Over the next couple of days, I slept alone in my own bed, and spent way too much damn time thinking and dreaming about the two, sweet and sexy men, hell bent on taking care of me. That freaking kiss had fueled more than one erotic dream involving them both, and inevitably led to me waking up aroused and needy on more than one occasion. Based on a few of the looks the men had shot my way, I couldn't help but wonder if maybe I'd moaned in my sleep or, by chance, had called out their names. Aaron once told me he'd caught me talking in my sleep, so I knew the possibility existed.

During the time I was awake, I made a point to learn the men's routines so I could do my best to keep out of their way and not disrupt their lives any further. What I quickly discovered was that they were early risers who would head down to the gym for an hour, then return to the apartment for showers and breakfast before they both headed to the control room and the infirmary for their shifts.

A cold front had moved in and stalled, resulting in showers in the days immediately following the accident. I spent a good portion of those days, while the guys were working, staring out the window, taking in my restricted view of a wet and soggy Trenton. This town was going to be my life now, but I found myself wondering if I could truly be happy living here.

In the short time I'd been in New Jersey, I'd simply been going through the motions while I struggled to find my footing. It wasn't so much living as it had been surviving. Of course, that's also what I'd been doing in Indiana ever since Aaron's death.

While I'd only known Bobby and Lester for a couple of days, they'd already brought an interest and spark to my life that had been missing for longer than I could remember. It wasn't just the excitement of the accident and the change of surroundings. Over the last couple of days, I'd experienced some of the most interesting and deep conversations I'd ever had in my life. They weren't just two strong and sexy men. Bobby and Lester were intelligent, intriguing, and complicated individuals with scars that ran way deeper than what one could see.

For reasons I couldn't begin to explain or understand, my desire to heal those scars seemed to be growing stronger with each passing day.

Despite Bobby's orders for me to rest, my mind refused to cooperate. Too many things had happened in the last few weeks and especially in the last few days and my mind needed to process all of it.

Besides the obvious issue of my slowly evolving relationship with these men, I was also worried about where I would go after I was healed enough to move on. For that matter, how exactly did I feel about moving on? Already, I'd become so attached to Bobby and Lester. They'd made me feel at ease here, as if this was where I belonged. That feeling only added to my confusion and dwindling confidence when I thought about Ranger's request for a proposal to improve the efficiency of his office. What exactly was I hoping to accomplish if I went through with this proposal? Was I looking for it to be a precursor to a job offer? Was I only doing it as a way to say thank you to Ranger for all his help?

By Tuesday I was going stir crazy. I wasn't used to being on the kind of restrictions Bobby deemed necessary for me to heal. Since I'd been resting all day, I felt decent, and decided to surprise them both with dinner. With Stephanie, and more so Ella's help, I'd made Tuscan Garlic Chicken with a fresh side salad. While both men were more than appreciative of the meal, Bobby had grumbled about how I should have been resting instead of cooking. Do I have to take you back to the infirmary in order to get you to actually rest? To keep him happy, I'd promised no more cooking until he'd cleared me to take on more tasks.

With no other surprises from my injuries, by Wednesday afternoon, Bobby lifted a few of my restrictions. I was allowed limited screen time. I could also read, write by hand or draw. Cooking was also an option, so long as I had help. Thankfully, with he and Lester both working during the day, I was able to skirt some of those rules just a bit.

Though, instead of diving back into the manuscript I was now behind in finishing, I immediately began working on my proposal to improve Rangeman's office space. What I realized was the idea of putting my office and organizational skills to use was why I'd been so excited about creating the proposal in the first place. There were few things in life I considered myself really good at. Writing was one, but the other was my organizational and office skills.

I drew out a rough sketch of the floor plan, as I'd remembered it from my quick and somewhat fuzzy tour of the control room on Saturday. I was studying that rough sketch when a knock on the door had me looking up. The knock was followed by the unmistakable sound of the keypad beeping before the front door opened and Stephanie appeared.

"Hey." I motioned for her to enter.

"Hi," she replied. "I wasn't sure if you'd be sleeping or not, but Bobby got called out to a scene and asked if I'd come check on you."

