Sorry for taking so long to post the next chapter – the building works start on Monday so we've been busy packing up and bit by bit moving to a friend's house to house sit for a few months. Needless to say I can't find anything, let alone a quiet moment to gather my thoughts and do any editing!

Anyway, as usual you've humbled me with your amazing comments and I hope you enjoy this chapter – taken from Ranger's POV.

Lots of love

Sarah (AKA scary box lady – you stand still long enough, I'll put you in a box…)

PS...

As I mentioned, I'm struggling with keeping a tabs on the house move and, after reading some of your reviews have realised this this is not the only part of my life in chaos! Thank you to everyone that spotted the following inconsistencies!

To set things straight (the appropriate chapters have been amended - said she hopefully):

1) Ranger slunk off early at Chico's funeral after watching from so far back no one saw him there (except his Mom)

2) It's Tia Maria's (Mama Manoso – Ranger's Mom) surprise 60th birthday party

3) There is no Carmen - it was a name I used then binned for Mama Manoso and hopefully is gone now, just like JEB

Big fat SORRY for the confusion (I blame it on the boxes...) I do make mistakes (most of my stories have little itty bitty consistences, but this one! Gah!

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Ranger POV:

Waking up with a start, covered in sweat, the strands of an evening of love, laughter and dancing with his Babe in his arms floating out of the peripherals of his mind Ranger came to with a large sob.

The images from his dream seemed to be coming into focus in soundbites. The feel of her skin in his arms, her breath on his neck, her hair tickling his nose, her body moulded against his own. Her smiling eyes and soft laughter as they mimed the lyrics to 'Senorita' By Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello.

As he rolled onto his back and let out a wobbly sigh, his arms physically ached for her loss. And his heart, well hurt was an understatement.

How had he believed Jean Ellen? How on earth had he allowed her to take over his sanity? What had he been thinking? He'd had several heated arguments with Chico about the role of Burrows in his life and he'd accused his baby brother of having the hots for his wife.

Flashback

"Leave it, Chico…" he warned softly, menacingly from behind his desk. Warning tones which his brother ignored.

"You have a wonderful wife who loves you very much, Ric." Chico stated, emphasising his comment by leaning his 5 ft 11" perfectly toned frame over the top of the desk that separated them. "Yet you seem to prefer the company of that skank over her. What are you thinking?" He asked slamming his open palm down on the warm wood top, making everything jump.

One thing Chico never was was afraid of his big brother. In awe? Yes. Full of pride for his many sacrifices and the rep that he had gained in special forces? Hell yeah. Scared of the hell he could unleash if he was pushed too hard? Perhaps – except when it came to calling him out for being a complete asshole. When in full rhino mode he could outperform Lula…

And had Mama Manoso's flare for the dramatics.

"I said leave it…" Ranger repeated, shooting warning glares at his brother as he rose so that they were on equal footing.

"What is it that Burrows holds over you?" Chico needled. "Are you completely blind to the way she looks at you? She wants you for herself Big Bro! I can see it, the team can see it and I'd bet my last shekel that Steph can see it…"

"We're work colleagues, nothing more." He ground out. "I shouldn't have to justify my actions to you." He added harshly.

"You think? You think! Exactly what is it you're working on? I've seen the rosters. There's nothing scheduled that would require you to spend so much time with her."

"We're working on something that's above your pay grade, Baby brother."

"Really? Because the way I see it she's gotten her claws into you so deep you can't see what's right in front of you."

"For the last time, will you fucking leave it."

"If you break Steph's heart, I'll kill you. She deserves better than to have her heart trampled by that… that slut. Coming in here parading round as if she owns the place! Steph can see it, why can't you? Why can't you see that that woman would tear your wife's heart out and eat it for breakfast without blinking. She deserves better than that, Man."

"Leave Stephanie out of this…"

"or what? And what's with Stephanie? I thought she was Babe?!"

"We've hit a patch…"

"I'd say you have! That patch is a pile of shit called Jeanne Ellen Burrows…"

"Enough!" Ranger yelled out. "what is my wife to you anyway? Not that it's any business of yours." He added, now pacing round Chico. "You've got the hots for her, haven't you? Are you circling my wife?!"

