AN: All familiar characters/etc. belong to Janet Evanovich. I am not making any profit from this.
Thank you to everyone who's stuck with this story so far and especially to those of you who've reviewed! Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out.
:::::::::::::::
Lula POV
"I don't know Steph, I still like the silvery blue dress better," Mary Lou said as she and I looked over the latest dress selection Steph was modeling for us. She was currently in a coral one-shoulder dress with a fitted bodice, gold detailing and a gauzy, flirty skirt.
"I'm with Mary Lou. Besides, this dress won't match with the killer heels we saw on our way in!" I added.
"Lula, I can't pick a dress based on a pair of shoes! That's crazy. Right?"
"Girl, please. Shoes are the most important part! Of course you can select your wardrobe around a pair of shoes, especially these shoes!" I corrected her, brandishing my phone with a photo of her trying on the shoes in question. They were silver stilettoes sandals with triple thin straps covered in rhinestones at the toe and at the ankle and the stiletto heel was covered in rhinestones and silver pyramid grommets.
"I'm with Lula, these shoes are like crazy sexy. Ranger's gonna flip when he sees them," Mary Lou added.
"Maybe I should save those shoes for the third date or something. I wouldn't want Ranger to get carried away on our first date."
"What!" I asked, shocked at Steph's implication. "Why wouldn't you want Batman to get carried away girl? It's not like you haven't done the nasty before, the hell are are you holding out for?" I demanded.
"Well, it's our first real date, and I don't know, I guess I just want things with our relationship to be real before we take that step," Steph answered as she headed back into the dressing room to change back into her stovepipe gray slacks and lilac, sleeveless, peter pan collared blouse.
"Wow, you're serious about not just jumping right into bed with Ranger, huh?" Mary Lou asked after she and I shared an incredulous look. I guess neither one of us really understood Steph's decision to take things slowly with Batman.
"Yeah," Steph admitted through the slatted dressing room door, "I just want to make sure everything's real and that our relationship is built on a firm foundation before I get lost in a haze of doomsday orgasms."
"Girl, good luck with saying no to Batman!" I exclaimed as Steph exited the dressing room with the silvery blue dress Mary Lou and I had chosen draped over her arm. "Now let's get those sexy heels before you have to pick up Krista!"
"Alright, let's go. Hey Lula, do you wanna come to our Friday picnic with Mare, our kids and some of Krista's classmates after we're done here?" Steph asked.
"I can't, I took my lunch break off helping you find something sexy to wow Batman and I have to get back to work. But, I can't wait to hear all the dirty details tomorrow at the RangeMan outing! Speaking of which, how could you not tell me where the outing is taking place?"
"It's a secret! And I don't trust you not to tell Tank! Just remember to pack a swim suit and some bar appropriate clothing along with a pair of regular clothes."
"Yeah, yeah. I guess it's for the best, Tank's got a few ways of making me talk!" I shot back at her with a wink as the three of us made our way back towards the shoe section of Macy's.
:::::::::::::::
SP POV
I had just finished up my work for the day when the door buzzer announced Beck's arrival.
"Yay! Aunt Becks is here! Aunt Becks is here!" Krista exclaimed excitedly, racing me to the door.
After confirming that it was indeed Becks at the front door, I buzzed her in. A few minutes later she knocked on the apartment door.
"Hey Becks!" I greeted her with a quick hug as she rolled her carry-on sized suitcase into the apartment.
"Hey guys!" Becks said, bending down to give Krista a big bear hug. "How's everything been going?"
"Great! Glad you're here!" I responded.
"We've been having sooo much fun Aunt Becks," Krista answered, tugging Becks into the living room, "I've been going to ballet and we had a picnic on the roof with Mr. Ranger and I played in the park today with my friends!"
"Wow, you've been a very busy bee!" Becks said, tickling Krista.
"Yup!" Krista shrieked amid bouts of laughter.
"So, do you wanna play a game?" I asked Krista, handing Becks a bottle of water.
"Yeah! Let's play candy land," Krista announced, heading off to find the board game.
"So, I haven't had a chance to talk to Krista about this whole date thing yet. I mean, she knows that Ranger asked me out and I said yes but her knowing about it theoretically and it actually happening are two totally different things," I mentioned to Becks while Krista was off searching for the game.
"Well, you'd better get on that Steph. Or you're going to end up having that conversation in front of Ranger!"
