Disclaimer: Anything familiar belongs to JE.

Warning: Adult language, adult situations

Chapter 14: Saving Joe

Stephanie's POV

I knew something was wrong. I knew something terrible was going to happen. I didn't realize how bad it would be. I was sitting in my office, running some searches on Jeanne Ellen when I started to feel anxious. My Spidey sense was going haywire. Not even five minutes later, I heard Woody exclaim. "Oh shit," in the control room. I run into the Control room and ask Woody what happened.

"Bomber, it seems that the takedown didn't go as planned. There were shots fired. Someone is down. We're not sure who yet."

I see spots before my eyes. I know I have to pull myself together. I can't fall apart now. Even though Woody didn't say anything, I know Carlos is hurt. I feel it in my bones. About three minutes later, I see Lester screeching into the garage. I now understand without a doubt that it is Carlos. I see Daniela step off the elevator with Ella. I run over to her, grab her arm and start to drag her down the stairs.

"Steph, what's wrong? What is going on?"

"Carlos is hurt. I don't know what happened, but Lester is here to take us to the hospital. I think Joe is missing. Come on, the faster we get to the garage the faster we'll get some answers."

"Wait, what? I'm confused." Dani responds.

"Carlos and Tank went after a high-value skip with Joe accompanying them. When they arrived in the vicinity, they called for back up. About ten minutes ago, there were shots fired. I don't know anything more than that." By this point, we were coming to the door to the garage. I pull it open, almost barreling into Lester.

"Beautiful, slow down. Come on; I'll take you to Ranger and fill you in on the way."

I jump into Lester's SUV, sitting in the front passenger seat while Dani sat in the back. Once Lester started to drive to the hospital, he began to fill us in on what happened.

"Ranger had a bad feeling, so he called for back up. When we arrived, we split up to best apprehend the perp. When Tank opened his apartment, they found him lying on the floor in a pool of his blood, dead. They heard a noise, looked up and saw two assailants. Before Ranger could react, the guys fired their weapon. The shot hit Ranger in the abdomen, right below the vest. Bobby rode with him to St. Francis. We'll find out more when we get there."

Stay calm, Stephanie, stay calm. You need to be strong for Carlos. He would be for you. I know I need to keep my emotions in check, not allowing myself to jump to conclusions. I need to wait for Bobby to update me on his condition before I freak out. Carlos has experienced worse injuries before. He's young, and he's strong. He'll pull through. I know I have to believe that to keep my sanity.

We pull in front of the St. Francis ER doors when Lester throws the car in park. Ram jumps in the car to park it while Lester, Dani, and I run into the ER waiting room. I go to the nurse on the information desk, who is someone new. Great. Already there are complications.

"My husband was brought in with a GSW to the abdomen. I need an update on his status. His name is Ricardo Manoso."

The nurse, whose name tag says "Katherine" starts typing into her computer.

"Mr. Manoso is in surgery now. The doctor will be out to talk to you when the surgery is complete. You need to wait in the surgical waiting room. May I have your cell phone number in case I need to get in touch with you?"

I give her my cell phone number; then we walk to the designated waiting room. While I was dealing with Nurse Katherine, Lester texted Bobby, letting him know we were in the building. Not even a minute after stepping foot in the waiting room, Bobby entered.

"Hey Bomber, Ranger's going to be fine. It was a clean shot that missed all major organs. It hit part of the vest, which slowed down the bullet enough to prevent it from hurting Ranger more severely. The doctor is finishing up the surgery as we speak. You should be able to see him in about an hour, once he's in the recovery room."

I let out the breath I didn't realize I was holding. Carlos is going to be okay. Relief was flooding through me. I sit down on the chair, taking a moment to relish in the fact that my husband will be coming home to me.

"But what happened to Joe?" Dani asks, snapping me out of my introspection.

"That's the weird part. Joe followed the paramedics, Bobby and I down from the apartment. As I pulled away, I saw him walking back into the building. Sometime after I left, he disappeared. At first, Tank thought that he came with me to get the two of you, but that wasn't the case. We think Jeanne Ellen may have him." Lester said.

