Stephanie woke slightly at the tone of Mary Lou's voice. "What's wrong?"

"It's Ranger and Joe. They're at it again."

Steph In The Right Direction

Chapter Four

"Oh geez, what now?" Stephanie asked.

"Well Joe thinks you're hiding somewhere in Trenton. Apparently he finds it difficult to believe that you would actually leave town by yourself. So he's taken it upon himself to start stalking your friends and family."

Stephanie slapped her forehead with the palm of her hand. "What do you mean stalking?"

Mary Lou explained, "Well, let's just say neither your mother, your grandmother nor myself can go anywhere without a police escort."

"Please tell me you're kidding."

"I wish, but that's not the worse of it Steph."

"What now, Mary Lou."

"Well it seems Joe has not only been following us during the day, but at night he had been staking out our houses."

"Great, just great." sighed Steph.

"Wait Steph, you haven't heard anything yet. Last night while Joe was busy staking out my house he noticed some shadows moving across the kitchen window. He did the honorable thing of course, and pulled out his gun then burst through the front door. He practically sent the door of the hinges Steph. Anyway, the noise obviously woke me and Lenny so we rushed downstairs trying to figure out what the hell was going on. When we reached the kitchen, that's when Lenny and I saw them."

Stephanie gulped. "Them?"

"Yeah them. I almost wish you had been here to see it. It was priceless, there was Joe and Ranger rolling around my kitchen floor."

"WHAT!"

"Yup. Seems Ranger decided to break into my house figuring I had to have a number or address for where you were staying. It was his shadow that Joe had seen through the windows.. and well, the rest is history."

"Shit. Mary Lou I'm so sorry those two morons are dragging you and your family into this. Why can't they just give me some time to myself?"

"Steph, they care about you. They just don't show it very well."

"Yeah Lou, I know you're right, but I can't take this kind of caring anymore. I need some time. I need some space and for some reason they won't accept that."

"So what are you going to do?" asked Mary Lou.

"What else can I do? It's time for an ultimatum. I'll call you when it's done."

"Good luck Steph."

"Thanks Lou."

Stephanie placed the phone back on the cradle then did the only reasonable thing. She screamed. She let out all of her frustrations in one, long breath. She didn't stop until her body had quit shaking from all the anger she had been storing for three years. When she was finished she relaxed for the first time since her divorce from Dickey. She knew what she needed to do. It was time for Stephanie Plum to reclaim her life. It was time for her to take back what was her own. And finally, she found the inner strength she needed to get that done.

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Stephanie reached for the telephone and dialed an old, familiar number.

"Trenton PD, this is Morelli."

"Joe, it's Steph."

"Jesus Stephanie! Where the fuck have you been? I've been worried to...."

"Shut up Joe." she interrupted.

"What!? You disappear, then you call me out of the blue to tell me to shut up."

"No Joe. I called you out of the blue to tell you something else. Now either shut up and listen, or I'll hang up and I won't call back."

"Fine." It took all of Joe's strength to agree.

"You need to leave my family and my friends alone. Do not call them, do not follow them, do not break into their houses at night. Do not go near them and while you're at it, don't even think about them. I need some space and time to myself Joe and you are going to give that to me."

"And if I don't?" Joe asked, trying to hide the amusement in his voice.

"If you don't give me what I need, then I don't come back."

"You don't mean that Steph, and you know it."

"Try me Joe. If I get one more phone call from Mary Lou or my family saying that you have been stalking or harassing them then I make this little trip a permanent one."

"Can you at least tell me how long you are going to be gone?"

"Nope."

"Then how about a number where I can reach you in case of an emergency."

"Nope."

"You're going to be stubborn about this." Joe was no longer feeling amused.

"Stubborn isn't the right word, more like determined. Don't test me on this one Joe, because you will fail. Leave them alone, or I'm not returning to Trenton. Good bye."

She ended the call before he had a chance to argue. Her entire body felt instantly more relaxed. One great weight had been lifted from her shoulders, now she dug deep for more of that hidden strength in order to deal with the second weight.

She picked up the phone once more and dialed another familiar number.

"Talk."

"Ranger."

"Babe."

"Stop harassing Mary Lou and my family."

"Is that a threat babe?"

"Does it need to be?"

"I'm not harassing."

"Well, what would you call breaking into someone's house in the middle of the night to look for a phone number?"

"Gathering information."

Stephanie could sense that Ranger was amused, just as Joe had been.

"Listen Ranger, I'll tell you exactly what I told Joe. Either you both stop harassing my friends and family and you stop trying to look for me or I make this trip permanent."

"You know all I have to do is trace this call." Ranger said, ignoring her threat.

"I'm aware of that. But you aren't going to do that, because if you do then I don't return to Trenton."

"Babe."

"I mean it Ranger. Don't try to pressure me, because it won't work. Give me some space and leave my friends alone."

For the second time in two minutes Stephanie hung up on one of the two most important men in her life. She knew Joe wouldn't trace the number and call back, but she wasn't so sure about Ranger. She waited, staring at the phone for a few moments and when she was satisfied it wouldn't ring she began getting dressed for her morning run.

ring, ring

Stephanie stormed back to the phone, her head trapped inside the material of a shirt.

