There Ain't no Love Like Ranger Love

Chapter 10

The next morning, Ranger's watch alarm went off at 5:00 am. He shut if off quickly so it wouldn't disturb his Babe and carefully rolled out of bed.

He had a bit of a dilemma on his hands. If he woke Stephanie up this early, she would no doubt be unhappy. If she woke up and he was gone, she might think it was a repeat of the time he'd spent the night with her years ago. He knew he'd treated her badly back then, telling her to go back to Joe, and didn't want her to be reminded of that time.

He wondered if a note would suffice. He tossed the problem around in his head while he used the bathroom and washed his hands and face. Finally, he decided if the note was reassuring enough, she probably wouldn't be upset.

After he dressed, he tore a sheet of paper off the note pad by her phone and noticed that her answering machine and phone were both unplugged. He chuckled to himself. That was Stephanie for you. If the button wasn't blinking then you could pretend no one was trying to get in touch with you.

He sat down to write the note. Steph, went running and didn't want to wake you. Will be back before you have to leave. Love you, R.

This time, there would be no taking back of the note. He'd learned that lesson well enough the day before. And, besides, there was no reason to hold back now. He loved her and they both knew it and he had told her last night, more than once.

He smiled to himself when he thought back to the night before and how good it felt to be intimate with her again. Just knowing her made him happy and having her as his best friend was something he'd never trade, but making love with her was something he'd missed desperately and now he no longer had to rely on his past memory of their one night together.

He was going to do everything in his power to keep her safe, happy and satisfied so she'd never be tempted by Yashi or anyone else.

It suddenly occurred to him that he didn't know what kind of things she liked to do. She didn't have any hobbies that he could recall and he didn't think Joe ever took her out on dates. He knew she liked hockey and decided that when winter came he'd make sure to take her to a couple Rangers games.

On his way to his car he wondered what else he could do to make her happy. Maybe a weekend getaway. Yeah, that would be nice for both of them. And dancing once in a while. She said that would be fun.

He unlocked his car and grabbed his spare pair of running shoes and switched his boots for the shoes. He took off at a slow pace and was perplexed when he couldn't think of any other things that would make her happy.

He was pretty much a novice when it came to doing things with women that didn't involve sex or ... well, sex. Maybe he'd have to do a Google search when he got back to his office.

By the time he got back to her parking lot it was almost six-thirty and he still hadn't come up with anything else. Of course it had been hard to keep his mind on the subject because every two or three minutes his brain flashed him images of a naked Stephanie. When he'd finally get rid of the images, he'd have to start all over again and before he could come up with an idea, more naked images would pop into his head. Stephanie naked in bed. Stephanie naked in the shower, Stephanie naked in the kitchen. Stephanie naked on his lap. Stephanie naked, beneath him, crying out his name. Damn, even the reruns in his head were excellent.

He retrieved his duffel bag from his car and let himself back into her apartment. When he looked in on her, she was still sleeping peacefully.

He went to the kitchen and greeted Rex, then started a pot of coffee to let it brew while he was in the shower. When he came out of the bathroom, he heard her chatting with Rex in the kitchen.

Ranger dropped his duffel bag on the couch and went to join her. She was wearing a little white stretchy tank top and a pair of blue panties and that was all. Her brown curly hair was out of control, her mile-long legs were luscious beyond belief, her toenails were painted pink, and when she looked up from Rex's cage and smiled at him, he was so turned on he could hardly breathe.

"Morning, Babe." He pulled her to him and kissed her as though he hadn't seen her in months.

"Mmm," she murmured against his lips when the kiss ended. "Now that's what I call a good morning kiss."

He flashed her a mega-watt smile. "You taste like Colgate, Babe."

"Can't get anything past you," she teased him, before pulling away. "Want a cup of coffee?"

"Just half a cup," he told her. "I need to head to the office." He wanted to ask her to come to RangeMan today for some training, but he didn't want to sound whiny or let her think he was jealous of Yashi. "How'd you brush your teeth when I was in the bathroom?"

She grinned at him as she handed him his coffee. "Guess you weren't very aware of your surrounds. I slipped into the bathroom, peeked at your gorgeous naked body through the edge of the shower curtain and then brushed my teeth, all without you knowing."

Ranger blinked. "You're kidding?" How could he have not known she was there?

"Yes," she said with a delighted laugh. "I'm just messing with you. I have an extra toothbrush and toothpaste in my room and brought them with me to the kitchen."

Ranger looked relieved. No need for her to know what he'd been doing in the shower after viewing naked images of her all morning. He leaned down and kissed her. "You're a real tease, this morning. I like it. Wish I didn't have to leave."

"Maybe we can have lunch together today," she suggested.

"I wish. You know the new mall that's opening off the expressway?"

Stephanie nodded. Yes, it's supposed to open soon."

"Right, and RangeMan is going to provide the security. I'm meeting the property manager and a member of the board for lunch today to iron out the final agreement and get their name on the dotted line."

"Oh well, that's okay," she shrugged.

