Chapter Ten
OK, Ranger thought. That hadn't gone nearly as bad as he thought it could have. He didn't confess and blow months' worth of work. Although he didn't slam the door on further contact like he should have. That had probably been a mistake. But Stephanie seemed fine with things being open ended. There had been no drama, no hysterics. In fact, Stephanie seemed eager to leave. Ranger narrowed his eyes a little. It almost felt like she was ditching him.
Ranger pulled into the underground garage of the non-descript building on Haywood that housed RangeMan. He used his fob to take him straight to his apartment on the seventh floor. He wasn't quite ready to see anyone this morning, or explain why the whole plan around E.E. Martin and Sly Novak had to change.
Ranger pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. This was a clusterfuck in the making, he could feel it. Stephanie Plum was not going to just let the little accounting discrepancies she had discovered go. Or the fake vendors for that matter. Yeah, things had gotten a lot more complicated.
Not to mention he'd spent the whole drive from her apartment reliving last night. Every touch, every breathy moan she had made echoed through his body. He'd been right about her. Once he'd made sure she understood she was the one in control of what they did, it was like the switch had flipped. She was a woman on fire. Every single time he took her, he thought that would be the time that finally satisfied his unending desire for her, but he had been wrong. No, each time just made him want her more.
They'd reached for each other over and over again; he wasn't even sure how many times. Every time better than the time before. There had been a lot of highlights from last night, but watching her on top of him as she slowly moved up and down, eyes locked with his, controlling the pace, the angle and the depth. That sexy little knowing smile as she tormented him until he couldn't take anymore. Pushing him to the edge. Until finally, he'd grabbed her by her hips pushing up to meet her, thrusting into her with pure unfiltered raw need, over and over.
Bathed in the moonlight with that wild tumble of hair as her perfect breasts bounced with every frantic thrust, she'd looked like the most perfect thing he had ever seen. Her lips parted, head thrown back, the look of pure pleasure on her face had stolen his breath. How was he ever going to get that image out of his head. He was pretty sure it was burned there forever.
He blew out a harsh breath as he let himself into his apartment and padded to the bathroom. He had to get the feel of her off of his body or he was desperately afraid he was going to do something stupid like call her and confess everything. In retrospect lying to her had been a mistake, he should have just approached her directly. Ranger shook his head. No, involving her at all had actually been the mistake, he should have steered clear. Her involvement put her in the crosshairs of some very dangerous men, not that she wasn't there anyway if she was poking around.
Ranger stripped off his clothes and climbed into the shower. He put his hands flat against the wall and bent his head, letting the hot water wash over him and ease some of the tension in his shoulders. Ranger had always thought of emotion as weakness, and love, well that just made a man stupid. Not that he was in any danger of that he assured himself, even as he ignored Vinita's voice echoing in the back of his head.
Ranger groaned out loud. Apparently, Stephanie Plum made him stupid. He'd literally sounded like rain man this morning when he dropped her off. Stammering like an idiot, babbling about connection. Last night did mean something, and he didn't want her to think it didn't. He had no idea why he needed her to know that. It didn't change the fact that he was never going to be boyfriend material, but she deserved to know.
Know what he asked himself. That she mattered, but just not enough? If things were different, maybe he would make some room in his closet for her. Yeah, he was sure that would have gone over well. Although, he had to admit waking up with her would be nice. He felt his body stir at the thought.
Irritation surged through him and he grabbed his bodywash and lathered up with more vigor than was necessary. It was like he was trying to scrub the feel of her from his memory. His body was having none of that. He had things to do today, other than Stephanie Plum. This is why he didn't have entanglements. Women made things messy. Ranger liked neat and orderly. He had a plan. He looked down. He was standing at full attention. Apparently, his cock hadn't got the message.
Fifteen minutes later he had finally wrangled himself under control and headed down to the control room. Tank and Lester were talking, and they both looked up as he got off the elevator.
