The next morning I was up before Ranger and showered and dressed. I'd had a few moments of morning sickness that didn't even lead to that inevitable trip to put my head in the toilet so I was feeling pretty good about things. You could even say I was feeling cocky. I went downstairs and found Mitch was at the table in the breakfast room drinking coffee and reading the paper.

"Good morning Mitch," I smiled happily and poured myself a cup of coffee.

"Oh my God," he blinked at me. "You're up and perky. Has the morning sickness ended?"

"I don't think so," I smiled. "I think it's just easing off. I feel pretty good today. I'll even make breakfast. How do you feel about an omelet?"

"Ham and cheese," he smiled.

"I can do ham and cheese," I nodded. "Do you trust me to doctor it?"

"Of course," he nodded.

"How do you feel about mushrooms?"

"Go for it," he grinned and returned to his paper.

I hummed as I made breakfast including hash brown potatoes, sliced cantaloupe and the omelets. Ranger walked into the kitchen just as I finished the second omelet. "You're just in time," I smiled and met his quick soft kiss. "Have a seat and I'll fix your plate."

"You made breakfast," he blinked at me in surprise as he poured a cup of coffee.

"I did," I nodded. "I'm feeling pretty good this morning."

"I can see that," he went to sit across from Mitch. "Good-morning Mitch," he said reaching for the front page on the table.

"Morning Ric," he said absently. He lowered the paper and took another bite of the omelet. "Read the article about the downtown district refurbishment on page three. I'm wondering if that could have had anything to do with Mike's issue."

"Why do you say that," Ranger frowned.

"Because the article last week was about Unit," Mitch said seriously. "I think it might do us some good to hit the archives."

"It might be online at the Trentonian," I said putting Ranger's plate on the table in front of him. "They keep that stuff there."

"You're a genius," Mitch grinned at me. "I'll check it after breakfast. This omelet is great. You can doctor food for me anytime."

"Thanks," I beamed and went back to check on my own omelet. I joined the men at the table a few minutes later. "So, what's on the agenda today? Are we still here at home or do we have things to do?"

"Ranger has a doctor's appointment at ten," Mitch said. "They want to check his stitches and make sure he's healing okay. Then I promised Tank we'd come by and get Ranger to sign off on some stuff. They were going to bring it here, but since we're going to be out…" He smiled, "I think they just want to see you both and make sure you're alive and well."

"Then we'll do that."

"What do they need me to sign off on," Ranger frowned.

"Decorating stuff for the new building," Mitch shrugged.

"I'll bow to Stephanie on that one," Ranger said. "She's done everything here and it's perfect. I think I'll just let her continue on."

"Thank you," I nodded. "That could be fun."

"Oh and Mike called this morning. He wants us to meet him for dinner or lunch somewhere."

"How about Pinos," I suggested.

"Babe," Ranger sighed.

"I need pizza Ranger."

"Ask him if Pinos is okay for dinner," Ranger smiled and shook his head.

"I already did ask about Pinos," Mitch grinned. "She was salivating yesterday when I mentioned it. I'll make sure dinner is good."

Ranger grinned, "I bet. If she looked at me the way she looked at pizza..."

I raised a brow, "you really don't want to go there."

He laughed, "never mind…I'm better off."

Mitch shook his head and took his plate over and rinsed it before putting it into the dishwasher. "Thank you for breakfast Steph," he said kissing my head. "I'm going to check that idea online."

"Okay," I nodded.

Ranger watched him walk away and turned back to me and both brows went up. Maybe his single arch was broken.

"What," I blinked.

"You two are getting awfully chummy," he said quietly.

"He's a good guy," I smiled.

"Do I need to worry?"

I shook my head and rolled my eyes. "You've never had to worry. All you ever had to do was stake a claim."

"Good to know," he said and leaned over to kiss me.

"Hmmm…," I sighed against his mouth.

"What," he smiled back.

