Not mine. Not making anything
Chapter 27
The next morning, Ranger and Stephanie drove in silence to a small diner near the airport. Ellen Plum and Joe Morelli's flight was scheduled to leave in four hours and they had just enough time for breakfast before they had to get through security. Ranger made sure there wasn't a lot of time for a reunion, just in case anyone had an idea to start in on Stephanie. Stephanie knew exactly what his plan was, and she was grateful that he had thought of everything.
They walked into the diner hand in hand and immediately found their table. Morelli's jaw clenched at the sight of their joined hands, but Ellen Plum's face was surprisingly void of any malice or disappointment. Instead, Stephanie was stunned to find worry and sadness in her mother's eyes. It was a sight that she couldn't ever remember seeing before.
"Stephanie," Ellen went silent as Stephanie sat down in the chair across from her.
"Mom." Stephanie glanced over at her ex boyfriend and gave him a curt nod. "Morelli."
He looked pained at the name she called him. She could tell by the look in his eyes that he finally understood that they were over for good and nothing he could say would change that.
Ranger remained silent, instead choosing to pick up a menu and look over the selection. Deciding quickly, he snapped the menu shut and placed it on the edge of the table.
A waitress arrived immediately, getting their orders and bringing their drinks before anybody spoke again.
"Thank you for coming down," Stephanie said quietly, looking directly in her mother's eyes. "And thank you for respecting my wishes while you were here. I know that must have been difficult for you."
Ellen Plum nodded slightly and reached out tentatively to touch her daughter's clasped hands. Stephanie almost jumped out of her skin at the strange reaction, but she managed to stay still.
"Stephanie," Ellen cleared her throat. "I've done a lot of thinking the past couple of nights…and I talked to Dr. Sandoval…" her voice cracked and she pulled back, reaching into her purse for a tissue. Stephanie watched in amazement as her mother wiped the tears from her eyes and blew her nose. It took a few minutes, but when Ellen Plum finally composed herself, she looked directly in her daughter's eyes and said," I'm sorry."
"Huh?" Stephanie felt like an idiot, but she had never in her life heard her mother apologize for anything. Especially not to one of her children.
"I never once stopped to think how much I was hurting you all these years," she went on, nervously twisting the tissue in her hands. "I never stopped to think about what my words had done to you. And I'm so sorry for that, Stephanie. I hope you can forgive me someday."
Stephanie opened her mouth to reply but found she had no idea what to say. This was unchartered territory for her and her mother and she was stumped as to what to do next.
"I appreciate that, Mom," she finally said, her voice strained. Morelli looked back and forth between them, his mouth open in shock, looking for all the world like he wanted to interrupt and say something. One look from Ranger, though, and he closed his mouth and remained silent.
"Anyway," Ellen continued, looking down at the tissue in her hands. "I just wanted you to know that I'm proud of you and I hope you will come back to Trenton soon so we can start over. I'd like to try to make things right."
Stephanie nodded silently, not quite knowing what to say. The waitress appeared with their food and they all concentrated on their plates instead of small talk and earth shattering confessions. Ranger's hand settled on Stephanie's thigh and she felt his strength surge through her veins. Hers wasn't an emotional family, and now that her mother was really going all out, Stephanie needed his assurance.
"So when do you think you'll be coming back home?" Morelli asked as they were finishing up. Stephanie met his eyes and knew that he wouldn't be able to let her go as easily as she had hoped.
"If you mean Trenton, I'm not sure. Ranger and I have some plans before we even think about going back."
Ellen looked back and forth between Ranger and Stephanie but managed to stay silent. By the look on her face, though, Stephanie knew she was dying of curiosity.
"Plans?" Obviously Morelli couldn't take a hint and his tone demanded a more detailed answer. Stephanie's eyes narrowed.
"Yes, Morelli. Plans. That don't include you, so they're none of your business."
Morelli looked over at Ellen, hoping to find an ally on the topic, but she wasn't even paying attention to him. Her eyes were on Stephanie the entire time, and her eyes were shining with pride.
"You're so much stronger now than I've ever see you," she said, her gaze never wavering. "I'm grateful Mr. Manoso was able to help you with that." She looked directly at Ranger and offered him a tiny smile. "Thank you for taking such good care of her. I apologize for my earlier behavior."
Ranger just nodded at her and Morelli looked like he swallowed a bug. Stephanie bit her lip to keep from laughing. Looked like Morelli was losing his ally.
Ranger glanced at his watch. "You're plane leaves in three hours. We'd better get going if you're going to make it through security in time."
