Chapter 12

Jessie stepped back in the reception room with Lester and everyone was laughing and she could see Tank had just sat back down.

"Good, Tank is done with his speech. I heard that same story as he practiced like a hundred times." Lester told Jessie.

Jessie snickered. Lester picked up her arm and laced it back in his. "Let's go see Cap. I think he might need to be rescued."

Jessie looked to see where Lester was pointing. Cap was sitting by Lula and Connie. "Did you warn Cap that they think Ranger is Batman?"

Lester laughed. "Yes, Ranger and I forewarned him. He said he had it all covered. Let's see how good of a job he did."

Lester walked Jessie over to the table with Cap.

"Shit, you don't say. It's got all them floors, and the bookcase opens up to a tunnel that goes underground." Lula said. "I knew it and little miss thing said her room was pink and white."

Lester grinned at Cap. "Now Cap, I told you not to give away those secrets. Ranger is going to send you to a third world country."

Jessie let go of Lester and went and sat down in Cap's lap and leaned back against his shoulder. "No he won't." Cap put his arms around Jessie.

"My angel is going to save me. Thank you baby." Cap kissed her temple.

Lula started fanning herself and Connie gave Jessie a look. Lester grinned at the two women.

"Pink and white," Connie said to Jessie. "You need to learn to lie better, Cap told us all about your room."

"I wouldn't mind sitting where she is sitting right now. Jes you need to spill the goods on this one." Lula told her.

Jessie looked at Cap, "You told them about my room?"

Cap kissed her nose. "All about it. I can't believe you told them it was pink and white. You know it's not pink and white. You have a whole three rooms to yourself with a sitting room for entertaining."

Jessie slapped him on the chest. "What did you go and do that for?"

Lester started laughing and walked around to the pair of them. "I think we better get Cap away from these two. Before he spills anymore secrets and someone has him for desert."

Jessie looked up at Lester confused, "I thought we were having cake for desert."

Cap reared his head back laughing then kissed her cheek. Lester shook his head grinning at her.

"You can't take him away now." Lula said. "I had my eye on him."

Cap stood up and sat Jessie down on her feet, he turned to Lula. "Sorry about that, but I'm already spoken for. It's been nice chatting with you lovely ladies, but I need to go with Jes and Lester." He picked up Connie's hand and kissed the back of it and did the same with Lula.

Lester took Jessie's arm back in his as they walked Cap away from the table. Jessie looked back at the table and Connie was fanning Lula with a table napkin. Cap looked at Jessie and looked back at the table. Cap turned to Lester, "Stephanie has some very colorful friends."

Jessie looked from Lula to Cap. "Lula likes you don't she?" Jessie asked.

Cap gave Jessie a smile, "Yes baby she does." He looked over at Lester, "I do believe she's going to be learning quite a few things around Stephanie."

Lester kissed the top of Jessie's head, "Yes she is, it's going to be fun to watching her grow up."

Jessie had sat back down with Lester and Cap at the reserved table. Tank had went back to the one Emma was sitting at with the kids next to theirs. Everyone started shuffling tables and no one staying in assigned seats anymore. Jessie watched as Ranger danced with Stephanie. She watched as Stephanie then went and danced with her Dad. Jessie was taking a drink of the water that had been served to her; she had heard a few more songs when she felt a hand on her cheek.

She turned and saw Ranger standing there with Stephanie. Jessie looked up at Ranger who was grinning at her.

"I do believe this is my dance Miss Wilson." Ranger said.

Jessie looked at Ranger's offered hand and looked at Stephanie. Stephanie was grinning at her. "Ranger is very good at dancing, you're in very good hands."

Jessie took his hand and Ranger walked them over to the dance floor. Stephanie sat down in Jessie's place and looked from Lester to Cap.

"Okay boys. You leave my girl alone for the next two weeks." She looked at Lester. "I know you very well Lester Santos, no snooping in Jessie's room."

Lester sat back with a look of horror on his face. "I wouldn't stoop so low as to snoop in her room."

Cap was snickering on the other side of Stephanie. Stephanie turned to look at Cap, he raised his hands. "I'm here for moral support, don't look at me. I know better. I don't want to be tarred and feathered."

Stephanie patted Cap on the cheek; Ranger had been right about him. She liked Cap, and she had seen the way Jessie was with him. "Keep this one over here under control for a week."

"I'm hurt," Lester said. "You have no faith in me Stephanie."

Stephanie turned and laughed at Lester. "I have a lot of faith in you. You're going to do exactly what Ranger told you to do. You don't mess up like Hal and Rodriguez do."

Lester moved and kissed Stephanie on the cheek. "I'm only going to keep her safe like Ranger wants me to, don't turn into momma bear on me now, I haven't done anything to your little cub."

"See that you don't." Stephanie stood up and grabbed the bouquet off the table. "I need to go toss this thing; I'm ready to get out of here."

Lester waved his hand at her to shoo her away. "Go toss away, maybe Lula will catch it and she can find herself a man. She had her eyes on Cap earlier."

Cap reached over and slapped Lester. "I ain't got time to get involved with anyone."

"Is that why you told her you were attached?" Lester said.

"I told her that so I could escape from the table with my clothes on." Cap said.

Stephanie laughed. "You two, behave. Lula isn't that bad." Stephanie started walking away from the table.

