Ok, I have more excitement with Stephanie and Ranger coming up, but I wanted to get a few POV's in from some Merry Men.

Lester's POV

"Shit!" I hissed through clenched teeth.

"Damn, Bobby, easy man. Can't you tell I got my ass handed to me today?" I said while perched up on Bobby's examining table in his stainless steel and sterol medic office.

"Sorry, man" said Bobby hardly able to contain his mirth.

I still can't believe my Beautiful. My Beautiful? That's a new one. Anyway, she totally took me, us really, by surprise today. When she opened up to me in the conference room about "Our style of life" I was completely thrown off. What exactly did she mean by that? Was she trying to tell me that her life is not so different from Ranger, the guys and I?

Well, she is right in the sense of hand to hand combat at least. I'm second best at hand to hand combat here at Rangeman. Hell, I am right up there with the greatest in the world and she demolished me. If this was a real battle she possessed the ability to finish me off for good. Luckily, we were only sparing and now she is one of us…a part of our team and I could not be more excited to have her aboard. This amazing and talented woman is going to be quite the benefit to Rangeman…to all of us. We will all have her back and I can say with utter confidence that she will have ours. I can't wait to learn more about her.

Never before has a woman caused such enthusiasm in me in a totally foreign way. I love women. In fact, I have been known as a ladies man…a playboy and I can't deny it. I am enthusiastic about women, but mostly in the bedroom sense...until now.

Beautiful is completely different. I got a good look at her from the cameras in the garage and knew then and there that she was a knock out, but from the moment she walked into that conference room on five with my cousin I knew she was different from any other women I have come in contact with. There is something special and rare in her and we witnessed a portion of that today when she demonstrated her absolute ability in hand to hand combat and knocked my ass out. It's really actually kind of a funny coincidence that I considered her to be a knock out and she ended up in fact knocking me out with one lethal knee.

I can't help but let a chuckle slip while thinking back to my surprise at Steph's skill sets. I entirely underestimated her in the ring and paid for it dearly.

"What are you laughing at?" asked Bobby breaking me from my musings of one Stephanie Plum and her magnificence.

"Oh, I was just thinking about how I totally underestimated Beautiful and how she made me pay for it."

Bobby chuckled too.

"Seriously, bro, that woman is special…I sure as hell hope Ranger doesn't let her slip away. We sure as hell could use her here at Rangeman. I am aware that I know nothing about her, but for some reason I trust her one hundred percent and feel comfortable having her watch my back." Exclaimed Bobby and I couldn't agree more.

"Oh and by the way, Les, you do realize that you have dubbed her with a nick name, right?"

"Huh, oh you mean Beautiful?" I asked bemused. Where is he going with this?

"Yeah, bro, Beautiful." He said with a grin.

"What? She is beautiful…it fits."

"Oh, there is no doubt that she is probably the most 'beautiful' woman I have ever seen and it doesn't hurt that she has the power and skill to kick all of our asses…except for maybe Ranger, but yeah she definitely is beautiful. It's just that I have known you for years and I have never heard you use a term of endearment like you have with her and to keep referring to her as 'Beautiful' is a tad out of character for you."

"Don't read to far into it, Bobby. I like her…a lot…and like I said before it suits her." I explain to my longtime friend.

"Well, it looks as if Ranger really likes her too, and vise versa, so I would be careful as to how much you express your liking of her. Now, you ready for me to reset this nose?"

Oh shit!

Back at my apartment on four I lay on my couch with a cold compress at the juncture between my eyes. My Beautiful really worked me over today.

Damn, Bobby is right; I really have to get a handle on my sudden feelings for Stephanie Plum, this woman I met not but a few hours ago. Never before has a woman caused this sort of reaction in me. I'm the love em' and leave em' kind of guy, one night stands are my kind of thing. Not only does she now possess a nick name from me, but she has engrossed my entire thought process since regaining consciousness in her lap. It's those eyes; those beautiful pools of blue are mesmerizing. And that smile; so bright and sincere. It can captivate a person…it has captivated me.

