbed his gun and motioned for her to get behind him.
She noticed the grin he had when he stepped away from the door and open the door. When she saw who was at the door, her jaw hit the floor and she began to shake. Cal and Tank were there sporting matching grins.
"What? How on earth..." she stumbled over her words.
Tank left out a full belly laugh. "Did you really think that I'd let you go without saying goodbye, especially after the gift you gave me, Little Girl?"
"Tank, that was supposed to stay between us."
"Nope, I wanted you to meet Charlotte."
"You know Pierre, when you said you wanted me to meet your best friend, I figured I would actually get to hug her as well," a diminutive woman came out from behind him. "I'm Charlotte, you must be Stephanie Plum. All the big guy here could do was tell me about you. My husband and I enjoyed the ride here listening the entire way. Although, I must say I've heard about all of your exploits in Trenton. He gave us more of an insight. This is my husband, Thomas.
"We had to come thank you for bringing my brother back to me," Charlotte told her as they hugged.
"I want to take all of you out to lunch. Also, Stephanie, I wanted to discuss a few things with you to help close off your ties to Trenton. It's just a few business things we need to complete."
"I don't see why not, I don't start work until Monday. Hector, do you mind if we go to the shops after work?"
"Si, Angelita."
Hector and Stephanie both got ready and they all loaded into the two black Expeditions that the guys drove down in, and in answer to her unasked question Cal replied, "I'll be taking Charlotte and Thomas home right after lunch."
They went to a little Mexican restaurant not far from her apartment. When they were seated Hector sat on one side of her and Tank the other.
"Did you really tell her I was your best friend?" She leaned over and curiously asked Tank.
"Of course. You're closer to me than anyone else."
She sat back with a dumbfounded look on her face. Tank leaned over and said, "We have a few things to discuss this evening. Would you be able to put up a weary traveller for a night?"
She only nodded. The waitress took their orders and a relaxed conversation ensued. Nearly two hours later they finished their meal and parted ways. Hector, Tank, and Stephanie leaving in one vehicle, the rest were heading back to Trenton. The tension in the truck became so thick you could almost cut it with a spoon. A very dull rusty spoon.
Once they were back and settled into her apartment Tank took her hand between his massive ones before he began to speak.
"Hector, Cal, and I no longer work for Rangeman. I've taken the early retirement plan that was offered me, but am continuing as a major share holder. I do need to ask what you want to do with your three percent of the company."
"What three percent? I don't have any stock in the company."
Tank sighed before replying, "Ranger gifted it to you after Scrog. I need to know if you want to sell it, or keep it."
"Sell it, I want nothing tying me to Ranger. Other than any mutual friends we may have, I want to start over. What are you going to do now?"
"I'm starting over as well. I have my PI licence and intend to put it to use. Anthony has more work than he can handle alone, so I'm coming on board too."