"I know, I just… I guess I'm nervous. What if she feels displaced or something?"
"I'm pretty sure she knows that she's the most important person in your life. And if she's feeling left out or something, just remind her of that fact," Becks assured me.
"Thanks Becks, you're the best!"
"Damn straight. Oh and I'll accept payment for being the best, your words, not mine, in the form of a date with one of your Merry Men. Preferably Lester because he is just sooo much handsome!" Becks responded with a saucy wink just as Krista came back into the living room with Candy Land clutched in her arms.
"So munchkin, what color do you want to be?" I asked as the three of us settled onto the floor around the coffee table.
"Hmmm, I pick… red!" Krista answered as we set up the game. A few rounds into the game, I decided to broach the date topic.
"Krista, do you remember when we had that picnic with Mr. Ranger on the roof and he asked me out on a date?"
"Mhmm," Krista answered absentmindedly. Clearly her upcoming roll was far more interesting than the topic of me dating Ranger.
"Well, remember we talked about how dating was when two people decide to spend time together to get to know each other better? Well, Mr. Ranger and I will be going on a date tonight," I explained carefully.
"But what about me?" Krista asked with rapt attention.
"Well, you and Aunt Becks are going to hang out with Aunt Mare's family at the Discovery Zone while I'm spending time with Ranger."
"But why can't I go with you? I want to go on the date too!" Krista argued.
"Well munchkin, dating is only for adults. And it'll only be for a few hours, you won't even miss me," I assured her, scooping her into my lap and giving her a big hug.
"Besides, we're going to have tons of fun while Mommy's on her date with Mr. Ranger!" Becks added.
"Okay?" I asked, hoping Krista would amenable to tonight's plan.
"Okay," Krista huffed.
"Are you sure munchkin?"
"You're gonna come back after a few hours, right?" Krista asked in a small, vulnerable voice.
"Absolutely."
"Okay then," Krista said, crawling out of my lap and back to her side of the board after giving me a quick hug and kiss on the cheek.
After finishing a lively game of Candy Land, I decided to leave Becks and Krista to Wii Mario Kart in order to get dressed for my highly anticipated date. After showering, shaving, exfoliating and moisturizing, I was ready to get started on my hair and makeup. I put in some of Mr. Alexander's magical hair serum that left my hair in soft curls which I swept to my left side using bobby pins with rhinestones accents. I added silver and rhinestone encrusted chandelier drop earrings and a matching bracelet which would go perfectly with my shoes and mirrored clutch. I went with a natural makeup look with smoky eyes and three coats of mascara to help settle my nerves.
I was just about to slip on my dress when I heard Becks giving me a time check,"Steph, Ranger's gonna be here in fifteen minutes!"
"Thanks for the heads up! I'm almost ready," I answered, zipping my dress up. The dress was light, silvery blue with a sweetheart neckline and layered tulle skirt that ended at mid-thigh. I had just finished giving myself a quick once over when Becks and Krista came barging into my bathroom.
"Wow, Mommy. You look like a princess!" Krista gushed as I leaned over to give her a quick hug.
"Thanks munchkin, that's exactly the look I was going for!"
"Yeah Steph, Lula and Mare did well with the dress. And the shoes are to die for!" Becks added with a knowing smile.
"Don't give me that smile, there will be none of that. It's a first date!" I exclaimed, as the three of us headed into the living room. "So Krista, did you beat Aunt Becks at Mario Kart?"
"Yup!" Krista announced proudly before filing me in on all the fun they had while I was busy primping.
:::::::::::::::
RM POV
Okay, you can do this, I thought to myself as I got ready to knock on the door of the first proper date I've had in over a decade. If any of my men could see me know they would definitely demand that I hand in my badass card. I took one last deep, calming breath before knocking on the door marked 714.
A few seconds later the door opened and I found myself needing to take another calming breath as I took in the vision before me. Steph was wearing a light blue dress that brought out her eyes, sinful shoes and a smile that could light up the city. "Hi Ranger," she greeted me breathily.
"Hi Babe, you look beautiful," I responded after clearing my throat. I leaned in to kiss her cheek just as Krista and one of her friends came up behind her.
"Ranger, this is my friend Becks. Becks this is Ranger," she said by way of introductions as we shook hands. "And of course you remember Krista," Steph said, her arms resting on Krista's shoulders as they stepped aside to allow me entrance into their apartment.