Ok, Les, get your shit together. She's just a chick…an amazing chick with intoxicating beauty and a presence that demands attention without her even knowing it. Plus, she exudes the skill sets to eliminate someone more than twice her sizer. That's fucking hot!

Shit! I feel like a fucking teenage boy swooning over a girl with total infatuation. But, I am not a teenage boy, she is not a girl but an incredible woman, and judging from my cousin's behavior she is his…I'm screwed!

Tank's POV

Who exactly is this little spit fire of a woman that Ranger has introduced to our lifestyle? While sitting at the conference table and watching Ranger with Stephanie all I could think is that she had to be someone important, very important, to Ranger in order for him to invite her into Rangeman and introduce her to the guys, not to mention allow her to sit in on a company meeting. I am Ranger's best friend and right hand man and I know nothing of this woman; heard nothing of this woman…where has she come from?

I noticed Ranger's body language and expressions throughout the meeting. He is always Mr. Blank Face, professional and to the point, especially about business and when he makes a decision it is final. No questions asked. The Ranger that sat before me with this gorgeous and mysterious woman to his left was not the same man that left our touch base this morning.

Of course he was still professional during our meeting, aside from leaving us in the conference room for a good half hour to have a "private discussion" with Ms. Plum. I can't help but grin about that. I am pretty sure the boss man mixed business with a little pleasure, but who knows.

He had a sense of ease about him when he entered the conference room today and he was guiding Ms. Plum in with a protective and possessive gesture at the small of her back. I am pretty positive that he was making it known that she is his…especially toward Santos.

The main thing that I noticed was that he smiled…and even laughed. So, if this is how Stephanie Plum affects my best friend then she is a pleasant welcome to our lives where I am concerned. I haven't seen Ranger exude these types of emotions in a very, very long time. Not that these two emotions are foreign in my friend and boss, but for Ranger, when it comes to business he is just that, all business.

Today, however, Ranger did something that more than surprised me. He not only brought a woman to his business and home, introduced her to his employees and friends and presented her a chair at our meeting, but he gave her the ability to negotiate with him when he was so firm on keeping her out of the distraction. Ranger doesn't typically change his mind and he definitely is not usually persuaded. This astonishing woman has managed to gain power over him and I don't think he even knows it…nor does she.

My best friend is entranced by Ms. Plum and it baffles me. Not that she is not worthy of his adoration, it's just not Ranger's style. He doesn't do relationships. According to him they come with complications and distractions and his life does not lend itself to relationships.

I do have to say that the negotiation Ranger so reluctantly agreed to was very shocking to me and yet another first in many years flashed across his face, fear. When Stephanie climbed into that ring the tension displayed in Ranger's face and throughout his body was at an all time high. He really does care for this little woman.

I couldn't believe my eyes while watching Stephanie and Santos spar. She dominated the entire match, leading to knocking Lester out cold. To say I was shocked is an understatement and I instantly knew I needed to find out more information on Ms. Plum

She has accomplished in just a few hours what some have been trying to do for years and years; she has gained Ranger's trust. This is not easy to do; Ranger doesn't trust just anyone. In fact, there are only a handful of people he truly trust and this trust was not given easily and almost instantly like it has been today. It is my job to keep my friend and his business safe. It is my job to find out more about this mysterious woman who has popped into Ranger's life and so quickly captivated him.

For my friend and all of us at Rangeman's sake I hope she is as genuine as she has come across. I really would love the woman I met today in the conference room and the woman who displayed such immense skill and technique today in the ring to be truly who she says she is, for I believe she could be a great addition to Rangeman. However, I still can't get that stern edge in her voice out of my head when she told us that she can not disclose the reason for going FTA. It really is none of our business if she does not want to share, but I sensed something a little…off and I hope to find out what that is and quick.

Picking up my phone and dialing Rodriguez's extension I questioned myself as to if I really should be doing this without Ranger's permission, but decided that he may not have the ability to be partial on this matter.

"Rodriguez" came a voice from the other end of the line.

"Rodriguez, I need a background check and a search ran on a Stephanie Plum."

"Stephanie Plum, alright I will get on it." He said

"Oh, and make it a priority. The quicker the better."