"How could she have known that today would be the day that we would let Joe go back into the field. It doesn't make any sense. Is there any way that she could be monitoring our conversations?" I ask.

"I don't see how she could be; she hasn't stepped foot inside Rangeman in years. Unless she has something planted on Morelli." Lester responds.

"That's a possibility. Do we know where JEB could be taking Joe?" I ask.

"No. Tank is having the guys look for any properties she may have in her name."

"Anything she has won't be in her name. She will bury it better than that."

"Joe and his cousin Mooch purchased a cabin in Pennsylvania. Maybe she's taking him there. It's in the middle of nowhere. They've had the house for about six years. We were planning on going there next month." Daniela adds.

I stare at her; my mouth opened wide in disbelief. How did I never know of this cabin? Oh, that's why Joe didn't want me in his life. I'm not going to let it get to me. I am married to Carlos, who loves me unconditionally.

"Do you know the location of the cabin?" Lester asks Daniela.

"No, but if I call Mooch, he'll give me the information."

"Call him." Lester orders.

We hear footsteps approaching and look up to see the doctor approaching. "Mrs. Manoso?"

"I'm Mrs. Manoso. Please call me Stephanie."

"Hello, Stephanie, my name is Dr. Allen. Your husband received a gunshot wound to his abdomen. It embedded in some soft tissue, missing all major organs. He lost a considerable amount of blood, but we were able to stop the bleeding. He's stable, and once he's moved into recovery, you can see him. I expect him to stay here for at least two days, maybe three. Your husband will be on light duty, but otherwise should make a full recovery in six to eight weeks."

"Thank you, Doctor. I appreciate your hard work."

"You're welcome, dear." He replied before leaving the waiting room. Once the doctor leaves the room, Daniela calls Mooch. I hear her end of the conversation, which sounds promising.

"I told Mooch what happened. He said to have someone stop by his job, and he'll give you the keys to the cabin. It's about a two and a half hour drive from here to Greentown, Pennsylvania."

"Shit, Joe disappeared about two hours ago. That means if she takes him there, she has a two hour lead on us. Not good." Lester says. He relays the information to Tank, who starts to coordinate a plan of attack to rescue Joe. If Jeanne Ellen has a chance to prepare ahead of time, there will be lots of booby traps and tricks.

"What do you need me to do?" I ask Lester.

"Nothing, Beautiful. We need you to stay here and take care of Carlos. He's not going to want to stay in the hospital, especially with Joe MIA. You need to be here to keep him calm and level. Bobby will be here with you. I'll set up a guard rotation with some of our newer guys. Daniela, we can use you back at headquarters to help give us insight into what Jeanne Ellen could be thinking. Beautiful, I'll call you if we need anything else. In the meantime, I'll have someone bring you a laptop so you can do some investigating on your own."

As much as I want to be in on the action, I know I need to be here for my husband. I want to be here for him like he was for me many times in the past. The laptop will help us both to feel useful while we are stuck here. Hopefully, they can rescue Joe sooner rather than later.

Joe's POV

Ugh! Where am I? Why does my head hurt so much? I try to run my hands through my hair, but I realize my arms are behind my back, secured with rope. I pause for a moment, trying to take in my surroundings. I slowly open my eyes, realizing after a few blinks that I'm in my cabin. How the fuck did I get here? The last thing I remember was helping Lester bring all of Ranger's weapons back to the car before he went to get Stephanie and Daniela. Daniela! I wonder what she's thinking. I don't even know how long I've been here or how long I've been out of it.

Jeanne Ellen has to be behind my predicament. Aside from Mooch and Daniela, she is the only person who knows about this cabin. She's the one woman I have ever taken here. I was planning on bringing Daniela here in the summer. Lake Wallenpaupack isn't far from here. It's a beautiful lake. What does Jeanne want with me? I don't understand why she's doing this. Suddenly, a bright light fills the room, and I'm temporarily blinded.

