Disclaimer: I don't own them, I'm not making any money, I'm borrowing them, and if JE can't find them I'm not the one who kidnapped them...

As always thank you my wonderful Beta Heather (TXbabefan), and seriously if you haven't checked out her stories your missing out.

I'm going out of town tommorow, so I figured I would post today. I might possibly post a chapter tommorow still but this is my contingency. If I don't I'll publish two on Monday. Hope you enjoy.

Chapter 8

Steph POV:

Carlos sat on the edge of the bed. He took a deep breath. I sat up and moved in behind him, wrapping my arms around him, resting my chin on his shoulder. "They're calling you," I said softly. It was a statement, not a question.

"Yeah," he sighed.

I kissed his neck. "Do you know how long you'll be gone?"

"4-12 weeks," he said. His hands found my hands on his stomach. He held them tight against him. One to three months; he could be gone for 3 months.

"When do you need to leave?"

"Flight is tomorrow morning at seven," he said. I removed myself from his back and moved around to straddle him. His hands found my hips and held me steady. My hands cupped his cheeks and I made him look at me.

"I'll be waiting," I told him softly, kissing him.

"You don't have to." His eyes found mine. I could see the battle going on inside him. He wanted me to but wouldn't ask me to.

"I will be," I told him firmly. I pushed him back on the bed and kissed him again.

"Are the guys going with you?" I asked him.

"Everyone but Tank."

"Why isn't Tank?" I asked. His hands ran up and down my sides.

"He's still recovering from an injury. Ended up with shrapnel in his shoulder. He's not cleared for this mission."

"So, Lester and Bobby will be going with you?" I asked him. He nodded.

"Yeah, along with a few other guys."

"It makes me feel better that you're not going alone." I said, kissing him softly. He rolled me onto my back and wrapped my legs around my waist.

"Can I come with you to the airport tomorrow?" I asked softly.

"I can get you a visitors pass to come on base and wish me luck before I leave, but you'll have to leave with Tank," he said.

"Okay. Do you need to go home and pack or..."

"We can leave here at five thirty and you can sleep in my bed while I pack then we can head to base." I nodded and kissed him.

"Will you make love to me Carlos?" I asked softly.

In answer his mouth fused with mine. You could feel the emotion in the way he kissed me. Desperate, like he couldn't get close enough.

XXXXXX

Carlos POV:

Steph stood in front of me on the tarmac. My back was to the plane. Les and Bobby had already gotten on with the rest of the team. There were very few family members still here. Tank stood a few feet back from us. He had agreed to watch over Steph and make sure if she needed anything he would be there.

"You'll be careful?" she asked softly. I cupped her cheeks with a smile.

"Of course," I said. I kissed her softly.

"I'm going to miss you," she whispered, her voice full of emotion.

"I'm going to miss you, too, Babe." I told her. I claimed her lips in a kiss. Slow and passionate. I needed her to know how I felt about her without telling her. She pulled back slightly.

"Don't get shot," She whispered.

"Don't go crazy." I smiled. She kissed me again and I pulled her as close as possible.

"When you get home, I have all kinds of ideas about this uniform," she said, tugging on the collar.

I groaned. "Babe."

"I'll see you in a few weeks," she said. She stood on her toes and kissed me again. I stepped back and smiled gently at her. I pretended not to see the tears in her eyes. I walked to the plane, I looked over my shoulder to see Tank with his arm around her shoulder.

I loaded onto the plane and watched as the door was raised. I ran a hand through my hair, as the command sergeant major walked over. "I see you found yourself a woman," he said.

I nodded. "I did."

"It's always hard leaving them behind. Especially when you find a good one." He said sitting across from me.

"She's the best one," I told him. "She's the only woman I could imagine being with long term."

"Ahh, you found the one."

I rubbed a hand across my face and nodded.

"How old is it?"

"A week." I answered.

"Damn," he said. "It's really new. Are you sure she's the one?"

"If she wasn't, she wouldn't have been on base today."

He nodded his understanding. "Get your head in the game to get home to her. Make her your reason to come home, to keep fighting."

"She already is."

Steph POV:

I took a deep breath and let Tank steer me to his truck. He helped me climb in before walking around.

"Are you going to try and go to work today?" He asked.

"No, I'm going to work from my home office."