Tank was his second in command. He was former special forces, and Ranger and Tank had served together. He trusted him with his life. He also trusted Tank to tell him when he was being an idiot, and he was sure that speech was coming.
Tank mainly kept his own counsel, and sometimes people confused that with being dumb. Tank was called Tank, because he was basically built like one. Six foot six and about three hundred pounds of pure muscle. Sometimes it threw people, but Ranger knew Tank was one of the smartest, most intuitive people you could meet, which is why Ranger worked to keep his expression neutral.
Tanks eyes scanned Ranger as he got closer, briefly flickering to the marks on his neck, but Tank's expression remained bland. "Boss." He said by way of greeting.
Les wasn't so subtle. His eyes went to the marks on Ranger's neck and his eyebrows went up about two inches. He gave Ranger the look that said Ranger had some explaining to do. Lester Santos was his cousin. A lot of people said they looked more like brothers, maybe even twins rather than cousins. Ranger guessed that was true if you didn't look too closely. He and Les were physically similar. Same dark hair, dark eyes, balanced features. Les was taller, but only by a couple of inches. But that is where the similarities ended.
Ranger had always been a man of few words that never telegraphed his thoughts or emotions. On the surface Les seemed affable and talkative. Les had a way about him that put people at ease. Where people crossed the street to avoid Ranger, people were just drawn to Les. He seemed very easy going and loved to charm the women. Not that Les ever charmed the same woman more than once, but Les rarely went home alone.
All that charm that was just a façade. Les used it to keep people at a distance and keep his secrets. You realized after you chatted with Les that you had told him your whole life story, and when you were done, you still didn't know a damn thing about him. Like Ranger he was a private guy. He was also a focused and lethal predator. Les too had been special forces, although he rarely talked about his time with the teams. Something had happened that no one talked about. Something that had changed him, but then that was probably true for a lot of people including Ranger. He'd seen and done things with the teams that had changed him. Things that would probably haunt him forever despite his quest for forgiveness and enlightenment. There were some things that just couldn't be undone. Ranger pushed the thought aside.
"What happened to your neck Ric?" Les asked.
Les was the only one that ever called Ranger Ric. Most people called him Ranger, some called him Carlos, and a few Manoso. But not Les, he called him Ric and had since they were kids. Ranger didn't go by Ric or Ricardo, mainly because Ricardo was his father's name. It just got too confusing, and usually ended up with him being little Ric or Ricky, and somehow Ranger didn't think that really applied to him. At least he really hoped it didn't.
Ranger just looked at Les for a beat. "We need a new plan for E.E. Martin and Sly Novak." Ranger announced, completely ignoring Les' question.
"So, Stephanie Plum happened?" Les was giving Ranger a look that said he wasn't entirely buying that story.
Ranger sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. Clearly Les wasn't going to just let this go. Les was like a dog with a bone. Once he got wind of something, he rarely let it go. While it was one of the reasons Les was so good at his job, it could also be damn annoying when his focus was on something Ranger didn't want to discuss. Les would set a goal and with single minded pursuit ensure it got done, and in this case, that single minded goal was Ranger. Ranger dropped his hand from his neck knowing his gesture had just telegraphed his unease with the topic.
Tank had been watching and assessing the exchange between Ranger and Les. "It looks like Vinita missed you." His voice was casual like everybody knew Ranger had been with Vinita. Clearly Tank had picked up on the fact Ranger didn't want to discuss Stephanie.
Tank knew damn well it hadn't been Vinita or any of the other women Ranger occasionally visited. Ranger never allowed a woman to mark him, although a few had tried. He always kept his head about him and plenty of emotional distance, but last night that had gone right out the window. He didn't even know when it had happened, much less when he'd done the same to Stephanie. He'd seen her look of utter surprise this morning and watched her blush with embarrassment when she'd seen his neck. It was probably a really good thing she hadn't seen his back.
He had a feeling Stephanie had been as out of control last night as he was. Ranger tried not to analyze why it made him ridiculously pleased that she had been like that with him, but not with other men. He ignored the possessive thoughts. This was not him. Ranger never staked territory and he never got jealous.
