Chapter 31
"So, I was interrupting something," Ranger said.
"Lester and I were talking. It started out business and then kind of got personal. I don't really want to talk about it now. Maybe later."
"All right. I came to see if you could leave early today. I wanted to take you on a ride. I've got something to show you."
Stephanie looked at her desk. There was still work to be done. She hesitated.
"Not now," Ranger said. "I was hoping for around five. I wasn't sure what time you called it a day."
"Five would be great," she said. "I could probably be talked into earlier. I've got things to do, but I'm not much in the mood to do them. Paul closes for me today, so I can get out of here by five at the latest."
"Five is good for me. Meet me back at your place. We'll take a little drive and then a late afternoon walk…maybe on the beach. How does that sound?"
"The beach always sounds great to me," she said. Ranger left without questioning her about Lester, and she was glad about that. Lester had said some things she found hurtful, but still some things she needed to think through. She tried to force her mind off Lester and back on her work, but she was unsuccessful. Finally, she gave up and sat at her desk, paperwork untouched, deep in thought.
Later when she pulled into her driveway, Ranger was standing beside Tank's massive truck. He came to the Porsche and offered his hand as she opened her door to get out. When she took it, he pulled her out of the car and into an embrace. They kissed once, twice, and then Ranger pulled away.
"I'm not going to let you distract me," he said. "I have something I want to show you and it involves the beach. Do you want to change?"
She looked at Ranger. He was wearing casual linen slacks and a loose shirt, and he looked completely acceptable for the beach, but he didn't look like the Ranger she remembered. Then she looked down at her black stretch t-shirt and yoga pants. She looked like the Ranger she remembered. "In all the times I've seen you, I've only seen you out of black a handful of times," she told him. "When did your wardrobe change?"
"When I sold RangeMan," he said. "The black was expedient and practical, but it became less so when I was no longer working. Your black isn't good for the beach. Run inside and change.
"Okay, but if Lester's there I'm going to try and avoid him. I think he's angry with me."
"I don't know if he's here or not. I pulled up just a few seconds before you did," Ranger said. "I got the impression as he left the office that it was the other way around, that you were the one upset with him."
"I was, but I'm not any longer. Sometimes the truth is hard to hear," she said. "And that's all I want to say about it right now."
They went inside and Ranger stayed downstairs while she changed into a lightweight t-shirt and capris and her favorite pair of beach walking shoes. When they left she handed him the keys.
"Let's take my car," she said. "You can drive. You seem to know where we're going."
Ranger took the keys and started off with a confidence she admired. He was new to the area, but it seemed he did know where he was going. It felt familiar to be in the close confines of the Porsche with Ranger driving. Something they'd done many times, many years ago.
Just like many years ago, Ranger was in his zone. Paying attention to his driving and not talking. She sighed and settled in for whatever he had in store for her. Before long she recognized the route he was taking.
"Are we going to St. Simmons Island?" she asked.
"We are."
"I love the beach there."
"You love the beach anywhere, don't you?"
"I do!" As they neared their destination, she told him, "I think you turned the wrong way. The public access to the beach is a little south of here."
"We're not using the public access. I've got permission to use a private beach entrance from a home."
"You know the owner?" she asked.
"I know him pretty well," Ranger said.
"I didn't realize you knew anyone down here."
"I don't know many."
He was being the Ranger that used to drive her crazy and she found it still did. It was what Lula used to call his mysterioso shit.
"What's going on, Ranger?"
"I wanted to take a walk on the beach. Unfortunately, my leg won't do long distances on sand yet, so we're taking a short cut to something I want to show you. Earlier you said to me, 'that's all I want to say about it now' and I'm saying it back to you."
A short time later Ranger turned the car into a gated community. At least she thought it was a community. The houses were few, and really, they were more mansions than houses. The guard took a close look at Ranger and then waved them through.
"You must know the owner pretty well if the guard recognized you," Stephanie said.
"I was here earlier today. He remembered me." Ranger turned the car off the road into a long drive. He parked near the street. "Let's start our walk here. We can get to the beach by going alongside the house."
"What house?" Stephanie said. "You mean that huge pink thing hiding behind the trees?"
"Yes, let's walk down and take a closer look."
As they walked, Ranger reached out and took her hand. She stopped walking which caused him to do the same. "Something wrong?" he asked.
"No. It's just I don't think we've ever held hands before."
"I'm sure we have. In fact, I had hold of both your hands in one of mine very early this morning."
Stephanie blushed. "I didn't mean that. I meant I don't think we've ever walked hand-in-hand. "
Ranger smiled at her. "Maybe you're right. It's nice though. Maybe we should make it a habit. C'mon." He tugged at her hand and they began to walk again. As they got closer to the house Stephanie stopped again.
"There's something familiar about this place," she said. "I'm sure I've never been here before, but I have this weird déjà vu feeling."
"Let's walk around to the beach side. Maybe you've seen it from that side."
"I don't think so, but let's go take a look."
When they were on the beach side and able to get a good look at the façade Stephanie uttered a soft "Aha!"
"You see it then?" Ranger asked.
"It's Alexander Ramos' house at Deal…on steroids!"
"That was my exact thought when I saw it. It's a large place. Seven bedrooms and ten bathrooms."
"You've been in this house?"
"No. I came out here earlier with a realtor. When I saw the pink stucco and then looked at the bones of the house, I remembered the house in Deal. I remembered how you put yourself in danger to get information for me. I remembered that Alexander Ramos proposed to you in front of his pink house."
"Well, yeah, right after he hopped in the car so I could take him to his bar."
