Stephanie tossed her water bottle at Lisa, who ducked just in time into her car. The pair once again went their separate ways as Stephanie returned to her hotel to get ready for a night out on the town.
Steph In The Right Direction
Chapter Three
Stephanie was still rushing around her hotel room when Lisa knocked on her door.
"Just a second," yelled Stephanie from the bathroom. After applying a quick swipe of mascara she jogged across the room to open the door.
"It's about time girl, what kept you?" teased Lisa.
"Just trying to make myself presentable."
"Oh please, who are you kidding? You're one of those evil women that can roll out of bed looking better than you did before you laid down."
Stephanie snorted, "What? Do you not see this head of hair? It's a rat's nest. Most of the time it's just one big jumble of knots. And trust me, you don't want to see it in the morning."
"I'd kill for that head of hair. At least it isn't flat and stringy like mine, I practically have to perform a ritual dance to get any kind of body in it."
"Ritual dance huh? Am I going to get to witness a little bit of that tonight?" giggled Steph.
"Only if you're lucky. Now hurry up, the girls are waiting."
After one last mirror check the two women locked up the room and made their way to the lobby where three peppy girls were waiting for them.
"Steph, these are my best friends. This is Amanda she's in real estate." The two shook hands.
"And this is Sara. She's a stay at home mom who was granted a weekend reprieve from her husband. And finally this is Katlyn she's the sugar momma of the group?" joked Lisa.
"Sugar momma my ass. I can't help it that my boyfriends tend to have very healthy bank accounts" replied the pretty brunette as she offered her hand to Stephanie."
"And everyone this is Stephanie. She's on vacation from New Jersey and get this…" Lisa paused for effect. "She's a bounty hunter."
All three girls immediately began asking questions at the same time. Stephanie laughed and tried her best to keep up. A few minutes into the conversation Lisa rescued Steph and hustled the girls outside in order to hail a taxi. Needless to say, it didn't take long for five sexy girls in scantily clad clothing to catch a lift.
Their first stop was a trendy Japanese Fusion restaurant. As soon as the group was seated at their table they became the center of attention. Two male waiters were overheard arguing over who would be their server, so Lisa explained that they would both be needed because they were all very high maintenance. The men seemed satisfied with the solution and quickly sprung into action making sure every request was promptly filled.
While they waited for their food the conversation naturally turned to men. Stephanie discovered Amanda and Sara were married, 3 and 6 years respectively, while Lisa and Katlyn were satisfied with being long-term bachlorettes. When the questions turned to Steph's social life, she quickly turned bashful and tried changing the subject.
"Oh no Steph. You aren't getting out of it that easily. We dished so now it's your turn. We want all the details of why you are here on vacation all by yourself." Lisa demanded.
Stephanie sighed, then gave in to the requests. "Ok fine, I'll tell you. But don't complain to me when you guys get bored to tears." The four women seated around the table rolled their eyes in unison as if they had been training for that moment for years. Stephanie stifled a laugh then began.
"Well let's see. First there was Dickie. I married that fool and then promptly divorced him with I caught him doing the horizontal mambo on my kitchen table. After him came Joe. He's a cop in Trenton. When I was in high school he took my virginity on the floor of a pastry shop. Two years later I hit him with a Buick. Several years after that he was arrested for murder then failed to appear in court so I locked him in the back of a freezer truck. After he was released and cleared of the charges we started dating. Ever since we've been off and on. Currently we are on an off phase, mainly because I just skipped town without telling him."
When Stephanie stopped talking the four women's mouths were practically hanging wide open.
"Does anyone else get the feeling that she left out a helluva lot of details?" smirked Lisa.
"I told you guys it was boring."
"We need to hear more about this Joe fella. Is he sexy? Are you guys going to get married?" asked Sara.
"He's extremely sexy. As for marriage, I doubt it. We were engaged once, but that was just because he wanted his grandmother to leave so we could have sex." said Stephanie as if that explanation would make everything clear.
Katlyn swirled the clear liquid in her martini glass and then gave Lisa a wink. "Stephanie, I know I just met you, but darling I know a liar when I see one."
"What? I am not a liar!" exclaimed Stephanie.
"Afraid you are dear. I can see it in your eyes. There's either something you aren't telling us about this Joe guy or there is someone else you haven't mentioned."
The heat flooded Stephanie's face and she knew she had been made. "Well there is one other guy but he doesn't really count."
The four women leaned forward and began listening intently; hanging on Stephanie's every word.
Amanda was the first to ask, "So why doesn't he count?"
"Because he doesn't do relationships and we are really just friends."