Whatever this was, it was an aberration. He'd get a cup of coffee and get back to his routine, and that would be the end of that. Still, he couldn't help but think it was a shame that a woman as passionate and fiery as Stephanie, had been restrained and controlled. That was definitely something he could fix. Ranger closed his eyes for a second to gain control of his thoughts. Where had that come from? Ranger would not be doing any such thing.
Les grinned at Ranger, seemingly convinced he'd found the answer to the question of what happened to Ranger's neck, maybe even the answer to the mystery of life. "That woman is way too hot for you. I have no idea what she sees in you." He rolled his eyes.
Ranger couldn't really argue with that. Vinita was far too smart, cultured, and sophisticated for the likes of him, but then again so was Stephanie Plum. But that certainly hadn't stopped him last night.
Ranger threw Tank a grateful look. For some reason, he wanted to keep his night with Stephanie just between them. He didn't need Les in his business, and he definitely didn't need Les thinking about Stephanie naked. If he didn't know better, he would say that stabbing in his gut felt an awful lot like jealousy.
Tank's eyes cut to Les, and he gave him a smack on the back of the head. "Don't you have some work to do Santos."
Tank crossed his arms over his massive chest and gave Les a pointed look. One that said in no uncertain terms this conversation was over, and if Les valued the ability to walk without a limp, there would be no further inquiry into the marks on Ranger's neck.
"Always." Les threw Ranger one last knowing look and ambled off.
Ranger watched him go. He knew Les wasn't really buying the Vinita story but he was grateful that he didn't ask all the same. Whatever Les had read in his face, he knew Ranger didn't want to discuss Stephanie Plum. All that puppy dog exuberance could fool a person, but not Ranger. Ranger knew Les didn't miss much.
Tank was just looking at Ranger waiting. Ranger could understand why Tank was so good at interrogation. Even Ranger wanted to squirm and blurt everything out under that intense scrutiny. Ranger waived Tank to his office. He figured that way when he did blurt everything out, at least it would be in private. It wasn't like he had missed Bobby, Hector, and Hal all craning their necks and pretending like they were not listening. Les was never good at that whole indoor voice thing.
"I put the GPS tracker on her car." Tank announced without preamble as soon as he shut the door to Ranger's office.
Ranger nodded. That was good. At least they could keep tabs on Stephanie that way.
"I slipped a tracker in her purse, but it isn't a good one. It won't have much longevity, so we will need to find a way to get a better one installed. I also want surveillance cameras outside her apartment door, fire escape, and parking lot." Ranger told Tank.
Tank's eyebrow went up a fraction. "You want to tell me why."
Ranger blew out a breath. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure Stephanie Plum has uncovered evidence of money laundering, and is starting to ask questions. Too many questions, not to draw attention."
"So, you don't think she is in on it?" Tank was watching Ranger closely.
"No, I don't think she is. But she's smart. She's got good instincts. She knows the numbers don't add up, and she is on the trail of one of the fake vendors.
"I thought that is what you wanted." Tank sounded a little confused. Ranger didn't blame him. That had been the plan. Ranger, well Marc, would get close to Stephanie and leverage that relationship to get information and access at E.E. Martin.
"If you don't feel comfortable with the covert option, why not make a direct approach? If she's clean and she is concerned something is shady, then she might be willing to get the files for you. Maybe even wear a wire." Tank asked.
Tank was right. It was a viable plan, or had been right up to the point he got to know her. Until he had crossed the line and slept with her. Ranger grimaced a little. Now all Ranger could think about was how to protect her, and maybe keep her from hating him. Although he knew the not hating him part, was a long shot. She would never buy that he wasn't just using her.
The problem was it was true. He had been using her. That is how the evening started, but it definitely didn't end that way. He wanted to keep her out of the whole mess. He wasn't risking her. The Fry thing had made it clear Novak was ruthless, and would tie up any loose ends with extreme prejudice. Ranger gave a negative shake of his head.
