I still don't own anything

Warning: SMUT

Chapter 55

Steph's POV

It took three days on bed rest, two extra large Pino's pizzas, and a Dairy Queen ice cream cake before we could decide on Julian Carlos Manoso. I thought it was the perfect name for a Batbaby.

I think I gained five pounds during my confinement. Between the exercise ban, the junk food, and Julian's larger than average growing rate, my bump was becoming more prominent.

On the last night of my forced bed rest, while wrapped in the cocoon of Ranger's arms, I felt a strange sensation in my belly. I covered it with my hands and Ranger sat up, his face filled with concern.

"What's wrong, Babe?"

I grinned when I realized what had happened. "Julian kicked me."

The concern melted away as I took his hand and placed it on my bump. A minute later, he laughed.

"He's sparring already, Babe," the pride in his voice matched the joy in his face. "He's kicking pretty hard. Does it hurt?"

I shook my head. "It's just a little weird. But in a cool way."

He leaned down and placed his cheek on my belly. I moved my hands up to play through his hair.

"Hey, Julian," Ranger said to my belly button. "You're a strong little man, aren't you?"

I couldn't help but laugh. Big, bad Ranger was talking to my stomach. It was the cutest thing I have ever seen.

"You're Mama's first, son, so go easy on her." He continued, gently running his hand over my belly. "You might want a little brother or sister someday."

I chuckled. "I have four months before Julian's born and you're already talking about more?"

Ranger looked up at me and grinned. "Well I saw a lot of names I liked in that book. And it might be fun to go through the girls' edition."

"Are you sure you could handle a mini- Stephanie?" I teased.

"I could handle a houseful."

Wow. And here I thought that Ranger would want to stop with Julian. "Might get kinda crowded in here." I said.

Ranger moved up against the pillows and pulled me into his arms. "Maybe now is the time to find our Batcave."

I smiled, remembering my surprise when I had learned that I had been in the Batcave all along. You could have knocked me over with a feather. "So how many bedrooms should we be looking for?"

I felt his chest rumble with laughter. "About a dozen should cover it."

I looked him in the eye and scowled. "I hope to God that most of those rooms will be guest rooms, Carlos. I'm not a baby machine."

He shook his head in amusement. "Never said you were, Babe. But we'll need an office and a playroom and a housekeeper's quarters, not to mention a few guest rooms…"

"That still doesn't justify twelve bedrooms." I said. I couldn't even imagine going through pregnancy that many times!

"Calm down, Steph," Ranger soothed, rubbing my arms. "Just because we have the rooms doesn't mean that we have to fill them. If you decide after Julian is born that you don't want more children, then I'm fine with that."

"Really?" I hoped he wouldn't be disappointed.

"Really. You've already made me happier than I've ever thought possible."

I relaxed and cuddled against him. "Same goes for you, Batman."

The next day, I was off bed rest. Ranger woke me up at six to head down to the gym. While he ran laps, I took a stroll on the treadmill. It wasn't the most exciting form of exercise and I was seriously considering taking up yoga.

When my thirty minutes were up, I headed upstairs to shower. I pulled on a pair of jeans, groaning when I couldn't button them up. I guess it was time for the maternity clothes.

I came out to the kitchen to find Ranger mixing a smoothie. He looked up and grinned at my black maternity cargo pants and RangeMan tee shirt. "Cute."

I struck a pose and did a slow spin. "Julian's grown a lot the past few days. My jeans won't button up. I'm seriously considering yoga."

"Yoga's good," he said, handing me the smoothie. I sat down and drank it without complaint. Without all the wheat germ and flaxseeds, it was actually pretty good. "I'll call Dr. Marshall and see if she knows of any instructors in the area who work with pregnant women."

"M'kay," I chugged down the smoothie and set the empty glass on the counter. "What's for breakfast?"

Ranger's POV

After Steph and I went our separate ways in the Comm Room, I shut myself in my office to make a few calls. Calloway was first on my list.

He had called me right after Mrs. Plum's and Morelli's court hearings. After witnessing my mother in law's furious rants firsthand, Judge Marcoli had immediately agreed with my attorney's suggestion to have her committed to a psychiatric hospital for evaluation. Of course, Mrs. Plum became uncontrollable and had to be forcibly removed from the courtroom. Frank had actually told her that he would divorce her if she didn't cooperate and get help. Mrs. Plum had to be sedated after that.

After spending the night and morning in an alcohol free jail cell, Morelli had become even more agitated. The judge ordered him into an alcohol treatment facility and told him that if he didn't get clean, he would end up behind bars again.

I was beginning to feel like a Good Samaritan. I would have loved to see Mrs. Plum and Morelli rotting in prison for what they did to my wife. Despite my desire for revenge, I knew that helping them would help Steph.

My call to Calloway was short. He confirmed that Mrs. Plum had been committed and was seeing a therapist. Morelli was in rehab and was currently suffering through the hell of detox. I knew how painful it was to end an addiction. I had been stupid and reckless in my time, and had tried every drug under the sun. I thanked God every day that all that was behind me. Steph and Julian should never have to suffer that sort of hell because of me.

Before ending the call, I told Calloway my interest in buying a house. We discussed the basics of what to look for and hung up. He had a lot of work ahead of him.

The phone rang a few minutes later and I answered with my usual "Yo".

"Carlitos, I taught you better phone manners than that."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Steph would have been proud. "I'm sorry, Mama. Habit."

"How's Stephanie doing?"

"Much better. She's working right now."

"Good," I could hear her smile through the phone. "Abuela Rosa will be here day after tomorrow. I want you and Stephanie here for dinner."

I smothered a groan. "Who's going to be there?"

"Everyone."

"Throwing my wife into the shark tank, Mama?"

She laughed. "It's about time that Stephanie meet her entire family, hijo."

