Sorry for the inexcusable delay in getting this chapter out. I'm launching a new brand at work…and we moved into our new house. Needless to say that means getting out of boxes while working weekends. Not much time for anything else. And my muse decided to take a hiatus on top of everything. Not sure if she's back in full swing yet. We'll see.

Chapter 26

Steph's POV (continued)

With Tank at the wheel and Carlos riding shotgun, we headed towards Princeton and the Mercedes dealer. The only real car dealership I'd ever been to before was the Mazda one in Hamilton when I bought my Miata four years ago. I remembered how smarmy the salesmen were and I was hoping this experience would be better. Carlos liked them, so I was giving this place a fair chance.

"Let me do this by myself, ok?" I told Carlos as we pulled into the open plaza of the dealership.

"I'll introduce you and then you're on your own. Unless you'd like my opinion."

"I'll text you if I need you. Do you know all the salesmen here?" I asked on second thought. I really didn't want someone who was going to talk down to me or think I was stupid for not knowing what something like a differential was. And if they asked me what color I was interested in before I even looked at the cars, I was out of there.

"Pretty much so. You have an appointment with Chris and Tank and I are meeting with Oscar. Don't worry…he's a good guy. You can ask him anything."

"Good to know," I said as we walked through the door and were met by a blonde guy who looked like a less-inflated version of Hal.

"Chris, this is my fiancé Stephanie, Steph, this is Chris," Carlos said in way of introductions as a more mature Latino man came over to shake hands with him and Tank. "And this is Oscar. Oscar, Steph," he added and I shook hands with both men. "I'll be in here with Tank. I think the previously owned vehicles are outside, am I right?"

"Yes they are, and we have quite a number to choose from today. Looks like everybody's leases were up at the same time. I counted nineteen last time I walked through."

"Ok, show them to me," I said to Chris. And as soon as we were out of earshot I was going to ask him if he was related to Hal. I was betting he was.

"So, do you know Hal Linden?" I tried, instead of asking outright.

"You're very astute. He's my brother."

"Knew it!" I practically did a happy dance for putting two and two together.

"He's so much bigger than me, I didn't think anyone would notice the similarities."

I'm not anyone. "Older or younger?"

"We're a year and a half apart. I'm the older one."

"I thought your family lived in Montana or someplace like that. He told me he grew up on a farm."

"Our parents still live in Iowa. Hal and I escaped and we both settled in Jersey. I like it here."

"Yeah I bet farm life is tough. Up with the chickens and all that. Do you mind if I quickly text your brother?"

"No prob. And our farm is an agricultural one. The closest we come to animals are the two dogs and the two cats we always keep around."

"Good to know. And by the way Hal likes playing with Rex I thought you raised all kinds of animals," I told him, texting Hal at the same time to tell him that I've discovered the car connection. And it's connected to him.

'Busted,' was Hal's reply.

"Who's Rex? Your dog?"

"No, my hamster. Your brother brings him on monitor duty when I leave him at Rangeman. I think they speak the same language."

"He was always good with the dogs too. Who knew he was so multi-lingual?" he added as we started walking down the rows of used cars, not all of which were Mercedes.

"What's this Subaru doing here?" I said as we passed a Crosstrek.

"Not all previous owners, owned Mercedes. This was a trade in. Not a great car if you ask me."

Probably Carlos already told him his criteria: Mercedes with all-wheel drive and good brakes. Bullet-proof wouldn't hurt either. Suddenly I saw a little red car that reminded me of a slightly bigger version of my Miata.

"What's that?" I pointed.

"That's a 2015 SLK. I think the original buyer fell on hard times right after ordering the car. It's got something like 20 miles on it and a lot of extras."

I went over to take a closer look.

"Can I test drive it?"

He stopped for a second. I had a feeling Carlos gave him specific instructions to help me pick out a more substantial car. Ha, two could play at this game.

"Sure," he finally said, "just let me get the keys. It's open if you want to sit in it. I'll be right back."

He headed towards the showroom and I got in the car. I adjusted the driver's mirror by hand and fumbled around for a seat latch. When he came back he had a magnetic license plate that he attached to the rear bumper and a set of keys that he handed me.

"I was looking for a lever to move the seat forward?" I told him, starting up the engine.

"It's automatic, just press the button on the left side of your seat forward. Want to go up or down, press it up or down."

"Mirrors?"

"Also automatic, just press the button left, right, up or down after pushing the lever to the left or right to indicate which mirror."

"Classy. I'm kind of used to the down and dirty manual stuff, but this is nice."

That wasn't exactly true, as I'd been driving Carlos' loaners for years.

We took it out for about a ten-minute ride around the neighborhood, getting on and off the highway so I could check its acceleration and handling. What can I say? I was in love. The faster I went, the tighter the car felt. Not at all like the Miata I had.

"I love this this car." I told Chris as we made a turn back into the dealership. "I really want Carlos to see it, but I don't want him to try to dissuade me. Can you talk up the finer points of this one versus the big boxes I bet he'd rather see me in?"

"Of course. I like this car myself. And I think he just wants you to be happy."

I wasn't so sure but we idled the car and Chris got out to find Carlos. At this point you'd have a hard time prying me out of this seat until I knew it was mine. I didn't want to be dissuaded so I started thinking of rationales for why this was the perfect car for me. Little? Red? No, those wouldn't work. Twenty-four miles…a 2015…lots of extras? Yeah, that was more like it. I was ready to start spewing its benefits when Chris, Carlos and Tank came out of the dealership and Carlos was smiling.