"Joe, Joe, Joe. The Italian Stallion. The bad boy turned cop who was sleeping with Mob Princess Barbie, Catwoman, and the Bombshell Bounty Hunter. You claimed to love all of us, but yet you are not dating any of us. Do you even know what love is, what it means to give your heart entirely to another person, to another woman? I hope, for Manoso's sister's sake that you do. Otherwise, she'll have a long, unhappy marriage ahead of her. Speaking of Manoso, I can't believe you are working for him and his incompetent wife, Stephanie. Talk about sleeping her way to the top. And the Mob Princess was born into her role as consigliere.

"I, on the other hand, worked my ass off to get to the top, and though I'm not number one, and was never number one, I am in the top ten. The fact that I was born with breasts and a vagina kept me from being number one. But it was okay with me because I respect number one. Number one is caring, thoughtful, respectful, and aware of his surroundings. When we first worked together, I thought for sure that we would be married. It would be like the movie Mr. and Mrs. Smith; only we'd work every job together, watching each other's backs. When the mission started, we knew it wasn't the right time to start a sexual relationship, even though we were both attracted to each other. By the time our assignment was over, we were best friends. Ranger was always clear that we could never be more than friends, that to become lovers, even for a night would be a massive mistake. We agreed to keep our relationship platonic. I was in love with the man; I knew he didn't reciprocate my feelings. I was okay with it.

"Then I met the woman who captured his heart. At first, I didn't understand what about her drew him to her like a moth to a flame, but then I saw it. She accepted him for who he was. She never questioned him, never tried to change him. She challenged him, answered him back, and took no bullshit. She is much tougher than I. I saw they were perfect for each other. To help my friend, I tried to get you to realize that you weren't right for her, to let her go so she and Ranger could find happiness. When you proposed to me, I thought I succeeded. I wanted to accept, was planning on accepting, but I was called away that morning on a mission. I couldn't accept with that looming over my head."

"What do you mean, called away on a mission?" I ask her, confused at her confession.

"I am, was, a government contract worker, like Ranger. I was a mercenary. I accepted money to go out and kill other humans for my government. I am damn good at my job, too." She answered, before continuing, "when I returned, you informed me that you were dating someone new, Daniela Garcia. I knew she was Manosos' sister. I also heard that Stephanie and Ranger were finally together, where they belonged. As much as I loved you, I was happy for you and willing to let you go. However, then I learned that the same day that you proposed to me, you proposed to the Mob Princess Barbie, Terry Gilman. Only a few days before that, to Stephanie Plum. So I got to thinking, how could one person claim to love three different women enough to propose to them all within one week, two in one day? Do you know that Terry still regrets that she turned down your proposal? Now that you are no longer working for TPD, she's hoping you'll go crawling back into her bed."

She stops talking and looks at her watch. "Too bad our little talk time is over for today. Don't worry; you'll have some company soon. Don't worry, I won't physically hurt you, but I think you do need to grow up."

She leaves the room, shutting the lights off as she goes. Fuck me.

Tank's POV

Today has turned into a clusterfuck of epic proportions. I still don't understand how things became so FUBAR. I mean, one minute we were on a routine apprehension, the next moment, Ranger's on the floor with a gunshot wound and Morelli is missing. Overall, Morelli disappearing is the least of my problems, but for the sake of Daniela, he's now our priority. Bomber is with Ranger, attempting to keep him in the hospital, resting and behaving. I'm glad that it's not my job. I, however, am on Operation Find the Cop, as Cal coined it. I roll my eyes, damn it, Bomber is rubbing off on me. I walk into the conference room and observe utter chaos.

"Dios Mio, I don't understand how you are so incompetent. How can we not find the location of the house? I mean, I gave you the exact address!" Daniela screams.

"Daniela, you need to calm down. Yelling at everyone won't make them get the results any faster. You need to relax and let us do our jobs. We are damn good at them." I say to her.

"If Jeanne Ellen took your precious Stephanie, you would have found her by now." Daniela retorts.