Ranger thought that she didn't seem all that disappointed and wondered what she'd be doing at lunch time. "How about dinner again tonight?" he suggested.

"Sounds good. I barely made a dent in that chocolate cake last night."

Ranger shook his head. His mind was on getting her back into his bed and her mind was on Ella's chocolate cake. Oh well. Shortly after dinner, he'd make sure they were on the same page ... and the same set of sheets.

He set his coffee cup in the sink, took her cup from her hand and set it on the counter, then pulled her close for another kiss. "See you tonight, Babe. Be good today."

Stephanie walked him to the door after he grabbed his duffel bag from the couch. "Good luck with your mall deal," she said, giving him a swat on his ass as he walked out the door.

XXX

Ranger pulled into the underground garage and parked the turbo in its regular spot, then made his way to the seventh floor and changed into clean clothes.

Sitting at his desk in his apartment office, he dialed Tank's number on his cell.

"Yo," Tank answered in his booming voice.

"Yo," Ranger replied. "I'm upstairs. Except for the morning meeting, I'll probably be up here until I have to leave for my lunch appointment at one."

Tank chuckled. "You should check your messages once in a while. Your lunch appointment has been changed to tomorrow."

"Why?" Ranger demanded. He didn't want anything messing up this mall deal. The owners had several other shopping center properties in the surrounding area and Ranger had his eye on all of them.

"There doesn't seem to be a problem, if that's what you're worried about," Tank told him. "Mr. Wilberson's secretary called and said he had a scheduling conflict and wondered if tomorrow was okay. I checked your calendar and penciled him in. You should visit your real office once in a while."

"Why the attitude, Tank?"

"I don't have an attitude, Ranger. I was just joking with you. I thought you'd be in a better mood after last night."

Ranger frowned. "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

"Jesus, Ranger, relax. Have you forgotten you have a tracker on your car? I know where you were all night and I was just teasing you. I'm happy for you, man. For both of you."

Ranger clenched his fist. No wonder Stephanie hated those damn trackers. They were a fucking invasion of privacy. "After the meeting this morning, I'll be off line all day unless it's important or something happens with Stephanie," he said, disconnecting call.

Ranger turned on his computer and went to the Google search page. He typed in, How to keep a woman interested. There were a ton of results and he checked out the first few, but didn't find exactly what he was looking for.

He changed the search term to Maintaining a romantic relationship. This looked a little more promising. He clicked on one of the links and found an entire list of things. He printed the list and picked up his ink pen. He'd mark the most important items for consideration.

The first one was a gimme. Tell her you love her at least once a day. "I can do that," Ranger said aloud, putting a check mark next to it. "I like it. Easy and effective."

Next on the list. Call her for no reason. "Hunh," he grumbled. Why would he call her for no reason? He could always think of a reason to call her, but calling for no reason had him stumped. He picked up his phone and called Tank. He'd been dating Lula for several months. Maybe he'd know what it meant.

"Yo," came Tanks voice.

"Tank. Why would a person call another person for no reason?"

There was silence on the other end of the phone. Finally, Tank said, "You mean like you're doing now?"

"Fuck you," Ranger said. "This is serious."

"Oh, sorry," came Tank's reply. "Well, let me see." There was more silence. "Shit, Ranger. I don't know. Maybe just to hear their voice?"

"Well, that would be a reason, wouldn't it?" Ranger asked.

"Hmm, yeah, I see your point. Give me a minute," Tank said. "Hmm, oh, maybe because they're away from each other and they miss the other person."

"Tank, missing the other person would be a reason. I need to know why they'd call for no reason."

"I'm stumped, Rangeman. If I think of something I'll call you back. You taking a Cosmo survey?" Tank asked with a chuckle.

Ranger disconnected without answering. "Shit," he mumbled. "I'm just crossing that one off for now."

Next on the list. Whisper sweet nothings in her ear. He figured sweet nothings actually meant sweet somethings and put a check mark next to it. He could do this one. Two out of three so far.

Number four. Ask her how her day went and listen carefully while she talks about it. "Piece of cake," Ranger said with a smile, putting another check mark on the list. "This is turning out to be easier than I thought. I'm always interested in listening to Stephanie talk about her day."

He glanced at his watch and saw that it was almost time for the 8 am meeting. He'd work on the list more after he wrapped things up there. He folded the piece of paper in half and slid it under his keyboard.

XXX

At five minutes to eight, Stephanie pulled her car into Yashi's driveway. He opened the door about twenty seconds after she knocked and gifted her with a big dimpled smile.

"Stephanie, I'm so happy to see you. Come in," he said, stepping aside for her to enter.

He was wearing a pair of gray sweatpants, and a gray t-shirt. Nothing special, but man he was a gorgeous guy. "I was hoping you would make the decision to allow me to help you."

Stephanie returned his smile. "Like you said the other day, Yashi, how could a person turn down getting paid to swim, dance and learn karate."

"I'm a genius, aren't I?" he asked with a grin. "Made you an offer you can't refuse."

