I don't own anything. I don't make anything.

Chapter 29

Steph's POV

I had been staying in Ranger's apartment for the past three days. The day after the doctor's visit, I had gone back to my apartment to grab some clothes and Rex. With my new job at RangeMan, it just seemed easier to live in the building. Plus, I wouldn't have my own personal chef at my apartment.

I still haven't told anybody. I knew that I would have to tell my family first. It wouldn't do to have my mother find out about my current condition through the Burg grapevine. Not if I valued pineapple upside-down cake.

Which leads me to my current predicament. I had been avoiding my mother's phone calls. I know it's childish, and the adult part of me was desperately trying to get out. An adult wouldn't hide from responsibility. But as I stared at my phone, which was blaring with the theme from The Exorcist, I knew that I was going to have to take the bull by the horns.

I was going to have to face my mother.

Taking a deep breath, I answered. "Hello?"

"Stephanie Michelle Plum! This is your mother." Well no shit. "What's this I hear about your moving in with that bounty hunter? How come I had to find out from Margie Ellers that my daughter is living in sin with that man?"

I blew out a sigh of frustration. "Nice to hear from you too, Mom."

"Don't be smart, Stephanie. How could you not answer my calls? I haven't heard from you in almost a week. My phone has been ringing off the hook and I don't know what to tell everybody. Why me, Stephanie? Why me?"

"I've been busy."

"What kind of excuse is that? You haven't been to work in four days and nobody has heard from you. You could have been dead in a ditch somewhere and I wouldn't have known." Damn, does she ever pause to take a breath?

"How do you expect Joseph to marry you if you're living with that other man? How will you have children if you don't get married?" Obviously, that one wasn't very hard to accomplish.

"How am I supposed to answer you if you won't stop yelling?" I asked. At this point, I could care less about cake. Ella would make it for me if mother wouldn't.

I could hear her suck in a breath. There were a few moments of silence before she spoke again. "You can answer me at dinner tonight. And bring that bounty hunter with you."

"Fine." I hung up. I must have a death wish.

It took a few minutes of deep breathing to get my heart rate under control. I just agreed to dinner with my family and told them Ranger would be coming with me. Without asking him. Oh boy, I was in trouble.

I looked at the clock. It was quarter to four. Dinner was at six sharp. Not much time to prepare.

I opened my phone and hit speed dial one.

"Yo."

"Yo yourself." I grinned at our usual greeting. "I have a problem."

"What's that, Babe?"

"We're expected at my parents house for dinner in two hours."

Silence. Shit.

"Doesn't leave much time, Steph." He finally spoke. "But I guess it's better now than never."

I didn't realize I'd been holding my breath until it shot out of me.

"Get ready. I'll be up at five."

"Okay." I hung up before he could change his mind. Not the smartest thing to do, but I was already desperate.

I showered, shaved, and moisturized. I used hair gel and a pound of make-up to beautify myself. When I was satisfied, I went into the bedroom to ransack the closet.

Ranger came in to find my discarded clothes flying through the air. Damn, nothing seemed good enough.

"Babe, you need to calm down." Ranger's voice brought me out of my hysterics. His arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me back against his hard chest.

"I can't calm down, Carlos. The world is coming to an end tonight." I was dead serious. "And I can't find anything to wear."

His hot breath blew against my ear and my knees gave out. Oh boy, he was good at that.

"I promise you, the world won't end tonight." Ranger's lips brushed against my neck and I would have ruined my panties if I had been wearing any.

"There isn't time for this! We have less than an hour to get ready and be there!"

"And what would happen if we were late?"

I shuddered at the thought. "The pits of Hell would open up and swallow us."

I felt him laughing against me. Obviously, he didn't fully understand the wrath of Ellen Plum.

"Go. Get ready." I ordered, pulling away from him and resuming my frantic search. Thankfully, he listened to me and disappeared into the bathroom.

I finally decided on a pair of black slacks and a lightweight blue sweater. It was a nice outfit to die in.

Ranger pulled into the driveway with four minutes to spare. At least that would cut out the before dinner chat.

I sat in my seat frozen, trying to take deep calming breaths. It wasn't working. Ranger opened my door and unbuckled my seatbelt. I looked up to see my mother and Grandma Mazur standing in the doorway. Why did I feel like it was my Judgment Day?

"It's only a few hours, Babe." Ranger reassured me, helping me out of the Porsche. "A few hours in a lifetime."

I couldn't talk. He led me up the steps and I found myself blocked by the Hungarian Inquisition. God have mercy on me.

"I'm glad you brought that hot bounty hunter with you, dear," Grandma said, giving Ranger what I could only assume to be her sex kitten stare.

Ranger smiled, laying on the Manoso charm. "It's good to see you again, Mrs. Mazur."

Grandma giggled like a schoolgirl. "Well aren't you the one,"

Ranger turned to my mother, who hadn't moved from her place. "Good evening, Mrs. Plum. Thank you for inviting me to dinner."

Her cold stare softened a bit at his words and she took a step back to let us in. "You're welcome. Please, come in."