"Nothing," I sighed. The truth was now that my morning sickness was abating I was starting to feel that itch. You know the one I mean. The one where I look at Ranger like he's tastier than pizza and then… Well, I was feeling it. I think he knew it. He usually does. That damn ESP was hard at work. I could feel it.

"Okay," he smiled and sipped his coffee, "if you say so."

Hmmm, I wasn't sure if I liked this one at all. Since when has he agreed with me so easily? I was suspicious. Okay, I am usually suspicious, but now I'm even more suspicious.

Mitch came back into the kitchen with a printout of the article, "here it is. And I'm even in the picture with Mike." He handed the paper to Ranger.

Ranger skimmed the column, "well, there's nothing in the article that suggests anything. It says he's ex-Army and he was a Ranger. It says the place is frequented by the Military. It doesn't really disclose anything bad."

"I didn't see anything," Mitch agreed.

"Maybe it's because he's ex-military," I said before shoving the last bite of omelet into my mouth.

Both of the men turned to me curiously.

"Why would you say that," Ranger asked.

"Well, you guys are kind of badasses," I said after I swallowed. "I'm sure you've all pissed people off."

"Mike's been out for a long time," Mitch said seriously.

"Well, some memories linger," I shrugged and got up and took empty plates to the kitchen.

The two men looked at each other thoughtfully.

Great, I thought, there's another man who can do that silent communication shit with my husband that I'm not privy to.

After breakfast cleanup and Ranger's bandage change, we loaded into the SUV and headed for the doctor's office to have Ranger checked out. Dr. 'Funny Bone' Riley was waiting for us cheerfully.

"I've cleared some time for you," he said with a big grin. "Mr. Manoso, you know the drill. Go on and change into the gown."

"Is it necessary," Ranger sighed.

"Who's the doctor here," he grinned. "Look, there on the wall it says Bill Riley MD. I don't see your name on the wall, do you?"

Ranger shook his head and went behind the curtain to change.

"And how are you doing young lady," he beamed at me. "Word on the floor has it that we're going to see one more Manoso visiting us soon."

I blinked, "well, er…hopefully just for regular check-ups."

"Of course," he nodded.

Ranger emerged from behind the curtain and got up on the table obediently.

"Shall I wait outside," I asked.

"You may as well stay since you're going to be taking care of him," he smiled. "I don't want there to be any misunderstandings about how his care should be."

I grinned and raised a brow at Ranger who shook his head mournfully.

Minutes later he raised his head, "the wounds are healing nicely. We're going to go ahead and schedule an MRI for next Tuesday just to have a look on the inside and make sure everything is okay. But you're young and in good health so it shouldn't be a problem."

"Good," I said with a smile and felt my body sag in relief.

"Now young man," he met Ranger's eyes solemnly, "your wife is pregnant and the two of you can't continue to get into these fixes. If you need to lay low till the baby is born, then do that. But you honestly need to stay out of the emergency room for at least another nine months."

Ranger nodded, "I couldn't agree with you more."

"Good, then follow my instructions," he smiled.

"I'll do my best."

"He can't help it," I sighed. "We're in the suck zone."

"The suck zone," the doctor said in amusement. "What is the suck zone?"

"You know," I shrugged. "It's one of those places in the universe that chaos just naturally occurs."

He studied me thoughtfully, "normally I'd argue with you, but I've been in Trenton for almost two months now and I'd have to say…you could be on to something here. Well," he straightened, "just do your best."

"We will," I assured him.

"Now…the next time I see you will be at a benefit or at the birth of your child. I understand that Celia Jones is going to deliver your baby?"

"Probably not," I said sadly. "Unfortunately Celia is Ranger's sister, so…"

"Ah," he nodded. "Then someone else in her practice should be more than qualified to handle the situation."

"I hope so," I sighed. "I'll see her next week and she'll have to refer me then."

"I wish you both all the best and I'll see you next Wednesday morning and we'll take one more look see at your wounds and go over the results for the MRI. At this time I don't anticipate any problems, but we don't want to risk anything."