"What I want is for her not to get hurt. I don't want her involved in this. We need to find a different way." Ranger's voice was adamant.
"Understood." Tank replied. He eyed Ranger for a minute. A small smile twitched at the corner of his lip. "You like her." It was more a statement than a question.
Ranger thought about it for a minute. He could deny it, but what would be the point. Tank had already seen it written across his face. "Yeah, I do."
"What are you going to do about that?" Tank asked.
Ranger locked eyes with him. "Nothing."
"Don't you think you should at least warn her. Maybe get her to back off?"
Ranger thought about it. Tank had a good point. "I don't know. Maybe. If I thought she would stop, I would, but I'm afraid she won't back off, she'll try and get more information. Maybe loop her cop boyfriend in."
Tank just gave him the look. The one that said he thought Ranger was an idiot. Tank was probably right.
Ranger reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. The dull pain behind his eyeball had become more a stabbing pain than a dull ache. He had a bad feeling that woman would be the death of him before this was over. She was already playing havoc with his orderly life. And, for reasons he didn't want to examine too closely, Ranger kind of liked it. It had been a really long time since a woman had intrigued him as much as Stephanie Plum had. Ranger reminded himself, she wasn't like him. She wasn't jaded, and he had no place in her life.
Ranger blew out an irritated breath. "I'll tell her tonight. Right now, she doesn't even know she could be in danger. She may not stop digging, but at least she won't be so obvious about it."
Stephanie at least needed to know so she could protect herself. Tank was right about that. Ranger was under no illusion that she would drop the whole thing and keep her head down, but at least she would be more cautious. He was pretty sure she was going to be all kinds of pissed, when she found out, but that couldn't be helped. He should have come clean to her last night, before he slept with her. He'd made a bad choice.
Hell, the whole night had been one giant bad choice. And that was the thing. Ranger wouldn't have traded last night for anything. He just hoped when this was over, Stephanie would feel the same. He'd spent one night with her, and already he couldn't imagine a world where she wasn't in his life in some way. Eh, who was he kidding. He'd tell her, she'd be pissed, tell him to go to hell. He would deserve it, and that would be that.
Tank nodded. "OK, I'll take care of the cameras. Her trackers are up and running. It looks like she's still at her apartment. Do you want me to put a man on her?"
"Yes. And Tank, I want a full report. Everywhere she goes. This is not just observe and report, I want her protected."
Tank nodded. "Understood."
Stephanie had finally managed to get ready. Between the high-necked blouse and the miracle of make-up there were no visible love bites and no dark circles under her eyes.
She was just getting her bag, when she heard the lock on her door tumble and Morelli walked in.
She stood there staring at him. Only mild rage bubbling, which she figured she owed to the fact she'd had multiple orgasms just hours before.
"Hey cupcake, I called but you didn't pick-up." Morelli's voice trailed off when he saw the look on her face.
"Since when do you have a key to my apartment?" Stephanie asked him.
"Since you gave it to me. Back when we were friendlier, I guess. When we were living together." Morelli was studying her trying to figure out just how pissed she was and filing through the reasons why.
"You want some coffee?" He asked holding out a tray with two cups of coffee and a bakery bag, the same way you might hold out a steak to a pissed off tiger.
The bakery bag and the coffee held some appeal, but not if she had to share them with Morelli.
"No. And you can leave now." Her voice was icy.
"Let me take a winger here. You're mad at me, right?" Morelli hedged.
Stephanie rolled her eyes so far into the back of her head she was pretty sure she could see herself thinking.
"You want to give me a clue?" Morelli asked.
"You don't deserve anything, much less a clue." She hissed.
"That's probably true, but how about giving me one anyway." His eyes were narrowed as he studied her. He had his cop face on.
"Terry Gilman." She left off the you jackass part of the statement, mainly because she was in a hurry.