At this phrase, I'm livid. "Daniela," I began, my voice deadly low, "you couldn't be further from the truth. Joe is one of us, he's a Rangeman, and he's your man. We are doing everything we can to find him, but he was taken by Jeanne Ellen Burrows, who is as dangerous and skilled as your brother, Lester, Bobby, and me. We had no idea that she would grab him today. We were unprepared. Trust me; we are doing everything we can to find him."

At that moment, Hal walks into the room sheepishly. "Tank, uhm, Jeanne Ellen is on the phone and only wants to talk to Ranger or Stephanie. I told her they are not available, but she won't listen."

"Patch the call through to this room. I'll talk to Burrows." I reply.

The phone rings in the conference room, and I answer it. "Jeanne Ellen"

"Tank, I want to speak to Ranger or Stephanie."

"Neither one of them are available. Don't you know what your hired guns did?"

"What are you talking about, Tank? All they had to do was distract you so I could take Joe, which I did."

"And how were they supposed to distract us, Jeanne Ellen?"

"However they needed to, I didn't get specific."

"Well, they distracted us by shooting Ranger."

"Fuck! Shit, Tank, I didn't mean for anyone to get hurt, especially not Ranger. He didn't do anything wrong. He was always upfront about his intentions, or lack thereof, from the beginning. I have no beef with him."

"You were never Miss Popularity with his wife; now I'm sure you are persona non grata. You best watch your back, Jeanne Ellen, Stephanie isn't the pushover she was during the Soder incident."

"Hmpf. I'm not worried about the Bombshell Bounty Hunter. She's a civilian; she doesn't have our training."

"I'd be worried about her if I were you. She took our qualification tests and passed at Army Ranger standards. She did better than some of the men who work here. Her skills with weapons are amazing; Ram is impressed, and you know he doesn't impress easily. Once she got over her fear of guns, she was fine. She even takes Ranger down on the mat. She took on me, Lester, and Bobby simultaneously and took us all down." I say, pride evident in my voice.

"Well, I'll be damned. I guess my plan will work out better than I anticipated. Listen, Tank, I know you know where I am. By now I'm sure Joe's woman told you about the house in Pennsylvania. Do not attempt to rescue him. I will release him in 72 hours. There are a few lessons he needs to learn before I'll return him. Don't worry; I'll keep him in one piece. And tell Ranger's sister that she'll still be able to produce Morelli brats if she wants to, and that's only going to happen because Ranger is her brother. Otherwise, children wouldn't be possible. The world doesn't need anymore Morelli's running around. Have Stephanie call me; I think she will want in on what I have planned. Terry and Robin Russell will be joining me as well. Tell Daniela that not only did her precious fiance propose to Stephanie, myself, and Terry, but also Robin Russell, about ten weeks before he met Daniela. I'm sure he didn't share that tidbit."

"What if Stephanie doesn't want to participate?"

"Leave it up to her to decide, Tank. She has three hours." With that, Jeanne Ellen hung up.

Damn it; now I need to involve Bomber when Ranger needs her more. I wonder what Jeanne Ellen has up her sleeve. I glance over at Daniela, who is throwing daggers at me with her eyes.

"Jeanne Ellen said she would release Joe, relatively unharmed, in 72 hours. She ordered us not to attempt to rescue him. JEB wants to talk to Stephanie within the next three hours. She said that the only reason Joe will be able to procreate when she's finished is that you are Ranger's sister. Otherwise, there would be no more Morelli's running around. She doesn't think he deserves to pass on his DNA. I'm heading to the hospital to talk to Bomber and the Boss. Wish me luck."

"Tank, let me go with you," Daniela says.

"No, stay here. You need to be kept safe. If something happens to you while I'm in charge, your brother will ship me off to a third world country. Now leave well enough alone."

