Only You, Babe
Part 11
"So, what changed your mind about marriage?" Stephanie asked on the lounger in the balcony. Ranger's parents were spending the night so they did not have the long drive back to Newark. The engaged couple gave up the bedroom and they were on the black loungers. One for him and one for her, it was Ranger's punishment for not telling Stephanie he invited their parents. The Plums and the foster children drove back to Trenton. Lester wanted to sail back, but the pontoon boat needs to get to the Delaware River. It was a case of 'you can't get to there from here'.
"If Mrs. Sanchez's son could get married, so could I," Ranger gave a wolf grin with his response.
A toss pillow went flying across at him.
"Babe, I'll come over there and I'll show you why I want to get married?"
"Tell me from over there," Stephanie pointed to the Ranger on his folded down bed.
"Babe."
"Tell me."
"Because I love you and I don't want to spend a minute without you. I read in a book 'Memory is a way of holding on to the things you love, the things you are, and the things you never want to lose.' I want our life to be filled with lasting memories every day we are together. Why did you say 'Yes', Babe?"
"Well, Mrs. Lipnicki's daughter would have said 'Yes'," Stephanie teased resting her head in her palm laying the width of the area rug away from Ranger. "I love you. The risk of love is loss, and the price of loss is grief – But the pain of grief is only a shadow when compared with the pain of never risking love. I know I've never loved any man as I love you. I've always been afraid to put my entire heart at risk, but you never knowing that if something ever happened made my heart ache. I want you to know everyday."
"Babe, I'm coming over and I'll show you how much," Ranger told Stephanie slithering off his lounger towards her. "Ow!"
"Carlos, there will be none of that Cuban hanky panky. Your Momma is in the house," she told her son shaking the infamous wooden spoon. "Save it for your wedding night!"
"This will be a very short engagement," he muttered standing up rubbing his ass through his silk boxers. "Cut that out. My ass is sore!"
"Well, Mrs. Sanchez's son would keep it zipped up until his wedding night."
"He's a wimp!" Ranger shot Stephanie an eyebrow because she was giggling.
"Now, get down stairs. Your father is waiting to have the talk. I'll sleep up here with Stephanie. We can have girl talk before bed and that way I know you won't be using Cuban charm on her."
Ranger towered over Sancha Manoso, "I'm not sleeping downstairs! My fiancée is up here and I don't need to have the birds and bees talk with my father."
"Not that talk!" She smacked his leg with her utensil. "I think you have that figured out. The Cuban marriage talk so he can explain the secrets of a happy marriage."
"Momma, I was married before."
"And look how well that went, Carlos. Mrs. Sanchez's son would have had the talk already. He's not divorced."
"Mr. Sanchez went to get a loaf of bread and never came back."
"Well, I'm sure Mrs. Sanchez had the talk with him or at least he heard it from Dr. Phil so he will be prepared for marriage."
"He doesn't have a girlfriend because he's a wimp!"
"Mrs. Sanchez hasn't met the right one yet," his mother concluded. "Now go downstairs. Your father is waiting," Sancha ordered pointing the wooden spoon towards the steps.
Ranger watched his mother a moment. "Babe," he leaned down kissing Stephanie and stomped down the steps mumbling "Mothers! Why did I even call?" He slammed the bedroom door. Tonio Manoso was sitting up in bed when Ranger went around to the empty side of the bed and threw himself down.
"I'm here!" He stretched out with crossed arms. "What's the big secret to a happy Cuban marriage that you need to tell me?"
Mr. Manoso was chuckling. His wife went upstairs with the intention of torturing their son and she succeeded. "Hide the wooden spoons. It saves from having a sore ass."
"That's it!" Ranger sat up with an agitated expression. He wanted to send somebody somewhere. "I'm sleeping down here with my father and not my Babe over a wooden spoon! Oh, she's good!"
"Yeah!" Tonio nodded. "I can tell you the obvious to love each other, be honest, and treat each other with respect, but the two of you do that now, except when you're too afraid to tell her you invited your parents to meet her. To avoid the wooden spoons hide them. As a wedding present, she is planning on giving Stephanie a big one."
Sancha Manoso was giggling along with Stephanie.
"I've never seen Carlos or Ranger cave like that," Stephanie laughed.
"Well. it's the power of a mother over her children even if he thinks he's too much of a Cuban Macho guy, but he can't stand up to the sting of a wooden spoon. I'm getting you a really big one for a wedding present."
"Thank you, but your son is the sweetest man I know."
"Well, this will keep him that way," she was circling the wooden spoon in the air. "It does my heart good to see my youngest son happy and you do that for him, Stephanie."
"I've never met anyone like him. You and Tonio raised a wonderful son, Sancha. I don't cook much so I don't know how much use I'll give your wedding present. The only thing I've ever successfully made in the kitchen is a mess; and several small fires."
"Can my son dial the telephone?"
Stephanie nodded.
"Well, then I don't expect you and he will go hungry and there's Ella. I'll come to Trenton sometime he's out of town and I'll teach to make a few simple Cuban dishes."
"I'd like that and his fire insurance is up-to-date," Stephanie agreed.
Ranger called out low, "Babe."
"Ranger?" Stephanie leaned over the railing.
"Babe, is Momma asleep?"
Sancha Manoso popped up next to her future daughter-in-law, "No, and you are staying down there," she told her son waving the wooden spoon. "I'll use this on you!"
"Momma! Poppa misses you. I would like to tell My Woman 'Good Night'," he started up the steps keeping his eye on his mother's hand and distance between them.
"Absence will make his heart grow fonder," Mrs. Manoso answered him. "Go spend time with your father."
Ranger huffed at her. Stephanie met him down on the fourth step, "Good Night, Ranger."
"Good Night, Babe."
They were staring at each other. "I don't want to sleep with my father," he mumbled. "I want my Babe."
Stephanie giggled, "Your mother has the wooden spoon," seeing Sancha shaking it at her son.
"Yeah. I wonder how I can get it off her and save my ass."
"I heard that!" Sancha had that mean mother appearance. "Now tell your fiancée "Good Night' and your father will tuck you in."
He stomped a foot and shook his fists, "Ugh!" Wrapped in his arms, Ranger gave Stephanie a very thorough kiss. "Babe."
"You better go to bed, Ranger," Stephanie gave him one last quick kiss, and then pushed herself off his chest.
He gave one last look at the wooden spoon in his mother's hand, "Fine." He kissed her quickly again turning back down the steps. "I'm thirty-one and my mother is chasing me to bed," he grumbled the entire way down the steps.
Teasing her unhappy man, "Only you, Ranger."