"Hi Krista," I said, kneeling down in my black on black Armani suit, "I brought these for you," I said, handing her a bouquet of purple gerber daisies and lavender.
"Wow, thank you Mr. Ranger, they're my favorite color," Krista said, in awe as she held the flowers up to her cute button nose and inhaled deeply. "And they smell pretty too!" she exclaimed, giving me a quick hug that I returned after a beat of hesitation.
"Why don't we pick out a vase for your flowers," Becks said, leading Krista to the kitchen.
"And these are for you Babe," I said, handing Steph a bouquet of blush and white calla lilies held together with a twine bow.
"Thanks Batman, they're gorgeous," Steph gushed, holding out her hand for me to take as she walked back towards their sunny kitchen while breathing in the flowers. She handed the flowers to her friend Becks and after a quick good bye we were headed out on our first date, finally.
:::::::::::::::
SP POV
I couldn't stop a face-splitting smile from gracing my features as Ranger pulled away from my apartment building, his right hand tangled with my left and resting between us.
"You gonna share what that smile's for, Babe?" Ranger asked with a smirk as he raised our hands to his face to gently kiss the back of my hand.
"It, well… I guess this whole date thing is feeling a little surreal. I'm having a hard time realizing it's all real. I'm on a date with Batman!" I shared.
"Trust me Babe, it's real," he chortled, giving the back of my hand another kiss before letting it rest, fingers entwined with his on his thigh.
"Nice touch with the flowers by the way, very smooth," I commented as he aimed the Turbo towards Newark.
"Thanks Babe. I figured it would never be too soon to start winning over Krista. And I figured purple was a safe bet judging by her room when I carried her up after the benefit," Ranger replied with a self-satisfied smirk firmly in place.
"So, where are we headed for this highly anticipated date?"
"It's a surprise," he answered before slipping into his driving zone. I passed the rest of our drive looking out the window and trying to work the gleeful grin off my face.
Before I knew it Ranger had pulled up to a valet podium in front of packed restaurant boasting an exuberant ambiance. I sat for a moment to take in the sight before me from the lit up sign that read Havana to the roof that seemed to be some sort of bar with torches and string lights to the live music that was definitely setting the ambiance. I was interrupted from my reverie by Ranger opening the passenger door and offering me his hand to help me out of the car.
"Wow, this place is amazing!" I whispered to Ranger as we headed to the hostess who was dressed head to toe in black save for her fire-engine truck hued lipstick.
"Manoso, party of two," Ranger announced to the hostess over the din.
"Right this way," she said before grabbing two menus and heading into the restaurant. We filed past a small bar area and the main seating area filled with tables covered in colorful linens to a staircase off to the side. We followed the hostess up the stairs where there was another bar, a live band, several smaller tables and a dance floor with a few brave couples getting their salsa on. The hostess headed towards the side of the roof where a few secluded, circular booths were set up on a raised platform and the music was a little less prominent. "Here's your table Mr. Manoso, a waiter will be by shortly," the hostess explained as we slid into our seats which provided an unobstructed view of the entire rooftop and the surrounding city.
"Wow, Ranger, this is incredible," I gushed, taking in the view.
"Glad you like it Babe. I've actually wanted to bring you here for a while now," Ranger replied.
"Really? Why haven't we been before?" I asked as I situated my napkin in my lap.
"Well, I guess I shied away from anything that seemed too relationship-like. Although now that we've decided to really give us a chance, I'm not sure what I was afraid of," Ranger replied, giving me a rare, unguarded look.
"Wow, Ranger afraid. I totally get it though. I've built up being with you for real so much in my mind that it kinda sets the bar pretty high and I'm a little worried I'll disappoint you."
"Babe, you never disappoint. We just need to take this one day at a time and see where we end up," Ranger reassured me just as our waiter walked up to us.
"Good evening, my name's Paul and I'll be your waiter tonight. Can I get you started with something to drink?"
"Hi Paul, what's good here?" I asked after realizing the beverage portion of the menu took up an entire page.
"Well, we have really amazing mojitos and of course our rum beverages are also excellent."
"Sounds good, I'll have a mojito," I said, turning to Ranger to see what he would opt for.
"I'll have one too, and two glasses of water as well."
"Great and would you guys like anything to start?"