I arrive at St. Francis thirty minutes after hanging up with JEB. Daniela is still livid, bossing everyone around and being a damned Princess. Princesa, fucking nickname. I had to get Ella to distract Daniela so everyone can work in peace. Javi will be returning to Rangeman soon, and I'll put him in charge of Dani. He had to go back to Maimi a few days ago to deal with a client and is due back in Trenton in two hours. Aside from Ranger, Javi is the only other person who can tame a Manoso woman. Stephanie may be the only exception. I don't even think Ranger can fully tame Steph when she's in her zone.

I walk through the hospital, concerned to only see Snake standing outside Ranger's room. I wonder where Perez went.

"Snake," I say by way of greeting.

"Tank, Sir, Perez is with Mrs. Manoso getting better food for her and the boss. With Ms. Burrows threat still unresolved, we didn't want Mrs. Manoso to be without a guard herself."

I immediately feel at ease. I didn't even think to have a guard for Little Girl. I nod at Snake, replying, "Good job. When Perez returns, you can both take a twenty-minute break."

"If it's the same with you, we would prefer to stagger our breaks. You can have the Ranger's back, but who will have Mrs. Manoso's?"

"That's fine, Snake." I'm glad we hired Snake and Perez, they are turning out to be two of our strongest recruits in some time. They fit right in, and when they do go against orders, it's always with a valid reason with the safety and protection of a Rangeman at the core.

I enter into Ranger's room, seeing him sitting up in bed on the laptop. "I had that laptop delivered to keep your wife entertained, not so you can work."

"I'm helping narrow the parameters of a search. Jeanne Ellen has been making some interesting purchases lately. There's more going on than her being a jilted lover."

"What type of purchases?" I ask, intrigued.

"I'll wait for Stephanie to return than tell you both."

"Do you know that Perez went with her?"

"Yes, I heard her arguing with them that she didn't need a bodyguard to go to Rosa's to get food for us. They said that Jeanne Ellen's threat was unresolved and that either one of them was going with her or she was staying right where she was and would be forced to eat hospital food." Ranger responded, laughing, "then she said that she was going to get them donuts, but now they could forget having a treat. They both stopped momentarily, but said, 'we'd rather you return here in the same condition you left than eat donuts.'"

"I'm glad we hired them. Snake and Perez are a good fit."

"That they are, I'm thinking of adding them to Steph's team. She seems to get along with them, and they with her." Ranger tells me.

"I think Perez would work. I'd keep Snake where he is with me. He's too young to spend the majority of his time behind a desk or with clients. Perez is older, ready to take it easy a bit. We can still use him when Steph does distractions and on other skips, but I'd think he'd do well with her. He's also not as intimidating as the rest of us. I also think we can team him with Morelli. That should keep Joe in line."

"You're right. The guys do seem to get along as well. I guess it helps when there's someone who doesn't know the history between Steph and Morelli, they don't have any preconceived ideas or opinions."

I answer, "hearing about it second hand isn't as bad as witnessing it."

At that moment, we heard Stephanie return. She handed Snake a bag, then came into the room. "Hi, Tank. Has Ranger been a good patient while I was away?"

"Yeah, Babe. I was fine. What did you get?"

"Miguel sent you that salad that you like with the marinated chicken. I got the same. For Tank, I got him the ropa veija."

I look at Stephanie, confused. "Snake texted Al when you arrived. I hope you don't mind that Al came with me. I tried to tell him to stay, but he insisted."

"No, I'm not mad. I'm impressed. I didn't think of what would happen if you wanted to leave. I figured you would be here and not leave unless it was with the Core Team or Ella. I'm glad he accompanied you." I answer.

"Good. I want Al on my team. He was telling me that while he enjoys working for us, he was hoping for something a little less physical. I think Al will be good in residential sales. He's a little older and more distinguished looking, not so scary. I want to partner him with Joe. While he and Vince get along, there's too much tension there. I think he'll do better with an outsider. Besides, they are closer in age."

"Babe, Tank and I were discussing having Perez join your team before you walked in, and also suggested partnering him with Morelli."

"So, he's mine?"

"Babe," Ranger says, his voice low and deadly.

"Oh, stop it. You know what I mean. No one can replace you."

"Some results came in while you were gone. It seems that Jeanne Ellen has a child; I think a baby boy based on purchases."

