Chapter 15

I make nothing from this, just borrowing the characters from the Queen JE. Mistakes are mine. Rating is M.

SPOV

Jeanne Ellen let me in to her condo and gave me the nickel tour. It was a nice, upscale place with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and an open floor plan between the kitchen, dining area, and living room. The kitchen was immaculate, done in stainless steel and a light sand colored granite.

She gestured to a pair of wine glasses and asked if I liked white or red. "Both," I said. "Depending on what I'm eating with it."

"About eating," she said. "What do you think about just hanging here tonight. Maybe this weekend we can go out, but there are so many things I don't know that I need to ask you. I thought that might be easier if we kept it relaxed. I was thinking of ordering a pizza."

"Sure," I said. "So definitely the red wine then." She poured 2 generous glasses and passed one to me. "Is this weird for you? An Op like this?"

"In some ways yes, and others no. I've been working at the agency since I left the Marines when I was 22. Publicly I do the same type of work Ranger did a few years ago: skip tracing and finding people who don't want to be found, contracting with Families and that sort of thing." She pulled out her phone. "What do you like on your pizza?"

"Anything but olives and onions," I said, taking my wine into the living room. I took a seat on the overstuffed brown leather sofa. It felt like sinking into a cloud. Jeanne used an app on her phone to order from a generic pizza place nearby. She joined me in the living room and sat on the sofa, opposite me. She took a sip of wine and studied me. It felt like we were circling each other, each waiting for the other to show weakness first.

"Ground rules," I finally said, drinking more wine. "I get that you're running this, but I don't like to be ordered around. And this won't work if we're not completely honest with each other."

"Agreed."

I was on a roll now, so I plowed on. "I realize you probably can't tell me all the background, but I need to know more about how this all came about."

She nodded and scooted a little closer to me on the couch. "You know I work for one of the 3-letter government agencies. It's really best if that's all you know. They put me on a long-term undercover op with Trenton and Newark as the home bases. It was slow going at first, which is why I spent so much time skip tracing for Les. I had to look like I was creating a life and name for myself. It's not like I could go into the agency office from 9 to 5 and then try to make connections on the weekend. About 18 months ago kismet had me crossing paths with one of the players. He was my in, and it worked like a charm. But I also knew I wouldn't last if they all saw me as a sexual conquest. So, on the fly I made a decision and mentioned having a preference for women and the story continued growing from there." She took a drink. "When do you want to tell me why you flinch a little every time I've touched you?"

The intercom buzzed; it was the door man in the lobby letting us know the pizza was here. Saved by the pizza delivery boy!

We sat at the table to eat. Jeanne slid me a plate and refilled both of our wine glasses. She took the chair next to mine instead of across the table. I ate a few bites and asked another question. "Why is it that your wife matches me down to a tee? I'm half surprised you didn't include the gunshot wound scar on my ass." Maybe I should slow down on the wine, my social inhibitions were definitely lower than normal.

She smiled. "I'd like to hear that story later. But you know I've worked with Ranger in the past." She said it like a statement and not a question.

"I may have made a move or two, but we were never intimate. He told me he was loyal to someone. Then I met you, and I completely understood how mesmerized he was with you. If I'm being honest, I was half jealous and half envious. Jealous that you had him and envious of the way you handle yourself around him and his men. You have a way of drawing people in, but you don't throw yourself at them. I knew from the moment I met you that you'd consider me a rival. And in a lot of ways, I enjoyed letting people thing Ranger and I had history. The man is seriously sexy."

We each selected a second piece of pizza and she continued. "So, it was a little twisted game I played whenever I was asked about you and gave another detail that you were the person I based my wife on. You know, the best lies are rooted in truth. So, when it was looking like there was no way out of bringing my wife to the wedding, I set up the situation with Vinnie. That you were on the Atlanta case was just a happy coincidence." She took a long drink.

"I really don't like being manipulated," I said as I finished my pizza.

"Would you have said yes if I'd just strolled in to Rangeman and asked?"

"Probably not."

"So, do you blame me then? For what it's worth I'm sorry there wasn't another way. I needed someone I could trust. Ranger trusts you, so I know I can trust you."

I considered her. "You can trust me," I said. "How do I know I can trust you?"

"I'm being as honest as I can, Stephanie. But it's really up to you. Remember we don't have an objective on this op other than getting through the wedding weekend as a believable couple. I don't anticipate anything will be going down, or that you'll be in danger in any way. None of the spouses or significant others have ever been involved in any of the dealings. But, if you're not up for this, I need to know now, while I still have time to find someone else. It's really my life on the line here more than yours."