They all stood up then, and Ranger took care of the bill, garnering another dark look from Morelli. He just ignored the other man, though, paying for the meal and leading Stephanie out to the Explorer.
Tank and Lester were outside, sitting in another black SUV. They had picked up Ellen and Morelli from the hotel and their bags were still in the back. Ranger transferred the bags to his Explorer before opening the passenger door for Stephanie. Ellen and Morelli climbed in the back as Ranger got behind the wheel.
The drive to Miami International Airport only took about ten minutes. Ranger parked in the short-term lot and helped Stephanie and Ellen out of the car, leaving Morelli to grab the bags. They made it to the security checkpoint, where Ranger handed them both their return tickets.
"Thanks for coming, Mrs. Plum. I hope you have a good flight." He said politely, his arm wrapped protectively around Stephanie's waist.
"Thank you for bringing me down here, Mr. Manoso," she said, clutching the ticket in her hand. She turned back to Stephanie and stared at her daughter's face for long moments. Stephanie was once again amazed when her mother stepped forward and engulfed her in a hug. She paused for a second before returning the gesture.
"Take care of yourself, sweetie," she whispered, going as far as to kiss Stephanie on the cheek. "I'll see you when you get back."
Stephanie nodded, speechless. She didn't remember ever being at a loss for words as much as she had been lately. If an apology from her mother was unexpected, then PDA from her mother was a sign of hell freezing over. It threw her for a loop.
Ellen stepped back and further shocked Stephanie by hugging Ranger. Morelli stood back fuming as Ranger patted the woman on the back. Finally, she stepped back again and took her bag from Morelli, heading for the line to the security checkpoint. Morelli stared at Stephanie for a minute and she could read the pleading look in his eyes. Instead of speaking, she just shook her head a fraction of an inch and leaned further into Ranger's side. Morelli's jaw clenched, but he just turned and walked off to join Ellen in line.
"Wow," Stephanie whispered, watching her mother and her ex slowly moving forward in line. "I can't believe it went that well."
She could feel Ranger's chuckle vibrating through her as he wrapped both arms tightly around her waist. "I'm so proud of you, Babe. You did great."
She smiled up at him and laughed, feeling the heaviness that had been in her chest lift away and disappear. Out of everything, she had most feared a confrontation between her mother and Joe. Now, it was over and had turned out better than she had ever imagined. If Ranger hadn't been holding her so tightly, Stephanie thought she might have floated away.
"I don't have a care in the world!" she announced, laughing even harder. Ranger laughed with her and pulled her in for a kiss, right in the middle of the airport.
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The light mood continued on for the rest of the day. Since Raphael was out of the picture and the problem with Morelli and Mrs. Plum had been taken care of, Tank and Lester were heading back to Trenton to take care of the home office. For their last night in Miami, they decided to have a cook out at Ranger's house.
Besides Tank and Lester, Leo and Jerome had been invited as well. Silvio couldn't make it, since he had a hot date with the redhead from Bliss.
Everybody was dressed for the beach; Ranger and the Merry Men in swim trunks and Stephanie in a light blue camkini. She was in a serious state from all the barely covered, hard male bodies surrounding her and she suddenly wished that her camisole top better hid her pointy nipples. They seemed to be the center of attention.
Ranger and Tank stood at the massive grill, arguing the merits over store bought marinade versus homemade. Lester had pulled Stephanie into his lap and was currently discussing the hot blonde twins that Leo and Jerome had met while surfing the week before.
"It just figures I would be heading back to Jersey now," Lester complained, playfully tugging on one of Stephanie's curls. "I could have been the meat in a hot twin sandwich."
Jerome and Leo high fived and Stephanie groaned. "You're a pig, Santos."
Lester just grinned. "Oink Oink."
She rolled her eyes and tried to move off of his lap, but he held on tight. "Les!" She giggled. "Hands off!"
"Not a chance, Beautiful," he teased, getting to his feet and swinging her over his shoulder. "I have to leave tomorrow and I'm not letting you go until the last possible moment!"
"Or until Boss threatens to castrate you," Jerome smirked, eyeing Ranger across the deck. He was watching them, his eyebrow raised.
"Put me down, you ogre!"
"Ranger, you're woman is a little overheated with all the hot male bodies around her," Lester announced, heading for the gate leading to the beach. "I think she needs to cool off!"
"NOOOO!" Stephanie shrieked, laughing and beating his back and ass with her fists. "Ranger! Don't let him get my hair wet!"