"Thank you Dr. Riley," I smiled.

"You know," he paused at the door as he was leaving, "I like it better when you call me Dr. Funny Bone."

I laughed as he exited.

Ranger got dressed and we headed over to Rangeman. Not everyone there knew that I was pregnant yet…I didn't think.

When we walked in we couldn't find anyone. We finally ran into Gabe in the hall and he motioned toward the conference room. When we opened the door, they all yelled surprise.

Word was out that we were pregnant.

"This isn't a baby shower," Natalie said hugging me.

"No way girl," Lula grinned hugging me tight. "We just thought we'd let you guys both know how happy we were about this and to give you a few things to get ready for this."

"Uh-oh," I blinked.

We had cake and punch and little finger sandwiches provided by Ella. We mingled for a while and I kept an eye on Ranger to make sure he didn't get too tired. The moment I saw him starting to sag I went straight to him and dragged him down to a chair and sat gently on his lap.

"You're tired," I whispered in his ear. "We need to go."

"No," he smiled and whispered back, "I'm fine. I'll just sit. You stay right here."

I shook my head with a smile, but I stayed on his lap carefully avoiding his wounds.

"So we hear that pregnancy has been a bear," Tank grinned. "Do you care to elaborate?"

"Who said it was a bear," I laughed.

"Lester," he laughed.

"Lester saw nothing," I laughed. "If you want to know how bad it's really been, you should ask Mitch. He bore the unfortunate brunt of my early onset morning sickness. I really feel bad for him. I owe him big time."

"You were sick a lot," Lula said wide-eyed.

"Want to field that one Mitch," I grinned.

Mitch shrugged, "she was sick if she was awake. She threw up everything she ate and a lot of things she didn't. It wasn't pretty."

"Thanks," I said with a sigh.

"Sorry Stephanie, but it was brutal," he grinned.

"Try being the one doing the throwing up," I said with a smile.

"When I came home, she barely looked at me," Ranger said sadly. "I believe she threatened me. She said I had done that to her and I needed to back off."

The room was filled with laughter.

"Is it better now," Woody asked.

"It is better now," Ranger nodded. "She only threw up once yesterday and she didn't throw up at all today. I have a feeling that she's a natural mommy."

"I know I'm jealous," Padma complained.

"So what else do I have to look forward to," I asked her with a laugh.

"Well swollen feet and legs, boobs the size of Texas, constipation, the inability to tie your shoes, exhaustion, and of course…hormones."

"Hormones," I blinked.

"I cry or laugh at the drop of the hat."

"Oh honey, it will be like you're living with my mother," I teased Ranger.

His eyes darkened slightly at my use of the endearment. "I quite like your mother," he reminded me.

"You're treading on dangerous ground."

"She left out the good stuff," Gabe grinned.

"Like what," Ranger asked with a smile.

"Well, like she's so cuddly now. She loves to cuddle. Her hormones don't just include her moods if you know what I mean. I'm exhausted too," he grinned.

Padma gasped and hit his arm before laughing with everyone else in the room.

"That's something to look forward to but I may not survive it. Tank, remind me to get extra life insurance."

"Ranger," I groaned.

"Sorry," he grinned at me.

"But the best part," Gabe said and his eyes softened, "is getting to feel your child move. Sometimes when we get the ultrasound he moves, but when we're in bed at night I put my hand on her belly and he moves around a lot. When I talk to him, he moves. It's like he can hear me. It's amazing." The room had grown silent with his words.

"Wow," I blinked.

"Wait," Natalie grinned, "you're having a boy?"

"We're having a boy," he laughed.

Everyone's attention shifted to Padma and Gabe. That left Ranger and I a few moments of just us in that sea of people.

"The bean is going to move," he said wide-eyed.

"Yes," I smiled. "Not for a while though. All the books say it's around sixteen weeks and I'm not quite at four."

He sighed and rubbed my belly lightly, "I want to talk to the bean. Can I read to her?"

I grinned. "You said her."

