Disclaimer: I own the bad guy, and Stephanie and Ranger's baby, but no one else.
Ok, firstly, I have to say, I'm sorry I didn't update over the weekend. I needed to speak with my 'consultant' and now that I have (Danke, Ally ;)) I have resolved my issues with this chapter. Now, I shall post.
Chapter 4
I jumped out of bed and went into my living room. I'd expected to see Diesel and Ranger there, but they weren't there. I could see, however, a light in the kitchen. I walked in and saw Ranger returning his gun to the small of his back. Diesel, who, I'll add, was wearing nothing but a pair of boxers, was standing in the kitchen with a glass of water in his hand, looking at Ranger with a bit of surprise.
Setting the glass on the counter, Diesel crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow, glaring at Ranger. "I could ask the same of you."
I cleared my throat and they both turned to me, but only for a second, because then Ranger returned his attention to Diesel. To my surprise, he went into possessive-male mode. "Why are you here? Are you and Stephanie living together?" If I'd been surprised at his attitude, it was nothing compared to the surprise I felt as he now rolled his eyes. "Dumb question. Obviously, you're living together. How long have you been living here?" His tone was a mixture between protective father interviewing the prom date (who he doesn't approve of), and possessive man sizing up the competition.
"I really don't see how any of this matters to you. Seeing as how I was invited here, while you broke in, it seems strange that I'm the one being interrogated." Now he walked over to me and wrapped an arm around my waist. I flinched and then stared up at him in confusion. "The dynamics of our relationship have nothing to do with you, last time I checked. So why don't you just leave?"
Ranger looked at Diesel's arm around me and I could swear I saw pain in his eyes. However, it was gone the second it appeared, so I was probably wrong. He gave Diesel a dismissive look, then turned his attention to me. "I just wanted to make sure you were ok. After the head thing."
Annoyed with all the macho crap, and not in the mood to try to figure out what Ranger was thinking and feeling that inspired his actions and words, I glared at him. "Since when did you care? Just leave."
"Babe?" Now, his face was totally blank.
"Get out of my apartment. I'm tired, and I don't feel like dealing with you right now."
This time, there was no mistaking the hurt in his expression. It was gone right away, like it had been before, but I knew I'd seen it. He nodded. "Alright. Goodnight, Babe." He said it perfectly casually, then walked out.
Once he was gone, Diesel dropped his arm from around my waist. "Well, that was fun."
I glared at him. "Yeah, what was with the whole 'dynamics of our relationship' thing?"
Diesel shrugged and walked back to where his water was. "I just wanted to see how he viewed his relationship with you." He took a sip. "And, of course, I was right."
I looked at him expectantly and, when he said nothing, I threw my hands up and started to leave the kitchen. "I don't feel like dealing with you either."
I heard him let out a sigh. "That was a really harsh way to deal with the man who is in love with you, by the way."
I froze. Then I turned. "What are you talking about? Ranger's not in love with me."
Diesel rolled his eyes. "Hopeless. I don't even see how you got to the sex stage of the relationship, what with you two dancing around your feelings like this." Despite the fact that I was uncomfortable talking about sex with Diesel, my mind instantly flew to the night when my baby was conceived. I felt a small smile come onto my face before I could stop it. Diesel looked at me and smirked. "Fine, I guess I was wrong. Clearly, the sex isn't what you guys are having trouble with."
I glared at him, knowing that I was blushing. His expression grew serious. "Really, though, you two need to talk. I have been around him for about five minutes total, and I already know you two are in love. If you two haven't been able to figure it out after however long it's been, you guys are pathetic. You should call him back and tell him you love him and about the baby and then you two can get all mushy and lovey dovey and I'll leave for a while."
The idea of Ranger getting 'all mushy and lovey dovey' made me laugh. "Ranger doesn't do mushy. Or lovey dovey. Ranger doesn't do emotion in general."
Diesel just shrugged. "Fine. Call him over and tell him all the stuff and then you can get all mushy, and he can sit there being impassive. Whatever floats your boat. And also tell him about your stalker. Just do it."
Before I could formulate a response, he walked out. I sighed. I considered going and talking to him some more, but what I'd told Ranger was true: I was tired. I yawned, turned off the kitchen light and headed to my bed. I'd deal with life in the morning.