I rolled my eyes. "He's such a worry wart. I swear if Bobby had his way all I'd be doing is sleeping."

She grinned as she walked across the room to join me on the couch. "That's the medic in him. He can't help but worry about those around him."

She eased into the empty seat next to me. "So, how you feeling?"

I leaned forward to place the sketch on the coffee table. "Honestly? Not bad. I still have a residual headache, which tends to come and go, but the blurry vision and nausea have subsided."

She motioned to my bandaged foot. "How's the ankle."

"It still hurts. Especially, when I lower it. So, getting around on crutches is a bitch."

"I can imagine," she replied. "Do you need anything?"

I immediately pointed to my ponytail. "Some dry shampoo would be awesome."

Her brow knit. "No shower yet?"

I shook my head. "Their shower doesn't have a bench and I don't feel steady enough to try to stand on one leg and wash my hair at the same time."

"How about washing it in the sink?"

"I tried it," I replied. "The moment I lean forward, I get dizzy. So, it's been sponge baths while sitting on the closed toilet, until I'm a bit steadier. Unfortunately, my hair is suffering."

"I'll have Ella bring you down some dry shampoo," Steph replied. Then she noticed my drawing. "What's this?"

"A rough sketch of the control room floor," I replied. "I started working on my proposal and ideas for improving workflow, to present to Ranger, but I'm having trouble remembering the current layout. Unfortunately, my brain wasn't exactly working correctly when you showed me around on Saturday."

"Tell me about it," she said. "You scared the hell out of me and everyone else. Even Carlos looked panicked for a moment and he's Mr. Calm, Cool and Collected."

"Yeah, sorry about that," I replied as guilt washed through me. "I really should have been more honest with Bobby about how I was feeling."

"No worries," she replied. "I'm the same way whenever it comes to being hurt."

"Speaking of that…how are you feeling?"

She gave me a smile. "My shoulder is still a little sore from where I hit the ground, but otherwise, I'm good."

"And mentally?"

She frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I might have been a bit foggy on Saturday after the accident, but not so much that I didn't pick up on the crisis of conscience you were having."

"Crisis of conscience?" She grinned. "Is that some fancy writer's way of saying I was feeling guilty?"

"Something like that," I replied, as I also allowed a smile to show. "You seemed to be a bit self-depreciating too. Which struck me as odd because at the accident scene you appeared to be someone with a lot of confidence."

Her grin faltered just a little. "I spent a lot of my life allowing others to make me feel guilty about the decisions I've made." She toyed with the edge of the blanket on the back of the sofa. "For a long time, I didn't have a good self-esteem. Then I met Carlos and his men. They refuse to allow me to feel bad about myself or to apologize for the decisions I've made. They've helped to rebuild my confidence and self-esteem, and most times I'm good. Still, sometimes I have moments were all the negative conditioning sneaks back in."

"Like on Saturday when you found out I was hurt worse than I originally let on," I replied.

She gave my statement a nod. "After they loaded you into the ambulance I nearly fell apart. I felt so bad about the entire situation, but Carlos refused to allow those bad thoughts to return."

"I hope you believe now that it wasn't your fault."

"It's hard, but yes, I understand that what happen on Saturday was in no way my fault."

"You know," I began. "If anything, I have to take some of the blame because I knew how I was feeling and I tried to play it off as no big deal."

She laughed. "That sounds so much like something I would do."

My grin widened. "That's exactly what Bobby and Lester said."

Her attention shifted back to the sketch, and she held out her hand. "Got a pencil?"

I handed her the pencil I'd been using, and she quickly filled in the blanks. "There," she said, as she returned the sketch to the table. "That's about right."

"Thank you," I replied. "That will help so much."

She cocked her head to the side and stared at me. "You really think you can improve the workflow?"

I nodded. "I did that for my last job. They were so happy with the results they promoted me to office manager and had me transform their satellite offices."

"Wow," she said. "Well, I'm really interested in seeing what you come up with."

I then closed my laptop and set it aside. "Can I ask you something about Lester and Bobby?"

"Sure," she replied. "Ask away. If I can answer it, I will."

"They're so different. Bobby is so calm and reserved where Lester is hyper and outgoing. How in the world did they become a couple?"