He groaned, "Well, that's just because you do. Can I read to the bean?

"I think that's a great idea," I sighed happily.

"We need to buy some children's books."

"As soon as we're mobile again, we'll hit the bookstores."

"Screw that, we'll go online," he shook his head.

"Oh yea," I sighed. "Yet another reason to never go to the mall."

He laughed and hugged me to him carefully. "We'll go back to the mall. I promise."

"Good…I'm going to need some retail therapy with all that's going on."

After the little get together that included a rocking chair, all kinds of baby books and children's books, saving us a visit to , Ranger pulled me to his office where the samples were all laid out along with the basic blue print of the building. Tank followed behind us and grabbed his notepad.

"Well, does anything jump out at you," Ranger asked.

"Do you mind if I ask you both some questions first?"

"Go ahead," Tank said relaxing in one of the chairs by Ranger's desk.

"When you visualize the place, do you picture a sterile office environment or someplace inviting? I mean do you think the client areas are the only ones to be comforting or do you consider the other areas to be equally important?"

"No sterile environment," Ranger shook his head. He looked around with a sigh. "I mean I like this place, but it doesn't feel like it's us anymore."

"No, it doesn't," Tank laughed. "We're all changing. Dude…you're having a baby. Did you ever think that would happen?"

"I never even dreamed it was a possibility," he admitted. "In any case, I think we'll go with warmer. As our lives change our wives and children will visit us here as well. I'd like them to be comfortable here."

"Me too," Tank nodded.

"That would be nice. Do you have some place dedicated to a children's area?"

"I didn't think of that," Ranger sighed. "When we originally planned this building, we didn't even…"

"It was unbelievable," Tank laughed.

"How about now," I asked.

"This extra conference room," Ranger pointed. "I never thought we'd really need it. We'll designate that space."

"Consider adding a couple of walls and a bathroom then," I suggested. "That way they won't have to leave that area and we can put babies and small children down for naps there. I expect you'll have some sick kids in here sometimes too, so you may as well be prepared for that too."

"Oh man," Ranger sighed. "Okay…Tank can you handle that?"

"I got it," he nodded.

"But for the rest of the house, warm but not over done," Ranger said seriously.

"I like your house," Tank admitted. "I mean once you got stuff in it, it has nice clean lines and no clutter, but it's warm."

I nodded, "Ranger?"

"I agree with him. We spend a lot of time here. There is no point in making it look like your standard Trenton office building."

"Okay," I nodded. I pointed to floor coverings and window coverings and wall coverings. I picked out furniture and colors and textures. I selected appliances for the apartments and paused. "What if I go see Natalie's friend, Gaby, for the other furniture?"

"I didn't think of that," Ranger said thoughtfully. "We got a great deal. I tell you what; hold off on all the furniture Tank. Let's check with that guy first. I think we can do amazing things with the office."

Tank nodded, "I'll get these things to the builder so he can order and I'll trust you two to take care of the other. You know the frame is up and they're putting on the exterior now."

"I know," Ranger nodded. "Mitch went by and took some pictures for me. It looks good."

"Lula's keeping an eye on it," Tank grinned and shook his head. "She says she has to protect her investment."

"Good for her," I laughed.

We sat around just discussing stuff for a while. We even touched on the explosion and Mike's issues. The two men figured it might be someone who Mike had refused to pay protection money to. They would check that out.

We killed a little more time till it was time to go meet Mike at Pinos.

Pinos is a cop place. There are almost always cops there. Tonight was no exception. When we walked into the restaurant I saw Terri and Isabella immediately at a table in the back.

"I'll find you later," I said with a smile and went to her table.

"Fancy meeting you here," Terri grinned.

"Wow, she's grown a mile," I sighed. "She's so pretty. She's even prettier awake than she is asleep."

"She's pretty great," she agreed and looked at her daughter adoringly. "So Pino was starting to worry about you. He says you haven't been in for a while."

"Yea, well, Ranger was in the hospital and I haven't been…can you keep a secret Terri?"

