Warning for lemony goodness. This is the FFn-compliant version of the chapter. For all the extra lemony goodies, check my profile for a link. Disclaimer still applies.
~oooOOOooo~
Chapter 20: December Pt. 4
Ranger's POV
It was Monday morning, and I was out on the balcony, waiting for Steph to finish in the shower so we could go exploring on the ship. We hadn't done much the night before, opting to stay in for most of the evening. We'd had breakfast already—I'd been down to work out and had ordered breakfast to be delivered to our suite before I came back upstairs—so as soon as Steph was ready, we would head out.
We'd spent several hours right after leaving Los Angeles in our suite the night before. We'd made love multiple times before finally making our way up to Chops Grille, the steakhouse restaurant where I'd made advance reservations for our first night's dinner. The food had been delicious, and the ambiance was perfect—just a quiet affair for the two of us, tucked back into a booth in the darkened corner. After dinner, I'd told Steph I had a surprise for her, and we'd walked hand in hand from Deck 11 to Deck 4.
~oOo~
"Where are we going?" Steph asked for the third time since leaving the restaurant.
"Babe," I said, again for the third time. I wasn't going to tell her, but she insisted on asking; I supposed she was testing my resolve.
Finally, we could hear the beginning sounds of the music coming from Boleros, the Latin-themed lounge I thought we could grab after dinner drinks—non-alcoholic, of course—and enjoy the music. Maybe I could convince Steph to dance with me, even though she was a bit more uncertain of herself since she was pregnant. She looked stunning, though, having dressed in a new blue dress that flared around her legs when she turned in a circle. She had clipped her hair up, so her beautiful neck and the curve of her shoulder were exposed, tempting me to taste her skin, which I'd done several times already since leaving our suite.
"Ooh," Steph said, biting her lip as I opened the door of the lounge. "Dancing?"
One corner of my lips curved up into a half smile as I nodded down at her. "If you'd like. If not, we can just sit and enjoy the music," I assured her.
"I don't know if I should," she murmured, running a hand over her baby bump.
I gave the hand I was holding a squeeze and said, "Let's just get something to drink and sit for a while. If you feel up to it in a few minutes, we'll dance."
She nodded, all smiles and excitement as the pulsing music rushed through us.
We found two seats just to the side of the dance floor, and once settled, I moved to the bar to grab us drinks. I ordered a Mexican beer for myself and a Virgin Strawberry Daiquiri for Steph and then made my way back to her.
For half an hour, we listened to the great live band and watched as couples danced. When Gilberto Santa Rosa's Corazon began, I coaxed Steph out onto the floor. I knew Steph liked to Salsa, and this was the perfect song to dance to.
We twirled and danced, and Steph moved her hips more and more as she got into the music. We couldn't do all the moves we'd danced before she got pregnant, but neither of us cared. We had fun for an hour, dancing not only the Salsa, but also the Mambo, Rumba, and even a silly version of a Tango.
"I'm done!" Steph huffed, blowing a strand of hair that had come loose from the clip away from her face, which was flush from dancing, giving her a natural glow.
I grinned and gathered her in my arms when a slow song came on.
"One more dance, Babe?" I asked, my voice low and soothing.
"One more," she sighed, smiling up at me before kissing me and leaning her head on my shoulder.
~oOo~
"Carlos?"
Steph's voice finally pulled me from the memories of the night before, and I looked up to find her dressed in a dark gray skirt, which flowed softly around her knees, and a peach wrap top. The shirt tied at her side, below her bump, modestly highlighting the fact that we were having a baby—or babies, as was the case.
"You look beautiful," I told her honestly.
"Thank you, sir," she answered, playfully batting her eyelashes. "You look very handsome yourself."
I chuckled, shaking my head. I was dressed casually myself, wearing black slacks and a black button-down, but I had the first few buttons undone, and my sleeves were rolled up my forearms a few times. I'd left my shoulder-length hair loose, and I knew from experience—not to mention the darkening of her eyes—that Steph preferred it that way.
"Ready to go, Babe?"
She nodded. "Where to first?"
"Let's head to Deck 5. That's got the Royal Promenade, where we can walk around and look at everyone and everything. We can even do some shopping if you'd like."
~oooOOOooo~
Stephanie's POV
After buying some great souvenirs for Lula, Connie, Mary Lou, Val, and my grandma, as well as some cute clothes and costume jewelry for myself, I turned to Ranger.
"Know what I want to do now?" I asked, an impish grin on my face.
He raised an eyebrow. "Do tell," he murmured, chuckling softly.
"Lunch!" I laughed at his knowing look. "What?" I murmured. "I'm hungry!"
"I know just the place, Babe."
Ranger led us down to Deck 4 to the main dining room.
