Laughter

Ranger's POV-

Two weeks. Two weeks and I was going crazy. I didn't think that was possible, but Ashley proved me wrong. Ever since that day at Hatch's gym two weeks ago, we had developed a routine.

We got up together at 0430 hours and went downstairs to the gym. While I worked out, Ashley walked on the treadmill. She left ten minutes before I did so she could take a quick shower and then I followed behind and took mine. We ate breakfast together. Unless it was the weekend, we ate whole wheat toast, fruit, and yogurt. During the weekends, Ashley went crazy and cooked breakfast. Enough to feed an Army. Us. She invited Santos, Tank, and Brown up for breakfast three out of the four weekend mornings we had. She fixed bacon, eggs, sausage, pancakes, biscuits, and hash browns. My men and myself were working out twice as much. But it was worth it.

While I worked, Ashley watched television or went to the roof or went back to the gym. At lunch, I came upstairs and we ate together. Then I go back to work and she goes back to reading or watching television. Then we ate dinner after I got off work. After eating, we spent the evenings watching television, playing games, talking, or my favorite, making out. On the weekends, we have went to the beach, the carnival, the Farmer's Market, and my least favorite, shopping.

In those two weeks, she's been to the doctor twice. When it was time for the stitches to be removed, she begged me to let Bobby do it. I caved because Bobby is after all the best doctor there is. Why else would I hire him? When Bobby said that the bite on her leg was infected, we went back to the doctor from the hospital. He gave her a shot to kill the infection. Went back a week later and the stitches were removed and she was declared healthy and fit. Her ribs and breast bone had completely healed and most of her cuts were scabbed over. The doctor however told her to wait at least another month before trying any gymnastics. He said it was just to be safe. She could work out a total of thirty minutes a day doing the treadmill or the stair climber, but that was it.

Despite all that, she still wasn't talking. And until she talked, I refuse to take our relationship any further than a few kisses. Okay so it wasn't like Ashley was begging me to take her to bed because if she was, well we would have already ended up there. But I wanted her to talk to me and I didn't know how to get her to talk to me. That was a first for me. Most woman would be dying for me to listen to their every word and then begging me to take them to bed. Ashley was different and I was discovering that more and more every day.

She was unlike any woman I have ever met. The more time I spent with her, the more I knew I was sure I wanted her in my life for the long haul. But I still wasn't sure if I loved her.

Ranger's POV-

"Will you come with me?" She asked me on a clear and beautiful Saturday morning.

"Go where?" I asked.

"To Erik's." She replied.

"Any reason why?" I questioned. I noticed that since she came to live with me, I talk a lot more. Well at least to her.

"I can't explain it. I just need to go."

I couldn't deny her that so I nodded. The smile that lit up her face was worth anything. I smiled back and ushered her towards the bedroom. "Go get ready." I told her.

She nodded as she checked me out. "Aren't you gonna change?" She asked.

I probably should since I was in combat mode; black cargoes tucked into black combat boots, tight black RangeMan t-shirt and full utility belt. I gave a shrug of my shoulders and took off my belt. I tucked the gun into my waistband at the small of my back.

I looked at her and grinned. "Better?" I asked.

She laughed, shook her head, and left the kitchen. I probably should have changed, but I know I'm more intimidating wearing all black with my gun tucked at the small of my back. And that's exactly what I was going for. I also know going to the gym is helping Ashley heal, but I was determined in some way to lay claim to her so Erik knew to back off and not ever try anything with her. I may be a poacher, but I never share.

Ashley cleared her throat and I turned around to look at her. And I immediately frowned. She was wearing the same black yoga pants and black sweat shirt. Her frown matched mine and she went to gnawing on her lower lip. I grabbed her hand and pulled her to me. I wrapped my arms around her waist and settled her so she was cradled intimately against my groin that was growing rapidly. She rested her hands on my chest.

"What are you wearing, Querida?" I asked her. Even when she went down to the gym with me, she wore jogging shorts and tank tops. However when we went out she wore jeans and long sleeve shirts. I wasn't sure what was going on through her head, but I needed to change her frame of mind and quickly.

She was still chewing on her bottom lip. "Clothes." She replied.

My eyes narrowed in on hers. "Why don't you wear a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. It is a little hot today so you might over heat wearing that." I told her.

She shook her head. "I don't know if I should, Ranger."

"Should or can?"

She swallowed hard and lowered her head. "I don't know if I can." She admitted softly.

I used the tip of my finger to tilt up her chin. I wanted to look into her eyes. When they finally met mine, I smiled. "For me."

She let out a sigh and nodded. "I'll try."

I brushed a kiss across her mouth. "That's all I ask."