Ranger slowly set down the spatula he was holding and made his way towards them. Lester let out a loud shout and pushed past the gate, running straight for the water with Stephanie bouncing over his shoulder.
"Lester, I'll break your nose and your balls if you throw me in there!" She cried, still laughing. She watched as Ranger ran after them, a huge grin on his face, the other three guys watching and cheering from the deck.
"He'll never catch me!" Lester cackled evilly as his bare feet splashed in the surf. Stephanie watched from her upside down position as the water came up quickly, past his ankles and moving up to his knees. She looked up in time to see Ranger no more than two yards away, his brown eyes sparkling. Just as Lester pitched her towards the water, Ranger jumped forward and caught her, saving her hair from the evils of salt water. She laughed as he planted a fast, hard kiss on her lips before turning and tackling Lester. Both men went down and Stephanie bounced up and down in the knee high water, laughing and clapping her hands.
"I'll never catch you, huh Santos?" Ranger growled, dunking Lester's head beneath the surface. Lester popped back up, laughing, and spun Ranger so Ranger's head was underwater.
Stephanie waded forward, pushing the two men apart and dropping down on Lester. He laughed and grabbed her around the waist, rolling her so she went under. She resurfaced, sputtering, but her eyes were twinkling merrily.
"Ohhhh, Steph's hair is wet!" Lester taunted, splashing her. "It's gonna dry into a big frizz ball! Whatever is she gonna do?"
"I'm gonna tell those twins that you're impotent!" She shot back, lunging at him again. Ranger chuckled behind her and pulled them apart just as Tank shouted that the food was done. Stephanie's ears perked up at the announcement and her stomach growled at the thought of dinner.
She shivered when she felt Ranger's warm breath against her ear. "Let's feed the beast, Babe." Before she could answer, he moved in front of her, bending his knees slightly so she could hop on board. Gripping his shoulders, she wrapped her legs around his waist and let him carry her piggyback to where the food was.
Tank passed out towels as they climbed up the steps to the deck. Ranger took the first one, wrapping it around Stephanie before giving her a gentle shove in the direction of the table. She sat down at the head, Ranger on one side and Tank on the other. The other guys sat down and started reaching for the loaded down plates.
Stephanie stuffed herself with the grilled steak and potatoes, taking small portions of the vegetables and grilled fish just to say she had a little healthy on her plate. Ranger just gave her a look that told her she would be eating flaxseed and egg whites for breakfast tomorrow morning. She just winked at him and forked a huge piece of red meat into her mouth, chewing blissfully.
"Quit seducing each other over there!" Lester complained good-naturedly. Tank reached over and smacked him upside the head.
"They're not seducing each other, moron," Tank declared, rolling an ear of corn around his plate, catching up the heap of melted butter that had rolled off. "They're doing their ESP thing again." He took a huge bite of corn and wiped his mouth. "See, Ranger's telling her that she's gonna be paying for all that red meat on her plate, and Bombshell's telling him that she's gonna enjoy it now while she can."
Everybody just stared at Tank and he shrugged. "I'm not blind, here. I know what's going on."
Stephanie chuckled, reaching for her Coke. "Not bad, big guy. I hear Miss Cleo is looking for her replacement."
"Smartass," Tank launched a carrot at her head and Stephanie ducked just in time as it sailed past her.
"Awww, shit," Lester jumped up as Stephanie grabbed a piece of her steak off her plate. She lobbed it at Tank, and before any of them knew it, all six of them were in the middle of a full out food fight. Everybody was laughing and Stephanie shrieked as she was hit in the chest with a baked potato. When she looked up into Ranger's twinkling eyes, she couldn't help but laugh harder at the sight of corn kernels and melted butter in his hair.
"Oh my God," she choked out, dropping unceremoniously into her chair. "I've never seen you get covered with anything!"
Ranger just shook his head and wiped his face off with his beach towel. "Hard to avoid when there's food flying from all directions, Babe."
"Look what you started!" She accused, watching Tank run his hand across his face, his skin slick with barbecue sauce. He just shook his head.
"Shit didn't start flying until after you threw meat at me, Bombshell," he pointed out, raising an eyebrow at her. "So you're the one who actually started it."
Stephanie shrugged and kicked back in her seat, lifting her feet to rest on the edge of Ranger's chair. "I don't care how it started. I'm just happy to see all of you as dirty as I am."
Lester smirked at her and sat back down. "Bombshell just wanted to see us covered in food. That way, she can dream of licking us all clean tonight."
"Dream on, Les," she said, giving him her most evil grin. "The only man I'd dream of licking clean is Ranger, and I don't have to dream about that. I can do that when I'm awake."