"Actually, we need a little more time to look over the menu," Ranger announced.
With a nod, Paul headed over to the bar to bring us our beverages.
"So, what's good here?" I asked. "And keep in mind I've been on a self-imposed meat hiatus, so-"
"Actually, that's what I wanted to ask you about before we ordered. How is that going?" Ranger interjected.
"Okay so far, I guess. But every now and then I get a major jonesing for a meatball sub from Pino's or that amazing chicken and rice dish that Ella makes. I've been reading up on cooking as a vegetarian and I'm actually kinda worried that Krista and I may not be getting enough vitamins and proteins given my culinary limitations," I replied. I had been rethinking agreeing with Krista for us to go vegetarian lately, I just hadn't decided on a way to broach the subject with Krista yet.
"Well, they can make us a tasting menu so we get to try a little of everything, but we need to decide if it needs to be vegetarian or not," Ranger explained, stretching his right arm out to rest on the back of the booth behind me and twirling a strand of my hair around his finger.
"Not, definitely not. Seriously, I've started dreaming about meat. Not that kind!" I added, shooting him an admonishing look when I noticed the mischievous glint in his eye. "But are you sure they'll just do a tasting menu, that's a lot of work and as charming as you are, I'm thinking a lot of your… appeal is going to be lost on Paul."
"They'll do it for me because I'm a silent partner in the restaurant," Ranger explained nonchalantly.
"You're what? How? Almost none of this food is temple appropriate," I exclaimed.
"Well, I know the owners and provided the startup money" he explained. "And well, today is definitely not a temple day," he added in a husky voice as he leaned in towards me to place a kiss on my bare shoulder.
"Ahem, excuse me sir. Here are your drinks," Paul interjected, placing our mojitos and waters on the table. "So, have you decided on something to start with?"
"Yes, we'll have a tasting menu for two," Ranger answered still holding me captive with his gaze.
"Wonderful, I'll bring the first portion of your meal out shortly," Paul explained before heading to check on another table.
"Hey," Ranger said, hooking his arm around my neck and pulling me towards him to lay a path of kisses from my shoulder to my neck. Luckily I'd managed to break out of my lust filled haze long enough to realize where we were and why we were there.
"R-Ranger, stop, we're in p-public." I stuttered, halting Ranger's tantalizing progress up the side of my neck. "And besides, since this whole relationship thing is kinda new for us, I was hoping we'd take things slow."
"Babe," Ranger groaned, leaning his forehead against my shoulder and exhaling breathily. "Sorry Babe," Ranger said, sitting back up and leaving a little space between us with his arm firmly planted on the booth back behind me, "I got a little carried away there. But you're right, we're both in this and we owe it to ourselves to go slow and not rush things."
"Okay, so, first date conversation. Wow it's been a while," I said with a laugh as Ranger shot me an intrigued look. "So, since the point of the date is get to know each other, let's start with you. Hmmm… favorite movie of all time?" I asked.
"Indiana Jones, except for the one they made recently, which was crap. But Babe, I thought the purpose of dating was to get into the girl's pants?" he asked with mock seriousness earning a halfhearted shove to the chest.
We spent the next hour eating food that was akin to a religious experience and getting to know each other from our favorite desserts (pineapple upside down cake for me and flan for Ranger) to what we wanted to be as kids when we grew up (wonder woman for me and surprisingly enough archeologist adventure seeker for Ranger) to our greatest fears (looking back at my life and being full of regret and spiders for me and having someone from his past threaten the life he's built for himself for Ranger). It was the perfect first date, the two of us, talking, laughing and eating under the moonlight with live music and the occasional mojito refill.
"So, can I get you two something for dessert?" Paul asked after he cleared away the last of our entrees.
I turned to Ranger with an expectant look to find him looking at me in disbelief. "Babe, how can you possibly have room for dessert?"
"Come on Ranger, we should really make the most of the fact that it isn't a temple day!" I said excitedly before turning to face Paul. "So Paul, what do you recommend?"
"Well, I'd recommend one of our flans. We have traditional, coconut, caramel, guava and chocolate flavored flan." Paul answered, amused at our antics.
"Hmmm, what do you think Ranger?"
"Seriously Babe?" Ranger asked to which I simply nodded exuberantly. "Fine, we'll share a caramel flan and could you also bring us each some cafe cubano?"