Twenty minutes we were walking towards Hatch's gym. This time Ashley was wearing a pair of light pink yoga shorts and a black T-shirt that had RangeMan written in pink in the upper left hand corner. It looked as though Ella had been busy. I made a mental note to give Ella a raise. Not only did Ashley look sexy as hell with my name on her, but I felt like I was staking my claim at the same time.

My hand was tightly clasped in hers as we walked together toward our destination. She was quiet and I wasn't quite sure what to expect once we arrived. We got to the front door and Ashley came to abrupt stop. She turn to look at me.

"Are you sure you wanna go in? You don't have to. I'm not gonna do anything but watch."

I once more pulled her against me. "I'm going in." I told her.

She nodded and pulled away. We entered the building together and I immediately sensed the tension filling Ashley's small body. She looked around and took several deep breaths before she finally took a step forward and I followed her to the corner of the room. But this time instead of sitting on the floor, we sat on the bench. I liked my advantage point as I could see everything going on around me and no one could sneak up behind me.

I noticed instantly that Erik's eyes would continually come back to rest on Ashley but they stayed away from me. I kept one eye on him; making sure he didn't come any closer and the other eye on Ashley. I wanted to see what she would do.

She scanned the room, biting her bottom lip. There was argument between two women about twenty feet away from us and Ashley's attention seem to focus in on that. She watched for a few moments before getting up and heading over there. I put a hand on her arm and she turned to look at me.

Ashley's POV-

I scanned the room; not quite sure what I was looking for. I needed some insight on what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I didn't know if I could do gymnastics anymore. I loved it though so I wanted to be around it. Or so I thought. I talked about coaching before, but could I do it? I wasn't sure if I could or not.

There was two women about fifteen or twenty feet in front of us and they were arguing. But my attention wasn't on them. It was on the little girl who sat on the mats looking sad and defeated. I could tell from my seat that she had down's syndrome. Gymnastics was a good sport for people with down's syndrome, or so I heard. But this little girl didn't look as though she was having fun at all.

I got up to head over there, but Ranger's hand on my arm stopped me. I turned to look at him. His face said it all. "I'll be fine." I assured him. He nodded and dropped his hand. I continued until I reached the blond haired little girl and sat down beside her.

She looked up at me with beautiful green eyes and smiled. I smiled in return. "Hi! I'm Ashley." I introduced myself.

"I'm Kelli." She announced with proud, but her eyes were still swimming with sadness. My heart clenched and I thought of another time and another sweet innocent little girl. I fought those tears and smiled bigger.

"I like the name Kelli. Did you know that Kelli is Irish for Warrior Princess?" I asked her.

Her smile disappeared and I felt like a heel. "I'm no warrior. Warriors fight. I don't fight."

"Warrior also means brave. You're very brave." I told her before glancing over at the women who were still arguing. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes as I focused my attention back to Kelli.

"Brave?" She questioned.

I motioned around me. "You're here. Learning gymnastics, right?" I asked.

She slowly nodded. "I like gymnastics."

I giggled. "Me too." I told her. "Why so sad?" I asked after a minute of silence.

"Cuz I can't do a roll."

"A roll as in somersault?" I asked; making sure of what she was talking about.

She nodded once again. "I can't do it. My mom is mad."

I was hoping she was mad at Kelli's coach and not at Kelli. Because if she was mad at Kelli then Ranger would have to carry me out of here kicking and screaming at Kelli's mother.

"Why is your mom mad?"

Kelli shrugged. "She's mad cuz Amy's mad."

I was getting more lost. I hope Kelli didn't notice. "And Amy is?"

Kelli let out a little sigh and I smiled. She pointed to one of the women. "Amy." She said.

I nodded. "Amy is your teacher." I replied and Kelli nodded. "So because you can't do a somersault, Amy got mad and because Amy got mad, your mom got mad."

Kelli nodded. "Amy yelled at me."

Well Amy needed to be slapped, I thought silently. But how did I handle this? I looked over once more at Amy and Kelli's mom who wasn't paying attention at all.

"How old are you, Kelli?"

She held up both hands and spread out all ten fingers. "This many." She said. Okay she was ten. And adorable.

"Can I help you with your somersault?" I asked.

She shrugged. "I'm not good."

I frowned. "I bet that you are. Come on. Please." I pleaded. "For me." I said using Ranger's words.

She let out another sigh and nodded. "Okay."

Ranger's POV-

I watched as she walked over there and completely ignored the adults and sat down next to the little girl I admit to not seeing before now. She was a cute little girl. She couldn't be more than seven or eight years old. She looked way too small to be out there doing gymnastics, but then again Ashley was small as hell so maybe the size was an important factor in gymnastics. The smaller the better.