He nodded. "You'll let me know if you need anything? Ric is my best friend, and I promised I would make sure you were looked after."

"Ric?"

"His first name is Ricardo." He paused and raised an eyebrow. "Ricardo Carlos Manoso."

"He just told me to call him Carlos." I said confused.

"Only his parents and grandparents call him Carlos. It means he is close with you."

I wiped away a tear. I was trying to stay strong but damn this was hard. He drove me back to my building and walked me to the elevator.

"He gave you my number, right?"

I nodded. "You have mine?"

"I do," he answered.

"I'll let you know if I need anything." I felt tired, emotionally tired. I wanted to crawl into bed and go to sleep and it wasn't even nine in the morning. He nodded. I got onto the elevator and rode it up to my floor. Stepping off the first place I headed was the bedroom.

Carlos had left his clothes here; I had washed them and thrown them in a drawer in my closet. All but the shirt he wore yesterday. Slipping out of all my clothes I slid into his shirt and slid into his side of the bed. Yeah, his side of the bed. He had a side of the bed.

I woke up around noon. Slipping out of bed, I walked into the shower. I stood in the there a long time, letting the water beat against my muscles. I pressed a button on the pad changing it to the waterfall setting, letting it fall from the ceiling. I sighed softly, remembering when Carlos had showered with me this morning.

Stepping into the shower stall, I turned on the water, using the pad on the wall, activating waterfall. I felt Carlos step up behind me; he wrapped his arms around my waist, setting his chin on my shoulder.

"What're you thinking about?" he asked.

I paused before answering. "It's going to be weird with you leaving. I won't be able to talk to you, see you every day, I've gotten used to it."

He kissed me above the ear. "I know. I've gotten used to it also. I'll be able to call every once in a while. Tank is handling communications. He'll be able to pass along messages."

I sighed softly. "It's not the same as hearing your voice."

"I know, Babe," he said against my ear.

He kissed me neck and I leaned further back against him. He turned my head, using my chin and kissed me softly. Turning in his arms I wrapped mine around his neck. Seamlessly he picked me up, my legs wrapping around his waist.

His mouth found mine, in a delicious steamy kiss. My hands tangling in his wet hair. "Carlos, we're running out of time." I moaned.

He growled. "They can wait." He growled. His lips found my neck, causing me to arch into him. He slowly thrust into me inch by inch, until he was buried deep inside me. I moaned, my nails digging into his scalp.

He started to thrust a steady rhythm into me, his lips never leaving my neck. My head fell back against the cold tile, not that I cared. "You feel so good." He growled in my ear. His hands left my hips, coming up to my breast, cupping them in his hands. His thumbs' finding my nipples causing me to arch even more.

"Carlos, Please!" I moaned.

"Patience, Babe." He groaned against my neck.

"I don't have any," I growled, locking my legs around his waist tightly and pulling him hard into me. "I thought we had discussed this."

"You're a little Minx," he growled, thrusting into me hard, causing me to moan.

"Carlos!"

I smiled at the memory before I started to wash myself. I stepped out and dried myself. When I was done and dry, I slipped into a pair of sweatpants, sports bra, and a t-shirt. Twisting my hair up into a messy bun, I made my way downstairs. I quickly made a pot of coffee and poured a cupful into my tumbler before walking into my office that was down the hall. Stepping into the office,

I didn't bother with the lights. I and instead used the panel to open the shades. Sketches hung on the walls, along with posters and pictures from the catalogues, designs for our logo and different lines. My drafting table was front and center with a gorgeous view of the ocean; I also had an oak desk on the other side of the office, where I stored files and worked on my desktop computer.

I sat at my stool at the drafting table, setting my cup on a shelf next to the table, and picked up one of my pencils. Two hours later I heard my phone ringing in the bedroom. I took one last look at the sketch I had been working on. It was a red lace teddy, with a plunge to the navel, and I had just started working on the lower half. I walked out of the office and through the apartment, climbing the stairs. It stopped ringing as I entered the room. I picked it up as it started to ring again.

"Tank," I answered.

"I'm close by your building and picking up lunch. Want me to pick something up?" he asked. I smiled to myself. I knew he was trying to keep his promise to Carlos.

"What're you picking up?"

"Pizza."

"Definitely. I'll tell security you're coming. They'll escort you up."