Ranger had Jessie in front him, he had gone over the hand cues he used for dancing and which way to turn. Jessie had finally eased up from being so tense in the middle of the song.

"Much better. Spin." He said.

Ranger lifted her right hand that she had in his and with his right hand he placed it on her waist and spun her out. His thumb had felt something in her sash and he looked down as she spun out from him. His eye caught the folded envelope that was coming out from under the sash in her dress and it floated down to the floor. He smiled at her. "Very nice. Hang on."

Ranger let her hand go and stooped over to pick up the envelope. He unfolded it and read her name, the lawyers name in the corner, and he noticed there was no post mark. Ranger looked at Jessie; the smile she had vanished as she saw the envelope in his hand. The look on her face was enough for him to see what it contained. His fingers opened the envelope and he pulled the letter out and started reading it while people were still dancing around them. Ranger looked up at Jessie and raised an eyebrow. All the precautions he had in place and her uncle still managed to get in contact with her. Not only that he knew about the meeting he had set up, and he fed it to Jessie.

Jessie's brow was knit with worry, she was looking at the letter still in his hands and then down. Ranger reached out and tilted her face up to his. "How did you get this?"

Ranger saw her chew on her bottom lip. "I need to know how you got this. You are not in trouble, but I need to know."

"The new guy, I can't remember his name, he said he signed for it out front. He gave it to me when I was in the hall."

Ranger took her hand and placed it on his arm and escorted her from the dance floor back toward the table, he saw Stephanie leaving with the bouquet. Ranger didn't have long, he nodded to Tank. Stephanie would be throwing the bouquet and he still had to get the garter off of her leg. Tank moved over to the table. He took Jessie's hand and turned her back to the seat between Lester and Cap.

"Tell me how she got this Lester? You were supposed to be watching her so when did your attention get diverted?" Ranger said as he handed him the letter.

He looked at Tank, "Place a call to Benton Davis, he has phone issues, because it's not on our side." Ranger looked around and watched all the women lining up to catch the flowers.

"I was watching Dustin came up to her. He was the only one I saw anywhere near her." Lester looked up at Ranger. "He works here."

Ranger noticed Jessie still had that same look on her face. "Look at her Lester, did she have that look when you saw her after Dustin left?"

Lester looked at Jessie, "Yes, she told me she was thinking about not having breakfast with you for awhile."

Cap leaned forward. "Diversion tactics, she's very good at it. Give you one guess who taught her."

Tank took the letter out of Lester's hand and read it. Ranger heard the shrill cries of the women and turned around. Stephanie had tossed the bouquet and women started scrambling after the bouquet.

"Jesus!" Ranger said watching women jump and push each other out of the way.

"I got it! I got it!" Lula came up screaming. "Now where did that man go?"

"I need a diversion to get out of here." Cap said.

Ranger looked back at Cap and grinned, "You better run, forget the diversion."

Cap stood up and looked around Ranger.

Lula saw him, "Oh Cap! You and me need to have a talk."

"Shit!" Cap said, "I'm a dead man."

Cap went around the table to put something between him and Lula who was coming fast. Ranger laughed as he saw Lula heading after Cap. "I'd get rid of that uniform if I were you. Get's them every time."

"Come here you big hunk of a man. Let Lula give you some good 'ole lovin." Cap started running and vaulted over a few empty chairs with Lula right after him. Lester started laughing.

Stephanie came up to them laughing. "I don't know why he's running. Lula really isn't that bad."

Ranger turned and kissed his new wife. "You ready to get rid of that garter?"

"Oh yeah, then we can leave."

Ranger took Stephanie's hand and he looked at Tank. "Deal with Dustin. Let him know he's lucky he still has a job."

Ranger took Stephanie to the middle of the floor. He heard the catcalls of the single men as Stephanie slid one leg out from under her dress. Ranger knelt down on one knee looking up at her. He let his hands play up the underside of her legs as his fingers inched upward to the garter, revealing more leg as he went along. Ranger slid the royal purple garter down her leg and out away from the heel of her four inch pumps. The whistles started as he had the garter in his hand. He turned and saw Cap running back into the room. Cap had lipstick all over his face, half his uniform down the front was undone. Ranger took aim and fired the garter at him, Cap had turned back to see Lula coming again. When he turned around the garter hit him in the face and he caught it out of instinct.

"It'd be fate Cap." Lula said.

"Oh shit." Cap said and tossed it behind him as he kept running.

Stephanie laughed as she saw every man back away from the garter and Lula scooped it up. Ranger kissed Stephanie. "Let's go change and get out of here."

"You shot that at him on purpose didn't you?" Stephanie asked.

"He's on PTO for a week, got to give him some entertainment." Ranger smiled at her.

Stephanie and Ranger made it back to the table and looked at Jessie.

"We're going to change, why don't you come up to the apartment with us." Ranger said.

Jessie stood up along with Lester. Ranger noticed her face didn't have as much worry across it now. They all four went out of the reception hall and headed to the elevator. The doors opened and they stepped in. Stephanie had just pulled the rest of her dress inside when Cap squeezed inside just before the elevator doors shut. Ranger had hit the button for the top floor. Everyone was laughing at the state he was in.

Lester slapped Cap on the back, "So when's the wedding?"

Cap glared at Lester. "Too much woman for me."