"I'll have that out for you shortly," Paul replied before heading away.
"So Babe, do you want to dance a little before Paul brings us our dessert?" Ranger asked.
"Definitely, we should dance before we eat dessert and fully succumb to our food comas," I answered, standing to follow Ranger out to the dance floor as took my hand, shook his head and mumbled something about my metabolism.
"So Babe, you know how to salsa?" Ranger asked, spinning me into him, his hands firmly anchored at my waist.
"Mhmm, dance classes are required of all good Burg girls. It was actually the only part of the Burg girl mold that was any fun."
"Nice," Ranger whispered, spinning me around with a smile that showed he was impressed I could keep up. We spent the next twenty minutes flirting on the dance floor just shy of being dirty dancing worthy when Ranger noticed that Paul had delivered our dessert. "Dessert," he mentioned, nodding towards our booth as he guided me off the dance floor and back towards our table.
"So, this is your favorite dessert?" I asked Ranger, eyeing the plate heavily drizzled in caramel sauce.
"Trust me Babe, it's amazing," he said, taking a bite and handing me a spoon. Not able to handle the suspense any longer, I took a small bite and felt an explosion of rich, caramel flavor swirling around in my mouth.
"Oh my god, Ranger! This is amazing! How could I not have tried this before?" I exclaimed.
"Well thank you! I heard Carlos was having dessert and I just had to see it for myself!" a petit woman with sparkling brown eyes, a trendy bob hairstyle, and sporting a chef's coat announced jokingly as she walked up to our booth.
"Camilla! It's good to see you," Ranger replied. "Camilla this is my friend, Stephanie, Babe, this is my sister Camilla and the chef at Havana."
"Hi, it's nice to meet you," I said as I stuck my hand out to shake hers. I could see the family resemblance now in their smiles, skin tone and cheek bones. "Your food is amazing. Thank you so much for putting together a tasting menu for us!" I gushed.
"Anytime, I'm just glad Carlos had an excuse to stop b- wait a minute, you're that Stephanie?! From the stories that Tank, Lester and Bobby have been telling us for years?" Camilla asked with awe and barely contained excitement.
"What stories? I swear the funeral home was not my fault!" I exclaimed, looking to Ranger for an explanation regarding these stories his sister and likely his entire family had been regaled with.
"Oh my gosh, you are that Stephanie. It is sooo nice to finally meet you. We've been after Carlos to bring you by for dinner for forever and I can't believe I'm the first to actually meet you!" Camilla gushed animatedly.
"And now you know why I was reticent to bring you here before," Ranger said, shaking his head at the two of us.
"And why did you finally decide to bring her here, hermano?" Camilla asked curiously, like she was about to get the inside scoop on some state secret.
"Oh, well, it's…" I mumbled in an ill-fated attempt to buy Ranger some time before having to answer.
"Well, if you must know, Steph and I are actually on our first date," Ranger finally explained, shooting me a smile and a slightly exasperated look.
"Oh how exci-wait what? For years the guys have been telling us stories about her and you're only now getting around to taking her on a first date? What is wrong with you? Men!" Camilla huffed disgustedly, shifting her attention back to me. "Well, sorry my baby brother's such an idiot sometimes. We'd been telling him to make a move for years and I guess somewhere along the way I'd assumed he'd taken my awesome advice."
"Well, we've both been idiots on the relationship front, but this is a big change for us and hopefully the start of something really special," I explained, shooting Ranger a quick smile.
"Man, Lester was right, you two are perfect together. Well, I have to get back to the kitchen, but you're welcome anytime and Carlos, I'll be telling Mama about your first date and I'm sure she'll be looking forward to having the two of you over for dinner sometime soon!" Camilla announced with a smirk before heading back down to the kitchen.
"Wow, so that happened," I observed, taking a sip of my mojito.
"Yeah, and you thought Plum family dinners were a circus. Just wait until we're summoned by my mother and you have to meet all of my siblings and their families all at once."
"If I can handle Grandma Mazur, I'm sure I can handle the Manoso clan!" I shot back with a smile.
"Well, on the upside, Camilla will let everyone know about us, so that's one less thing I have to do," Ranger noted thoughtfully, determined to find some silver lining. "So Babe, one more dance before we head home?" Ranger asked, holding his hand out to me with a 200 watt smile lighting up his handsome face.
"Absolutely!"