When Ashley stood up and helped the little girl to her feet, the two women stopped arguing and watched. I watched as Ashley stood at the edge of the mat with feet firmly together and her back straight. She turned towards the little girl and I could see that she was talking. She then crouched down and the little girl followed. My heart jumped to my throat as I watched Ashley tuck her head in and roll. She came out of the roll on two solid feet; throwing her hands in the air as she did so.

The little girl clapped and cheered and Ashley being Ashley, blushed and smiled. She then walked over to the little girl and said something and the little girl nodded. One of the women behind them said something and Ashley threw her a dirty look. That surprised me. I had never seen Ashley look at anyone with anything other than sweetness. Ashley then turned back to the little girl and whispered in her ear. The girl whose face was once of sadness went back to a smile as before.

Ashley then preceded to guide the little girl through a somersault. And when after her fourth try she was able to get to her feet, she let out a whoop of delight and hugged Ashley. Ashley wrapped her arms around the girl's waist and hugged her back. I could see that she was talking to the girl and the girl was nodding vigorously in return. The girl then ran to one of the women that was arguing with the other one and hugged her.

Ashley approached the little girl and what I'm guessing was her mother. The girl's mother smiled at Ashley and talked and talked. Ashley replied in kind; smiling. Ashley's face was flushed when the girl's mother handed Ashley a card. Ashley looked surprised but nodded. She whispered once more to the little girl who nodded with a smile. She waved good bye and headed in my direction.

I stood up and when Ashley got close to me, I pulled her into my arms. "You okay?" I asked.

She nodded and hugged me. "I wanna go home, Ranger."

I pulled her away from her and looked into her eyes. They were shining with happiness and nervousness. Maybe just maybe things could progress from here.

Ranger's POV-

We entered my seventh floor apartment and Ashley went straight into the bedroom. I went into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water. I pulled my gun from my waist band; placing it on the counter for now and leaned against the counter; crossing my feet at the ankles. I took a drink of water before leaning my head back against the cabinet and closing my eyes.

Ashley had been silent the whole way home. For the first time in my life, the silence drove me crazy. I wanted her to talk to me. I wanted to know what was going through her head. I wanted to know her thoughts. But she was silent. As we walked back to RangeMan, she gnawed on her lower lip. I knew that might she was nervous or anxious. I just didn't know about what.

I heard her small foot steps first. She came out of the bedroom and stopped at the kitchen door. Or at least the foot steps did. I opened my eyes and came face to face with Ashley who had changed clothes. She was now wearing a pair of light blue pajama bottoms and another RangeMan t-shirt; my RangeMan t-shirt. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, her lower lip was quivering, and unshed tears filled those milk chocolate brown eyes.

She was waiting for something. That I was sure of. But I didn't know what. She stood there in the door way of the kitchen with sadness and fear written all over her face; waiting for something. I sat my bottle of water on the counter and opened my arms. "Come here." I said it softly but my voice held no room for any argument. Not that she gave me any. Those unshed tears flowed freely as she threw herself into my arms.

I picked her up and she automatically wrapped her legs around my waist. I carried her into the living room and sat down on the couch. I rocked her as she cried. I rubbed my hands up and down her back and she cried. I whispered words of sweet Spanish to her and she continued to cry. It seemed like hours had went by as she sat in my arms and cried, but in reality it was only about ten minutes.

When she finally pulled back to look at me, my shirt was soaked with tears and Ashley's normally happy face was red and swollen from crying. I handed her a Kleenex from the inn table by the couch and she smiled her thanks. She dabbed at her eyes and blew her nose.

"I'm scared." She whispered softly. "Ranger, I'm so scared and I don't understand why."

"Let's start with the beginning, Querida." I replied. Maybe if she started with the beginning she would understand why she was scared. She nodded and I continued. "What are you thinking about right now?" I asked her. I almost smiled but kept it at bay. Who ever would have thought I would be asking that, most especially to a woman.

"About Kelli and her mom, Maggie."

I couldn't help it. "Who?"

Ashley smiled as she played with the tissue in her hands. "Kelli was the little girl at Erik's and Maggie was her mom." I nodded. So that's who that was. "Kelli has down's syndrome. And her mother asked me to be Kelli's coach. But I can't." She replied as new tears filled her eyes. "I can't, Ranger. I just can't."

I grabbed a Kleenex and gently wiped the tears away from Ashley's soft cheeks. "Why not, Sweetness? You're good at what you do. Damn good."

She shook her head with such aggression that I thought she was gonna do some damage. "I can't do it. Doing gymnastics would mean wearing leotards and performing in front of people." She told me as she continued to pull and yank at the used tissue. I grabbed it from her hands and placed mine and hers both on the inn table.