The four Merry Men laughed and cheered and Ranger just flashed his sexiest grin. "Count on it, Babe."
They hung out long into the night, cleaning up the mess and hosing themselves off in the yard before heading down to the beach. The men built a bonfire in the sand and Lester presented Stephanie with a giant bag of marshmallows and a couple roasting sticks. They sat around the fire, eating s'mores and drinking beer and telling stories about the scrapes they had gotten into in the past.
Stephanie leaned against Ranger in contentment, listening to the man she loved and their friends laughing and joking about days gone by. She loved how close they all had become. She loved to see Ranger so comfortable and carefree. A few months ago, she never would have imagined that Ranger could let his guard down and just enjoy himself. A lot had changed since that night in her apartment.
The men's chatter melted into the background as Stephanie thought about the time gone by. She wondered if she and Ranger would be as close as they were if all the bad things hadn't happened. If she hadn't fallen into a deep depression; if he hadn't come home early to check on her. If everything had gone on as normal, would they be where they were now? She honestly didn't think so. He might still be in the wind and she would still be stuck fending off her mother and Joe. In the dark recesses of her mind, she thought that there was a possibility that she would be dead. Honestly, she didn't know if she would have actually pulled the trigger that night. She'd like to think that she wouldn't have, whether or not Ranger had shown up. But if she were truthful with herself, she wasn't positive. The thought of how close it came to being over still scared her.
Stephanie still couldn't believe how far down she had fallen. Never in a million years would she have imagined that scenario in her mind. Even there, sitting safely on the beach with Ranger, she could still remember the fear and hopelessness she had felt; the all-encompassing despair she had lost herself in. She never wanted to feel like that again. Now that she knew what true happiness and contentment felt like, she didn't think she could ever go back the darkness.
Ranger's arms tightened around her, bringing her out of her reverie. Looking up, she met his eyes and smiled at the question in them.
"You okay?" He asked softly. She nodded.
"I'm great."
He smiled and pulled her closer, resting his chin on top of her head.
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The next morning, Ranger and Stephanie drove Tank and Lester to the airport. She couldn't help but be a little teary eyed at the thought of her friends leaving town. Stephanie had come to depend on Tank and Lester's presence, not only for protection, but because she truly enjoyed being around them. They had always gotten along, but since they arrived in Miami, their relationship had gone from friendly to actual friends. She could joke around with them and laugh with them and she felt as if she had known them her entire life. And even though she loved being in Miami with Ranger, she hated to be separated from them.
At the security check, they all stopped and faced each other. The men did a complicated handshake thing before turning to Stephanie.
"Take care of yourself, Bombshell," Tank said, pulling her into a bear hug. "It was great to see you."
"You too, Big Guy," she murmured, her arms tightening around his neck. "Tell Lula I said 'hi' and I miss her."
"I will," he pulled back and grinned. "But you'd better give her a call here soon or she's liable to kick my ass."
Stephanie chuckled. "Don't worry. I'll save you from Lula in Rhino Mode."
He laughed with her and tugged on her hair. "You do that."
Tank stepped back and Lester took his place, pulling her into another bone crushing hug. "I had a blast, beautiful. Don't be a stranger."
"I won't," she promised, hugging him back.
"And keep an eye out for the twins," he pulled back and grinned, his eyes sparkling. "Women love you, apparently. Get their numbers for me, will ya?"
Stephanie snorted and smacked him lightly in the chest. "You're such a pig, Santos."
He chuckled. "Oink Oink."
Ranger pulled Stephanie into his arms and they both watched as Tank and Lester got into the line, moving up towards the metal detectors.
"Boy, this is déjà vu," she teased lightly, trying to keep the tears at bay. Ranger just squeezed her tighter, his chin resting on top of her head.
"Just think," he said, his warm breath tickling her ear. "It won't be long before we're back at the airport. But this time, it'll be us leaving."
She grinned at the thought. "I can't wait to see you in Mickey Mouse ears."
His laugh vibrated through her body. "It's gonna take a lot to get me to wear those, Babe."
"Mmm, a challenge," she tilted her head back to look up at him. "I wonder what I could do to convince you to wear them for an afternoon."
He raised his eyebrow and his lips tilted up at the corners. "I could come up with a few ideas."
Sorry so short. My muse isn't cooperating AT ALL. I'm not too fond of this chapter, but I guess it's better than nothing. Thanks to Alfonsina del Mar for all your help. Thanks to everybody else for the awesome reviews.