"One of the best-kept secrets is that lunch in here is one of the better meals on board," he said quietly as we waited for seats. "The salad bar is staffed by chefs who create salads according to your instructions; they've got fresh vegetables, meats, and cheeses, so anything you can possibly want for a big salad, you can get. I thought this would suit both our tastes."
"It's perfect," I promised him, standing on my tiptoes to give him a kiss of thanks for his thinking of me and his planning.
It turned out he was right. Our salads were delicious. I had piled mine with different meats—turkey, ham, salami, even some cold roast beef—and lots of cheese, as well as the fresh veggies our babies had demanded. Ranger had only a small amount of cheese, but he'd loaded his salad up with peppers, cucumbers, a large handful of tiny tomatoes, avocado, asparagus tips, carrots, and radishes. I was sure he'd included other veggies that I hadn't noticed, but I was too engrossed in my own yummy meal to notice.
"Hello!" a cheerful voice drawled in a soft southern accent.
I looked up to see an older couple sitting down at the table beside us.
"Hello," I echoed, smiling at them.
"We're the Robertsons," the woman said, motioning between herself and her husband. "We're from Texas. Where're y'all from?"
"I'm Steph," I told her. "This is my husband, Carlos, and we're from New Jersey."
"Oh, how lovely! And look, Marv," she said, poking at her husband's shoulder. "They're having a baby." She smiled at me. "Our youngest granddaughter is pregnant, too. How far along are you, honey?"
"We're actually having twins. I just started my fourth month."
"Twins!" she gasped, her smile growing. "How wonderful! Is this your first cruise? It's our first. Our grandchildren got us tickets for our sixtieth wedding anniversary."
I continued to make small talk with the verbose stranger, but it was fun listening to her enthusiastic chatter. Every so often, I would catch Ranger's eye, and he would give me a half grin; I could tell he was amused by my conversation with the woman.
When I finished my salad, during a lull in the conversation, he murmured, "Ready to go, Babe?"
"Yep," I answered. "It was good to meet you, Mary and Marv. We're going to head out now. Maybe we'll see you again later this week?"
"Oh, sure, darlin," Mary gushed. "You two kids enjoy yourselves! Have a great afternoon!"
Ranger ushered us quickly out of the dining room, his shoulders shaking with barely-contained laughter.
"I don't know how you do it, Babe," he said, grinning.
"What?" I couldn't help but giggle at his amusement.
"Make friends wherever you go," he said with a shrug. "There's just something about you that draws people in—even strangers like Mary and Marv."
"They were a hoot, weren't they?"
"They were," he admitted. "Marv kept shooting me glances and then rolling his eyes when his wife got on a tear about some new topic."
"Well, I loved them. If my grandpa were still alive, I think that is a lot like what he and Grandma would have been like together."
Ranger smiled and nodded. "So now what, Babe?" he asked after a minute. "Do you need to go up and rest for a bit?"
I shook my head, already knowing what I wanted to do. "Mini golf!"
I knew there was a nine hole mini golf course because I'd heard several people talk about it in one of the shops that morning. I hadn't been putt-putting in years, and I'd never been with Ranger. I didn't even know if he would enjoy it, but I really wanted to play.
He nodded and smiled. "Deck 13 it is."
I felt my jaw drop. "You know the deck number?"
"Oh yeah, Babe. That was one place I knew you'd want to visit, so I made sure to look it up this morning while I was waiting for you to get dressed."
"Oh," I squeaked. "Well, good." I gave him a big smile and then took his hand and pulled him down the promenade to the elevators that would take us up to the golf course.
~oOo~
Two hours later, I was regretting my choice of activities.
"Why in the world did you not tell me you were a ringer?" I asked grumpily.
"Babe..." He just laughed at my unamused expression.
"How have I been married to you for this long and I didn't have a clue you were that competitive?"
By the time we'd made it to the fourth hole, I knew I'd been played.
~oOo~
"How in the hell have you made a hole-in-one on every hole so far?" I asked, feeling my jaw drop as he sank the ball for the fourth time in a row.
"It's all a matter of visualizing where the ball will go and then making it happen," he explained with a smirk.
"Do you plan everything like it's a military maneuver?" I laughed, shaking my head.
He gave me a look. "Of course. Does that surprise you?"
Shaking my head again, I lined up for my next shot. When I missed—again—I felt his arms wrap around me from behind.
His warm breath ghosted over my ear as he murmured, "Lean forward a little bit."
"I'm already off balance," I grumbled, running a hand down my bump.
He chuckled and moved his hands from my shoulders, down my arms, until they covered my own hands, wrapping around the putter. "Your stroke should be firm but smooth."
I shivered at his suggestive words.
"Look down and imagine the ball rolling straight into the hole."
He pulled our arms back slightly and held them steady.
"Remember, Babe. Smooth."
The moment he released my hands, I swung the putter and watched as the ball rolled slowly down the lane, the perfect speed and right in line...
And rolled right by the hole.