I pondered that. "This is getting a little heavy. Let's watch some tv or play cards or something!"

"Aren't you going to ask me what's for dessert?"

"Dessert?" I was fully distracted. Jeanne got up, went to the fridge and removed a raspberry swirl cheesecake with a chocolate crumb crust and giant dollops of whipped cream on the top. I know I drooled a little bit.

"Tell me about Morelli," she said as she handed me an extra-large piece. I rolled my eyes. The whole point of this exercise was about ripping off the proverbial Band-Aid of privacy and becoming fully familiar with each other. So I started the story from the time we played Choo-Choo in his garage when I was 6 and he was 8 and told her the whole sordid story up to the encounter at my parents' house several weeks ago. She listened, and never looked at me with judgement. I decided I trusted her enough to fill her in on the rest of the background with my family and also the timeline of my relationship with Ranger.

"Not that I'm a psychologist or anything, but I can see how touch hasn't been used positively in your life at all. I wondered why you cringed when I touched you in the office. It makes more sense now. What can I do to make you more comfortable?" she asked.

I finished my cheesecake. I was full, had a nice sugar buzz and was feeling wonderfully relaxed by the wine. "Let's put on PJs and watch something on TV," I said. She nodded.

When I came back into the living room in sweats and a tank top, I found Jeanne sitting in the center of the couch with refilled wine glasses on the coffee table. She had a comfortable looking throw tossed over her legs, which were spread out on one side of the couch. I sat next to her on the couch, and she handed me another blanket. She clicked on the TV and I made the conscious effort to lean toward her as I sank back onto the couch. She ran her hand down my arm and asked what I liked to watch. We settled on a marathon of the Great Food Truck Race on Food Network. We laughed and drank and talked while the episodes blurred together and kept playing. And then next thing I knew, I was waking up to sunlight streaming through the huge windows of the condo while Bobby Flay talked about brunch on a show with Geoffrey Zakarian. My tongue was stuck to the roof of my mouth, and the left side of my body was pressed up firmly against Jeanne's right side. Her face looked softer in sleep. I hadn't expected to actually enjoy her company, but I found the woman beneath the mercenary was down to earth and kind of cutely quirky. Definitely needed a better sense of humor though. She's a very serious person. I carefully moved to slide off the couch, but the second there was space between us her eyes flew open and she pivoted and immediately reached for an imaginary gun that wasn't strapped to her.

"Sorry," she said. "Reflex." I gave a 'it's no big deal' gesture as I made my way to the guest bathroom to answer nature's call. I changed into my clean Rangeman uniform and came back out to find her stretching on the sofa.

"I'm a little hungover," I admitted. "I hadn't intended on staying this late."

She nodded. "It was good wine. But I think we made good progress. I will text you details for tomorrow night."

"Sounds good," I said, heading for the kitchen. "You do drink coffee in the morning don't you?"

She pointed to the Keurig on the counter and pulled down a little hidden shelf below the upper cabinet full of pods. "Jeannie, you might just be the woman of my dreams," I said, selecting a Starbucks Blonde Roast.

She pulled out a Colombian Roast for herself and handed me a to-go mug. While the Keurig was working its magic she set a small pitcher of half and half on the counter.

"Don't make it weird, Steph."

"I still think there's an air of inherent weirdness in this whole thing," I said, adding cream and sugar to my coffee. I took a sip. Heaven.

She opened a kitchen drawer and set two small velvet boxes on the counter. "Pick one," she said as she sipped her coffee black.

"You're such a fucking romantic!" I opened the boxes curiously. Two eternity bands blinked back at me. One was diamond and sapphire, and the other was all diamonds. "I thought we weren't making this weird," I said.

"Just pick a damn ring, Plum. We should both start wearing them now to have the chance to get used to having them on. Nothing gives away a newlywed like the way they fidget with their ring."

I opted for the sapphire band, thinking it might cost a little bit less since it had fewer diamonds. I wasn't sure how I felt about having something that expensive on my finger. The Dick had just done a basic diamond solitaire that fell far short of spectacular, and while Morelli proposed a lot, he never actually go around to the ring stage. Jeanne Ellen slid diamond ring on her finger. I rolled the sapphire ring between my thumb and index finger. Finally, I a blew out a sigh and slid the ring into place on my left hand. I gave myself a quick check for wayward hives. Seeing none, I grabbed my bag, stepped close to Jeanne and dropped a chaste kiss on her cheek.

"Thanks for the ring."

"They're on loan, so I want it back!" She smiled. "I appreciate all you're doing to help me. I know you didn't have to, and Rangeman is the one gaining financially. So, thank you."