"I thought you liked performing in front of others?" I questioned. I had no idea where her mind was going. Not a clue. As for the leotard wearing, I was all for that. As long as every male out there understood that Ashley was mine and that she was coming home with me.

"I do. No I did. I don't know. Performing means that everybody will be watching me. And when performing, all I can wear is a leotard and I can't wear a leotard. Ever." She exclaimed as she went to running her fingertips along my abs.

We were back to the leotards. I didn't understand this. "Why can't you wear a leotard, Bebé dulce?" I asked; the Spanish endearment slipping off my tongue.(sweet baby)

"Because it shows too much. I can't show my body. I can't do it anymore." She replied before lowering her eyes.

I now had a bad feeling about this. A very bad feeling. "Why can't you show your body, Bebé dulce?" I asked.

She mumbled something but it was so low, I didn't understand. I grabbed her hands in one of mine; since there was only so much of her touch I could take. The small circles and patterns she was drawing on my lower torso was making me hard and that was the last thing I wanted right now.

With my other hand, I grasped her chin gently and made her look at me. "Why Ashley? Why can't you show your body anymore?"

"Because I don't want others to think I'm a whore. I don't want to give them the wrong idea about me. I'm not a whore, Ranger." She choked on the words so I knew it took a lot for her to say them. "I'm not a whore. I'm not. I promise, Ranger. Please don't hate me. I'm not. I'm really not." She sobbed and I pulled her roughly to me.

"Shh. No you're not, Bebé dulce. You're not a whore, Querida." I continued to whisper the words over and over as she went back to crying.

I was pretty sure that Yuri was the one that beat it into her brain that she was a whore. That fucking lying bastard. I never regretted killing Yuri. Now I was regretting that I killed him too quickly. Beating him to death wasn't nearly satisfying enough. I should have ripped his dick off and shoved it down his fucking throat.

She pulled back and I once more grabbed a clean tissue and wiped her eyes. "You don't think I'm a whore?" She asked me softly.

I threw aside the tissue and took her face between my large hands. "Bebé dulce, I can assure you that you are not a whore. You are a very sweet and loving person. Beautiful on the outside and even more so on the inside. You do not use your body in any way that would classify you as a whore. You have to believe me. Me. Not Yuri. Believe me."

She sniffed as she grabbed my wrists in her small hands. "Then why do you want me around? Why do any of you want me around?"

I brushed a kiss across her mouth. "Because you're you. I can't explain it any other way. We like hearing you talk and we like hearing you laugh. We like watching you smile and making you smile. Because you are you. You're funny, sweet, compassionate, loving, adorable, and you're sexy as hell." I told her; making a mental note to beg her to never tell anyone this side of me.

"Really?" She questioned, looking shocked as hell.

I grinned. "Yes really. But don't think for one minute that I don't want you because I do. I want you very badly. And one day I'm gonna have you and when I do, I'm not letting you go." I told her. Although it felt more like a warning.

She shook her head. "You don't want me." She informed me.

"I don't?" I asked.

She shook her head. "You don't."

"Why don't I?" I asked; going along with her. And already knowing what she was gonna say.

"Because I told you. I'm horrible in bed. I suck at sex."

I nodded. "Mmmm. And who told you this?" I asked. Once again already knowing the answer.

"Keith told me."

"Keith is an asshole." I replied. Her eyes narrowed and I shook my head. "Let's back up a minute. First, you're not a whore. Okay?" When she went to chewing on her lower lip, I knew the issue wasn't resolved. I knew she had went through something that few others would ever go through and I didn't know what to say or do to make it better. "How about we call a psychiatrist and you talk to them?" I suggested.

"Would that be okay?"

I couldn't resist brushing another kiss across her mouth. "It will be fine. You need to understand that you're not a whore. That you're perfect just the way you are and if a psychiatrist will help with that, then I'm all for it."

She nodded. "Will you come with me? I don't wanna go alone."

I nodded. "I would be honored to go with you, Bebé dulce." I told her.

She went back to chewing on that lip. "What if I don't like it?" She asked; giving me a narrowed look.

I grinned. "Then you stop going."

"Really?"

I nodded. "Really."

She nodded in return. "Okay, I'll go."

I smiled; happy to have that settled if only temporarily. Now for Keith. The only way to go about this was brutal honesty. So I did. "Keith is gay."

Her head snapped back and she frowned. "I turned him gay!" She almost shouted.

I laughed and shook my head. "No, Bebé dulce. He was gay long before meeting you." I assured her.

Her eyes narrowed. "How do you know that?" She asked.

Shit. I forgot about that part. I took a deep breath. "I caught him checking me out."

Her eyes widened and she fell against me laughing. Her happy laughter filled my quiet apartment. She laughed so hard that I squeezed her to me and laughed right along with her.