Lisa laughed and nearly choked on her drink. "All guys say they don't do relationships, that just means they want you to work for them. And we all know the best ones start out as friends. So who is he Steph? We want all the details about this one."
Their food arrived just as Stephanie was beginning her story. "His name is Ranger and he's a fellow Bounty Hunter. In fact, he's probably the best bounty hunter that's ever lived. He's ex-army, hence the nickname Ranger. His real name is Ricardo. He's tall with dark skin that leaves no doubts about his Cuban heritage. He has long, silky hair which he normally wears pulled back into a ponytail. His favorite color is black which he wears constantly. He's really fond of those really tight t-shirts; you know the ones where you can watch every muscle flex as he moves. He is divorced and has a daughter but he doesn't talk about her a lot. He owns his own security company and has more cars than most people have books. He's always around when I need him and sometimes even when I don't. He's a great kisser. The type that is way more than a kiss, the kind that when you are finished makes you feel like you are glowing from really good sex. With the exception of course the wet spot on the bed or the hassle of birth control. He made a deal with me once that if I called him for help on a special job that I would return the favor by spending the night with him. I ended up not having a choice and I needed his help. So I was his for one night. He was without a doubt the best lover I ever had, but the next day he convinced me to go back to Joe and informed me that his life didn't lend itself to relationships."
Stephanie took a deep breath with she finished, jabbed her fork into the chicken in front of her and took a big heaping bite. As she chewed she looked around at the women and noticed none of them were talking and each had their forks frozen in mid air.
"What?" questioned a clueless Stephanie.
Lisa put her fork down slowly, "Stephanie, do you realize you didn't take one breath during that entire speech?"
"So? I'm hungry. Just trying to get finished so I can eat."
Katlyn laughed, "Sure Steph. And do you realize that we know what kind of lover Ricardo is, but we don't even know what color hair your ex-fiancée has. Don't you think that's a tad odd?"
Stephanie shook her head. "Not odd. I was just giving you the details."
"No you weren't. Your entire demeanor changed the moment you started talking about this Ricardo guy." announced Amanda.
"Oh my god! I get it now!" shouted Lisa, causing several patrons at nearby tables to spill their drinks.
"Shhhh.. Got what?" asked Stephanie in a quiet tone.
"Why you are here all alone, and why you decided to join a freaking gym on your vacation."
"Lisa, what are you talking about?" questioned Steph.
"You're here to get the guy. For some reason you don't think you are good enough for him so you've come down here to prove yourself wrong."
Stephanie frowned. "I'll admit I came down here to make some changes to myself. I need to be in better shape, and I need some extra training for my job. But I did not come down here for Ranger or Joe for that matter. Both of those men have been taking me granted for too long and I finally realized it. It's time for a change. I decided to take my life back and to prove I don't need a man to come to my rescue."
Katlyn, piped in, "Damn Lisa you're good. And sorry Steph, you may be in denial but you'll snap out of it. I'm sure you have other reasons for being here, at least you're telling yourself that. But deep down inside, you want Ricardo."
Stephanie laughed. "Of course I want him. He's the sexiest man alive. But he doesn't do relationships and I'm tired of waiting on him to change his mind and make a move. I deserve a man that can be there for me 100 of the time, no pun intended, but I don't need a part-time lover."
Sara held up her glass for a toast. "To great songs from the 80's!"
Amanda held up her glass to meet Sara's, "And to great friends!"
Katlyn was next, "And to friends helping friends!"
Lisa's glass clinked the first three then she added, "And here's to us helping Stephanie conquer Ricardo!"
Stephanie flopped her head into the palm of her right hand, then held her glass up with her left, "God help me. Here's to me letting you try."
------------------------
The remainder of the evening was uneventful. Once they finally arrived at the club each of them were already three sheets to the wind. Lisa and her friends spent most of the night talking and planning what Stephanie's strategy needed to be. Meanwhile, Stephanie tried to ignore them as she danced with one strange man after another. She hadn't realized that there was a huge Army base stationed Virginia Beach, so for the biggest part of the night she couldn't figure out why all the men reminded her of Ranger.
Around 4:00am the girls decided to depart for the evening. After the cab dropped her off at the hotel, Stephanie was able to stumble to her room and land safely on her bed.
Unfortunately only after three hours of sleep she was jerked awake by the wailing of the phone.
"'lo?"
"Stephanie? Is that you? You sound terrible."
"Thanks Mary Lou. What do you want? And why are you yelling?"
"I'm not yelling Steph, you must have a hungover. But that needs to wait and you need to wake up. We've got problems."
Stephanie woke slightly at the tone of Mary Lou's voice. "What's wrong?"
"It's Ranger and Joe. They're at it again."
To Be Continued.
