Chapter 3

I woke up the following morning in a Point Pleasant hotel. His warm naked body pressed against my back. His warm hands started stroking my abdomen before moving to my breasts. He shifted until I was lying on my back. "Morning, Steph," he said before kissing me.

"Morning. We need to leave soon," I whispered. He grabbed a condom to cover his impressive erection. I reflectively wrapped my legs around his hips to pull him closer. We made love a few times before taking a shower, where we made love again.

"I'm in love with you, Stephanie," he said as he wrapped a towel around his narrow hips.

I was completely wrong about him being closed off. He just didn't share any personal information with the men. This gorgeous man had no problems sharing details of his life with me. Last night he told me everything I needed to know.

"I love you too," I reciprocated. It was true; I do love this man. Those words were so hard to say before today. They were relatively easy to say now to this remarkable man. Neither of us wanted to leave, but we had afternoon shifts at Rangeman. What will the guys think? They assume I'm still with Ranger. Are we moving too fast? I don't want another sex-only relationship.

"Nobody will know unless you want them to know," he answered my silent question. "It isn't too fast. I want more than just sex, but it's much too early to discuss long-term. As I said yesterday, I'll wait until you're ready. If our one night together is all you can offer, then I'll accept your decision."

"Thank you. I appreciate your honesty," I stated, knowing every word my man spoke was sincere. We held hands as we returned to our cars. He gave me a final panty-destroying kiss before opening my car door. "See you at Rangeman."

"I'll see you later, Steph," he said with a final wave.

Hector and I had a long talk when I returned to Trenton. We love each other, but not enough for a committed relationship. He enjoys his freedom too much. I told him about my night with my Merry Man. Hector agreed my man could offer me more than he could or was willing to offer. With a final kiss, we decided to be close like siblings. He's my Hermano, and I'm his Hermana.

The months seemed to fly past. Ranger's been gone for almost a year now. Tank said Ranger would require another six months to complete the mission. I had a feeling there was more to the story, but Tank, Lester and Bobby, kept avoiding eye contact with me. What Ranger was doing meant nothing to me. I have already moved on with someone new. They were noticeably lying on behalf of their boss.

My Merry Man was patiently waiting for me to give him my answer. We met at Point Pleasant a few times during our vacation days. None of the men suspected we are an item. Our holidays are during separate weeks. Either I would visit him on my weekend off, or he would stay with me. We weren't trying to keep our relationship a secret, but we are currently partners at Rangeman. My permanent partner was on vacation, and his partner got injured on the job. On the clock, we were professional. Off the clock, we were anything but professional. He made me feel loved, appreciated, and most of all wanted.

I was researching my newest FTA, Cooper Parker. While I compared his photograph to the FBI database, I discovered they were looking for him too. Cooper Parker, or should I say, Martin Bastian was wanted for aggravated assault, rape and two counts of murder. He crossed state lines for the second murder, which is how he appeared on the FBI's radar. I located him in New York. As I watched the CCTV footage near the Blue Paradise dive bar, I saw Bastian.

Me: 'Do you have a few minutes?'

Tank: 'More than a few.'

Me: 'OMW.'

I gathered my papers and went to Tank's office. He ended a conversation with someone sounding too much like Ranger. "Is he okay?" I asked.

"Mostly. Ranger can't wait to get back home to you," he replied.

It was time to address the elephant in the room. "Tank, we both know it's not going to happen. I've been dating someone for the past year. We're happy together," I confessed.

"I know about him, Little girl. Ranger isn't happy. He's hoping you're just going through a phase."

"I've never felt this way about someone before. He makes me want things I never considered before," I said as I felt a tear escape from my eye. "My personal life is neither his nor your business. Can we please talk about why I needed to see you?" I roughly wiped the tear from my face before bracing myself for our meeting.

"Sure," he replied as he reached for the papers I was offering. I gave him time to read over my research and recommendation. "Are you sure about this?"

"Almost one hundred percent sure. Bastian knows Lula from her past life. It has to be me," I replied.

"Okay, I'll assemble the team. Your man can't be part of the takedown, but he can be there in case you need him," Tank advised.

"Thank you. I'll have Lula help me dress. She knows his type," I said before excusing myself.

Lula was waiting for me at my apartment. "Hey, white girl," she greeted me.

"Hi, Lula. Thanks for meeting me here. We don't have a place to change in New York," I attempted to explain.

"Ya don't have to tell me. Blue Paradise is a very sleazy bar. Gotta dress the part," she said. "I brought everything you need." She removed a very short red leather skirt from her bag. The tight skirt would barely cover my ass. Lula pulled a matching thong and bra from the bag next; the final item was a beautiful tight white eyelet top. It would show several inches of my toned abs.

"Um, Lula?" I approached her after I changed. "You can tell I work out. Nobody will believe I'm a working girl with these abs."

She laughed, "Silly white girl. I have another item to hide your ripped body. Pull this on under the eyelet top." Lula handed me a sheer skin-tone top. I pulled off the eyelet top and pulled on the new one. Once the final piece was in place, someone knocked on the door.

I was bent over to pull on the red pumps when my man walked into the room. "Steph, you're looking mighty fine." He was staring at my barely covered ass. "Please tell me you're wearing panties," he groaned.

"I'm wearing panties," I giggled. "Do you think this outfit will work?"

"Beautiful," Lester groaned when he entered my apartment. "You look ravishing." I rolled my eyes. Lester loved my distraction outfits. He had a collection of photos somewhere in his apartment.

Tank, Manny, Ram, Cal, Hector, Bobby and Vince strolled into my apartment and whistled. Lula pulled my hair up onto the top of my head, leaving a few curly strands to fall near my ears. My man took a few pictures before stowing his phone.