"I thought maybe you deserved another proposal in front of a pink house." He let go of her hand and slipped his into his pants pocket. When it came out it was cradling a small robin's egg blue box.
"When we make love, Stephanie, it's as though we've never been apart. Our bodies instinctively connect. But we have been apart. You lived a whole life without me as I have without you. It will take time until we know all the parts of one another." He flipped open the box and she saw prisms of sunlight bounce off the facets of the diamond ring.
"I love you. I love every part of you, even the ones I haven't yet discovered. Will you accept this ring as my promise to spend the rest of my God-given time on this earth with you?"
He carefully knelt in the sand in front of her. "Will you marry me, Stephanie Williams?"
Her mouth opened in a silent "Oh." She sunk to her knees and reached out to wrap her hands around the box he was holding.
The corners of his mouth twitched. "Babe, what are you doing? I'm the one who is supposed to kneel."
"I don't want you to be below me. I want to be level with you. I want us to be even. You called me Williams."
"I did," he said. "That's who you are and that who I want to spend my life with. I'm glad you want us to be even. I want everything to be even between us. I want you to be my partner in all areas of my life. Will you marry me, Stephanie?"
"I will."
He took the ring out of the box and slipped it onto her finger. They stood then, brushing sand from their knees. She was suddenly shy and buried her head into his chest as his arms went around her. They stood for moments with the sun shining down on them, the breeze from the ocean ruffling her hair into a tangle of wild curls.
"What have we done?" she asked.
"Regrets already?" he asked. "I thought it would take longer for you to have second thoughts."
"I have no second thoughts. It's just that it's been such a short space of time since I thought you were dead, to finding you were alive, to saying I'd marry you."
"If you're worried about the future," he said. "Don't. I know you can't go back. I'm here permanently. More or less. I will have to travel back some, but I'm prepared to make my life here with you."
"Ranger!" His arms tightened around her and his lips met hers. Then his lips traveled from her mouth to her ear. He whispered softly.
The sound of the waves breaking on the shore interfered. She couldn't have heard correctly. "What?" she asked.
"I said did you ever imagine the Bat Cave would be pink?"
"Hah," she said and then the realization of his words struck her. "The Bat Cave, as in the Bat Cave is forever! You own this place?"
Ranger nodded. "I came out with a realtor earlier. My only requirement was I needed something on the ocean. When he showed me this house, I knew. I saw the pink and something clicked. I knew this was the house for us. So, I made an offer, it was accepted and if it passes inspection, it's ours."
"But, but you said you'd never been inside. You bought a house without going inside?"
"Babe, you just agreed to marry a man who's been absent from your life for over twenty years. Compared to that buying a house I haven't seen seems completely sane." He slipped the empty ring box back into his jeans pocket and pulled out a set of keys. "Let's go look at Casa Mañoso."
An hour later they were back at the same spot on the sand. "We're going to need a decorator," Stephanie said.
"Yep," he agreed. "For every room except one. I'd like to keep that third-floor bedroom just as it is!" He gave her an evil grin.
"The red velvet one? With the gold trim and white shag carpet You're kidding! It looks like a bedroom in some Rococo brothel!"
Ranger nuzzled her neck and gently nipped the corner of her ear. "My thoughts exactly."
She started to protest when unbidden, Lester's words came back to her. He said she should be walking her grandmother's path. She could only imagine what her grandma would have thought of the room. "Okay, I'll give on that one. We can keep the room."
"You won't regret it."
She took a moment to look again at the oceanside façade of what was to be her new home. "It' remarkable how much it resembles Alexander's house. I remember walking Bob down the beach and counting windows for you. Ranger, could we…" she hesitated. "Could we get a dog?"
He laughed. "We can get a dog. We can get two dogs. Babe, you can get a Rex."
She threw her arms around him and kissed him full on the mouth. "I love you," she said.
"We've got plans to make," Ranger said. "I don't want to wait to get married. The sooner the better. We'll have to live at your place for a while, until we get some renovations done. And then…you won't mind commuting from the island to work?"
"No, it's a quick drive. I might mind working if I'm living at the beach."
Ranger frowned. "If you don't want to keep your business you don't have to."
"I was kidding. I want to. I've worked long and hard to make it a success, and I want to keep it going. It turns out Lester's interest in the business couldn't be better timed. It will make it easier for me to have some time away."
"The partnership is going to happen then?" Ranger asked. "It looked like there was some discord between you. Are you going to tell me about it?"
"Eventually," she said. "He helped me put some things in perspective. And yes, I think we're going to be partners."
"Good, because I want you to have time away for a honeymoon. He can take care of things here. We need and deserve some time together to explore one another."
"Where would we go?" she asked.
"Anywhere you want to,' he replied.
"Are you sure I can pick?"
"Yes,"
She took his face in her hands and tilted it down so that he stared into the bluest eyes he'd ever known. He watched while they filled with tears that spiked her lashes and ran down her cheeks.
"Babe?"
"It's time, and it's the right thing," she said. "I want to go to Trenton."
"You're sure?"
"Yes. It's what Lester and I were discussing when you came into the office today. Cally wants to know the family she has, and it's her right. I can't keep her from it so the best thing to do is make it happen for her in the best way I can. But I can't do it alone. You have to help me."
"I do have to help you," Ranger said. "I promised you years ago that I'd always be there for you. I was robbed of the opportunity to fulfill that promise. I'm not letting anyone take that away from me again. We'll go to Trenton. And then we'll come home to Georgia, to whatever life holds for us."
He took her hand and they walked slowly, back around the house, and up the drive to the Porsche. They took one last look at the pink mansion that would become their forever home. And then they went back to Stephanie's house where they would make some phone calls, share their news and dare to dream of their future together.