"Find something you like, Babe?" he said, coming over to the drivers' side and depositing a kiss on my lips through the open window.

"Hal's brother, Chris," I annunciated 'brother' so he'd know I made the connection, "says this car was left when the owner fell on hard times. It's got 24-miles on it and Chris says a lot of extras. What do you think?"

"Proud of you, Babe," he told me. I figured that to mean he liked how my brain solved the Chris riddle. "I like this car," he continued, "the SLK is the top of their sports car line. Did you ask about the extras?"

I hadn't and shook my head no. "I mean, if they are extras, they can only be good, right?"

"Not necessarily. Chris, what kind of extras are we talking about here?"

"It's been para-aramid reinforced…"

"Bullet-resistant, Babe."

"…And I think, bullet-resistant glass was installed, too. I'll have to look that up. It's also been upgraded to all wheel drive with top of the line speaker and navigation systems. Then there's remote activation of the retractable hardtop roof, heated seats and sun-reflective leather upholstery."

"Did you hear that? Bullet-resistant, Carlos. I think this car has my name on it."

"It sounds like a good deal to me. And you like the way it drives?"

"Love it."

"Ok. Take her home, Babe."

Did I just get my way?

Ranger's POV

That couldn't have gone better. I saw her head right for the SLK even though it looked like Chris was trying to dissuade her. I didn't ask him to go that far, but it seemed to have worked. I was going to come clean at some point soon but for now I'd let her enjoy her victory.

I put both Tank's Mercedes and Steph's car on the corporate account. I let Tank go his way, I had a feeling he had a date, and then I asked Steph to drive us to Hamilton to look at the estate I'd found.

The house was dark as we pulled up. I had the key since I assured the real estate agent that I wouldn't lose it and just wanted my fiancé's opinion before the deal was solidified. Steph stumbled on the front steps, which I admit were a little rickety, but I caught her before she fell.

"Fuck," she mumbled under her breath.

"It's not you. I noticed that these steps weren't in great shape and I should have warned you sooner."

"It's ok, no harm done. I'm still in one piece," she said, rubbing her ankle.

I wasn't. I was feeling guilty about the car shenanigan. I was going to have to confess my sins soon. I used my key to open the front door and let us in. The foyer was small but led to a sitting room right behind it. If we bought it, I'd open the whole thing up but I wanted Steph's opinion.

The sun was beginning to set so I turned on the lights. I really wanted her to see the property too and since we had about thirty minutes before it got dark, I mentioned that maybe we should start there.

She was agreeable, so we left the door open and went back out to walk around.

"Wow," she said taking the place in, "does all of this land come with the house?"

"It does, Babe. It's 1.48 acres; just shy of an acre and a half. Those woods back there are on the land too," I told her, knowing I'd have to secure them somehow, perhaps with infrared sensors and motion detectors. I'd need to sit with Hector and devise a plan.

"It's pretty. Is that safe for you?" she asked, looking back to the woods I'd mentioned.

"We can make it safe. Maybe even get a couple of guard dogs."

"Dogs? You?"

"I'm not anti-animal. I've adopted Rex, haven't I?"

"There's a big difference between my 5-inch hamster and a couple of 65-pound dogs."

There was, but I wasn't going there. If we needed to get a couple of dogs, I'd get a handler too. At least until I knew the lay of the land.

"Let's take a look at the house while we've still got light. There's a patio out back." That I'd like to redo as soon as I get the chance — the cement is cracked and missing in places, making for another potentially hazardous condition.

We went back inside and I let Steph wander around while I called Hector. I wanted to know what he told her about the estate and was also wondering if he'd come up with any new ideas for securing the woods. I didn't think a fifteen-foot wall at our property line would pass Hamilton's strict zoning code.

"Sí," I got as an answer when I asked if he told Steph anything.

"¿Y?" I prodded him, hoping he'd elaborate.

"I told her that it needed work but it had potential. I didn't go into detail about the security risks those woods pose. To me they are still a big negative."

"I know, and I won't move in until we can figure out how to make them safe. What do you think about a couple of dogs?"

"I tink you'll need more than a couple. You have a lot of wooded area."

"Infrared sensors? Motion detectors?"

"Goes without saying. Are you serious about the dogs?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Mi primo, Eduardo, trains them."

"I'm not interested in pitbulls. If we decide to have a family one day I am not putting my children at risk."

"He doesn't train pitbulls or any at-risk dogs. And did you just tell me that you're tinking about starting a family?"

"I said 'if' and good to know about su primo. And don't start spreading rumors. That's all Steph would need to hear, it would send her running."

"What would send me running?" she asked, coming up behind me.

Shit. Honesty is the best policy, right? "I'll tell you later Babe. I was just conferring with Hector about how to best secure those woods. How many dogs Hector?"

I put my phone on speaker so Steph could hear. "I'd say minimally four."

"Four dogs?" she repeated.

"Hi chica. Yes, four minimally but I was just telling Ranger that my cousin trains guard dogs. Maybe he can come and look at the property and offer his suggestion."

"I wouldn't know how to care for four dogs. Bob was too much and he was just one," she mumbled.

"He can probably recommend a handler — someone who could live on the property with them, and take care of them. Of course he'd have to be vetted first," Hector told us, echoing my own thoughts.

And we'd have to build a caretakers house for him and the dogs. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all.

I'd hung up with Hector and turned around to face Steph. Her arms were crossed over her chest and her foot was tapping away. Uh, oh. Not a good sign.

"So what would send me running?" she asked me…again.