Stephanie sits there; her food sitting on the table in front of her, forgotten, and left untouched. "Do you think the kid is Joe's?"

"I don't know. The timing makes it possible, but there's no way to know for certain."

"Damn. How's is your sister going to react?" Tank asks.

"No clue. Tank, why are you here? Not that I don't appreciate you stopping by, but you rarely come without reason, especially when there's a threat."

"JEB called. She wants to speak to Stephanie or you ONLY. She said she would return Joe in 72 hours, relatively unharmed, but that's because Daniela is your sister."

"What does she want? I don't know what I could do or add." Steph replies.

"She mentioned Terry Gilman and Robin Russell, that they were both joining her. Steph, I think you should contact her. I'm interested in what she might say."

"Give me a phone," Stephanie responds.

I take out my sat phone and dial JEB's number. Once I hear it ring, I pass the phone to Steph.

Stephanie's POV

I wonder what JEB wants. I don't understand why she wants to talk to me. Does she think I'm still not aware of all Joe's indiscretions? Tank hands me the phone once he hears it start to ring. After the third ring, she picks up.

"Carlos my love, how are you feeling? I hope you're not hurt too badly." She purrs into the phone.

"Jeanne Ellen, my husband is fine, no thanks to you."

"Oh, if it isn't the Bombshell Bounty Hunter. You must be pretty adventurous in the bedroom to have tamed Carlos. I know that he has a high libido. Are you sure you're up to the task of keeping him satisfied? I mean, Joe had to come to me for release, and your ex-husband went to Joyce. Who will Carlos turn to, maybe both of us? I know he doesn't share, but I do."

I'm trying not to let her words get to me. I know they are words. I trust in my husband, in Carlos, to be faithful to me for life. I know he has never broken a promise to me yet, and I don't expect him to start breaking them now. "Jeanne Ellen cut the bullshit. I know that you and my husband never slept together, as much as you wanted to and still want to get in his pants. Let me tell you, be glad you never did because then Joe's skills would have felt pathetically inadequate. I know that Carlos doesn't share, and neither do I, so you are going to have to find yourself your own Cuban Sex God because Carlos is all mine."

"Well, it's true then, you have changed from that pathetic little Burg girl I met years ago. I'm glad. You are worthy of Carlos. Don't worry; I don't want him, at least not anymore. He is too much like a brother for me to think of him in that way, not that I haven't fantasized about it. But, I do need your help."

"I'm getting bored and impatient. What do you want? You have two minutes to tell me before I hang up. I don't care what you do to Joe. As long as you release him when you said you would, have your fun. If it wasn't for my sister-in-law loving that asshole I'd wouldn't care if I never saw him again."

I don't think she was expecting that response from me, but it is the truth. I don't mind working with Joe, and since we both started to see therapists, our work relationship is good. Since I took him to the mats, he respects my authority, and so do all the other men. Seeing me kick Joe's ass put the rest in line. If Dani and Joe wanted to transfer to another branch tomorrow, I wouldn't block the transfer.

"I need you to come to Joe's cabin. You know where it is, right? I want to have all of his women here, his harem, so he can understand what he did to all of us by stringing us along in his game. I'm sure by this point you know my secret. I had a baby. I no longer have that baby. He was born with a congenital heart defect and died when he was 78 days old. It was Joe's baby. I know about your miscarriage, and I'm sorry you had to go through that. Losing a child, born or unborn, is the worst pain for a woman to go through. It is worse than any physical pain. Joe needs to hear how his games wreaked havoc on our lives, so he doesn't revert to his old ways and hurt Daniela. I think she's an idiot for wanting to be with Joe after hearing how badly he treated so many women, but it's her life. Will you help me, Stephanie."

By now, I'm holding back the tears. I feel bad for Jeanne Ellen. She's right; no woman deserves to lose a baby. I wonder if that's what Terry, Robin, Jeanne Ellen and I have in common. I wonder if we were all impregnated by Joe and subsequently lost our babies. If that's the case, then he was a father at least four times already. Wow!