"Be there soon," he said. I hung up and walked into the living room. I settled in front of the TV and not long after I heard the elevator open. I grinned when I heard him whistle.

"I can see why Ric never wanted to leave here." He grinned.

I laughed softly. "Come on big guy," I said, patting the couch. He settled in next to me and set the pizza boxes on the table.

"Thought you were working from home?" he said, opening one of the boxes.

"I am," I answered. "I was sketching out new designs."

"You design your own lingerie?" he asked. I nodded.

"All my stores sell is something I've designed. Well, other than the sex toys and things like that," I said. He choked on his pizza. I smiled.

"Both you and Carlos choked when I said I sold sex toys."

"No offense, Steph, but you have that girl next door kind of vibe most of the time." He told me.

I rolled my eyes. "That's what everybody says."

XXXXXX

Carlos had been gone for a week. I stood in the middle of the store in Key Biscayne. Rosa was behind the counter and Lynn was enjoying her lunch behind the counter. The door opened and a woman walked in.

She was tall and blond, hair straight and dyed. She wore a black leather corset top and black leather pants; both hugged her body. She was fit, that was for sure. Her makeup was done perfectly but you could tell it was an illusion. Trying to make something ugly beautiful. That wasn't talking about what she was on the outside, she was a gorgeous woman, but she had an air of hatred for everyone and everything.

She browsed the shelves. "Let us know if you need anything," Rosa said. She didn't even spare her a glance. Rosa rolled her eyes and I sent her a glare. Either way, she was still a customer even if she seemed to be a bitch.

I watched as she picked up a leather and lace set we had held together by straps and buckles. I didn't just know because I designed it; I had one. She smirked and found her way to our bondage section.

I went back to what I was doing. We had a few prints positioned around the stores with models modeling our more popular pieces. A few minutes later I heard the clack of the woman's heels as she made her way to the counter.

"Is Stephanie Plum here?" she asked.

Rosa knew better than to answer. She didn't even look at me to give away who I was. I was proud of how well my team had paid attention to the manual. Making my way behind the counter, I locked eyes with the woman.

"That's me," I said. There was an off-putting vibe from this woman.

Her eyes narrowed as she looked at me. "So, you're the other woman." She said.

"The what?"

"The other woman. Ranger's other woman."

I felt a heart wrenching pain spread through my body, a chill running down my spine. No, Carlos wouldn't make me the other woman. He wasn't dating anyone else, right? There was no way. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You must be a freak in bed," she said with a grin. "For him to want to be with you? Yeah, you're definitely a freak in bed; that's the only way a woman like you could keep his attention long enough for him to cheat."

"I wonder why he could be cheating on you," Rosa muttered with an eyeroll.

"Ma'am this is a place of business. We don't handle personal situations here. If you're looking to purchase something, I suggest you do it or leave." Rosa started to ring up her items.

The woman kept an eye on me. "Maybe you can help me pick some more items; you obviously know what his tastes are. Maybe you know something he likes."

"I can't help you," I answered. I was trying to stay professional, but I was tempted to reach across the counter and grab her by her hair and slam her face into it.

"Do you like riding him?" she asked. "I know I did. He's hard to get to give up control, but when he does..."

My hand twitched under the counter. I somehow managed to keep a poker face even if on the inside I was a train wreck. I watched as she signed her receipt, making sure to remember her name.

"Thank you for shopping today," Rosa said.

She smirked at me before leaving.

"Steph..." Lynn started.

"I'm fine," I answered. "I'm going to take off. I've got to go talk to some people."

I gathered my stuff and walked out of the building. Sliding into my car, I picked up my phone and dialed Tank's number. "I need to see you." My voice was thick with emotion.

"What's wrong?" he asked. I heard rustling on the other line and then a door shut.

"Who is Jeanne Ellen Burrows and why the hell was she in my shop talking to me about Carlos's sexual preferences?" I asked. You could hear the anger in my voice at this point.

"We can't talk about this over the phone. Can I come to your condo?"

"I'm at the store on the island. I'm heading home. Why can't we talk about it over the phone?"

"Just trust me."

"Tell me who she is," I growled.

"She's someone we work with."

"He's got some fucking answering to do, Tank."

"Just go to your condo. I'll be there in a few minutes."