"It's time," Tank announced. Lula grabbed her makeup bags and wished me luck. Tank, Lester, Bobby, Hector, and I rode in one car. Everyone else, including my man, was in the second SUV.

My phone chimed when we were about halfway to New York. A notification from ancestry was in my inbox. I matched to Joseph Hill and Sean Reagan. "Hector, I think I found my dad," I whispered into his ear. He grabbed my phone to read the names. Hector forwarded the email to Silvio in Miami. Joseph is my cousin, and Sean is my sibling.

"Why Silvio?" I asked.

"Trenton is too close. He will be discreet," he whispered back. We were careful to speak only loud enough for the other person to hear.

"Goddammit, why now?" I swore in Italian.

Lester replied in Italian, "I didn't know you spoke the language of love. What do you mean by why now?"

Speaking in Italian, I told him my story. It didn't take long for me to discover both Bobby and Tank knew the language too. They both gasped at the right spots during my storyline. "I think I found my dad," I finished, leaving out the most critical piece of information.

"What's wrong with finding your father?" Bobby asked.

"He doesn't know I exist," I replied.

"How is that possible, Beautiful?" Lester asked.

"Not listed on the birth certificate, and my biological mom didn't tell him." I wanted to move off this touchy subject. "Can we go over our plan again?" We went through the plan a few more times before I suddenly asked, "What happens if I get arrested?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there," Lester replied. I noticed he sent a message after answering my question. He's probably arranging to have our Rangeman lawyer available.

It didn't take too much longer to reach our destination. Tank parked our SUV in a public lot a few blocks away from the bar. He contacted the local police precinct. "We notified the 54th precinct. They know we'll be in the bar. If we need assistance, they're ready to help. A few patrols will be in the vicinity."

"Not ideal, but I'll take it," I stated. I was more afraid I would get arrested for prostitution. Using my phone's mirror app, I reapplied my red lipstick. Tank would be carrying my ID and phone. If our distraction goes sideways, he'll need to provide the information to the police.

The guys got into their positions. Tank and Lester were out front, Manny and Cal were out back, Ram and Vince were at the side entrance in the alley. Hector and Bobby were inside the dive bar. My man was outside the bar, hiding in an alcove across the road. I felt better knowing he was close.

Hector handed everyone their mics and did a quick sound check to ensure everyone's devices were working correctly. I secured the mic below my left breast. "Can you see it?" I asked Lester.

He took a long look before replying, "Nope."

Tank handed me a twenty to buy myself a drink. We didn't have time to arrange for one of our men to work the bar. I'll have to be careful how much I drink. The guys know I'm a complete lightweight.

I walked through the doors and quickly made my way towards the bar. Several men looked in my direction and smiled.

Martin Bastian was talking to an attractive woman at the bar. I could tell she was a hooker.

He was more attractive in person. His picture didn't do him justice. Leaning over the bar to catch the bartender's eye, I felt a hand rub up the back of my leg. It stopped just shy of my ass. "How much?" Martin asked.

His dark blond hair was shorter than his picture. Martin's blue eyes were cold. I was a little taken back from the lack of emotion. "Ya can't afford me," I stated as I checked him over.

"You can't afford to deny me of what I want," he snarled, grabbing my arm too tight.

"Do ya need to be so pushy?" I snapped.

"I'll show you how much I can push," he replied. Lula was right. Bastian liked to think he was in complete control. My spidey sense was humming. I needed to get out of this bar now.

"I guess we can go out back," I purred as I changed tactics.

We started walking towards the back door when I heard, "Police, stop where you are." I looked around to see a few cops pointing their guns at Martin and me.

My arms are roughly pulled behind my back as the officer restrained me. "My name is Stephanie Plum. I work for Rangeman. I'm here to bring him back to jail. Please don't let him go," I motioned towards Martin. "He's Cooper Parker, aka Martin Bastian. The FBI wants him for murder. Confirm if you don't believe me," I added. Another officer apprehended Martin while his partner asked someone to verify my claim.

"What did headquarters say, Joe?" the officer holding me asked.

"Her story checks out," officer J Hill confirmed. "Martin Bastian indeed is wanted by the FBI. Mr. Sherman here has her ID, but she's still under arrest for solicitation."

I tried to defend myself, but Tank shook his head, silently asking me to remain silent. Hopefully, Rangeman's lawyer will be waiting for us at the precinct. As Joe Hill was walking me towards the police cruiser, another officer arrived. "What are you doing, Joe?" he asked. From the lack of uniform, I knew the new officer is a detective.

"Not today, you aren't." The officer faced me and said, "Hi, Ms. Plum, I'm detective Danny Reagan from the 54th precinct. Can you tell me what happened here?"

I stared at the man in front of me. He's my dad. "Detective Reagan, I work for Rangeman Trenton. Les Sebring Bail bonds hired Rangeman to escort Cooper Parker back to prison for violating the terms of his bond. Through my research, I discovered he's verified to be Martin Bastian, wanted by the FBI for two counts of murder. To reduce the risk to civilians, we sometimes use a distraction, in this case, me, to dress in an outfit guaranteed to attract and capture the FTA. Your officer, Joe Hill, charged me with solicitation as I attempted to escort Bastian through the back door. My teammates Manny and Ram were waiting to apprehend Bastian the second we stepped through the doors."

"Can anyone verify your story?" he asked.

"Yes. Hector, can you bring me my bag?" I shouted unnecessarily. I was still wearing my wire, but I didn't want to tip off the officers around me. It would be interesting to see if they notice. Hector brought my bag to me and opened it for Detective Reagan to grab the file.

"Impressive," he whistled as he flipped through the folder. "More detailed than our typical files."

"It's kind of what I'm good at," I explained.

His following sentence frustrated me. "You need to come with us to issue a formal statement. It's standard procedure." He didn't mince his words.