She leaned against the arm of the couch. "From what I understand, from Carlos, they were always close. According to him, working elite missions and special ops has a way of making you closer to those serving with you."

I mimicked her move, stretching my arm along the back of the couch. "I remember my brother once telling me that he considered the men in his Seal team like his brothers, and he trusted them with his life."

"Exactly," she replied, then her look turned curious. "You have a brother?"

"Had," I replied. "He and some of his team, were killed during a mission a few years back."

"I'm sorry," she said.

"Thank you," I said, as a sudden sadness fell over me. "I miss him a lot."

"I bet," she said.

"Anyway," I replied, hoping to redirect the conversation off me and back onto the guys. "You were telling me about Bobby and Lester."

"Right. Well, after their time in the military all of them moved here when Carlos started Rangeman. Bobby, Lester, and Tank are part owners."

Now wasn't that an interesting bit of information they'd both failed to mention? Not that it really mattered to me either way, but it did explain how they came and went and seemed to have the run of the place. "I didn't know that."

"Yep," she replied. "I met Carlos when Rangeman was still just an empty lot and a dream for him. From what I gathered, back then, Lester and Bobby both dated women. Honestly, I'm not sure that anyone really knows just how deep their relationship goes. According to Carlos, they spent so much time together, they decided it was easier just to share a place. The fact that they share a one-bedroom apartment on Four, instead of a two bedroom on Six, does lead you to believe their relationship is more than just platonic. However, they tend to be extremely careful of any romantic gestures when working around the guys or when out in public."

"They haven't been careful around me," I said.

Her brows winged up in surprise. "Really?"

"Really," I echoed. "They kissed right in front of me the other night. I have to say, it had to be one of the sexiest and most romantic things I've witnessed."

"No way," she said a look of surprise on her face. "They actually let you see them kiss? I'm shocked."

"I was too," I replied. "But it wasn't a matter of letting, like I accidentally witnessed it or something. They did it on purpose. Lester pulled Bobby into a kiss, right in front of my face."

Her look turned contemplative. "I wonder exactly what that means. They're always so careful with their emotions. Really, all the guys are. From how Carlos explained it to me, none of them had been able to find a woman who could understand them, accept their background or their limitations emotionally. So, they all ended up kinda becoming this big family."

"Then Carlos found you," I said.

The pure happiness in her expression, spread warmth through the entire room as she grinned. "These men…all of them…are so amazing. Their moral compass' might not always line up with the law, but they all know right from wrong. They also know how to treat a woman right." She shifted and tucked her legs beneath her. "The problem is, they also come with a lot of scars and baggage. PTSD, depression, night terrors…are a part of most of these men's lives. While they've learned to live with it, finding a woman who can love them for who they are and is willing to go through it with them is a lot harder."

"Have you been witness to these things with Ranger?"

The smile she wore just a moment ago slid into an expression of sadness. "On occasion he'll still suffer from a nightmare. Before he ended his contract with the government, they were a lot more prevalent immediately following his return from missions. It's actually part of what took us so long to get together." She smiled, but I could see the pain in her expression. "He saw himself as damaged and had decided that I deserved better than a broken soldier with a tarnished soul."

"But you're engaged and you two look incredibly happy, so it all worked out," I said.

She nodded. "Once he realized that love can heal, he grabbed ahold of us with both hands."

Her statement pulled a smile from me as my mind analyzed the words. "Maybe one day I'll find that level of love and dedication."

"I know you will," she replied. "I think Bobby and Lester basically turned to each other because they couldn't find that support elsewhere, but honestly, sometimes I look at them and think something is still missing in their relationship."

"I don't know. They look pretty happy and dedicated to each other. What could be missing?"

Steph shrugged. "I can't put my finger on it."

"Well, I think they're very special men, and every day I'm here, I find myself appreciating how lucky I am that I'm getting the chance to know them, and you." I looked down at my laptop. "My friend count was kinda low when I arrived in Trenton, but I feel like it's grown by leaps and bounds."

"Maybe that's the reason," she said, and I frowned.

"What?"

"You said on Saturday that you believe everything happens for a reason. Maybe you were supposed to save me because we were all meant to be friends."