~oOo~
As Ranger finished tallying up the score, I couldn't hold back my groan. I'd been on my feet for a while, and my back was beginning to hurt.
"That's it," my husband said, wrapping his arm around my expanding waistline. "Time for a rest upstairs."
"I don't want to sleep," I told him, pouting. "I'm not tired."
He chuckled, pulling me along with him to the elevator. "You don't have to sleep if you don't want, Steph. Just need to get off your feet for a bit."
I grumbled but silently acknowledged that he was right.
Twenty minutes later, as I was settled in his arms in one of the chairs on our small private balcony, I sighed.
"Better?" Ranger murmured near my ear. His warm breath ghosted over my skin, sending a shiver down my body.
"Mmm," I answered softly. "Much."
We were quiet for nearly an hour, just enjoying watching the water and being with each other. No phone calls or Merry Men to interrupt our time alone, no worry about needing to hurry off to work. Just the two of us, alone with...
"Dolphins!" I gasped, pointing out at the water near the ship.
Ranger helped me to my feet, and we stood at the railing to get a better view. There was a small pod of the sleek-looking creatures, five or six of them, and they were jumping in and out of the water in the waves created by the boat. It was almost like they were playing leapfrog over one another.
"That's so cool," I told him. I kept my voice low so as not to disturb them, even though realistically, I knew they couldn't hear me and wouldn't be bothered even if they had been able to.
"They are amazing creatures," Ranger said, wrapping his arms around me from behind. "I believe these are the Pacific White-Sided Dolphins, which are fairly small compared to some of the other varieties."
"They look almost like sharks," I mused, looking at the fin on top.
Ranger nodded. "Their dorsal fin is shaped differently than most dolphin species. It has a hook on the end."
I looked over at him with a raised eyebrow. "You know an awful lot about dolphins," I said with a grin. "New hobby?"
"I thought there was a good chance we would run into some during our trip, so I did some research," he admitted, and even with his mocha-colored skin, I could see a hint of pink showing on his cheeks.
I turned to him and wrapped my arms around him. "Thank you," I murmured before rising on my tiptoes to brush his lips with mine. "That was very sweet."
I turned back to the water and continued watching the dolphins playing in the water.
"I found out some other interesting facts," he murmured, lowering his head to kiss the sensitive spot below my ear. "For instance, did you know that dolphins are highly sexual creatures?"
I let out a breathy moan when his hands left the rail beside mine and slid up my arms before moving to cup my breasts through my shirt.
"Flipper's a naughty boy," I said, my voice shaky.
"They mate for life, too," he said, pinching my nipples lightly, making me squirm back against his growing erection.
"C-Carlos," I stuttered. "We can't do this out here!"
"Look around, Babe," he said huskily. "We're almost as secluded as we would be inside."
As his hands moved to untie the knot holding my shirt closed, I looked left and then right, seeing that he'd been correct. The balcony had a wall on either side, so we couldn't see our neighbors, and unless you leaned out far—way too far for me to be comfortable!—you couldn't see above or below you, either.
I started to speak, but when he gave my nipples the gentlest of pinches through my bra, all that came out was a whimper.
He slid his hands under the fabric until he was cupping my breasts in his large palms, still teasing my nipples with his thumbs and forefingers. My head fell back to his shoulder, and I moaned as he plucked at the hardening nubs.
"Take it off," I said with a whimper, a pleading tone in my voice.
Bending his head to suckle at the tender skin under my ear, his hands left my breasts and moved between our bodies to unhook my bra, sliding both my shirt and bra off my shoulders and down my arms, letting them fall to the floor at our feet. The fire inside me was growing, and my hormones were spinning wildly out of control as he used one hand to continue teasing my nipples and the other to undo the button on his pants.
I was gripping the railing in front of me with both hands, my knuckles turning white, and whimpered again when I heard his zipper slowly being lowered.
"I want to make love to you out here, Stephanie," Ranger murmured, his hand gliding up my thigh and under my skirt. "I want you to watch the waves and feel the sun, letting all your senses come into play as I touch you." He bent and kissed my bare back, sending shivers down my spine. "May I do that, Babe?"
When I nodded, he slid his hand up farther, until he was cupping me through my silky panties.
"Dios, you're wet," he growled, pressing the heel of his hand against me.
"For you," I breathed, writhing against his palm.
"Oh, Babe..."
He wasted little time bending me forward and sliding into me. Outside with nothing but the sun and water, the playing dolphins to keep us company, Ranger made love to me until we both came hard, our voices quiet in deference to any overhearing ears.
I was panting when he finally withdrew, and when he scooped me into his arms to carry me inside, I pressed a shaky kiss to the column of his neck, feeling his throat move as he swallowed.
"Wow," I hummed when I could finally form words.
His answering growl made me giggle.
"I'll show you wow," Ranger murmured, laying me down on the bed and covering my body with his.
Wow, indeed.