"Cramming Steph into a house with twenty strangers is hardly relaxing. She just got off of bed rest."

"You can't protect her from the real world, Carlos. Stephanie isn't in danger from your family."

I knew I was being irrational. My family would never do anything to hurt Steph. In fact, with her own family falling apart, mine could be there to pick up the pieces.

I sighed. "I'll talk to Steph and call you back."

We said good-bye and hung up. Looking at the clock on the wall, I saw that it was only nine-thirty. Too early to take Steph out for lunch. I didn't just want to go into her cubicle and bring up a possible Manoso family reunion. I needed to ease her into the idea. And I needed Ella to help.

A few minutes before noon, I shut down my computer and made my way to Steph's cubicle. She was sitting at her desk, munching on carrot sticks while waiting for one of her searches to print up. I watched her for a few moments before she shivered and looked up. Her beautiful smile lit up her face.

"Yo." She said.

"Yo yourself." I couldn't stop from grinning. "Are you ready for a lunch break?"

"Just as soon as I get this all printed," she replied, waving her hand at her desk.

"Whom are you doing the search on?"

"Just a search for Rodriguez," Steph rolled her eyes. "I swear he's just sending me busy work."

I chuckled and leaned against her doorway. She looked so beautiful in her RangeMan shirt and maternity cargoes. She was leaning back in her chair, absently rubbing her slightly rounded belly. I was tempted to take a picture and wallpaper my office with it.

Finally, she placed the pages in a folder and shut off her computer. Standing up, she stretched and her shirt rose, exposing her bump. Blushing, she tugged her shirt down.

"I gotta watch that," she joked.

I wouldn't mind seeing more.

We headed up to the 7th floor and Steph stopped short when she saw the dining room table.

The table was set for an elegant dinner, with lit candles and a vase of red roses in the center. The plates at the two table settings had silver domes on top, keeping the food underneath warm. There was a bottle of sparkling cider in an ice bucket beside my chair and fluted wineglasses by both plates. The lights were dim and there was soft music playing.

Overkill, I know. But I hoped she would like it.

Steph turned to me, her eyes sparkling. "What do you want?"

I tried to look confused. "Whatever are you talking about?"

She waved her hands to the table. "What are you hoping to convince me to do? I don't need to go to a safe house, do I?"

I chuckled and pulled her against my chest. She knew me way too well. "Mama called. Abuela Rosa will be in town day after tomorrow and Mama wants us there for dinner."

"And all your siblings and their families will be there." Steph finished for me.

"Yeah. The entire Manoso clan will be there to meet the newest member of the family. Are you up for it?"

Steph laughed and wrapped her arms around my waist. "You didn't have to go through all this trouble just to get me to go to a family dinner, Carlos. All you had to do was ask."

"I know. I just like to surprise you."

She pressed herself closer to me and I felt the usual stirrings below. Damn, now all I wanted to do was take her to bed. To hell with lunch.

Steph grinned wickedly at my reaction. "I have to tell you again, Marido. Pregnancy hormones are so much worse than jelly doughnut hormones."

Shit. She spoke Spanish. I was really starting to understand why she loved it when I did it. "Well, we do have an extended lunch break."

"Good answer," she teased, pushing me towards the table. I found myself suddenly without pants and she pushed me down in one of the chairs. I have no idea how she managed to undress me without even realizing it.

"You sit," she ordered, straddling me. Who was I to argue?

I wrapped my arms around her as she leaned closer, bringing her soft, sweet lips to mine. With teasing strokes, she used the tip of her tongue to outline my lips before slipping it fully into my mouth. Dios.

Tiny moans escaped her lips as she started slowly grinding her hips against mine. She shuddered when she realized her effect on me and I suddenly wanted nothing more than to rid her of her clothes. She continued to roll her hips as she pulled her knees up to settle on either side of my thighs.

"I want you so bad," she murmured in my ear, her warm breath sending chills down my spine. I was already feeling the heat building up inside me and she hadn't even stripped yet.

I grabbed the bottom of her shirt and yanked it over her head, sending it sailing into the other room. With a growl, I reached out, ripping her bra off of her body, exposing her full breasts to my mouth. She cried out and pulled out the leather tie restraining my ponytail. I groaned when her fingers tangled in my hair, bringing my head closer to her.

"Christ, Babe," I rasped, assaulting her darkening nipples with my mouth. She gave a little shriek and her hips began moving harder and faster against my groin. Shit.

My control snapped and with shaking hands, I unzipped her pants and shoved them down her legs. She lifted slightly and shook them off onto the floor. A second later, she lifted her hips and lowered herself onto me. Holy shit, she was soaking wet and hotter than hell! I ground my teeth, trying desperately to cling to that last little strand of control.

"Oh God, Carlos," she cried, moving her hips in furious circles. I held onto her waist tightly, thrusting upwards into her body. I wouldn't be able to last much longer. She was killing me.

Already, I could feel her clenching tightly around me, her walls grasping me like a vice. Fuck, but she felt so damn incredible!

I watched Steph as her head fell back, her long hair barely brushing my knees. Her face scrunched up and her mouth opened, releasing a loud wail of pleasure. God, it was the most amazing sight. I loved that I did that to her.

My control out the window, I gripped her tighter against me and thrust upward, hard and deep, crying out as I spilled over inside her. She collapsed against me, both of us sweating and gasping for breath. Her breasts were pressed tightly to my chest and I could feel her heart pounding beneath.

"Thank God for pregnancy hormones," I managed to gasp, my arms still wrapped securely around her, keeping her from falling off the chair.

She chuckled and pulled back slightly, staring into my eyes. "I couldn't agree more."

Thank you all for reading and reviewing. Sorry for the delay on this chapter, but I had a little trouble getting into it. Please let me know what you think.