"I love your wife like a sister for crying out loud! Fucking hell, Ranger! The whole of your contact list loves her like a sister, daughter, Step Mom, best friend, Auntie! We all want what's best for her and the best for her is for you to come to your senses and tell Burrows to go climb back under the rock she crawled out of."

"For the last time, Jean Ellen is a work colleague! There is nothing going on between us!"

"Grow up, Ric! Drop the skank and look after your Babe before you break her heart or she realises what a fool you are and looks elsewhere…"

Ranger stopped in his tracks at the last comment. "What do you mean by that?"

"Nothing. Yet. But you keep hurting the one person who has your six more than Tank it won't be long before she leaves you for dust. I know I would. I'd want to protect myself, scoop up my battered dignity and leave you while I still could. Hell, I'd help her pack."

"If you so much as …"

Turning to leave, Chico let fly one final statement "There's a line of people waiting to step up and protect her, help her, Ric and I'm at the top of it." He added, flinging the door open so hard that it crashed into the wall, exploding off a lump of drywall and leaving.

Jean Ellen, her hand raised as if to knock, stepped out of the way, shock on her face. "You ok?" She asked, rushing to his side and running her hand down his upper arm in a supportive gesture.

"Yeah, never better." He replied as he glared at the back of his rapidly disappearing brother, completely unaware of the woman at his side and her ministrations.

End flashback

How prophetic Chico's words had turned out to be.

With clarity that only comes from having removed the blinders he'd been wearing concerning Burrows and having ALL the facts in front of him, he'd finally laid out the jigsaw pieces and seen exactly what had been going on, not what he'd thought had been going on.

Now that Burrows was literally buried under the rock that she'd crawled out from under, he'd taken a long hard look at the events that had led to his babe's departure and he'd never been more ashamed of himself.

Because of his actions, Chico was dead. Too ashamed at the time of the role he thought his wife had had in the whole fiasco, he'd secretly watched the funeral from far enough away that no one had seen him and had left immediately the'd started to lower the coffin into the ground. He had yet to visit the grave.

Because of his actions, he had a list as long as his arm of people that he'd needed to apologise to. Members of his family – both by blood and oath that he needed to atone to.

Because of his actions, his life, his love was gone and he needed to find her and put her straight. Apologies would not be enough, but it would be a start.

Thank God they'd not had time to have any children – something he'd always secretly dreamt about while waiting for her to be done with the cop. Many a night, hunkered down in shitsville on a mission he'd wondered if they'd look like Julie or would have Steph's wild curls and attitude. They'd yet to have that conversation when Burrows strutted onto the scene and things had rapidly turned upside down, putting any thoughts he might have had on the subject back into their box, stuffed far back in the corners of his mind.

They'd had more than one evening of wild make up sex in the weeks before she left. One particular night came to mind when they'd made love all night. Fast and furious make up sex had turned into soft, devoted physical displays of sentiments too deep, too profound for them to explain with words. Dawn had broken before they finally drifted off to sleep in each other's arms fearful of the reality that lurked in the sidelines waiting to attack their world and shatter it into tiny pieces. Little did they both know that just a few weeks later she'd be gone.

Fluffing up one of the four down pillows on his vast bed to make a more comfortable shape, he pulled it into his body, pretending to be a sleepy Steph, mimicking the way she used to grab his pillow, drink in his smell and go back to sleep while he went down to work out in the gym.

What he wouldn't give for it to be real. Shaking the image of his gorgeous Babe, rumpled from a nightime's activities and all soft and sleepy, from his head he started to mentally catalogue the week ahead.

Sunday was Tank and Lula's wedding day and he was absolutely determined to stand up and be the best man God have ever put on this earth. It was the least he could do to for the man who'd held him together and kept Rangeman running even as he tried to self destruct.

Monda… Damn! How could he forget, Saturday was his Mama's surprise birthday party and he'd promised Celia that he'd be there. How on earth had he forgotten?! Talk about not being aware of his surroundings...

He needed to find a gift, and fast.

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So there we have it... another piece of the jigsaw. Will they meet up at the party, hmmm?