It only took a few seconds for Ranger to read her thoughts. When he understood what she meant he tossed back the remaining liquid from his cup then asked Tank to give them some privacy. Without question, the large man sprang to his feet and headed out the door.

When he heard the latch fasten, Ranger turned back towards Stephanie and asked softly, "How far along?"

Her big brown eyes looked at Ranger without emotion. One single tear slid down her cheek as she answered him. "Six weeks."

Starting Over

Chapter 3

As soon as the words passed her quivering lips Stephanie collapsed on the couch in tears. Moments later Ranger surrounded her with his strong arms. He gently stroked her hair as she wept against his chest.

When her cries had slowed Ranger softly asked, "Does Joe know?"

"No. I only found out this morning, but I was going to tell him tonight."

Ranger didn't know how to react or respond. All he knew was that he was suddenly in a situation he knew he wasn't ready for.

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The next morning Stephanie slept until noon, and the only reason she woke up then was because Ella was gathering dirty clothes from the apartment. Stephanie kept her eyes shut tight, not wanting Ella to discover she was awake. The last thing she wanted was to have a conversation with anyone.

When Ella finally exited the apartment, Stephanie struggled from bed and headed to the bathroom. She refused to look in the mirror, so she relieved herself then quickly headed back into the safety of the bed.

Six hours later she was once again awakened from a deep sleep. This time it was at the hands of Ranger, or specifically his fingers. He grazed her arm gently while whispering, "Steph. Wake Up Steph."

Stephanie opened her eyes slowly then rolled onto her back to meet his stare. She didn't speak.

"Stephanie, are you ok? Have you stayed in bed all day?"

"I'm fucking fine Ranger. My husband knocked me up, then ran off with another woman, what makes you think something would possibly be wrong?"

Ranger's face hardened and he didn't respond. He turned quickly and left the room.

Stephanie rolled back onto her stomach and fell back into the numbness of sleep.

The next 4 days went the exact same with Ranger coming home to find her still in bed, and still in the same clothing as the previous day. He didn't know what to do, but he did know that she needed someone's help. Finally he did the only thing he could think of and set out for Mary Lou's house.

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Mary Lou scrambled to the door with her newest born wrapped around her waist. She was momentarily shocked when she realized the identity of the visitor.

"Good Lord Ranger, is that you? It's been years since I've seen you, would you like to come in?"

Ranger was relieved that she had remembered him, and quickly accepted her invitation inside.

He took a seat on the nearby floral couch and Mary Lou sat down in a rocking chair across from him. She rocked the baby boy slowly in an effort to keep him calm. They sat in silence for a moment until she finally caved. "So Ranger, what brings you by?"

"It's Stephanie, have you talked to her lately?"

"Let's see, probably about a week ago. With her school and work, and my family stuff we don't get to talk to one another near as often as we like. Is she ok?"

"Not exactly. That's why I came here." Ranger shifted uncomfortably as he searched for his next words. "Stephanie called me five days ago and asked me to come to her house. She wanted me to help move her stuff."

"Oh no, did she do something to her back? And why didn't she just get Joe to help her move things around if she was redecorating?"

"No, nothing to her back. I don't think you're understanding me. She needed help moving her stuff out of the house. Joe asked her to move out last week."

"Oh good Lord!" Mary Lou rose suddenly and began yelling for her husband. "Lenny, Lenny!"

A chubby, funny looking man appeared through the doorway, "What is it woman?"

"It's Stephanie. Joe finally fucked up for good this time, I need to go to her, will you take Martin and keep an eye on the kids tonight?"

Lenny's expression changed from a joking one to a dead serious one in the matter of seconds. He rushed to Mary Lou's side and grabbed the now crying baby from her arms. "Of course. Go, I'll keep an eye on things here. Call me if you need anything."

Mary Lou jerked her attention back to Ranger. "Will you take me to her? I assume you know where she is."

"Yes. Do you have anything you need to take with you? I assume you'll be spending the night?"

"Probably, let me just run and grab a few things, I'll be right back."

Mary Lou darted upstairs and began tossing things into a small overnight bag. Meanwhile, Ranger and Lenny looked at each other uncomfortably. Finally Ranger broke the silence. "So that's number 3 right?"

Lenny shook his head. "Yup. He just turned six months yesterday."

Ranger took a step towards Lenny and the baby and stuck out his pinkie finger for the wiggling child to latch onto. He immediately pulled the big dark finger into his mouth and began sucking. Ranger smiled and the baby immediately began giggling. Ranger made a few more faces and the kid was rolling.

When Mary Lou returned she shook her head in disbelief as she watched the two grown men making faces at her baby. She cleared her throat slightly and Ranger jerked into focus.

"I'm all set. Shall we go?"

"Of course, take it easy Lenny." Ranger said as Lenny a manly pat on the back.

"You too Ric."

"I'll wait in the car Mary Lou."

"Thanks, I'll be there in a second." Mary Lou started at Lenny then questioned, "Ric?"

"That's what he said to call him."

Mary Lou smiled then grabbed him around the neck for a quick kiss. "Love you, I'll be home soon."

"Love you to Lou. Take care of Steph."

Mary Lou turned and headed out the door to meet Ranger.

As they drove he filled her in on the happenings of Stephanie in the last couple of days. He told her everything except for the pregnancy. He figured it was best to leave that one for Stephanie to handle.

As they pulled into Rangeman building, Ranger looked at Mary Lou and said, "Thanks for doing this. I didn't know what else to do."

"Thank you Ranger for taking care of her when she needed you. She always said you were a good friend, now I know she was right."

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Ranger entered the apartment as Mary Lou followed close behind.

"The bedroom is through that door. She hasn't left that room in 4 days. Do you want me to go wake her?"

"No. Leave it to me. Can we have some privacy for a little while?"

"Of course. I'll head to the gym for an hour or so. Call me if you need anything at all. Stephanie knows how to use the intercom."

"Thank you."

Ranger grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator then set out for the gym.

Mary Lou cracked the door slowly allowing the light of the living room to cut into the darkness of the bedroom. She saw Stephanie's huddled mass curled on the bed. She immediately went to her, taking a seat on the edge of the mattress. The weight on the bed caused Stephanie to stir slowly into the realization that she was not alone. Her eyes jerked open and she came face to face with her best friend. Stephanie sat up quickly throwing her arms around Mary Lou's neck.

"Lou, what am I going to do?" Then the crying started once again.

Continued in Chapter 4.