Time Enough For Tears
Chapter Six- Make You MineSunlight filtered in through my window, and I opened my eyes. It wasn't fully light out yet, and I wasn't alone in my bed. I remembered the job and the night before and was thankful I'd sobered up before going to bed. With Ranger. Yum, again.
He was lying next to me, one arm thrown over my waist, just as it had been when I'd gone to sleep. Protective and possessive. It looked like he was still sleeping. His hair was mussed and his features were relaxed. The profile I was getting made my toes curl. But then, he always made my toes curl. Sunlight framed his features in a halo that had me warming up in places he had never warmed up before. Oh, crap.
He was sexy when he was awake. When he was asleep he looked like a regular guy. Some of the years seemed to fade from his face. Even so, he still looked virile and dangerous.
"You could keep staring at me like that and I'm going to get ideas," he said, scaring the bejeebers out of me.
"Hey, I thought you were asleep," I said, propping myself on one elbow. He opened his eyes, and I got the amused smile again.
"You thought wrong. What time is it?"
I looked at the clock. "Five a.m. Why?"
"Just curious." Eyes still closed, he reached out and pulled me into him, and kissed me. My toes curled against his shins, and he laughed. When he finally released me, I was catching my breath. "Feeling awkward yet?" he asked, sitting up. The sheet fell low over his hips and this time I knew he wasn't wearing underwear.
I thought about it again. "No. Not today."
"Nervous?"
"Nope." And this time, I was telling the truth. It was even daylight and I wasn't nervous! This was a new development I'd have to deal with later. My brain wasn't able to process any kind of important information at the moment, thanks to Ranger, and I wasn't about to start complaining.
Ranger actually smiled this time. "Are you working today?"
"I work every day. See, when you suck at catching criminals as badly as I do, you have to work twice as hard to make up for your screw-ups."
"Babe," he said.
I blew out a sigh and snuggled up against him. He was warm and solid and welcoming, and when he slid his arm around me I knew nothing more than sweet oblivion.
000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
When I woke up the next time, full daylight was shining through my window. The bed felt surprisingly bigger, and I reached out. Nothing. The sheets were cool, so I figured he went out for a run.
I dragged myself to the shower and stood under the beating hot spray for what seemed like eternity. By the time I got out I was definitely borderline pruney. I found a pair of jeans and a black tank top, pulled some socks on, and padded out to the living room.
Ranger was already dressed, his hair still damp from the shower, and he was lacing up his boots. There was a steaming cup of coffee on the counter. "Is that for me?" I asked, pointing. There was a white bakery bag beside the cup. Knowing Ranger's diet I held out little hope for doughnuts. I wasn't entirely disappointed when I found a couple bagels and little packages of cream cheese.
"Yeah," he said, standing up. He walked toward me and searched my face, probably looking for some kind of nervousness. I wouldn't give him any. After last night I didn't feel it was necessary. He was still big and bad and dressed in black, but now I had a few insights that made him a little more human.
Then he kissed me. Tongue and all. My fingers curled into his t-shirt, and I think my knees buckled again, because his arms were around me, lifting me closer to him. "Oh, boy," I said when he sat me back down. "Okie dokey." I was such a dope. That was all I could think of to say? 'Okie dokey?' Unh. Mental forehead slap.
I yawned. "Now what time is it?"
Ranger had strapped his watch back on. "It's seven-thirty." His pager beeped and he read the face of it. "I have to go to work." He was almost to the door when he stopped, turned around, and came back to me. He took my face in his hand and looked me in the eyes. "Did Vino see you leave with me last night?" he asked.
"Yes. And one of his goons."
He closed his eyes for a minute, as though this was the first he'd thought of it. "I was afraid of that. I want you to be careful today. He's not going to be happy about what he lost last night."
"And what did he lose last night?" I asked. It was hard not to get frustrated by all this mystery. But then, I figure that's what makes Ranger who he is, so I should try and go with it.
"I can't tell you that. The less you know the safer you are. If anybody asks, you left with your brother-in-law from the bar because your sister had a baby emergency."
"What? Do you think I'm in some kind of danger?" I asked him.
"What if I told you the object I took back from Santinni originally belonged to a very influential family, and that Santinni was going to sell this object to another very influential family."
"That would be bad," I said, catching on now. Ranger sometimes worked in the gray areas where official law enforcement couldn't go. I was pretty sure everything he did was still morally correct, even if it wasn't entirely legal. Mostly.
"Very bad. No one wants a crime war, babe. Not even the police."
I nodded. That was all I think I needed to hear.
He went to the door and I followed him. "You'll be careful," he said, grabbing my arm.
"I'll be careful," I said.
"Good. I'm putting a man on you today. Try not to break him," he said.
And he was gone.
"Arrogant ass," I said to the door.
000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
I went back into the bathroom, put some gel in my hair and a little mascara. There. I was ready for work. Unfortunately, no one else probably was. So I put on my big boots, laced them up, and went into the kitchen after my coffee and bagels. Ranger hadn't brought me twigs for breakfast, at least. I mean, it wasn't exactly doughnuts, but the thought was there.
I dropped a small hunk of cream-cheesed bagel into Rex's cage. He scurried out of his soup can and twitched his whiskers at me. His little black eyes blinked as they adjusted to the light. "Morning," I said. Rex stuffed the bagel into his cheek pouch and hunkered back into his can. Another meaningful pet-owner interaction.
As I was finishing up my coffee the phone rang. I wasn't in the mood to answer. Besides, it could be Joe. And I wasn't ready to talk to Joe. Not yet. Ranger's smell was all over me and around me, and I didn't want to burst my little euphoric bubble. The last night I spent with Ranger I only got about four words out of him before he left. This was something else entirely.
The phone continued to ring. I continued to pretend I wasn't home. The machine picked up after what felt like years.
"It's me." It was Joe. "Look, Steph, we need to talk. I'm…I'm sorry." There was big frustrated sigh on his end. "Call me. Please." And he hung up.
It was my turn to blow out a big frustrated sigh. This was my life, the made-for-tv movie with a low budget. Well, maybe not Ranger. Ranger was definitely not low budget. He was The Rock and Vin Diesel and Antonio Banderas all rolled up in one edible package wrapped in black SWAT clothes.
I still found that thinking about Ranger got me all hot and frustrated, even after last night. Only now I had lots of pictures and touches and memories to see me through many long winters. And thinking about Morelli still got me sad.
Maybe I should call him back, I thought. But not right now. Right now I was still in a state where maybe talking to him wasn't the best idea. Okay, that was a lame excuse. I really was hiding from him, running away like I always did. At least this time I didn't run him over with a Buick. That didn't mean I wasn't tempted to do so.
Ranger was safer territory at the moment. The first time we were together, it hadn't been exactly wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am, but it had been tense. At least for me. Not that Ranger hadn't been wonderful. He'd been amazing. But in contrast to last night it had been a finger snap. Last night he'd been amazing, but tender in a way I hadn't thought it possible for him to be. It rattled me. Ranger told me there were no emotions involved in our relationship. That his lifestyle didn't lend itself to relationships at all. So what was this all about?
I was seriously plunged into some deep self-reflection, and it weirded me out. I needed something sweeter than a damn bagel. I needed doughnuts. Or Tastykakes. I'd had too much of Ranger's "my body is my temple." Well, at least I'd had enough of the 'temple' that my own body was feeling a few hundred calories short of impurities in my system.
That settled it. I grabbed my keys and headed for the door.
000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000