"Yeah? I need more to go on than a name. You know she works with us sometimes."
"Come on Joe, you know exactly what I'm talking about." Stephanie could feel her anger starting to bubble at the familiar scene.
Morelli would so something suspicious, and then when she called him on it, he acted like she was crazy. The problem was she never caught him in the act. Maybe if she caught Morelli in flagrante delicto with Terry on the dining room table like she had Dickie, he would finally have to admit it. But Morelli was too cautious for that. Instead, she just ended up looking like a crazy, jealous sort of girlfriend. But not today. She refused to take the bait.
"Really cupcake I don't." Stephanie saw irritation flash across his features. Usually by now he had his tongue down her throat and his hand on her breast and she was apologizing for flying off the handle. It was clear this new reaction had thrown him a little.
"OK Joe, here's a clue for you." Stephanie's righteous anger was really starting to kick in. "Red teddy."
She saw surprise flash across his features, but he quickly schooled them. There was a reason he was a good cop; it was the good human part he seemed to have problems with. No, she thought. He was a good man; he just wasn't a great boyfriend.
Morelli's phone dinked, and he did some creative swearing. "I have to leave," he said. "I'd like to stay and settle this, but something's come up." He threw her a look that said this conversation wasn't over. Not by a long shot.
Something's come up? A bubble of hysterical laughter threatened to escape. Was that a bad joke? The problem with Morelli was something was always up.
She could see emotion bubbling inside Morelli. Frustration, mostly, and some anger. Well lucky him he got extra time due to the so-called work emergency to figure out a better story. Not that she planned to waste her time listening to it. Besides, for all she knew the text was really from little red teddy. Maybe it wasn't work at all.
"I don't suppose you'd consider coming over tonight to talk about this?" He kept his voice level.
"It might be a little crowded what with Terry there, so no I don't suppose I would." She snapped.
"Look Steph, I can explain. I just need you to hear me out."
Stephanie was sure Morelli had lots of explanations. The problem was she didn't want to hear any of them anymore. Stephanie was just standing there shaking her head.
"How about if I marry you?" Morelli shrugged. "Make it official."
Stephanie was pretty sure her eyebrows had gone up about three inches on her head. It was a joke, right? This was one of those serious what the fuck moments. His answer to getting caught cheating was to offer to marry her?
"Now you want to marry me?" The absolute disbelief rang in her voice. "I've got to go to work. I really don't have time to deal with this."
Stephanie was a firm believer in denial. Really, why deal with unpleasantness today when she could get hit by a bus tomorrow. If she procrastinated long enough, maybe the issue would go away. Maybe she would come to her senses, or maybe Morelli would. He could go marry little red teddy. Either way, problem solved.
Stephanie grabbed her bag and hitched it on her shoulder. She yanked one of the coffees out of the holder giving him the death glare. No sense wasting good coffee, she had lots of stupid shit to do today and coffee would give her the energy to do it faster.
"Let yourself out, and leave the key." She marched out the front door slamming it behind her.
"I'll call you." She heard him call after her.
Unfuckingbelievable, she muttered to herself as she marched across the parking lot. The man was insane. Certifiably insane just like his crazy grandma. He'd ditched her for some other woman that he bought lingerie for, and now he wanted to get married. Maybe it said more about her than it did about him, now that he thought about it. Morelli really thought the whole thing could be fixed if he just threw marriage out there on the table. Did he really think she was that desperate?
Whatever, she threw her car in gear and went storming out of the parking lot. She looked up to make sure Morelli wasn't following her and she noticed a black SUV pull out behind her. That was odd. None of the senior citizens drove a big black SUV with blacked out windows. Oh well, she shook it off.
Before she knew it, her little red beamer just drove itself to Vincent Plum Bail Bonds office. She told herself it was because of the bakery nearby and not because she really wanted more information on Pardo. She was a little afraid she was becoming a stalker.
Les watched as Stephanie parked in front of the bail bonds office. That couldn't be good. Les dialed Ranger.