I came into this thinking Jeanne Ellen had a whole hidden agenda. If she did, she's even better than damn Ranger at keeping it under wraps. But Ranger never indulges in that much wine, and she was pretty much an open book last night. I'm not sure if we're going to be friends or now when all this is done, but at least I probably don't hate her anymore. My spidey sense was even calm. I took the elevator to the lobby and walked out to the parking lot and climbed into the car where I found a sleepy-eyed Lester waiting. We drove back to Haywood in silence. Lester was so tired he didn't even make any suggestive comments, which was a little disappointing if I'm being honest.

The next few weeks passed faster than I expected. All of a sudden it was Thursday morning, the week of the wedding, and Jeanne and I were scheduled to check into our hotel this afternoon. There was a Bridal Pampering day tomorrow morning, beginning with breakfast at 7am at the hotel spa. I had cleared my day today to have some downtime. Ella was packing for me, so I had nothing that required my attention. But habits don't care about days off, so I still woke up with Ranger a little before 5 and headed to the gym. Ranger had called Zero to the mats.

Ranger had beaten me downstairs and was already shirtless and in the ring. Zero was stretching and looking resigned to what he had coming. I looked back at Ranger and checked my chin for drool. The man was so damn fine. I picked a treadmill and started a program while I watched Ranger toss Zero around the mats for nearly 45 minutes. I was getting hot watching them.

I'd worked myself into quite a state of need by the time he jumped down and took a hand towel from Tank. He nodded at Tank and cut his eyes to me. I slowed to a walk. Bobby who was on the machine beside me abruptly hit a button, hopped off the treadmill and left the gym. I grabbed a disinfectant wipe and wiped down my treadmill and Bobby's too, since he didn't seem bothered by it. I heard a door close and looked up to see Ranger just a few feet from me. All alone.

Ranger reached into the pocked of his gym shorts and pulled out his key fob. He clicked it twice and pushed me into the wall behind the treadmill. "Babe." He said as he captured my lips in a heated kiss. My breath caught in my throat as he dropped a hand between us and shoved my shorts and panties out of the way. His fingers entered me and growled when found me hot and wet for him. I moaned into his mouth as he inserted another finger and rubbed his thumb across my clit. I exploded into an orgasm and he ripped my shorts down. His erection sprung free from his shorts as he lifted my legs and using the wall as leverage impaled me in one swift stroke. He set a fierce pace and I could impossibly feel the heat building again low in my belly. He pounded into me over and over. My head fell back against the wall.

"God! Carlos! Yes!"

He was relentless. I was as close to heaven as I'd ever been. I felt his teeth skim the thin skin of my shoulder and travel down to my breast. I knew he was marking me, but I was too far gone to care.

"Let go, Babe. Cum for me."

That was all it took to push me over the edge. I saw stars as the pleasure raced through me, feeling like fire in my veins. He swore and shouted my name as his own release overtook him. Ever so slowly he lowered my legs and helped me fix my pants. We took the stairs to the 7th floor and Ranger re-engaged the cameras once we were safely inside the Penthouse. He went to the kitchen where Ella had coffee and a breakfast tray already waiting. That woman is a marvel.

"What brought out the Caveman?" I asked as he handed me a mug.

"Babe."

"Are you ok with the Op?" I asked.

"Yes. Everything is set. It should be quick and easy. And I saw you watching me from your treadmill. Every time I landed a shot, you licked your lips. I like that you want me. I was hoping taking you in the gym would communicate that I want you just as badly as you want me."

"Message received," I said.

"Sorry about the mark on your breast," he said casually. I blushed scarlet. "Your dress should cover it."

"Making sure Jeanne Ellen doesn't get any ideas?" I teased.

"Babe. I trust you. If you find the need to explore that side of yourself with Jeanne Ellen, I wouldn't stop you."

"I thought you didn't share?"

"I might be willing to make an exception."

"Really?"

"No."

I laughed. I hadn't realized how much I needed the frantic and primal until this moment. Ranger had an uncanny ability to give me exactly what I needed. He was showing me unbridled passion mixed with the perfect amount of jealousy. I looked at my watch. I still had hours before our call time for the Op. I grabbed my phone off the counter and texted Ella and asked her if she would leave my suitcase outside the door by noon. I finished my coffee and set down the mug, crossing the kitchen until Ranger and I were chest to breast, my hips pressing forward suggestively into his hard length.

"Carlos."

"Stephanie."

"Take me to bed."

He bent his knees and picked me up around the waist, tossing me over his shoulder like a sack of sand. He smacked me on the ass as he walked through the apartment towards the bedroom.

"As you wish, Babe."