"Sure," she nodded.

"I'm pregnant," I beamed.

"Oh that's great," she laughed. "How far are you?"

"Almost four weeks," I sighed.

"Have you had any morning sickness yet?"

"Oh yea," I sighed. "But if I get one of these," I stroked the baby's head, "in the end it will be so worth it."

"It is," she nodded. "I promise."

I sighed, "I guess I better get back to my husband before he sends out a search party." I got to my feet. "Things are better…right?"

"Much better," she assured me. "Thanks."

"Hey…no problem," I shrugged. "You and Isabella deserve everything."

"Thanks," she smiled. "So do you."

I got up and headed toward Ranger and almost ran into Joe on the way. "Oh hey, I was just saying hi to your wife and daughter."

"I saw that. I better get to them before they eat all the pizza," he grinned and continued past me.

Yea, that's the way it's supposed to work. We ran into each other and were polite and even friendly, but we each had our own family as our priority. We were finally getting there.

I scanned the room and found Ranger in the corner and went to the booth and sank down beside him. "Did you order yet?"

"Yea," he nodded. "Don't worry, I didn't order you a salad. I got what you wanted."

"Thank you," I smiled.

"Isabella has really grown," he said softly.

"I know," I sighed. "She's almost four months old now."

"Wow," he sighed.

"You realize that Padma is almost six months pregnant," I sighed. "She just has another three months of this."

"We need to enjoy every minute of it," he said seriously.

"We will," I assured him, "except for the vomiting and all that other stuff that Padma mentioned.

"Yea, that stuff," he grimaced. "But the stuff Gabe mentioned…bring it on."

I laughed as Mike and Mitch sat down across from us.

"Steph, my chef's are in love with you and they haven't even met you. They devoured the cheesecake you sent with me and they've made quite a few practice ones since. I'm not sure if they're really practicing or just in love with the food."

I laughed.

Ranger shook his head, "it's the food…trust me, it's the food."

Mike nodded, "oh…I heard from the police today. My financials are clean. They've checked with the local snitches and nobody had a beef with me. As far as they can tell there's no reason for anyone to have bombed the restaurant at all. They say it just doesn't make sense."

My lips pursed thoughtfully, "well, then if it's not because of anything you've done directly here in Trenton…"

"Steph, I told you Mike got out a long time ago," Ranger said seriously.

"I know," I nodded. "But like I told you, bad feelings linger."

He sighed.

Mike frowned, "I'll be honest with you Steph. I don't know how that could be. Now if you told me that someone was after Ranger for his past misdeeds, I could see my way clear. I mean almost everyone in our unit had something going on and that includes our boy Mitch here," he patted his back. "But I'm telling you, I was a choir boy in comparison."

"That doesn't really let you off the hook," I teased. "I am Catholic. I have known a large number of choir boys."

He grinned, "Mama Manoso must love you."

"You said it," Ranger nodded and leaned back as the pizza was placed on the table between us.

Okay, after that they kept talking but it was mostly white noise to me. Ranger has a zone when he drives. I have a zone when pizza is involved. Sue me.

The next thing I knew, I was pushing back from the table with my hand on my belly.

"What's wrong," Ranger frowned.

"I'm full," I said and I think I whimpered.

"But…you only had two pieces," he said wide-eyed.

A tear slid down my face, "I'm full."

He put his arm around me. "We'll get another one to go. You can eat it at home when you feel like it."

"Really," I whispered.

"Really," he kissed my forehead.

"I love you," I sighed happily.

He just grinned. What do you expect? He hasn't been to therapy yet.

Half an hour later we were in the truck to return Mike to his condo. One of his employees had dropped him off at Pinos after Mitch promised him a ride home since his jeep was in the shop.

I was leaning lightly against Ranger feeling content and more than just a little sleepy when all hell broke loose. Mitch suddenly accelerated and I heard the all too familiar pop of gunfire.

"Fuck," I groaned and dived to the floor with my pizza box and Ranger on top of me.