The Test

Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed! I'm running out of adjectives to describe how much I appreciate your comments but please know that I just love them!

Warnings for language and smut but be forewarned it isn't all nice smut. Also, this story continues to be unkind to Joe and it will probably stay that way through to the end. Sorry about the late notice on this but my Muse took a detour in anti-Morelli territory and refuses to turn around!

The next chapters are fairly short and broken down by character and I apologize for that but each of these characters has their own agenda and perspective and they hounded me until I agreed to let them have their say.

I am giving you multiple chapters because I don't want to tease you with the short chapters.

Also, I am trying to build toward some action packed chapters and I think combining these will allow me to do that more effectively. Let me know if it works!

Rewarding me for the multiple chapters with lots of reviews would be greatly appreciated!

Chapter Thirty Four

Stephanie watched Joe leave the room and then collapsed into one of the room's polished chairs as her legs turned to jelly.

She knew she'd done the right thing especially when she saw the depth of Joe's rage and contempt. Not to mention his denial over the demise of their relationship.

And people thought she did denial well…Stephanie shook her head. She was starting to think she had nothing on Joe in the denial department.

"What part of we broke up did he not understand?" she wondered.

Morelli had been so off…Stephanie wasn't sure what to think but her spidey sense was telling her something was wrong. She thought she'd seen Joe at his best and his worst but she'd never been afraid of him before…

Stephanie jumped up and headed for the door; she needed to talk to Ranger.

She didn't get far as she collided with Ranger when he strode quickly into the conference room and pulled her into a brief but passionate embrace.

"Babe, I am in awe! I am so proud of you! Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Ric. I mean, I'm sort of fine."

Ranger's blank face slammed down as he asked coolly "Second thoughts, Babe?"

"NO! Of course not, Ric!"

Stephanie wrapped her arms around Ranger's neck and leaned up to kiss him purring "You're the only man I'll ever want."

"Thank God, Babe. It would kill me if I thought you were even remotely contemplating going back to Morelli."

"Ric, I know I went back and forth before but that's over now. I've made my choice and I'm way too happy with it to want to change it."

"I know, Babe. I just…you make me vulnerable and I'm not used to that."

"You have nothing to worry about Batman. You're my hero and I can't live without you."

Ranger pulled Stephanie into his lap and swept his tongue across her lips seeking entry into her mouth. Ranger's touch ignited Stephanie and their tongues began to tangle greedily as their bodies began to heat.

Ranger's hand had crept under her shirt and Stephanie was moaning when his phone rang.

"Forget something, Ric?" Stephanie could hear Tank's booming laugh and Lester's chortle over the phone and her face turned red with embarrassment.

"You couldn't have simply turned them off without interrupting us?" Ranger sighed.

"Where's the fun in that man?" Tank inquired. "Besides, we can't have you getting all sloppy and sappy on the job now can we?"

Ranger growled "I am neither sloppy nor sappy but I'll have to remember to mention your contempt for both conditions when I see Lula. She should know how you feel before things go any further…"

"Aw, c'mon, Ric. You don't need to be like that. My Sugarplum doesn't have to hear anything like that. She's already upset that I forgot the anniversary of our first meeting…"

"Take it like a man, Tank. The woman has a right to know…"

"Tape is erased and cameras are off. I'm going to go and put up a wet paint sign to keep the corridor clear…just in case you two want to stay in there for awhile..."

Ranger hung up and smiled at a giggling Stephanie saying "It's good to be the boss." Then his expression became more serious as he reminded her "Babe, you were saying something about Morelli…"

"Yeah, I don't mind not having him in my life – especially with the way he's acting but something seemed really off with him. Like something was…I don't know…wrong with him."

Stephanie paused, her eyes troubled as she tried to explain "It was more than his usual Italian temper or his occasional I'm a dictatorial – emphasis on the dick part – asshole in severe need of a personality transplant. This seemed deeper than that… but it's probably nothing…"

"Babe. How many times have I told you to trust your spidey sense? If you think something is off with Morelli then it probably is. If it makes you feel any better I had the same thought."

"You did? Why?"

"I'm a trained observer, Babe and what I saw today was a man sending mixed signals. Morelli was irrational, angry and delusional. He's got an agenda and I don't think it's a good one. We're going to have to keep tabs on him."

"I feel better knowing you saw it too and worse knowing that he's planning something. Do you think it's against me or you?"

Ranger kissed her again and asked "What's the difference?" as he pulled her out of the conference room and headed for his office.

"Babe, we have some unfinished celebrating to do…but first, there are some things we need to take care of…"

Morelli's rage had his head pounding and his blood on fire as he jumped into his car and flew out of the Rangeman garage.

How dare Stephanie dump him? Who did she think she was? He was the catch of the Burg! The guy every man envied and every woman wanted to fuck!

Damn it all, Stephanie was a disaster prone train wreck and she didn't have a domestic bone in her body! She should be grateful that someone like him would even consider marrying someone like her!

The Burg, the Cops, her mother…everyone knew he could do better than Stephanie Plum! Even he knew it but it had to be his choice.

She didn't get to blow him off and go find a happily ever after with Manoso. Ricardo Manoso would have to die and Stephanie would be left alone and broken.

Then he'd have the pleasure of rejecting her. After she'd sucked his dick and fucked his brains out of course.

He'd make sure she gave him anal too…finally. He'd wanted to tap that ass for years and she'd always said no but things would be different once her security blanket was gone.

Once Ranger was dead he could do what he wanted with her and she'd be so pathetically lonely and needy that she'd let him.

Joe felt his dick get hard as he thought about how much he would enjoy bending Stephanie to his will. Painfully, publicly humiliating her…

He needed a plan…

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