All characters belong to Janet Evanovich, I'm just playing.
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Chapter 2
LPOV
Steph's unconscious body is heavy in my arms, and I let my legs relax as we both sink to the floor. My gun hand is pinned underneath her, causing no small dose of panic when I hear boots pounding down the hallway. We dropped just inside the door, and I'm trying to move her as gently as possible when Ram yells, "Lester!" as he peeks his head inside. "What the fuck? You told her?"
"Yeah, asshole. That's why I was sent here. I didn't get any further than 'I'm sorry' when she fainted."
Ram runs his hand down his face. I know the feeling, dude. "Tank's been trying to call you."
"I know. Little busy here with the shit job of passing along the news that my cousin was shot and killed when he walked into a robbery during an impulsive stop to buy her flowers. Cut me some fucking slack for not wanting to be all chatty and shit!"
"The hospital fucked up."
Steph is heavy in my arms and I'm only half paying attention to him while I check her pulse. "What?"
I may have growled at him when he bends down to take Steph so I can get up. He puts his hand up and backs away, correctly assuming I'm teetering on the edge. He doesn't go far, and squats down to my eye level about five feet away.
"Lester. Look at me. Tank's trying to call you because the hospital fucked up the notification. Ranger was wearing black slacks and a black button-down shirt. The perp was wearing black jeans and a black long-sleeved t-shirt. Two nurses got their wires crossed; both men were Hispanic, with longer dark hair and wearing black pants and a black long-sleeved shirt. Both took shots to the chest. Tank was the only one asking after someone with that description, so when the perp coded in surgery, they informed Tank. He wanted you and Steph to have the news before the grapevine, so he sent you here before a visual confirmation. He realized his mistake and was trying to mitigate the damage and get to you before you could tell Steph. He's devastated and beating himself up that he even told you."
The words are coming through, but I'm having trouble processing them. Mistake. I'm trying to process that when something catches my eye. Steph's shoulders and chest are sparkling in the dim light of her foyer. Dancing. They were planning to go dancing tonight; Ranger was taking her to Club Caliente. She must have spritzed on something with glitter to match her gold dress.
"Ranger?" My voice is rough, but I need to know.
"Still in surgery and holding his own. What do you want to do here?"
Rewind time a couple hours? That would be my choice. Steph's going to want to be with my cousin as soon as she's able. "Take her from me for a minute so I can get up."
Ram does as he's directed, and I catch sight of her sexy but rather impractical gold dancing shoes. Her purse is on the little table by the door, and I ignore Ram's look as I pop it open to dig out her keys. "Take these."
He grasps them in his hand as I drop Steph's purse into her lap, and we transfer her back to me. "She's going to want to get to the hospital as soon as possible, but someone's going to need to bring Ella over to pack her a bag of more practical clothes and shoes. Make sure they grab the rat and take him back to Haywood."
Nodding his head, Ram opens the door and locks it behind us. As I make the reverse trek of fourteen steps, my spirit is lighter this time. Ranger's holding on; he's strong, he'll pull through. He won't have let Steph in just to leave her now.
We do the Steph transfer again down at the SUV that Ram drove and as soon as he hands her back to me, I scoot to the middle of the backseat. My hold on her is tight, unwilling to let anything happen to her before we get her to the hospital. The ride is silent, Ram knowing me well enough to know that this is one of those rare times when I don't want to talk to fill the silence.
A couple blocks from the hospital, Steph starts to shift in my lap and then her eyes blink open, staring into mine. She starts sobbing. Shit. She took my words to mean exactly what I meant them to be at the time. Christ, that was less than fifteen minutes ago, and yet it feels like a lifetime. "Beautiful, look at me."
She ignores me and curls up harder against my chest, the sound of her sobs stabbing me in the heart. "Steph!" If anything, she cries harder. "Stephanie!" The full use of her name from one of us never fails to get her attention. "He's ok. The information I had was wrong. He's in surgery."
Tears of grief turn into tears of relief as she clutches the front of my shirt. We're pulling into the hospital when she tapers off and takes several large breaths. Ram nods to me before getting out and standing sentry at the back of the rig. A quick glance tells me he's on the phone, most likely calling in to Tank to give him an ETA and to ask for an updated SITREP.
"You good to go up?"
Steph finally realizes where we are and nods her head. "I'm sorry about your shirt—"
"Don't fucking apologize, Beautiful. If I didn't have a badass rep to maintain I'd be right there beside you crying."
She gives a half-smile and gives her purse a confused look. "Ram has your keys so Ella can pack you a bag of comfortable clothes and grab the rat. I didn't know if you needed anything else."
"Hamster. He's a hamster."
Her voice is quiet, and I give her as much privacy as I can with her still sitting in my lap. I watch, impressed, as she takes another deep breath, squares her shoulders, and reaches for the door. Ram is right there to help her down. "He's still in surgery, Bomber, but the nurse came in and said he's doing well. If you grab someone's phone and text me a list of what you'll need the next couple days, I'll make sure Ella gets it."
Steph quietly thanks him and takes the wad of tissues that he hands her and dabs at her eyes as we start walking. We take three steps toward the building before she stops. "Beautiful?"
"I'm scared."
Giving her hand a squeeze, I admit, "Me, too. But Ranger knows everything, so I bet he'll know the moment you step off the elevator and he'll start fighting harder to get to see you."
She nods her head and dutifully heads inside to the elevator. The surgical waiting area is a sea of Rangemen and they all part when they see Steph. It's a sight, her golden dress moving past our somber uniforms. She heads straight for Tank; he stiffens and then returns her hug, talking low in her ear. She nods her head and lets him lower her into a seat. Bobby's immediately there, distracting her with a Coke and a candy bar while he takes her pulse. Tank hesitantly makes his way over to me and the other guys form a wall between us and Beautiful.
Once we're out of her sight, he leans against the wall I'm holding up. He runs a tired hand down his face, gathering his thoughts. "I fucked up."
Understatement there, Tank. I know he was working with shitty information on the fly, but it doesn't undo the last half hour. Taking it out on him doesn't serve anyone, though. My fists are clenched, and he probably wouldn't even stop me if I took a swing at him. "Live and learn, but you owe me time on the mats."
He nods his understanding. "The nurse verified that the man still in surgery has a healed bullet wound scar on his neck and a scar on the bottom of his right foot. It's him. Perp's bullet broke a rib and nicked his lung. He's holding his own, but the surgeon expects they'll move him to recovery in the next twenty or so minutes. They'll have him on a vent the first twenty-four hours and as long as there's no complications, he'll be moved out of ICU."
A scar from Scrog, and a scar from fixing the broken bones he got during his time in Colombia. Now a new scar from nothing more than stopping to buy freaking flowers. The world is a fucked-up place. A new thought hits me. "We need to work on them and convince Beautiful to move."
"Why's that?"
"I don't think I can walk down that hall again."
Tank nods. "What are the odds we can move her into the penthouse without her noticing?"
I snort. "Pretty much zero, but at this point, she might not mind."
A little more than an hour later, Steph grabs my hand to accompany her to Ranger's ICU bed. He looks better than I expected, and I avert my eyes when she leans down to place a kiss on his forehead. "I was going to tell you tonight, but my answer's yes."
She gasps when he squeezes her hand; I don't even know what the question was, but all I can think is thank fuck.