I was rooted to the porch. It was only when Ranger pressed into my back that I was able to step forward.

Thankfully, Valerie and Albert were home with the girls. It could have been a lot worse. Dad was sitting in his chair, watching a baseball game. He looked up at me and nodded before returning to the TV.

"I'll have dinner on the table in a minute," my mother said, disappearing into the kitchen. Grandma gave Ranger one last hot look before following.

"God help us all," I muttered. Ranger grinned and pressed a kiss on top of my head.

"It'll be okay, Babe."

We took our seats at the table. Ranger and I on one side across from Grandma Mazur, and my parents on either end. Dad started carving the pot roast while my mother passed around the wine. Damn, I could really use some right now.

"Wine, Stephanie?" She asked, holding out the bottle to me. I shook my head.

"Water is fine."

She filled her glass and downed it in one long swallow before refilling it. I felt Ranger's hand on my leg and his squeeze of reassurance. Deep breaths, Stephanie.

We passed the food around in silence. Once the last bowl had made its rounds, mom started in.

"So how long do you two plan to live in sin?"

I choked on a green bean and Ranger's hand moved up to pat me on the back. "Stephanie is working for my company, Mrs. Plum. It's more convenient for her to live in the building."

"So you finally gave up on bounty hunting. It's about time you came to your senses." She took another swallow of wine and sat back in her chair, her food untouched.

"For now." I said.

"If you quit your job, then why aren't you living with Joseph? He'll marry you now that you've stopped all this nonsense."

"I'm not going back to Morelli." I managed through clenched teeth. "I'm never going to be a Morelli, mother. It's time you realized that."

"Why not? You two belong together." I guess she wasn't going to give up.

"Stephanie doesn't belong with Morelli." Ranger's voice startled me. I could catch the tightness in his words. "He didn't appreciate her like he should have. He didn't support her and love her like he should have. Stephanie doesn't need to be in a relationship like that."

My mother turned her wrath on Ranger. "And how do you know that, Mr. Manoso?"

Ranger's blank face didn't waver. "Because I have eyes, Mrs. Plum."

Oh God, the world's ending. Right here in the dining room.

"Leave them alone, Ellen," Grandma piped up, rolling her eyes. "Stephanie is an adult and you need to treat her like one."

"I'll treat her like an adult when she starts acting like one. Stay out of this, Mother."

I closed my eyes, swaying in my seat. I couldn't handle two hours of this.

"Babe." Ranger leaned closer and put his arm around my shoulders. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," I whispered. My hands gripped the edge of the table as nausea swept through me.

I guess I wasn't convincing enough. Ranger stood up and the next thing I knew, I was in his arms. When I opened my eyes, I was lying on the couch. Ranger's face was inches from mine, his eyes clouded over with worry.

I forced a tiny smile. "I'll be okay, Carlos. I should be used to this by now."

Anger flashed in his eyes before the blank face took over. "No, you shouldn't be used to this. You don't deserve this, Babe."

I noticed that we had an audience. Even my father was standing there, watching me with concern.

"What's going on here?" I heard my mother demand. Ranger turned to her, barely holding onto his control.

"Steph's pregnant, Mrs. Plum. I won't have you upsetting her this way." Boy, I'm glad he never used that tone of voice with me. I would have peed all over myself.

"Pregnant?" I heard the shriek and groaned. "If you're having Joseph's child…"

"It's my child. Not Morelli's." Ranger corrected. "Stephanie is with me now. I love her. I won't hurt her. I won't change her. And I won't stand for you trying to change her, either."

"Stop harassing the girl, Ellen." Oh God, my father spoke! I'd almost forgotten what his voice sounded like. "Stephanie is an adult and you treat her like she's still a little girl. You can't control her anymore. Just let her live her life."

"How can you say that?" My mother shrieked. "You just found out your unwed daughter is pregnant!"

"I'd rather she have a child on her own than settle for Joe Morelli. She would never be happy with him." Dad turned to Ranger. "And she's not alone. This man just told you that he loves our daughter. He's already treated her better than that Morelli kid ever did."

Ahhh, I have a new hero. What a great feeling.

Ranger's POV

I have never hit a woman in my life. I was willing to make an exception with Mrs. Plum. I will never be able to understand how a mother could belittle her own daughter like that.

I was grateful for Mr. Plum's interruption. Finally, we had an ally.

Mr. Plum sat down on the sofa beside Steph and took her hand. "I'm proud of you, kiddo. You didn't let your mother pressure you into another unhappy marriage. You did what made you happy and you found someone who is good for you."

Tears fell down Steph's face and he reached over to wipe them away. She gripped his hand like he was her anchor.

"Thank you, Dad," she whispered.

He nodded gruffly. "I'm sorry I didn't do this sooner. I'm grateful that you've found someone who will stand up for you." He stood up and held out his hand to me. I reached out and shook it.

"I trust you to take care of my little girl, Mr. Manoso."

"Until the day I die." I answered. And I meant it.

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