"Is that why you invited Terry and Robin. Is that what we all have in common?"

"Yes. And Joe doesn't know about any of his children. Will you please join us? I'll even let you bring one of you men if you want. Someone will have to ensure that we don't kill Joe."

"Send me the directions, and I'll be there. No funny business, Jeanne Ellen, or we will kill you."

"I know, Stephanie. I sent the directions to your email. See you soon." Jeanne Ellen responded before hanging up the phone.

"JEB has Rangeman bugged. Have Hector do a full sweep, including all our offices. I don't know how long she's bugged us, but we are. Also, tell Hector to dig into Eagle. I think he may be involved somehow. JEB knew about my miscarriage. She couldn't have known. When I first started to work for Rangeman years ago, I asked Hector to find the documentation and make it disappear. He had a hard time finding it, then he deleted it, replaced it with an appendectomy record. I never told a soul about my miscarriage until I told you. Joe never knew, and still doesn't know the full extent of what happened as a result." I say, my voice detached, my emotions pushed down.

"Babe, what does she want."

I sigh. "JEB had a baby boy who died before he was three months old from a heart defect. Somehow she found out that Terry and Robin were also pregnant by Joe and had lost their babies. I'm not sure if by miscarriage or otherwise. That's what we all have in common. We were all carrying Joe's children."

"Stephanie, come here," Ranger orders, patting on the bed next to him. I slowly get up and walk to him. When I sit, he pulls me into an embrace. "You know you don't have to go; there is no reason for you to relive your nightmare."

I feel the tears start to fall against my will, escaping from my eyes. "I need to tell Joe. Dr. Carson says that it's important that I confront him about the consequences of his actions that night, all of them. I need to tell him about how I was under house arrest for my summer. To explain how I couldn't have a boyfriend until college because all the Burg guys thought I was easy. To let Joe know that I had to deal with my pregnancy and miscarriage by myself, how that one event has made it impossible for me to open up completely to another man, how I feared marriage because I feared to be unable to provide my husband with a baby. Carlos, one of the reasons it was easy to fall in love with you and give you my heart is because, with you, I didn't feel the pressure to provide you with a child. You have Julie and often said that you didn't want any more children. I knew that if somehow we managed to have a child, it would be unexpected and a blessing, but I didn't have pressure. After our conversation that morning, I'm afraid."

At some point during my confession, Tank slithered out, giving Carlos and I privacy. Carlos responds, "Babe, what are you afraid of; what changed?"

"I'm afraid that now that you know my secret you don't want me anymore."

"Stephanie Manoso, look at me. Babe, I love you; all of you, from the top of your curly hair to your toes. You are all I need to be happy. Would I like to have a child with you? Absolutely. If your body doesn't cooperate, that's fine as well. Babe, nothing gives me more joy than waking up with you in my arms, falling asleep hearing your heartbeat and smelling your hair. Knowing that I have you at home, waiting for me, motivates me to be safer, to come home every day. Bobby has started to look for specialists to help us if you want to try to have a baby. If you don't, that's fine too. I want whatever you want. Stephanie, when I said 'til death does us part' I meant it. That is the only way that I would ever leave you. Te quiero, Querida, siempre para siempre."

"I love you too, Carlos, more than I ever thought was possible. I was so scared when I heard you were hurt. I was afraid that you weren't going to make it home. Carlos, would you be mad if I asked you to stop going after high-risk skips? I can't bear the thought of losing you. If you must go, can you please be back up? Carlos, if you were to die, so would I. Maybe not physically, but I'd be dead inside."

"Okay, Babe, for you I'll take a step back. Do you mind if I ask you to cut back on distractions?"

"No, it's only fair."

"Thank you, Babe. Now, when are you leaving?"

"Soon. I'm taking Lester. JEB said I could bring someone. Since the person I want to bring is stuck here in the hospital, I'll take Lester."

"Be safe, Babe. I love you. Come back quickly."

"I will, as soon as I can. I love you, Carlos."