"Dammit Ranger, I'm not playing…"

"Steph, Steph, it's Mary Lou. I was just wondering how it went."

"Oh. Sorry Lou. It went fine. I told them to leave you alone or I wouldn't return to Trenton."

Mary Lou gasped. "You don't mean that Steph."

"Maybe I do. I like it here. Nobody is trying to run my life and it feels good."

"But what'd I do if you moved away?" Mary Lou was on the verge of tears.

"You'd have a hell of a phone bill." Stephanie laughed. "But let's not think about it until or if it happens. Let's just see if the boys can actually learn to behave."

"You're right Steph. And for my sake, they better behave. If not, I'm not sure Lenny will want to move to Virginia Beach with me."

Stephanie and Mary Lou laughed then finished their conversation. Steph felt good, really good. It was at that exact moment that knew she had finally made the right decision.

Chapter Five

A month and a half later…

"Oh yes. God yes, right there." Stephanie moaned.

"Mmmm, you do it so well baby." Lisa whined.

"Well it was what I went to school for ladies." smiled Rex, the club's super handsome masseuse.

"Ohhh.. And you certainly earned that degree." laughed Stephanie with her head peeping through the hole of the massage table.

"I must admit Steph that this is the best idea you've had all summer." Lisa laughed.

"Yes it was. I figured we both had been working so hard that we could use some pampering." explained Stephanie.

Stephanie and Lisa were on the last section of their day long spa adventure. They were both laying on side-by-side massage tables covered with only a small towel across their bottoms. The spa they had chosen was calm and peaceful. Earlier they had both received facials, pedicures and manicures, a mud bath, and now finally a massage. There was no tension within miles of either of the woman.

"I can't believe you're leaving tomorrow Steph." pouted Lisa.

"I know. These past two months have gone by so fast. I love it here."

"You could always stay." Lisa said hopefully.

"You know I can't Lisa. Trenton is my home, whether I like it or not." explained Steph.

"I know, but I finally find a decent female friend and she has to run off."

Stephanie laughed. "I'm not running off. My time here is just over, that's all. Anyway, you promised to come visit me in Jersey once I get settled again."

"That's true. Anyway, are you nervous about heading back?"

"Not really. I'm excited, especially about seeing everyone's reaction to me."

Over the past two months Stephanie had gone through a lot of physical and mental changes. Her body was now lean and tone and for the first time ever she had a slight six pack. Her long fuzzy hair was now shorter and much more tamed. Lisa had taken a delight in helping Stephanie take the big leap into womanhood. No longer did her wardrobe consisted of jeans and flannel. She now had skirts and not just any ole' slut distraction skirts. She had real skirts. The kind that when worn made her feel feminine and strong all in one breath.

Her clothes and appearance wasn't the only thing that changed. Steph was now sporting a whole new attitude. While she had remained celibate during her two month vacation, she hadn't been exactly virginal either. Lisa had arranged for several blind dates. The first had been with Rob. He was a lawyer and was very professional. He had met Stephanie at her door with a bouquet of flowers. They night had been elegant and graceful. The restaurant he had chosen even came with a full place setting of silverware instead of a tray and paper napkins like Pino's.

The second date had been with Michael. He was a very talented local artist. He was passionate and extremely fond of Stephanie. He invited her to the opening of one of his latest shows at the gallery and he made sure he was beside Steph's side all night long. She couldn't remember ever holding one man's attention for so long. He had finished the night by convincing her to strip for him while he painted a lovely, nude portrait of her. When it was over she dressed then she kissed him chastely on the cheek. When he tried to give the painting to her as a gift she shook her head and told him to keep it so he would always remember her.

----------------------

Stephanie and Lisa made their way from the spa and headed to a local restaurant for their final meal together. They talked and laughed and recalled all the fun they had had this summer. They both completed the self-defense class, and while they still met in the mornings for a run, only Stephanie had decided to take up Karate.

Within the short amount of time, she had already reached the orange belt status. She immediately loved the sport and was determined to find a school to continue with the classes when she returned to Trenton. She made up her mind to not stop until she had earned a black belt and deep down, she knew nothing would stop her from doing just that.

Stephanie had even been practicing with her gun. She still didn't like it, but at least now she was able to fire it with her eyes open. She was even capable of hitting the target when she really focused. This too, was another area she promised to continue to work on.

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The girls continued to eat and laugh until the sun had finally set. By the time they reached Stephanie's hotel room they were both yawning. Lisa helped Steph finish packing her things and around midnight they finally said their goodbyes and promised to keep in touch.

Stephanie plopped into bed and continued to toss in turn for what seemed like hours. She was anxious about the next morning. She knew she had a lot of stuff to do when she returned to Trenton, but more importantly she knew it was all going to be worth it.

When her alarm clock startled her awake several hours later she sat up in bed and smiled. Then, into the empty room she said aloud, "It's time to go home."

To be continued….