"Absolutely," she agreed, following him as he led her to his workout room. She wasn't quite sure at what point her anger at being suspended turned into acceptance and then into something to look forward to, but she decided not to examine it too closely. It was probably best to just go with it and enjoy the results.

When they walked in the room, she dropped her purse on the floor, off to the side of the doorway, and looked around. It seemed he had everything a person could want in a home gym.

In the middle of the floor there were some large padded mats. She figured that was where they'd do the karate lessons.

"So," Yashi said, facing her with his hands on his hips. "I assume you've spoken with Ranger about you-know-what," he said with a wink.

Stephanie narrowed her eyes. "How do you know that?"

Yashi threw his head back and laughed. "Steph, you're fairly glowing with magical radiance this morning. I'm pretty sure it's not from donuts or Special K. I'm figuring it must be from Special R."

Now it was Stephanie's turn to laugh. "That obvious, eh?"

"Indeed," Yashi agreed. "I'm very happy for you."

"You certainly were right on the money with your idea, Yashi. It worked like a charm."

"I know about these things," he told her.

"How about you?" she asked. "Is there someone special in your life?"

"No, not right now," was all he said.

Stephanie couldn't help her curious nature. "Have you ever been married?"

"No, I've never been married. "I did have a very special relationship though. I dated the most beautiful dancer in New York City for five years."

"Oh. Well, I'm sorry it didn't work out," Steph told him.

"It did work out," Yashi said softly. "Sandy and I didn't end it. A drunk driver did," he said, his voice fading a bit at the end.

Stephanie put her hands to her mouth. "Oh no! Yashi, I'm so sorry. How horrible."

Yashi bent down to move two of the padded mats closer together. "It's okay, Steph." He straightened back up and gave her a small smile. "It's been almost eight months. I'm at the stage right now where I can talk about it without feeling like I'm going to fall apart ... except for those times I can't, if that makes any sense."

Steph nodded. "I'm sure it does. I've never been though something like that, so I can only image the hurt and pain."

Yashi nodded to acknowledge he'd heard her, but didn't reply. Suddenly, he clapped his hands once and said, "Okay, let's get going here, otherwise I'm going to be late getting to the bonds office. I have someone coming over from Les Sebring's office who is interested in picking up some extra work, bringing in your skips while you're off."

Stephanie groaned. "Jean Ellen?"

"No, his name is Jimmy Delgado. Who is Jean Ellen?"

"She works for Les too, but I'm sure she only does high bond skips. She's sort of like Sydney Bristow from Alias, except she's blond."

"I see," he said with a smile. "You don't sound like her biggest fan." He walked over and stood on the mats and motioned for her to follow.

"First we're going to work on some simple stretching exercises so we don't pull any muscles when we're actually practicing the moves."

For the next several minutes, they did the stretching exercises he showed her, then they spent another twenty minutes repeating three basic moves. It was much easier, so far, than Stephanie thought it would be and Yashi was great company. He had a great sense of humor and he laughed easily and was quick to praise her when she got the moves right.

Eventually, he looked at his watch. "You did a great job today, Steph. Will Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings work for you?

"Sure, whatever is good for you."

"Great. I have to hit the shower and get dressed now. Otherwise, Connie is going to wonder what happened to me. You're welcome to dance next and then use the pool or you can check out the bikes in the garage to see if one suits you."

"Okay," Stephanie said and nodded. It was going to feel weird hanging out in his house when he wasn't there.

As if he read her mind, he turned back around at the door. "Seriously, make yourself at home. It's nice to know the house won't just be sitting here empty all day." With that, he disappeared though the doorway.

Stephanie walked over to the cabinet that held the stereo system and selected a station with good dance music. Standing several feet from the mirrored wall, she took a few dance steps, but felt rather silly dancing by herself in an empty room. Come on, she told herself. It's good exercise and you'll be holding up your end of the training deal.

She made a couple more starts and stops, then a song came on she really liked and she started dancing to it as she would if she were at a dance club with a partner. When the song finally ended, she was startled to hear Yashi applauding from the doorway.

"Bravo," he said with a grin. "You're an excellent dancer and enjoyable to watch."

Stephanie felt the color flood into her face. "Thanks. My mom made my sister and I take dance lessons when we were kids, but I don't dance much these days."

"Speaking of your mom, did you ever call her back?" Yashi asked curiously.

"Not yet. She's just so ... unpleasant sometimes," she finished with a sigh.

Yashi shook his head and smiled. "I've gotta run. I'll see you Friday."

"See you Friday," Steph repeated to his retreating back.

A/N - As you may have noticed, I uploaded a picture of Yashi at the top of the page in the summary box. If you click on the picture, it'll show you a larger version. I wanted you to see how gorgeous he really is. :)

Actually, the picture is actor, Russell Wong, but this has been the picture in my mind as I've written about Yashi. It kind of looks like he's standing outside by the bonds office, doesn't it?

As always, thank you for the reviews. I think I'm caught up on answering them and look forward to finding out if you like this chapter. Isn't Ranger just too cute, Googling ways to make his Babe happy?